Signing with Babies and Toddlers

Cookie

Cookie

Signing with Babies and Toddlers is a good first step in linking an object with something that represents it. When we say "cookie" a yummy delicious cookie does not pop out of our mouth, we come to learn that the word "cookie" represents that yummy delicious goodness. Therefore, starting with signs and the spoken word can help make the connection between the real object and its symbolic representation much easier for little ones.

I have made pictures to remind adults to use the sign and word when speaking with babies and toddlers. These cues are for the adult to remember to use small phrases and the signs to help little ones recognize what the symbol means.

I have made some pdf files to print with some beginning words and signs.

Here are some links for some more information
Babies and Toddlers Sign Language

How Does Your Engine Run

To support another class I'm implementing the Alert - How Does Your Engine Run Program. I modified some visuals to to talk about low, just right and high running engines.

Link to the Alert Program's Website

Pinterest and Visual Supports

I'm a complete addict for Pinterest. I will be the first to admit it. I have heard grumblings that's its like a virtual hoarder world. However, I started a "I have done it board" to prove (to myself) that it isn't a waste of time to pin.

I will be pinning this blog post shortly!

I was working on a goal plan for a child who has Autism. One of the goals this summer is to stay and play. She likes other children but just comes up next to them and says "what we doing". To captialize on her interest in the other children, we are trying to engage her in the areas to play so she will stay and play with her peers.

Then I was looking at pinterest on my trusty iphone and lunch and one of the people I follow pinned a link to Pretend Play at the Autism Teacher

Well, I got to work on boardmaker this afternoon and made my own version for dramatic play, and another for outdoor play.

I think these suggestions will be good for all the children. The dramatic play one I included basic suggestions of kissing the doll, or feeding the doll to setting and pouring drinks.

More Yoga Pictures

I had time to get back at making some abc yoga pictures today.   

ABC Yoga for Kids

I feel sort of "bloggy" today.

I have been working on the idea of adding Yoga into the playroom.   I'm hoping Yoga will give the children a break from more structured work but also provide them with a proprioception exercises that are needed for some children to focus better.

I found some great pictures of kids doing Yoga on Flickr
Kids in Yoga Poses

I wanted to add into the lesson a link to learning the ABC's, so I modified the pictures.  Here is my modified versions.   I started with just putting the letter and the pose but decided it need a little more pizzazz with some clip art.   I will keep adding to this set.

Inference, Guessing What will happen next?

I'm a Resource Teacher for preschool children.  I want to strengthen the children's ability to follow along with a story.   I wanted to develop a little book to practice at school.   I started with printing out some nursery rhyme in sequence.  The playroom teacher is going to sit down with the children and look at the pictures and guess what is going to happen next.

I found the pictures at this link
Link to Nursery Rhyme Sequencing Printable

I figure they are  going to pick this up fast so I wanted to develop something fun for the class to continue developing this skills.    This is the beginning of my idea.   A little boy that goes on adventures and the kids have to guess what he is going to do.

Should I make a page of what he really does, or is it enough that the children have 2 chances to think of what may happen when a boy sees a puddle?

I found the little boy at peopleclipart.com

Follow the below picture to find this resource.

They have clip art for projects to use at home or in teaching.

Five Little Fish

I was playing around with photoshop and creating cute little animals.  I thought I would make something for my preschool blog.   They are designed 4X6 so you can have them printed or print them yourself.   I uploaded the individual cards to my flickr acccount.   Please feel free to download them for use with your children at home or at work.

Follow the link to access the pictures of flickr.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pattipreschool/6752117155/in/photostream

Why Questions

I made these cards trying to encourage preschoolers to answer "why" questions. I was inspired after visiting Why Monkey at www.scribd.com/doc/50476103/WhyMonkeyWhy

I had used her What Monkey book when introducing What questions.

After I ask a few why questions I feel like I'm Cee Lo Green singing "Forget You" -- "Uh! Whyyy? Uh! Whyyy? Uh! Whyyy lady? Oh! I love you!! Oh! I still love you!! Oooh..........!" I don't think that would help the preschoolers answering why questions.

Visuals in the Playroom

I was working on making visuals to help out some of my children follow what I expect of them. I was at home, so I used my photoshop program rather using boardmaker. I thought I would share them incase there were others trying to find some resources for their playroom. Anyone else use visuals in the playroom. They are helpful for all children. It helps us communicate visually and make the connection easier.

Color Matching Cards

I have a few hobbies. Although I work in the Early Childhood Education Field, I also have a passion for photography and designing. With those loves I made a matching game on Artscow that can be customized by the purchaser to include colourful objects of interest to their child. Take a look. All you have to do is click on make one like this and the template will be there waiting for your own pictures. I made it with two of each of the pictures so it could be used as a matching game. However, it could be all individual pictures. Colourful Matching Cards

Introducing Playdough

When Young Children start childcare it may be there first experience with playdough.
Although it may seem natural to know what to do with playdough. For some children they need some explanation.

Sitting with a child and showing them how to roll, make a ball, use the cookie cutters etc. will help them engage in this activity with proper expectations.

Here is a song to make it fun too.

(Tune Mary Had a Little Lamb)

Watch me while I roll my playdough
rolly my playdough, roll my playdough
Watch me while I roll my playdough
into a big ball.

Watch me while I pound my playdough,
pound my playdough, pound my playdough
Watch me while I pound my playdough
To make it oh, so flat

Watch me while I poke my play dough.
Poke my playdough, poke my playdough
Watch me while I poke my playdough
with lots of little holes.

Watch me while I stretch my playdough
Stretch my playdough, stretch my playdough
Watch me while I stretch my plaough
until it falls apart.

You can add other verses depending on the equipment available at the playdough centre.

Including

Watch me while I cut my playdough
cut my playdough, cut my playdough
watch me while I cut my playdough
Into the shape of a "duck" (whatever cookie cutter there is)

Watch me while I roll my playdough
roll my playdough, roll my playdough
Watch me while I roll my playdough
into a big long snake

Here is a link to a website with a playdough recipe
playdough recipe
Another link to the scholastic website for other ideas to introduce with playdough play
scholastic

Bubbles

Popping Bubbles (Allouette)

Popping bubbles, I like popping bubbles
Popping bubbles, its so fun for me.

Can you pop them on your knee?
Can you pop them on your knee?
On your knee, on your knee
Ohhhhhh

Popping bubbles, I like popping bubbles
Popping bubbles, fun for you and me

Great summer song for teaching body awareness, and vocabulary for body parts.

Great for kids to challenge their gross motor skills by trying to pop a bubble with their toe etc...

Feelings

My goal is for the preschoolers to how they feel when asked.

To ensure all the kids are able recognize and label the feelings. We are starting with singing "If You are Happy and You Know It" I have made visuals to accompany the song.

If You are Happy and You Know It

If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands (clap clap)
If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands (clap clap)
If you're happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it
If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands. (clap clap)

If you're sad and you know it, cry boo hoo (rub eyes)
If you're sad and you know it, cry boo hoo (rub eyes)
If you're sad and you know it, then your face will surely show it
If you're sad and you know it, cry boo hoo (rub eyes)

If you're angry and you know it, stomp your feet (stomp, stomp)
If you're angry and you know it, stomp your feet (stomp, stomp)
If you're angry and you know it, then your face will surely show it
If you're angry and you know it, stomp your feet (stomp, stomp)

When the children are successful with this song than I'm going to add

Hello Song to the tune (Goodnight Ladies)

Hello Susan, Hello Susan
Hellos Susan
and How are you today.

Using the same visual props from the previous song the children will pick on to represent how they feel.


Feeling Link from kizclub.com

http://www.kizclub.com/Topics/myself/feeling.pdf

Easter and Spring Songs

Robbie the Rabbit

Robbie the Rabbit
fat, fat, fat
His little paws go
pat, pat, pat
His little ears go
flop, flop, flop
When he runs he goes
hop, hop, hop

I used a rabbit puppet. Introduce rhyming.


A Little Drop of Rain
(She will be coming around the mountain - softer)

A Little Drop of Rain Hits the Ground
(tap, tap)
Another drop of rain hits the ground
(tap, tap)
Than another and another and another and another
than they make
a different sound
(Splash)

Ice Decorations - Science Experiment

Ice Decorations

I'm sure I heard of this idea through a tweet on my twitter account, I'm pretty sure it came from @redtedart. Here is the link to the @redtedart's idea. I used the bottom of some milk containers filled them with some water. Let the kids at sparkles, ribbons. I added a long ribbon, making a loop for hanging. We talked about what is going to happen when we take these outside. The kids wanted to say the water was going to melt. Therefore we added freezing to their vocabulary. I'm hoping to get a picture of them hanging from the fence or trees in their frozen state asap.

Winter Sensory Bin

The children enjoyed buckets of snow in the sensory bin. Unfortunately by mid week all the snow has turned to ice.. We will have to wait for a new snow fall to try it again.

The Snowy Day By Ezra Jack Keats

To Create a Snowy Day for Peter to play in the children painted with a string tied to a popsicle stick. The following day the children glued a boy and his outdoor clothes for some fun snow time.

Halloween Mini Putt

We celebrated my daughter's birthday this month. The background and headstones are my dollar store finds. I put up my photography background and layered two scene setters on top. It made them less transparent. Than I bought three foam headstones. I used a steak knife to cut a semi circle in the bottom. This was our mini putt game. The headstones came with their own supports so they stand up. However, when I do this for our halloween party at preschool I'm going to attach shelf brackets to the back to make them more sturdy. One of the guests posed in front of the background, with creepy headstones. Both purchased at the dollar store.

Halloween Block Centre

This week I read The Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat. One of the things she swallows is some bones. To enhance the block centre I detached a jointed skeleton into three sections and attached them to three boxes (cereal boxes) The children had fun building him and of course knocking the bones to the ground. They even used it as something to hide behind and pop their head over, as if they were the skeleton.

Thanksgiving

Trying to teach the children about what it means to be thankful. I have a great Blue's Clues Book that teaches it. However its getting a little dated.

Therefore I made some pictures to demonstrate the idea of the things that we may be thankful for.

I did a few more, but if you have some suggestions please feel free to suggest them.