Froggie Bookmarks

Pinterest Challenge Day 4

I have seen several cute corner bookmarks on Pinterest over the past year and a half and  decided to make some today for Back to School.  I wasn't sure what I wanted to make until I went through the supplies I had on hand.  When I saw the various shades and textures of green, I decided to make alligators.  However, once I started assembling them, my vision quickly changed to little froggies.  I think they turned out very cute!

I started with a 4" square of cardstock.

I happened to have 2" post-its available, which I used as a quick way to measure.  I placed a post-it in one corner and cut around it.

 Next, I moved the post-it to the opposite corner and cut the remaining two side squares in half diagonally.

In the photo below, you can see the post-it still on the one corner, and the portions that have been cut off sitting next to the places I cut them from.

 I then removed the post-it and glued on a contrasting square, slightly smaller than 2" around.

 I glued the frog's tongue onto the center of the square.

 I folded each side in and glued the top one down (if you glue the bottom one to the square, you won't be able to slide it over the corner of the book page).

 I then glued a small triangle of the contrasting paper to the top of the bookmark.

 I traced a marker lid for the eyes and cut them out.

 I placed a hole reinforcement sticker atop each eye circle.  Then, I added a small black cardstock center punched using a standard hole punch.  I glued the eyes on the bookmarks and they were finished!

I really love how these turned out, and they were so fast and easy to make.  I know we will be making more!  A set of these would be a perfect addition to a book gift or book store gift card!

Dr. Seuss - Week 1

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DR. SUESS!!!

Dr. Seuss's birthday is this Friday, March 2.  To celebrate, I am doing a Dr. Seuss theme for Super Tot.  We will be focusing on 8 books this week, and 8 more next week.  I have chosen one activity to go with each book.  We will read all 8 books every day.  I expect that Super Tot will want to do all the trays each day, too.

Here are our activities & books for this week:

The Cat in the Hat

Counting Hats with Thing 1 and Thing 2...

Place the correct number of hats on each mat based on the number written in the circle.

I made "Thing 1" up through "Thing 5" to assist Super Tot with number recognition.  He has no trouble counting, but still needs work on recognizing the printed numerals.  I do not own copyrights to these images, so I apologize that I am not able to provide a printable.

~counting and number recognition~

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 The Cat in the Hat Comes Back

 Measuring & Creating Dr. Seuss Hats

Choose a blue card and measure it with the ruler.  Next, using the large white lego as a base and building up, alternate colors to create a hat that is the same length as the card.

~early math & measuring, fine motor~

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Green Eggs and Ham

 Matching Yolk Shapes

Match each wooden shape in the bowl to the correct egg yolk on the mat.

 ~shape recognition & matching, fine motor~

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There's a Wocket in my Pocket

 Wocket in my Pocket Alphabet Sort

Take a Wocket card out of the bowl and place it in the correct pocket based on whether it is an UPPERCASE letter or a lowercase letter.  The Wocket printable is available here, and I just printed pockets onto cardstock and pasted them on the red paper as actual pockets.

~letter recognition, fine motor~

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The Tooth Book

Counting Smiling Sam the Crocodile's Teeth

Count the number of teeth on each mat and place the correct rock into the crocodile's mouth.

I made these mats when we did our Letter Aa week (see here).  They were alligators then, but worked out perfectly to be Smiling Sam the Crocodile in The Tooth Book!
~counting & number recognition~

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I Can Read with My Eyes Shut

Mystery Bag Fabric Matching

Take one fabric square out of the crate and feel it.  Set it down and place your hand in the bag.  Without looking, feel the fabric squares in the bag and find the identical square based on touch.

I thought it would be fun to do a twist on the "Eyes Shut" theme and do an activity where Super Tot is not able to use his eyes to complete the task.  He enjoys the Mystery Bag activities we have done before, so I expect this one to be a hit.

~sensory integration~

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Daisy-Head Mayzie

Daisy Color by Number Pages

Color each daisy picture using the correct color for each number shown.

I printed off 6 different daisy coloring pages and wrote the numbers and legend on each one.

~fine motor, pre-writing, number & color recognition~

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One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

Fish Counting Mats

Take one mat and follow the directions at the top, either placing the correct number or color of fish on each mat.  Once complete, turn the mat over and complete the other side.
We have used this activity many times, and it is always a hit.  This is actually from one of our Busy Bags (see here).  The mats each have one side with a number and the other side with a color.
~number & color recognition, counting~

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For lots of inspiration, be sure to check these sites:

1+1+1=1

Sun Scholars

No Time for Flashcards

Homeschool Creations

Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas

ABC & 123

Living Life Intentionally

Read, Explore, Learn

Living Montessori Now

Happy Birthday Author

Homeschooling on the Cheap

The Rainbow Fish Activity

This is going to be a short week for us, so I am not going to have a regular Tot School post.  The following week, I have a Rainbow Fish theme planned, so I thought I would give you a little preview.  

This is one of the fine motor activities I have planned for Super Tot to go along with the Rainbow Fish theme.  He will be using round happy face stickers (too bad I didn't have any silver ones) to fill in the white part of the Rainbow Fish drawing.

Here is an example of a finished one.

March is National Reading Month, so we will be taking a break from our Letter of the Week activities to focus on literature based learning for a bit.  I am very excited about some of the ideas I have planned, and hope to see lots of other literature based activities on other blogs!

For lots of inspiration, be sure to check these sites I'm linking to:

1+1+1=1

Sun Scholars

No Time for Flashcards

Homeschool Creations

Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas

ABC & 123

Living Life Intentionally

Read, Explore, Learn

Summer Reading

Our family LOVES books!  Princess would rather read than do just about anything else.  Super Tot isn't reading yet, but he loves to be read to and to just look at books.  That being said, we have no problem with getting in lots of summer reading.  

While we don't need any incentives to get our children reading, I always enjoy having a summer reading program, just for fun.  Ever since Princess was in Kindergarten, I have been doing Summer Reading Bingo with her.  I have used this Summer Reading Bingo incentive with various homeschool and church groups, as well as just at home.  It has always been a big hit with kids of all ages.  If you have younger children who are not yet reading, you can read to them!

I use the BINGO sheet shown below and have Princess fill it out with the book title and author as she finishes a book.  I have various levels of prize options, but she always fills out the whole card.  You can click on the BINGO card below and print it out to use with your own children.  I always print it out on a brightly colored piece of cardstock, so that it will last all summer.

Prize Examples:  

One horizontal, vertical or diagonal line = 1st level prize

Outer Border = 2nd level prize

Blackout = 3rd level prize

I like to keep the prizes simple, as I feel that reading all those books is the true prize.  Some of our past prizes have included an ice cream cone, movie tickets, a pizza date, a book store gift card and various special outings.  You can do whatever works best for your family!

Here are links to some corporate Summer Reading Programs available this year:

Barnes & Noble

Borders

Half Price Books

Chuck E Cheese

Pizza Hut

Build-A-Bear Workshop is supposed to be having a Summer Reading Program, but it is not up on their website yet.

Also, check your local library, as they always have fun Summer Reading Programs available.

I'm sure there are additional programs available in your local area, so be sure to check!  

Most of all, have fun reading over the summer!

Linking to: