Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Relocating

Our family has recently made the prayerful decision to relocate to another city.  Our move is quickly approaching in 3 weeks, so I will not be doing my regular posts until after our move.  I hope to post some, but it will be irregular until we are settled at the end of November.  

Please check back!!  

I will resume my What's on the Tray?, Letter of the Week Math Monday posts very soon!



Saturday, October 15, 2011

Stop / Go Door Sign

While we generally have an open door policy in our home, there are times when it is appropriate for a door to be closed (getting dressed, using the restroom, etc.).  We have been teaching Super Tot to knock when a door is closed for a long time, but he still struggles with not opening the door as soon as he has knocked.  We thought we would help him out a little with a simple, Tot friendly door sign.

It has worked wonderfully!  While he still cannot read the words, he knows the colors and can easily discern the faces on each side of the sign. If he approaches a door (open or closed) and sees the red side, he knows he is not to come in.  If the green side is showing, he knows he is allowed enter.

To make the sign, I printed the text and faces onto red and green construction paper, cut into 4"x6" rectangles, and glued the red and green pieces back to back.  Then I laminated the sign and used a scrapbook tool to punch the large hole in the top (you could also use scissors).

It took less than 5 minutes to make.  I just wish I had thought of it sooner!

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Monday, October 10, 2011

What's on the Tray? October 10-14

Super Tot is 32 months old.

We went on a last minute trip out of town over the weekend, so I didn't have time to prepare our regular Tot Trays for our Letter of the Week activities.  I wanted him to have some new activities this week, so I threw these trays together this morning.  Next week, we will get back to our Letter of the Week theme with the letter Gg.

Gourd Sequencing
Create patterns & sequences using the gourds.
~patterns, sequencing~   

Play Dominos
Dominos are an easy game for preschoolers to learn, so I will begin teaching Super Tot how to play this week.
~problem solving~

Color Matching
Clip the butterfly hair clips onto the matching popsicle sticks.
~fine motor, color matching & recognition~

Nuts & Bolts
Screw each nut onto the correct bolt.
~fine motor, size differentiation~

Eraser Sorting
Sort the sports ball erasers by type of ball.  Once sorted, count the total number of each type of ball.
~sorting, counting~

Counting Glass Beads
Place the correct number of beads into each bowl.
~counting~

 Alphabet Sticker Match
Place the correct alphabet sticker onto each written letter.
~fine motor, letter matching & recognition~

What Goes Together Puzzles
Complete each 2-piece puzzle by matching objects that go together.
(Puzzles available here.)
~fine motor, problem solving, grouping~

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Saturday, October 1, 2011

Letter Ff - What's on the Tray?

Super Tot is 32 months old.

Here are the letter Ff activities I have planned for this week.

Feed the Fire
Place each log on the correct fire to reflect if it shows an uppercase or a lowercase letter Ff.
This took me about 5 minutes to make out of construction paper.
~letter recognition & sorting~

Flower Arranging by Color
Place each flower into the correct "vase" by matching the color of the vase to the color of the flower.
This is another re-use of the toilet paper roll color sorter I made a couple months ago.  We use it almost every week for various activities!
~color recognition & sorting, practical life skills~  

Frog Hopper
Look at the number written on each lily pad and help the correct number of frogs "hop" onto each pad.  
This was another activity that took me less than 5 minutes to create out of construction paper.  TIP:  I always remove the sticker backing on sticker sheets to assist Super Tot in being able to more easily peel the stickers off.  
~number recognition, counting, fine motor~

Fruit Patterning
Complete and create patterns using the fruit from the bowl. 
Plastic fruit is available at most craft stores, as well as in the floral section at Target, Walmart or your local dollar store.  This is a small set (perfect for little hands) that I found for $5 at Target.  We will also likely use the fruit for counting, sorting, etc.
~patterning, counting, sorting, early math~

Fall Pumpkin Counting
Take a card from the bowl and count the number of pumpkins on the card.  Use the Do-A-Dot painter to mark the correct number on the mat.
Super Tot loves to count!  We are working a lot right now on number recognition, as well.
**COMPLETE PRINTABLE AVAILABLE BELOW THE PHOTOGRAPH**
~counting, number recognition, fine motor~

 Fishers of Men Carabiners
Our Bible story focus this week is Fishers of Men.  We will use the carabiners to link pairs, make patterns, and just to play with!  I know he will enjoy this activity all week!  
I found these cute ICTHUS carabiners at my local Christian teacher store priced at only $3 for the set of 12!  
~fine motor, matching, sorting, patterning, etc.~

Writing Letters Aa - Ff
Practice writing the letters we have worked on so far this year.
Super Tot loves tracing and writing, so I knew he would enjoy these Kumon cards as soon as I saw them.  
~fine motor, letter recognition, writing~

Folding Washcloths
Fold each washcloth in half, then in half again.  Stack them once they are folded.
I purchased these washcloths before we traveled to Korea to bring Super Tot home.  They are one of my favorite purchases!  They are available here.
~practical life skills~

Fall Leaf Sorting
Sort the leaves by type.
These are bulletin board cutouts I purchased for $1 at a local teacher store.  The package had 6 varieties, but we are only using 4 this week.
~sorting, matching~

Count the Flower Petals
Count the number of petals on each flower and write the correct number in the corner using the dry erase marker.
Super Tot is not able to recognize or write his numbers yet, so I will write the number for him to trace after he has counted the petals.
**PRINTABLE AVAILABLE BELOW THE PHOTOGRAPH**
~counting, number recognition, pre-writing, fine motor~

I Spy the Letter Ff
Circle all Uppercase & Lowercase Ff's.
Super Tot continues to enjoy these I Spy sheets each week.
~letter recognition, fine motor, pre-writing~


Super Tot will also be doing the following 2 letter crafts from our Letter book, which you can read about here.


"F" if for Flag and "f" is for flower.

Letter Ff Bible Verses for the week:
"Fear not, for I am with thee." ~Isaiah 43:5
"Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." ~Matthew 4:19, Mark 1:17



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