Our study of Eric Carle continued this week as we read The Very Busy Spider, The Very Clumsy Click Beetle, and Draw Me A Star.  The first tells the tale of a spider who will not rest and will not play until she has spun a web, the illustrations of which are raised so that the children can feel the bump in the page.  The second describes a young click beetles persistence as he tries and tries to learn how to click and launch himself through the air.  The third follows a young artist as his imagination helps him to create an entire world, beginning with a simple star.  As we read these books this week, we tried a variety of interdisciplinary activities.

Art Projects:  Eric Carle’s books lend themselves so nicely to studies in illustration styles and different ways to use materials.  This week, we practiced painting on foil, which was noticeably different from painting on paper.  The strokes of the brush bristles, for example, were much more obvious on the foil.  We also had to use a different kind of paint that would not simply flake off the foil.  After painting several sheets of foil, we cut them into small pieces and used them to make mosaic stars of our own!  Each child used a piece of sturdy paper cut into the shape of a star, then glued on small pieces of painted foil.  The beautiful results are now adorning our classroom!

Fine Motor Projects:  As preschoolers, most of our students are really beginning to strengthen their fine motor skills.  They are mastering their ability to pinch and grasp small objects, as well as to  accurately direct their hands to do what their eyes and brains want them to.   This week, we practiced our fine motor skills by creating our very own click beetles!  The children colored their own click beetles onto paper, then cut them out and attached them to clothespins using double-sided tape.  After a few rounds of practice (just like the beetle in the story), the Tugboats were able to launch their click beetles high into the sky!  We also practiced drawing our own stars using a connect-the-dots activity designed by Peter.

Math Projects:  We continued our study of counting, one to one correspondence, and even basic addition this week with our Star Math activity.  As a group, we selected a piece of paper from a deck with “star math” equations on them.  Each sheet of paper asked us to compile groups of colored stars, with designated numbers, and then count the stars in our night sky.  The children took turns identifying the color star we needed, as well as the number of stars.  Individually, they took turns counting along as we pulled the desired number of each color.  As a group, we all counted aloud together to see how many stars we had in total.  The groups were mixed in terms of challenge level, which enabled the more independent students to mentor the students who needed more support.  For some children, the challenge of the task was identifying the color or the printed number.  Others were challenged by counting along with the group.  Others, still, practiced actually adding the numbers on their fingers or by counting the stars.

Check out these moves—Dance for AC!

We explored 3 new books this week in our study of iconic author and illustrator, Eric Carle: Little Cloud, The Very Busy Spider, and Does A Kangaroo Have A Mother Too?  In preparation for Mother’s Day, we read about different families in the animal kingdom and the different names each animal uses.  Did you know, for example, that a baby kangaroo is called a joey?  We did a few top secret surprise projects, which you won’t read about here!  We also read a timely story of a cloud that morphs from a small white cloud into a large storm cloud, just in time for our 3 days of rain.  Finally, we enjoyed reading about an arachnid with a purpose who will not stray from her task!  In keeping these stories, the Tugboats tried a variety of large and small group projects.

Science and Sensory Projects:  After reading about clouds, the Tugboats explored three different types of clouds: cirrus, stratus, and cumulus.  We examined photographs of each kind of cloud, noticed their differences and similarities, and imagines what type of cloud Little Cloud was as each different shape.  Next, we used cotton balls and glue to make our own representations of the 3 types of clouds.  One type was stretchy and thin, one was thicker and more bunched up, and a third was very large and puffy.  Another day, we used a mixture of flour, salt, and water (applied to blue paper and mircrowaved to firm it up) to create our own Little Cloud shapes!  For our Spider study, we emulated the texture illustrated in the book by making our own spider webs!  Each child used his or her thumbprint as the basis for a spider, then used black crayon to add 8 legs and a web.  We painted over our webs with glow-in-the-dark puff paint for a creepy look and feel!

Art Projects:  We celebrated National Doodle Day yesterday by doodling our very own spider web!  A small group of kiddos used a large piece of paper on the floor, which was adorned with several black dots.  Working together, they connected the dots with lines that formed a giant spider web.  Next, they used crayons and markers to add spiders, other insects, and even pizza for them to eat!

Math Projects:  As we continue to practice, one to one correspondence, reinforcing the idea that numbers represent quantities of objects, we played two new games this week.  First, for Cloud Math, a small group of Tugboats used a deck of clouds shaped like numbers 0-9, several paper raindrops, and several flower-shaped erasers to play a game.  One player would draw a cloud from the deck, set it on the floor, then apply the number of flowers and raindrops that correspond to the shape of the cloud.  For Spider Math, another small group used pre-cut paper spiders, glue sticks, 6-sided dice, and a paper drawn into a 2×3 grid.  Taking turns, each child would roll his or her die and glue the corresponding number of spiders into one of the squares, writing the number he or she rolled into the square as well.

We were so excited to spend time in our garden this week as well!  Our garden tender parent helper, Erin, built some beautiful raised beds, installed colorful tomato cages, and constructed a sort of tent for beans to climb!

With the ending of our alphabet curriculum, we began our newest unit this week: an author study of Eric Carle!  Carle is one of the most iconic authors and illustrators in children’s literature; his simple and repetitive narratives couple with his bright, vibrant illustrations to create the perfect stories for children in the preschool age group.

This week, we read Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and The Grouchy Ladybug and designed many interdisciplinary projects and activities to accompany the stories.

Math Projects:  Both books we read this week provided ample opportunities for development of a variety of math skills.  Brown Bear, for example, shows a multitude of animals with differing numbers of legs.  Sounds like a sorting project to me!  We also invited children to bring in bears from home on Tuesday, which we used to develop categories to describe our bears and make a graph.  When reading Ladybug, we discussed how each ladybug has a different number of spots.  Using paper ladybugs (each labeled with a different number), the children played a counting game to match the correct number of spots to each ladybug.  Throughout that story, the grouchy ladybug encounters a different insect or animal each hour, so the children took some time this week to make their own clocks, each labeled with the corresponding creature!

Science and Sensory Projects:  While Brown Bear focuses on what animals can see, we took the chance to talk about all 5 of our senses.  One small group this week played “Tugboat, Tugboat, What Do You Smell?”  They brainstormed different things we may smell, then drew pictures to accompany their list.  When we moved on to ladybug, we were thrilled to welcome dozens of new visitors to our classroom: a swarm of ladybugs!  Settled safely in containers, the Tugboats practiced their observation skills by quietly, carefully studying these tiny creatures and talking about what they saw, smelled, or even heard.

Language Projects:  Literature is clearly a language activity on its own, but it can also be a brilliant spring board for further development.  When we brought our bears to class, for example, the children practiced conversation skills by taking turns, describing their bears, and listening to one another.  With a small group of younger Tugboats, we did an activity in which they had to hold up a crayon whose color corresponded to the different animals found in Brown Bear, identifying colors by name and connecting them to similar objects.  We capped off the week by making masks for each animal the Grouchy Ladybug challenges with fights on his journey, then acted it out.  In the end, we all agreed that it was far more fun to share the aphids in friendly way!

The time has come for us to say goodbye to our alphabet curriculum.  We’ve studied every letter for a week and spent two weeks in general review and we are ready to move on!  Some highlights of our review week include:

Alphabet Games!

As you saw earlier in the week, we spent a lot of time in small groups working on projects catered to each child’s challenge level.  We used play dough and cookie cutters to make letter shapes.  Sensory projects are a great introduction to letter formation for little hands that are not yet ready to coordinate with little eyes for writing!  We played matching games, like the clothespin and sock game, which also challenges children’s fine motor development as they pinch and line up the pins on the line.  The children also played some tricky cognitive games like What’s Missing, in which they study a set of letters, then one is mysteriously taken away while their eyes are closed, and they have to figure out what’s missing!  Another game that we played as a large group was Bingo!  The children were given cards of either 3×3 or 5×5 squares based upon their challenge level.  As Peter called out letters, the children had to listen for the letter, identify what it looked like, and locate it on their cards.  Everyone was a winner!

Alphabet Math!

We love interdisciplinary projects here at HCS.  One of our small group projects this week was to create a graph indicating how many letters each Tugboat had in his or her name.  Using a roster to count the letters in each name, a group of older kiddos used swatches of patterns to indicate which column each friend fell into.  Sorting activities are also great for developing pre-math skills and we did plenty of sorting this week!  During snack on Tuesday, each child had a card with a random assortment of letters.  At each table was a pile of letter cookies.  Before enjoying their delicious snack, each child had to locate the letters that corresponded to those on their cards.  They could work independently or as a group to be sure that everyone was able to have a tasty and educational treat!

Alphabet Art!

No day at Harbor City is complete without a few art projects!  The Tugboats strengthened their fine motor skills by practicing writing their letters with a variety of materials.  Younger children used sponges and stamps in the shape of letters to make their marks while older children practices with pencils, markers, and crayons of various thickness.  Everyone had a blast writing their names on the sidewalk in chalk at the Bremen St. Park!

Of course, we spent plenty of time exploring other interests that our students bring to the table.  For the past few weeks, we’ve been inundated with acrobats from “The Apple Circus!”