Letter "O" Show and Tell Activities

On floor boards the group has a drawing lesson with me on the dry erase board in front. These group lessons really teach children how to follow directions, look at shapes and draw. 

Show and Tell "O" objects are on the rug.

 An advanced writing table work for kids not yet in kindergarten  but who have been with me for years and can write and read.

The writing table had a web page to copy. 

Kids love this type of work.

The younger kids do an "O" collage.

Dr. Seuss Activities

I copy a favorite page for the children to look at as they draw.

Pre-k children copy the master of the Wet Pet.

I teach the group how to draw this very slowly on a dry erase board. 

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly

Puppet set with books. Children get turns feeding the animals into her mouth as we sing the song.

Card matching to the puppets that she swallows.

I drew her with an empty belly as a handout for the kids to draw in.

Child like drawings for the kids to follow as they draw

Their finished drawings

Children who are too young to draw make this paper bag puppet with copies of the matching cards

 to feed into her mouth.

Cast Off Treasures

 My Saturday newspaper connects me with estate sales around town. I love them. 

This week I found very unique objects. 

Cultural objects were overflowing at these sales, but I did not need more of those.

I was looking for something I had never seen before and I found them!

Here is what I did bring back to the school!

I found a tiny anvil and metal headed hammer for $5 each. It makes a lovely tinging sound when hit!

I added objects like our horseshoes and flat metal objects to tap and pretend to be a blacksmith!

Then I put the blacksmith work in a farm fence box to corral it.

I also bought this taped together box for $8.  I saw a tiny colander that intrigued me. 

I think many of the contents will be usable.

Immediately I had this toothpick exercise from the box contents.

My goal was to get this tiny stainless steel colander set that I added toothpick sized 

plastic vegetables to for a  miniature washing exercise. I love it!

Lastly, a $2 basket will hold a $5 large sponge for a "Who Am I?" game.

"I am an animal without a face!  Who Am I?"

I always think of and thank the unknown family that these objects came from.

They are treasures to my school and will have a happy new life!

  

Fossil Unit

Yes, I collect everything!

Here is my collection of fossils.

The first two images are of real brachiopods from the Paleozoic Era 500 million years ago.

They are bivalve creatures that lived under the ocean and include clams.

http://www.fossilicious.com/Brachiopods-c-317.html

The two while cards are cepholopods mollusks.

http://www.thecephalopodpage.org/FosCephs.php

The next three images are of my favorite of all fossils

 - the trilobite. They are very handsome crab like creatures that lived 500 million years ago. I tell the children they are handling creatures older than the dinosaurs!

http://www.nature-watch.com/trilobite-fossil-p-82.html?cPath=142_157&gclid=CJac8-Hriq4CFeJeTAodeVfNzQ

These are amongst the oldest arthropods. They were abundant during the Paleozoic era, but died out at the end of it. They are easy identified with their three part bodies.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trilobite

Now for the fossil coral.  I lived near Coralville, Iowa

where these fossils were everywhere just laying around 

near stream beds and in gravel since Iowa was the bottom of an ancient ocean.

Now for the plant fossils.

Crinoids lived at the bottom of the ocean and are common fossils.

http://www.fossils-facts-and-finds.com/crinoid_fossils.html

The fern fossils I must have bought at a rock and mineral show.

How could you start a fossil collection?  Well, they have gotten a little expensive now, but never miss those traveling rock and mineral shows that come to town. I paid almost nothing for mine because I am such a scavenger.

This ancient history unit goes:

My rock collection (posted here)

This fossil unit

and then volcanoes. 

Dinosaurs would go next. 

Art Rubbings

A favorite art project is to lay out collected items that have a good texture that can be covered with paper and rubbed with a crayon.  

I draw free hand designs to be rubbed onto to give the project more structure.

This computer created design also adds interest and focal points.

These 6 circles become a study of texture.

Kids will do this over and over with gusto using all the patterns and textures.