The following idea come from Tracy's website at Lil Treasures Child Care
Sneaky Snake!
The aim of this alphabet activity by Joy H. is to reinforce the sound and form of the letter "s".
Materials: Round white stickers, black construction paper, white labels for writing children's names.
Description: Teachers give each child a set of stickers and a piece of construction paper. Ask them to create a snake with the stickers. Their stickers can go anyway they like because a snake can be in any form. When they are finished talk about how the word snake starts with the letter "S", Put a label on the bottom of their paper and write their name on it.
Gayle's Hint: Also talk about the hissing sound the snake makes and the slithering movements of snakes. As an extension to the art activity and discussions try a movement activity. Put on some soft music and ask children to move like Sneaky Snakes Slithering in the grass.
The following idea comes from Tracy's website at Lil Treasures Child Care
Picnic Baskets
Supplies:
Construction Paper
Crayons, Markers, or Paint
Stapler
Magazines
Make a picnic duplicate picnic basket patterns on white construction paper. Have the children decorate, paint, or color the baskets as they choose. After the children have cut the baskets out, staple around the outer edge so the basket is sealed closed. Then give the children several magazines with a lot of food item pictures to choose from. The children may then choose the food they would like to take with them on a picnic. After cutting or tearing out the pictures and placing them in the basket, have a pretend picnic inside.
The following ideas come from Amber Leigh at 123 Child.com
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear
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
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!
Kinds of Bears
Discuss the different types of real bears. Polar bears, grisly bears, etc.
Which kind do you have?
Invite the children to bring in their teddy bears. Ask the children what kind of bear their teddy bear is. I.e. grisly, polar, brown, koala.
Bear Match
Find some stickers with teddy bears on them, or kinds of bears. Make sure you have at least two of each kind of sticker. Place two of each sticker on it's own index card. Have the children pick out one card. Then find it's match.
Teddy Bear Picnic
Have a picnic on the floor or outside with each child's favorite teddy bear. You can either pretend to eat, or have snack or lunch picnic style.
Teddy Bear Wagon
Obtain a box that the teddy bear will fit into. Have the child decorate as desired. When dry, poke a hole big enough to thread a piece of yarn through. Tie a piece of yarn, just long enough for the child to hold, while the box rests on the floor. Let the child pull the wagon around with their Teddy Bear.
Teddy Bear Parade
Have a group of children line up, or walk around in a group, with their teddy bear's in their wagons, and have a parade. Play marching music.
Button Teddy Bears
Cut out Bear shapes from white construction paper. Have your child paint brown. When dry, let them glue on buttons for eyes and the nose.
Teddy Bear Jello
Make grape jello, use less water so the children can hold the jello better. Use a cookie cutter to cut out Teddy Bear Shapes.
Teddy Bear Counting
There is an awesome game out on the market. I saw it at a child care... then I found it at Target. It's 50 plastic counting bears. There are 5 different colors, with matching colored cups for sorting. Have the child place three bears in one cup, five in another... and so on.
or
Have the child sort the bears into the appropriate colored cup.
What is a Teddy Bear Made Of?
If you have an injured bear. Talk with your child about what a Teddy Bear is made of. Talk about the stuffing, the cloth, the eyes... and so on.
Pocket for Corduroy
Give each child 1/2 of a piece of construction paper. Cut out u-shaped pockets from cloth. Help the child glue around the sides and bottom of the pocket, and glue it to the construction paper. Do Not Glue the Top. Then after it dries, place something in the pocket, and pull it out. Let your child try.
The following ideas come from Rhonda Dunn at email: rhojomax47@oknet1.net:
Paperweight Fun
This project is VERY EASY to do.
What You Need
How To Make It
Rock
Pictures clipped from magazines
White craft glue
Paintbrush
Have the children chose a rock from the garden.
Clean it off.
Pick a picture that fits the rock.
Paint picture down with watered-down glue onto the rock.
The following songs, crafts and ideas come from Tracy's website at Lil Treasures Child Care
Raising a Butterfly
Have the Children search for caterpillars and put them in a terrarium, canning jar, 1 gallon sized bottle etc.
Give the caterpillar milkweed to eat! Let the kids observe with magnifying glass.
Let it actually crawl on the hands of those willing.
Eventually the caterpillar will eat its fill and make a crystallis. If you can catch that in action it is really cool.
hint: (from the Animal Planet Channel, Nature Nut Show) Put a damp folded piece of Paper towel into the jar so the caterpillar will have something to drink. Change it daily or it will mold.
Egg Carton Caterpillars
Cut the egg cartons in half down the center and have the children paint the egg cartons with paint or you can use markers or crayons. Take pipe cleaners and make antennas and legs, use fabric scraps or construction papers to make faces.
Ink blot butterflies:
Cut construction paper into butterfly shapes, have children spoon different colors on paint onto butterfly, fold in half and press together, open up - beautiful! I use pastel colors.
Tissue Paper Butterflies
Cut butterfly shapes from white construction paper. Set out assorted colors of 1-inch tissue paper squares, small containers of water and paintbrushes. Have the children paint the butterfly shapes with water and place the tissue paper squares randomly on the shapes. Have them count to ten, then remove the wet tissue paper to view their colorful creations.
Clothespin Butterflies
Cut various colors of tissue paper into 12-inch squares. Set out slot-type clothespins, colored pipe cleaners and assorted felt-tip markers. Have the children pinch their tissue squares together in the middle and then insert the tissue into the slots of their clothespins to make wings. Have them wind pipe cleaners around the heads of their clothespins, leaving two small ends sticking up to form antennae. Let the children use felt-tip markers to color on eyes and to draw designs on the clothespin bodies of their butterflies. Then tie the butterflies to lengths of fishing line or string and hang them from the ceiling or in a window.
Sandwich Butterflies
Make sandwiches and cut them into triangles. For each child place a pickle wedge in the center of a plate for a butterfly body. Then place a triangular sandwich on either side of the pickle for wings.
Caterpillars
Cut out circles of colored construction paper. paste circles together side by side slightly overlapping. Add legs and feelers from pipe cleaners...draw on a face.
Pompom Caterpillars
Glue three middle size pom poms together. paste on eyes and feelers. for fun you can put magnetic tape on back for magnet.
Wax paper butterflies
Shave crayons and place between a sheet of wax paper on news paper. cover with another piece of wax paper. Press iron for a few seconds, cut into butterfly shape.
Spring Butterflies
Supplies:
Food Coloring
Coffee Filters
Eye Dropper or Straws
Wooden Clothes Pin
Pipe Cleaner
Color small bowls of water with food coloring Using an eye dropper or a straw, scatter drops of colored water onto round coffee filters and watch the colors bleed and blend. While the filters dry draw eyes and body details on wooden clothes pins. Gather each coffee filter up in the center and clip with the clothes pin. Make antennea for each butterfly by inserting a pipe cleaner into the end of the clothes pin and twisting it secure. Bend the ends of the pipe cleaner to make it look realistic.You can use tissue paper instead of coffee filters for a multi-layered effect. Decorate with sequins and buttons. Make caterpillars from green pom-poms glued to a large paper leaf (with a bite taken out of it) for a before and after exhibit.
Fuzzy wuzzy caterpillar
Fuzzy wuzzy caterpillar in the garden creeps
He spins himself a blanket and soon falls fast asleep.
Fuzzy wuzzy caterpillar wakes up by and by
To find he has wings of beauty, changed to a butterfly.
Pretty little Butterfly
Pretty little butterfly, what do you do all day?
I fly around the flowerpots nothin' to do but play.
Nothin' to do but play. Darlin', nothin' to do but play.
So fly butterfly, fly butterfly don't waste your time away.
Pretty Butterfly (Sung to "Up on the Housetop")
First comes a butterfly Who lays an egg,
Out comes a caterpillar With many legs,
Oh, see the caterpillar Spin and spin.
A little chrysalis to sleep in.
Oh, oh, oh, look and see,
Oh, oh, oh, look and see.
Out of the chrysalis, my oh, my,
Out comes a pretty butterfly!
Butterfly song same tune as the elephant song
One but-ter-fly went out to play
on a daf-fodi-il o-ne day
She had such de-light-ful fun
She in-vi-ted an-oth-er but-ter-fly to come
Continue with 2, 3, 4, and....
Five but-ter-flies went out to play
On a daf-fo-di-il o-ne day
They had such de-light-ful fun
That they played in the sun till the day was done!
Bug Catcher
Supplies:
Oatmeal Container
Glue or Tape
Screen or Netting Material
Yarn
Use oatmeal container with lid. Cut large "window" in side and glue or tape screen on netting to inside over hole. Punch two holes in sides to add yarn handle.
Bug Puppets
Supplies:
Paper Lunch Bags
Glue
Construction Paper
Crayons or Markers
Use paper bags and have kids cut large circles for sections in bug and glue to paper bag, add face antennae, whatever. Also can make caterpillar puppet on tongue depressor with pompoms glued on, add wiggle eyes or buttons, and antennae.
Rock Bugs
Supplies:
Small Rocks
Glue
Pipe Cleaners
Paint
Misc. Supplies
Paint small rocks to look like ladybugs or other bugs. Use pipe cleaners for legs on spiders, overhead transparencies or sheet protectors for wings, tiny beads for big bug-eyes. Put a small piece of magnetic strip on the back if desired.
Bug Eyes
Supplies:
Egg Cartons
Markers or Paint
Pipe Cleaners
Cut the bottom of the egg carton so there are 2 cups to each section. You can get 6 on a 1 dozen egg carton. Cut the bottoms out of each section for eye holes. Let kids paint them or use markers on them. I've let them glue feathers and sequins on them. Use pipe cleaners for antennas. Punch holes on the sides and attach pipe cleaners, form pipe cleaners to fit around their ears.
Bug Fingers
Supplies:
Old Gloves
Pipe Cleaners
Scissors
Hot Glue or Tacky Glue
Misc. Craft Supplies
Cut the fingers off the gloves, they will be the bugs' body. Glue on pipe cleaners for legs, wiggly eyes, pompoms for noses, and feathers on back.(Or decorate as desired). Makes cute finger puppets.
Dot Butterfly
Supplies:
Construction Paper
Paint
Q-Tips
Cut out a large white butterfly. Glue a black strip of paper in the center on butterfly. Let children use a Q-tip to dip in paint and "dot" the butterfly wings with color.
Feet Butterflies
Supplies:
Construction Paper
Paint
Glue
Markers or Crayons
Have children take off shoes, dip feet into shallow pan of pastel paint. Step onto a piece of paper so feet are going outward from the heels together. When dry, add antenna with markers.
Dragon Fly
Supplies:
Paper Towel Roll
Construction Paper
Tape
Markers or Crayons
Use a paper towel tube and have them decorate a piece of paper (yellow) that fits around the tube..then tape it. Trace hands (2) and tape one to either side of the tube near the top. Add eyes- large (oval shapped- flat on bottom), so that they are sticking up above top of tube. It's really cute. Looks like it's clapping it's hands - it's actually flapping it's wings.
Sign Guestbook
Click on the sleeping daddy bear to go back to the themes index.
