Let’s sing together our song “Rise and Shine – Welcome to School Today” by Dr. Jean https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyAD2OoFuoY and our greeting song “Hello to all the children of the world”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nYjGy_ZUG8
My favorite Closing Song sung on “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” tune with movement:
Twinkle, twinkle little stars! Time is over and we say goodbye. (Open and close hands)
We had fun with all our friends. Let’s come back and do it again! (Arm moved up and back)
Twinkle, twinkle, little stars! What a wonderful bunch you are! (Blow kisses)
For the writing/reading process, have your child trace or copy (advanced skill) daily his/her name on paper/dry eraser board/ mini blackboard (kindergarten handwriting page) starting at the top of each letter (you could draw 🙂) either in all uppercase letters or just first letter in capital/uppercase and the rest in lowercase. If your child is starting to write on paper, you can write your child’s name with a highlighter and your child can use a crayon to trace it.
I realize that you might have to survey other members of your family for the question of the day so that your child have enough tally marks to count or have your child put more than one tally mark.
Riddle: What has a beak, is covered with black and white feathers, lays eggs and eats fish?
SEAL 🦭 / PENGUIN 🐧 / WHALE 🐳 / POLAR BEAR 🐻❄️
Make letter S shape:
- 2 big curves for capital S/ 2 little curves for Lowercase s. Your child use a finger to trace the letter starting at the top and going down (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bdV4U1tsGc) In order to start learning letters, your child will need a set of big curves, little curves, big lines and little lines in wood. You can purchase them at https://www.lwtears.com or make them your self. Here is a picture: http://cdn.lwtears.com/images/uploads/1_787_large.png)
- Wet-Dry-Try on small chalkboard (Handwriting Without Tears) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6p4LUEGbwM
- Play dough with small chalkboard (recipe: https://www.thebestideasforkids.com/playdough-recipe/) or you can purchase the Roll-A-Dough Set from Handwriting without Tears https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spjVLDXDixI
A whole week activity:
For the phonetic part, have a big yogurt container with a lid filled with small objects or pictures that start with the letter S (sad, sand, sandals, sausage, school, scissors, seaside, seesaw, sister, six, sky, sleep, small, snail, snake, soup, soap, socks, sound, snack, special, spider, star, start, summer, sun, sweets.) You might want to add a picture of an Goat, so that your child can say that Goat does not start with S! Here is a book of S word pictures: https://twistynoodle.com/the-s-book-2-minibook/ Also, you can add new objects/pictures starting with the letter S every day and let your child explore the container all through the week.
Science
How do penguins, aquatic flightless member of the bird family, stay dry? Your child learned on Polar Bear Day how arctic animals stay warm thanks to their blubbers. Brainstorm with your child why a penguin is not wet after it jumps in the icy water to catch a fish. Explain that a penguin’s entire body is covered with feathers and these have an oil-producing gland that makes their feathers waxy. The wax on its feathers will repel the icy water and will keep the penguin dry!
For our Penguin Waxy Feathers Experiment, you need (1) penguin paper https://twistynoodle.com/penguin-coloring-page/ , (2) piece of wax paper, (3) tape, (4) water, (5) blue food coloring, (6) cup, (7) dropper or spray bottle, and (8) white, black and orange crayons.
Hypothesis: Will the wax paper prevent the paper penguin from getting wet?
Directions:
1. Pour water in cup or spray bottle with 2 drops of blue food coloring.
2. Color the paper penguin with black, white and orange crayons.
3. Tape the piece of wax paper on top of paper penguin.
4. Spray with water bottle or drop colored water with a dropper on the wax covered penguin.
What does your child observe? Is the wax covered penguin paper absorbing the water or does water stay like pearls on the wax paper? What can your child conclude? (Wax repels water.)
Another fun science activity is to fill a bowl with ice cubes and engage your child to use a dropper or turkey baster filled with colored water (food coloring) to color ice cubes and watch them melt.
On the tune of “Oh, my Darling Clementine”, we can sing: what’s the weather, what’s the weather, what’s the weather like today? Is it cloudy, is it rainy, is it sunny, is it cold? (You can also change the weather words).
Let your child check the weather and tell you about it. You might want to ask your child to do a weather drawing that you can label. Some activities will be repetitive to create a routine that brings comfort to your child.
Language Arts
Let’s discover some penguin stories:
1. Penguin get the Hiccups by Tadgh Bentley https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeifQ8MqEwU
2.Five Little Penguins Slipping on the Ice by Steve Metzger https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJB1Y-RpVVE
3. Penguin Problems by Jory John and Lane Smith https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bscl0rEiK_g
4. Little Penguin by A.J. Wood (advanced) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHPPURACgQw
After viewing a book, help your child to sequence the story: what happened first, next,… at the end. The major theme all three books is facing an issue. Brainstorm with your child what you and your child do with a problem. Do you cry, do you leave, do you find a solution?
“I’m a Little Penguin” Song (“I’m a Little Teapot” tune)
I’m a little penguin with feathers white and black.
I waddle to the left. I waddle to the right.
When I feel hungry, I splash and splish.
I jump in the water and catch a fish!
“5 Little Penguins” Rhymes (Paper penguins at https://www.kidsparkz.com/news-blog/4-counting-rhymes-for-circle-time)
Five little penguins waddling in a row.
Five little penguins playing in the snow.
Brrrr! It’s very cold! It cannot stay!
And one little penguin waddles away.
Four little penguins………
“Five Little Penguins” Fingerplay
Five little penguins went out to play.
Sliding over the ice far, far away.
Mother Penguin said, “Squawk, squawk, squawk!”
But only four little penguins came back.
Four little penguins went out to play……
Math
Are you taller than a penguin? For this measuring activity, you need (1) 4 big sheets of paper, (2) crayons/markers, (3) drawing skills, and (4) tape.
Directions:
1. Draw 4 penguins of different sizes on different sheets of paper (Emperor penguin is 45 inches, King Penguin is 37 1/2 inches, Royal Penguin is 27 1/2 inches, and Rockhopper Penguin is 21 1/2 inches).
2. Tape paper penguins to a wall or floor and have your child stand or lay down in front of them. Is your child taller or shorter than the penguin? Have your child measure other things? Is a teddy bear taller or shorter? Allow your child to use a tape measure and/or ruler to measure as well.
December is here now! The calendar is a daily activity to do with your child that develop number and pattern recognition. Here is the link to print a calendar to update daily with your child. The set has a weather component, if you like. https://www.themailbox.com/magazines/december-calendar-set/december-calendar-set-2
Daily counting of tally marks and show your child a number card or write the number down to show your child. The numbers of the tallies will be different every day. Extend the concept by comparing numbers: which has more? Which has fewer? Which are the same? How many more (count with fingers)?
Art
For Penguin Shapes Art Project, you need (1) black, white, and orange construction paper, (2) scissors, (3) glue, and (4) black marker or 2 googly eyes.
Directions:
1. Cut 1 big oval, square, rectangle, circle, and triangle out of black construction paper.
2. Cut oval, square, rectangle, circle and triangle a little smaller than the black shapes to glue on black construction shapes leaving a black border.
3. Cut 3 hearts out of orange construction paper for each shape. Glue 1 under eyes for beak and 2 at the bottom of shapes for feet.
4. Draw 2 eyes with marker or glue 2 googly eyes on each shape.
5. You have now shape penguins! Picture http://www.preschoolactivities.us/penguin-craft-idea-for-kids-3/shapes-penguin-craft/
For Penguin Handprint Art Project, you need (1) black and white paint with brush, (2) sheet of white paper, (3) 2 googly eyes or black marker to draw eyes, and (4) small orange construction paper triangle.
Direction:
1. Paint your child’s middle hand palm (circle) in white and the rest of hand black with brush.
2. Print hand on white sheet of paper.
3. Glue 2 googly eyes and orange triangle on hand print upside down.
4. You can use a foot instead of a hand.
Small Motor Skills
Color the Pairs Book https://twistynoodle.com/color-the-pairs-minibook/
Uppercase Letter S https://twistynoodle.com/uppercase-letter-s-4-coloring-page/
Color the Shape to continue the pattern https://twistynoodle.com/color-the-shape-to-continue-the-pattern-coloring-page/
Gross Motor Skills
Outside time with climbing, jumping, bicycling, running, walking are great ways to develop the whole child.
Let’ s dance with Jack Hartmann on Penguin Dance – Brain Break https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uf0uKmKwnKs
For the Penguin’s Egg Activity, you need just a ball. Encourage your child to hold a small ball between their ankles and to walk from one end of the room to another or a short distance outside. This is how a penguin’s egg is carried by its parents to keep it from freezing!