Brown Bear's Colors 9/30

Daily Question:  Do you have a favorite color? (Sign in with it.)

Student's Favorite Colors:

Anna: yellow
Ben: blue
Eva: purple
Harris: blue
Lena: purple
Lukas: blue
Maelo: blue
Raegan: purple
Tanner: red
Zakai: orange

Toys:  Color puzzles (red, yellow, and blue), colorful foam blocks,  Zhu Zhu Pets.

Snack:  Dried apple slices and Gold fish crackers
During snack time Lena reminded another boy about Miss Jessica's saying, "Ah-Shucks!  Maybe next time! (...I will get the colored square in Circle Time or a certain chair at the snack table...) 
 

Calender Time:  Can you believe it is the last day of September!?  Fall is flying past.
Fishbowl Game:  Each student chose a colorful fish and told the class what color it was before pushing it into the fishbowl.
 
Language Arts:  We had a lot of fun reading and then retelling the story of Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?  We then played a memory game with the animals and colors to see if we could remember what animal and what color came next.

 

Color Scavenger Hunt:  Miss Jessica hid color signs around our class and we had a fun time "spying" colors and collecting our color signs and hanging them on the window.

Recess fun today!  So glad there wasn't rain to spoil our fun.

Songs:
We enjoyed singing the "I Can Sing a Rainbow" song and identified which colors were on our clothes!

I Can Sing a Rainbow* by Arthur Hamilton

Red and yellow and pink and green
Purple and orange and blue
I can sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow too.

Listen with your eyes,
Listen with your ears,
and sing everything you see,
I can sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow,
sing along with me.

Red and yellow and pink and green,
Purple and orange and blue,
I can sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow too!

Most of the students were wearing the colors of the rainbow! We lined up in rainbow order.

*Parents, please note that the true colors of a rainbow are ROYGBIV: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. (We also point out the silly line that talks about "listening with your eyes" and explain what that lyrical license means--we are "looking" for colors.)

Brown Bear Color Activity:

 

Books:
Eating Our Alphabet!
Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr. and Eric Carle
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert
Blue Hat, Green Hat by Sandra Boynton
Good Night Sweet Butterflies: A Colour Dreamland (Scholastic) Bentley/Cahoon

Bear Picnic Day! 9/25

Bear Picnic Day!

Daily Question:  Hip Hip Hooray!  It's Bear Picnic Day.  Are you excited?

Gathering Activity and Introductions:  Bean bag chairs with many Bear books preschoolers could "read" to their bears this morning.  We had fun learning about our bears (names, types, etc.)  We also enjoyed reading aloud Bear Snores On and The Three 
Bears.

Bear Facts (Science):  We learned all about bears today.  We learned that bears live on almost all of the continents.  There are many different varieties of bears: brown bear, black bear, polar bear, panda bears, sun bear (Malaysia), etc.  Bears eat many different foods: fish, honey, berries, grubs, ants, insects, and people food too (and so campers need to take care of their food and put it away from hungry bears).  Bears are different sizes and colors and sometimes a bear's fun helps it in it's environment...short hair for bears in warm humid climates and long hair for bears that live in coldren climates.  White fur  for those that live in the snow, etc.  We also saw a number or bear dens and talked briefly about "hibernation."

We read some great stories together, including We're going on a Bear Hunt.  Then we went on a bear hunt with our bear and stuffed animal friends and our snack bags.

Bear Hunt and Picnic:  We're Going on a Bear Hunt...

 We're gonna catch a big one!

 It's a beautiful (cold) day!

 We're not scared!

 Bear spotting--maybe up a tree ahead!

Looking for bears in the "forrest."

Picnic Time!

 Story Time:  My Friend Bear (or It's The Bear)

Our Bear Bunch!

Bb Circle Time and Show N' Teach:

B the Bear blows bright blue bubbles...bah, bah, bah 

is the sound she makes while blowing upon her bubble blower.  (Each student practices blowing bubbles and saying the B sound, "bah, bah, bah."

Our Bear Names:

Anna: Little Teddy

Ben: Marshall

Eva: Seriona

Harris: Care Bear

Lena: Corduroy

Lukas: Puppy

Maelo: Jack

Raegan: Cinderella

Tanner: Lightning McQueen

Zakai: Miss Jessica's Bear

 B the Bear Activity Page:

Bear Songs:

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear

Author: Unknown
Teddy bear, teddy bear,
Turn around.
Teddy bear, teddy bear,
Touch the ground.
Teddy bear, teddy bear,
Shine your shoes.
Teddy bear, teddy bear, Skidoo.

Teddy bear, teddy bear,
Go upstairs.
Teddy bear, teddy bear,
Say your prayers.
Teddy bear, teddy bear,
Turn out the light.
Teddy bear, teddy bear,
Say good night.

The Bear Went Over the Mountain
Author: Unknown
Tune: For He's a Jolly Good Fellow
The bear went over the mountain,
The bear went over the mountain,
The bear went over the mountain,
To see what he could see

To see what he could see,
To see what he could see

The other side of the mountain,
The other side of the mountain,
The other side of the mountain,
Was all that he could see

Was all that he could see,
Was all that he could see,
The other side of the mountain,
Was all that he could see.
 
We're Going On A Bear Hunt
(Children repeat each line after adult.)
We're going on a bear hunt,
We're gonna catch a big one,
What a beautiful day,
We're not scared.
Oh oh!
Grass,
Long, wavy, grass.
We can't go over it,
We can't go under it,
We've gotta go throught it!
Swishy swashy, swishy swashy.
We're going on a bear hunt,
We're gonna catch a big one,
What a beautiful day,
We're not scared.
Oh oh!
Mud,
Thick, oozy mud.
We can't go over it,
We can't go under it,
We've gotta go throught it!
Squelch squelch, squelch squelch
We're going on a bear hunt,
We're gonna catch a big one,
What a beautiful day,
We're not scared.
Oh oh!
A river,
A deep, cold river.
We can't go over it,
We can't go under it,
We've gotta go throught it!
Splish splosh, splish splosh.
We're going on a bear hunt,
We're gonna catch a big one,
What a beautiful day,
We're not scared.
Oh oh!
A forest,
A big, dark forest.
We can't go over it,
We can't go under it,
We've gotta go throught it!
Stmble trip, stumble trip.
We're going on a bear hunt,
We're gonna catch a big one,
What a beautiful day,
We're not scared.
Oh oh!
A cave,
A scary, dark cave.
We can't go over it,
We can't go under it,
We've gotta go throught it!
Tiptoe, tiptoe.
(Say the following verse all together and quickly.)
OH NO IT'S A BEAR!!!
Quick!
Through the cave, tiptoe, tiptoe,
Through the forest, stumble trip, stumble trip,
Through the river, splish splosh, splish spolosh,
Through the mud, squelch squelch, squelch squelch,
Through the grass, swishy swashy, swishy swashy.
Run to the house, run up the stairs,
Oh oh forgot to shut the door!
Run back downstairs, shut the door,
Run back up, to the bedroom,
Jump into bed, pull up the covers,
WE ARE NEVER GOING ON A BEAR HUNT AGAIN!!

Bear Songs on CD: Car Ride Fun/Animal Songs
#5 Teddy Bear's Picnic
#17  Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear.
#27  The Bear Went Over the Mountain

*Bear Books:
Little Bear (series) by Else Holmelund Minarik, Ill. by Maurice Sendak
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr., Ill. by Eric Carle
Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear? by Nancy White Carlstrom, Ill. by Bruce Degen
It's About Time, Jessie Bear and Other Rhymes by Nancy White, Ill. by Bruce Degen
Bears, Bears, Everywhere (A Rookie Reader)
The Bear next Door by Ginnie Hofmann
Can't You Sleep, Little Bear? by Martin Waddell, Ill. by Barbara Firth
The Red Ribbon; A Story of Friendship by Kristine Lombardi, Ill. by Thomas Taylor
Mr. Bear to the Rescue by Debi Gliori
(Goldilocks and ) The Three Bears; A Little Golden Book.
Goldilocks and The Three Bears (Caldecott Honor Book) by James Marshall
It's The Bear! by Jez Alborough
Tops and Bottoms by Janet Stevens
We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen, Ill. by Helen Oxenbury
Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson, Ill. by Jane Chapman
Bear Wants More by Karma Wilson, Ill. by Jane Chapman
Pooh's Basket of Surprises (Jellybean Books--Disney's Winnie the Pooh)
Arthur's Honey Bear by Lillian Hoban
Corduroy by Don Freeman
Bears Odd, Bears Even (Puffin Math Easy to Read, 2) by Harriet Ziefert, Ill. by Andrea Baruffi
The Berenstein Bears (series) by Stan and Jan Berenstein
Can You See a Little Bear? by James Mayhew and Jackie Morris
The Bear With The Golden Hair by Karla Kuskin, Ill. by Linda Yakel
Bear Hugs by Kathleen Hague, Ill. by Michael Hague
Big Bear's Treasury; A Children's Anthology (Candlewick Press, Vol. 1, 3, & 4)
Baby Bear's Treasure; 25 Stories For the Very, Very Young (Candlewick Press) *
The Three Bears Holiday Rhyme Book by Jane Yolen and Jane Dyer (Month Poems)
The Biggest Bear by Adam Relf (oversized, light up constellation) by Scholastic
The Big Baby Bear book by John Prater * Perfect anthology for preschoolers 

Bear Movie Activity:
Scholastic has made the book Corduroy into a short movie for children.

Bubble Trouble (Letter B) 9/23

Daily Question:  Do you like bubbles? Our class all voted YES!

Toys: Bug hand puppets, Blocks: wood, foam, color; Buckaroo! Game, Bug print making, Baking (wooden cookie set), Skee-Ball, Baby dolls,

(Raegan draws self)

 

Snack: Banana slices and "Butterfly" pretzels.

Recess:  Enjoy playing outside in the sunshine with bubble blower, balls, the airplane teeter-totter and ride on toys.

B the Bear's Blows Bright blue bubbles, "b-ah,b-ah, b-ah" is the sound she makes while blowing through her bubble blower.  Students make the sound while bringing up a bubble blower to their lips.


B Bear's Bubble Art: (or Bubble Stationary). Mix 1/2 C. water, 3 T. Tempera Paint, and 1 T. liquid dish soap in a cup. Put a straw into the cup and gently blow into the straw until it makes bubbles at least an inch over the cup. Turn the piece of paper over and let the paint bubbles pop on to the sheet. Enjoy!

A Finger Painting Activity: While a child is doing the bubble art with one teacher, the other children are finger painting A the Alligator and the ant maze.

We are working on a lot of "Be"s:

Bee-ing nice, 

bee-ing kind, 

bee-ing friendly,

bee-ing helpful, 
bee-ing polite and using our table manners,

bee-ing clean (and helping put away toys), 

bee-ing dry 

Letter B Explorers

We spied a bunch of B words:

Basketball, bean bag, bubbles, bubble gum, bear, bag, book, banana, balloon, baby, bottle, blanket, blue, brown, and black, boy, bird, backhoe, bucket, bugs (and worms after the rain), bike, bunny, bump, bonk, bam, bus toy, beads, Lena's Buns, "Beauty" toy and Ben (Benjamin).

B Books:
Bubble Trouble by Joy N. Hulme and Mike Cressy (Rookie Reader)

The Berenstains' B Book by Stan and Jan Berestain
The Bike Lesson; Another Adventure of the Berenstain Bears by Stand and Jan Berenstain
It's Not Easy Being a Bunny by Marilyn Sadler, Ill. by Roger Bollen
Bembo's Zoo: An Animal A B C Book by Roberto de Vicq de Cumptich
Busy
Book

*Remember for next time to send your student with a bear and bag snack lunch (and possibly a light sweat shirt/rain jacket if the weather is cool).

Apples and Applesauce 9/18

Daily Question:  Have you ever made applesauce? About half the class has and half have not.

Toys: Apple Memory Game, FP Village, Train Table, and color puzzles.

We found the "A's" in our names!

 

 Fun peeling apples.

 






 
APPLES!

Science:  Do apples float?  Initially, our apples sank to the bottom of the sink (with little water) and many students guessed that an apple would NOT float.  As the water rose, so did the apples!  Apples FLOAT in water!  The principle behind this is that anything that is less dense than water will float and apples contain about 25% air and are less dense that water and so they float--leading to a fun game in the Fall,  Bobbing for Apples.

Applesauce activity: We had so much fun peeling the stickers off our apples; giving them a bath/rinse in hot, soapy, water and then taking turns using an Apple Peeler/Corer/Slicer to help us make our very own applesauce!  An abstract recipe:

 Homemade Apple Sauce

Peel several apples (different varieties make it especially sweet.  Great for older "grumpy" apples).

 Core and slice up the apples.

Place in pot with a shallow layer of boiling water and a pinch of salt.

Turn apples down to a simmer and partially cover.  

Refill water when pan sounds "dry."  

When apples turn somewhat translucent (after 10-15 minutes), take off the heat and allow to cool some.  

Use a potato masher to squish up apples (my children love to help with this) or ladle apples into a blender and gently process.  

When finished to desired consistency, ladle into bowls and top with cinnamon and or cream and enjoy!

Apple Exploration!  What does an apple look like?... taste like?... sound like?...feel like?...smell like?  Today we found out.  We used various words to describe our apples--hard, round, red, green, yellow, sweet, juicy, etc. 

Apple Facts: We learned that another word for apple seed is a pip.  (Lemons seeds are also called pips.)  Also, we cut an apple in half and learned that it hides a star inside.

Johnny Appleseed, Myth or Man?  Man!

John Chapman, often called Johnny Appleseed, was an American pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to large parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, including the northern counties of present day West Virginia. Wikipedia

Born: September 26, 1774, Leominster, MA

Died: February 18, 1845, Fort Wayne, IN

Song:  Johnny Appleseed Grace (Song)

(For a link to the music and other verses click on the above underlined song title.) 

Oh, the Lord's been good to me.

And so I thank the Lord

For giving me the things I need:

The sun, the rain and the appleseed;

Oh, the Lord's been good to me.

For the old Disney version, see here.(Click on the link and hear the music)

We had fun with our Show N' Teaches and will get to our A
Finger Painting Activity on Tuesday.

 We learned that A the alligator is angry because ants took his adorable apples, "A a a! Bring me back my apple!" he calls.  Students make their hands into fists and shout "a" with A the alligator.  In the finger painting activity, student made an ant path up the maze to the apple.

Parents, thank you for sending in apples/apple slices with your student.  We had a fun day exploring apples.

Comments:  

• Lukas: "I have an apple tree in my backyard!"
• Lena: "Look--my apple is green and red!"

Show and Teach (The Letter "A"):

• Tanner: Grandma's genuine alligator head
• Anna: A toy alligator
• Lena: A FP airplane and Princess Ariel doll
• Raegan: A "bendy" alligator toy
• Eva: apple puppet
• Harris: Straw hat (A for Amish)
• Ben: Lightning McQueen car (red like an Apple)
• Zakai: Towel with a monkey on it, that had his name "Zakai" on it

Books Read:

Johnny Appleseed: A Poem by Reeve Lindbergh, Paintings by Kathy Kakobsen

Little Apple: A Book of Thanks by Brigitte Weninger and Anne Moller 

Apples Here! Written and illustrated by Will Hubbell

Ten Apples Up on Top by Dr. Suess

Preschool to the Rescue by Judy Sierra and Will Hillenbran

Ten Red Apples by Pat Hutchins (Math Counting, backwards from 10-0)