Getting back into the swing of things

Posted on August 30, 2017 by The SEEDS Network

For programs who shut down over the summer or for those who run a summer camp program, it’s somewhat bittersweet to return to school in the fall. For me, it is always sad to see summer come to a close, but there is also something exciting about a new school year starting.

Here are some things that I look forward to as a new academic year kicks off….please feel free to share your excitement with us too.

Meeting new students and parents
Greeting returning students and seeing how much they have grown since last year.
Ordering supplies for our teachers and watching them get excited about setting their classrooms up.
Having our floors waxed and buffed…that smell reminds me of back to school!
In-service training….I do in fact enjoy spending time with my staff and getting to know them better while we train.
Hosting our “stop by and say hi” event. I love watching our students come in to see their cubbies, meet their teachers, and see their classrooms.

For me, the beginning of the school year represents a new beginning for us. I find that staff are at their most energized and motivated…..a very special time of year. If you share in my excitement we’d love to hear from you!

Having fun with textured clothespins in preschool

Posted on February 28, 2017 by The SEEDS Network

I was inspired by the textured clothespin idea from Teach Preschool, so we used some other materials to make some textured clothespins of our own! Using these around the preschool classroom is a fun sensory experience and wonderful for fine motor skill development.

You could use almost any type of collage materials that you can find (buttons, googly eyes, pom poms, beads, foam shapes) and you can change these up every so often to reflect themes and topics that you are discussing in the classroom.

We used tacky glue to stick on heavier objects, it is less drippy and holds well. We also tried to leave the ends of the clothespins clear of objects so that little fingers could grasp the ends easily. We also had some sticky-back foam pieces that stick well (but can also be easily pulled off). That can also be a good thing … since you can then easily change up the foam pieces on the clothespins and reuse them.

Some ideas for using textured clothespins are:

– Make clothespins using objects of all the same COLOR, or use colors that reflect the season (ie. fall, winter, spring or summer colors … green for St. Patrick’s Day, red-white-blue for Memorial Day or July 4th, etc).

– Make clothespins with various SHAPES and do some shape matching games with them (make up index cards with one shape on them – have them clip the matching clothespin on the card).

– Make clothespins with various PATTERNS and see if children can identify the pattern. Or make some monochrome clothespins, and see if children can make their OWN pattern by clipping them on a clothesline.

– Make clothespins with various LETTERS (using small foam letters). Some uses for this … letter matching games using letter flash cards, matching upper to lower case letters, finding the letters in your name, etc.

– Spell children’s NAMES on the clothespins … can use these for various activities in a classroom, such as a way to “check-in” to a learning center, attendance board, name matching games.

– Use these as a 3-D ART project, allowing children to use various materials to decorate clothespins as they wish. These can be displayed in all kinds of ways in the classroom, and you can clip the child’s name or picture along with their clothespin.

Be sure to check out the other textures that Deborah used for her Textured Clothespins at Teach Preschool. So many ways to use these (and they are inexpensive to make)!

Melting marshmallow snowmen in preschool

Posted on December 23, 2016 by The SEEDS Network

I saw these adorable snowman treats on The Amazing Mess blog – so I made a bunch for myself and bagged them up as small gifts. But then I thought – this was so easy and fun … the kids would LOVE this! And even though making these are fun (and tasty) – there were other ways to extend this activity so that the children learn a little something along the way, too!

Decorate your snowman

So first, here’s how to make the edible melting snowmen. Take a marshmallow and make a snowman face using food coloring markers (these are very easy for adults AND children to work with – and it’s edible). You can find these in a local craft store that sells cake decorating supplies.

Then, place it on top of one striped cookie (you can substitute other types of cookies, like graham crackers or nilla wafers if you do not wish to have any chocolate on the cookie – but for me, it’s ALWAYS about the chocolate! Ok, I digress!).

Extend the activity with a story

As I was making my snowmen I thought … what BOOKS could I use to go with these? Maybe a little backwards in my usually thinking (usually the book comes first, then the activity). But the main concept is the melting of the snowman, and there are lovely children’s books that go with this theme and can lead to further discussion. A few books I liked were The Smiley Snowman, Where do Snowmen go? or Snowmen at Night. You can have a discussion about what happens to snowmen when the weather gets warm (they melt) and talk about why that happens.

Watch him MELT!

Allow children to make their own marshmallow snowman and put it on top of one cookie. Then, ask them what they think will happen to THEIR marshmallow snowman if you put them in the microwave or oven. If their snowmen get hot, what will happen to them? And there you can touch upon the scientific concept of melting (properties of matter) and have them make predictions.

Next, SHOW them what happens by putting their cookie/snowman in the microwave for 10 seconds. When it comes out – it will be like a melted snowman! (They will really get a kick out of this!) . Top off with another striped cookie, and it’s time to enjoy!

Gift idea

These can also be put together as gifts for the children to give (or gifts you can make to give) by putting them in plastic baggies and attaching the melted snowman.

The tags are designed so that you can get 6 tags per sheet, and that when you attach them, the microwave instructions fold over the top of the plastic bag and display on the back.

Find more SNOWY ideas for preschoolers

Check out our Pinterest page!

Making scented pinecone Christmas trees

Posted on December 1, 2016 by The SEEDS Network

We have been exploring “scents of the season” these past couple of weeks in preschool. As we get ready for Christmas, I saw these cute pinecone trees on The Wool Acorn blog, and I thought this would be wonderful for the children to make. But I wanted to incorporate a holiday scent for the children to explore … so we made sure our pinecones were scented!

I did intend to scent the pinecones myself (I really did!). The pinecones that were collected were a little damp and not yet open – so they were put them in a warm oven. They DID start to open … however the smell coming from the oven was not so pleasant, so we ended that process and ran to store to buy the pre-made scented ones. But I still do want to give this another try at some point (maybe after the pinecones dry out naturally). In any case, the store-bought ones had a lovely cinnamon scent. If you make them yourself, you can experiment with other scented oils.

So, we started off with having the children explore the scent and have them guess what the pinecones smell like. Some of the responses were “delicious” and “cookies” … other responses were “they smell like pinecones”.

Next, we placed the pinecones in a small paper cup (this helped to keep them upright while children were working on the project). It was also helpful because we could write each child’s name on their cup.

Then we poured a small amount of Tacky glue onto a paper plate. Tacky glue was a great choice for this project because it is thicker than regular white glue (so it’s less drippy). Also, children only need a small dab of Tacky glue and the items will stick very well to the pinecone. We showed the children how to take a pom pom (and other embellishments) and dip them in the glue – explaining that they only need a small dab. (Our 3-year old class still liked to put A LOT of glue on their pom poms!). This was great for fine motor practice. Then we had the children explore the materials and decorate their pinecone Christmas tree as they wished.

Once they are done decorating, we had them take a Q-tip and dip it in the glue and spread the glue around the edges of the pinecone. Lastly, have children got to sprinkle some white “snow” glitter on top.

The children still liked smelling their pinecone trees after they were finished!

It’s apple picking season (and apple life cycle video)!

Posted on September 9, 2015 by The SEEDS Network

August through October is apple picking season here in Connecticut! Our family visited one of our local pick-your-own farms for some Macintosh and Gala apples which are in season right now. We’ll definitely be back later this fall for the Cortlands, Golden Delicious and others.

Many local preschools schedule a field trip to an orchard, which helps the children learn about where apples come from and they really enjoy being able to pick their own.

We start off with a tractor ride to take us out to the trees that are in season. This is always exciting for the kids!

The great thing about apple trees at an orchard are that they are not too tall. Little hands can easily reach and pick apples! Fill up some bags to take back to your classroom for use in cooking/snack making, crafts (like apple stamping) or exploration.

Bringing the apple orchard to your classroom

If you live in an area where you can visit a local apple orchard, that is a great field trip to take with your preschoolers. If you do not, there are many other ways to teach children about the apple life cycle, and show children what an apple orchard is. Another option is to try an in-house apple demonstration, as we did one year.

Another idea is the use of photos and videos. You can make a slide show of videos of an apple orchard (such as the photos we used in this post). We also created a downloadable video as another resource you can use to introduce this topic in your classroom – or use it as an preview to a field trip.

View the video above … or download it FREE at our Teachers Pay Teachers online store.

More Apple Resources

For all kinds of other APPLE activities, snack ideas and crafts – check out our SEEDS idea search, our Pinterest “Apple” board, AND digital resources (videos, high quality photos, printables, curriculum guide) at our Teachers Pay Teachers online store.

Sailing the seas at summer camp

Posted on July 9, 2015 by The SEEDS Network

We have some awesome college students who are lead the planning of our summer camp one year! Their enthusiasm and creativity are evident in all they do … and we just had to share it here! These are ideas from our “Sailing the seas” theme, which lent itself to great projects and experiences like building tin foil boats, making sandcastles and seashell picture frames. The week ended on a truly high note when we had none other than Captain Jack Sparrow (aka Miss Martina) visit our school for Pirate day! (Isn’t that the BEST costume ever?!) Below are some decorating and activity ideas our camp leaders came up with this week!

DECORATING IDEAS

Hanging blue/green streamers on ceiling to look like waves and seaweed. Include some paper fish and jelly fish. Use some blue/green window paint and have kids paint an ocean scene, using someHomemade Window Paint. Use large blue bulletin board paper and tack it up on a large wall in the hallway or classroom. Make a brown paper cruise ship and put it on top – making it look like it’s sailing on the water. All through the week, the camp staff added children’s “under the sea” artwork to the display! Make a ship out of large pieces of cardboard!

ACTIVITIES

Building sandcastles in the sandbox Making a Coral garden (out of painted cheerios) At the Beach play dough At the Beach snack OR cupcake

MORE ACTIVITIES YOU CAN TRY

I hope their creativity inspires you!

Pets in the preschool classroom

Posted on July 1, 2015 by The SEEDS Network

Caring for a small pet, such as a fish or reptile, can provide young children with the opportunity to learn more about animals firsthand. As preschool teachers, we know that young children are engaged and learn best by DOING. We can certainly teach about animals through books and pictures … but how much MORE will they learn when they can actually interact with one. They can learn about caring for animals and the responsibility that goes with it. For preschool programs, having a classroom pet provides a wonderful opportunity for learning about nature, science and living things.

At our preschool (and at my home), we have Betta fish, which have a low start-up cost and are very easy to take care of. At the beginning of the school year, we have the class name the fish – and that really helps to give the children ownership of the pet. One of the most favorite classroom jobs a child can have for the day is the “Fish Helper” – where it is their day to feed the fish. The Betta fish food are really tiny pellets, so it’s also a good fine motor skill for the children to pick up the pellets and put them into the tank.

Photo credit: Dennis Brunelle Photography

I think children can learn a lot from seeing and interacting with living things. At various times during the year, we will also bring in special visitors who bring in some other animals that the children can learn about. During our summer camp, we even had some older children come in and share their pets with the preschoolers. This gave the children an opportunity to observe, touch and feel an animal they may not have seen before, or only seen in pictures.

Grants to bring pets into the classroom

Updates on a few grant programs to help teachers who want to bring in a pet into their classroom.

PetSmart is now offering a “Pets in the Classroom” grant for Pre-K through 6th grade teachers to cover all the expenses of a classroom pet. Teachers will also receive additional assistance with a PetSmart associate who can help them with the basics of pet care.

Teachers can visit www.petsmart.com/teachers to apply for the grant and learn about ways to incorporate a classroom pet into their curriculum. This section of the website also provides teachers with some lesson plan ideas, some of which can be adapted to fit into a preschool curriculum.

Petco also offers a

The Pet Care Trust helps to promote public understanding regarding the value of and right to enjoy companion animals, to enhance knowledge about companion animals through research and education, and to promote professionalism among members of the companion animal community.

Pets in the Classroom grants are offered to Pre-Kindergarten through Eighth grade classes only in both public and private schools. These grants are intended to support pets or aquariums in the classroom for the purposes of teaching children to bond with and care for their pets responsibly.

Petco is also a partner with The Pet Care Trust, which supplies products and funding for classroom critters at low cost to schools, with no out of pocket supply cost.

Do you have a pet in your classroom? Other than fish and reptiles, what other types of pets would be good in a preschool classroom?

Celebrating Dr. Seuss in preschool

Posted on February 15, 2015 by The SEEDS Network

I may be going out on a limb here, but I imagine almost EVERYONE has a favorite Dr. Seuss story that they remember growing up. My personal favorite Dr. Seuss book is … “Green Eggs and Ham” … hands down! I could recite it by heart! For my children, it’s “The Cat in the Hat“.

We are coming up on March 3rd and NEA’S Read Across America Day. Read Across America takes place each year on or near March 2 … and schools and libraries across the country participate by bringing children and books together. This year’s theme is “Get ready to grab your hat and read with the Cat in the Hat“! How will YOU celebrate?

Looking for some fun Seuss-related activities to go along with your reading?

We have a few Dr. Seuss favorite activities that we have done .. such as:

AND

But there are SO, SO, SO many wonderful Dr. Seuss activities around the web as well … so this post is all about sharing some of those great ideas with you!

Some of my favorite preK Dr. Seuss ideas:

Handprint Things on parade (Joyfully Weary)
Cat in the Hat Fruit Snack (Muffin Tin Mom)
Cat in the Hat Ice Cream Cone Snack (Motherhood on a Dime)
Green Eggs and Ham craft (Teach Preschool)
My Many Colored days door decoration (Room Mom 101)
One Fish, Two Fish graphing (Oopsey Daisy)

Want more Seuss? Check out …

Dr. Seuss Pinterest board
Seussville.com

And, check out this GREAT video clip of “Mr. David” as he puts a playful hip-hop spin on “Green Eggs and Ham”!

Ok, so share … what is YOUR favorite Dr. Seuss book?

Painting with snow and other fun snowy activities!

Posted on January 2, 2015 by The SEEDS Network

If you are lucky enough to live somewhere with winter weather – you can bring the outdoor in for a little snow day fun! Painting with (and ON) snow is a fun way to let children explore concepts of color mixing and the scientific properties of snow.

First, we scooped up a small bucket of clean snow and brought it inside (if you scoop your snow before you are ready to use it, then you’ll need to keep it in the freezer until you are ready). We put snow into small bowls for children to use while watercolor painting. Instead of using cups of water — children wet their paint brushes with the snow. We discussed what snow is made from (water) – and how as the snow gets warmer inside it will start to melt (properties of matter). Using the snow instead of water keeps the brushes from getting TOO wet, and makes the watercolor pictures more vibrant, as well.

Inevitably, as the children cleaned and wet their brushes on the snow, the snow started to turn colorful. So we explored some color mixing in the process. In the end, many children enjoyed painting the snow more than their pictures! So we brought out some bowls and scooped some snow for children to paint on individually.

Another way one class did some indoor snow painting was by using liquid watercolors in cups and had the children dip their brushes in the colors and painted on the snow.

If you don’t have SNOW where you live …

We are fans of Insta-Snow / Super Snow, to make your own “snow-like” experience! It has a cool texture to it, and a small amount of powder makes a good portion of snow that lasts quite awhile.

While we were at the NAEYC conference in Atlanta, Discount School Supply had a booth with some Insta-Snow mixed in with opal glitter and coloring (very pretty).

Other SNOWY activities and art projects

If you search on “snow” in our Idea Search Tool … you’ll find a lot of fun snowy activities (many requiring materials OTHER THAN snow!).

You can also check out our Snowy PINTEREST board for more art and educational ideas related to snow!

We are thankful in preschool

Posted on November 9, 2014 by The SEEDS Network

At this time of year, children get excited about all the holidays coming up. It is important to take some time before and during Thanksgiving to talk to young children about their blessings … what they have to be thankful for. Many children can easily talk about all the things they would like to have or “want” … but how about talking about how grateful they are for the things they already “have”? Teachers and parents can do some fun, creative and thoughtful crafts and activities with their children to bring out discussions about what we are thankful for!

Thankful Turkey Craft

This project can help children work on their fine motor skills (by cutting, writing and gluing), as well as being a good conversational activity. Use colorful construction paper turkey feathers to highlight things your child is thankful for.

Thankful Hanging Leaves

This is a cute project that makes a great keepsake for families! Beforehand, cut out leaf shapes from construction paper in various fall colors – and children will dictate or write their blessings on the leaves. Decorate with glitter, attached to some raffia and tie off with a bow!

Thankful Pumpkins

This craft was inspired by Thankful Pumpkin Craft at christianpreschoolprintables.com. Decorate a paper plate as a pumpkin, and attach a paper pumpkin leaf listing something the child is thankful for.

Paper Bag Thanksgiving Book

I found the idea for this book at ArtsyMommy.com. This is the type of project that can be adapted for older and younger children. I adapted it here for preschoolers (ages 3-5), including a page to draw what the child is thankful for, and a page to list favorite Thanksgiving foods.

Thankerchief Game

Have children sit in a circle. Have them pass around a “thankerchief” (handkerchief/bandana) around as everyone says the following poem:

Thankerchief, thankerchief, around you go
Where you’ll stop, nobody knows.
But when you do, someone must say,
What they are thankful for this day.

When the poem ends, the player holding the “thankerchief” must say aloud one thing they are thankful for. Continue the game until everyone has had a turn saying something they are thankful for.

What types of crafts/activities do you do with children for Thanksgiving?

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