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Compassion

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Now I Know My ABCs ~ Letter C

imageAll printables for this unit can be downloaded for free on my website, Animal ABCs.

Letter C ~ Caterpillarc caterpillar

Cc Caterpillar Extras…Cc Caterpillar Extras


Cc Caterpillar in Action…

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See more on my blog here: C is for Caterpillar Tot School


Have more caterpillar fun…


More Letter Cc Fun…


Did you miss…

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Friday, January 27, 2012

Treats 4 Your Tot

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Here are some more cool giveaways for tots/moms of tots, check them out below and let us know if you win something we told you about!!!!

Bolded are items we personally own and love!  If you are hosting a TOT friendly giveaway you are free to leave a link in the comments section!

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Once Upon a Book ~ The Gingerbread Man ~ Color Matching Activity

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Each Thursday this month, we’ll be focusing on one area of activities to go along with the book The Gingerbread Man. The ideas are short and simple, but FUN to start the learning with your tot! Be sure to check back each week in January for more fun gingerbread ideas!

This week we’ll be focusing on a color matching activity for little ones.

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Book Summary: An old lady makes a gingerbread for her husband’s lunch. When she opens the oven, he comes to life and runs out the door! Run, run as fast as you can, you can’t catch me I’m the Gingerbread Man! He shouts as he runs from the old lady and her husband, a pig and a horse. Finally at the end of his journey he meets a fox that offers to help him across the river.


Color Matching

For this activity, you’ll need to gather a few items:

  • Colored construction paper {we used nine different colors}
  • Copies of the Gingerbread Man Sorting Game from Making Learning Fun ~ print off more copies depending on the abilities of your tot

Once the pieces were cut out, Chubba had to match the gingerbread men with the ‘plate’ that was the same color and the icing.  

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Don’t miss the other gingerbread theme ideas to go along with The Gingerbread Man!

LaToya

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Little Hands-on ABC’s and 123’s ~ Count and Fill Grid Game

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The girls get very excited to try out new activities, especially when they involve their favorite candies! 

When Emily was little we did a Candy Corn Math game that was similar to this, I just changed it up a little bit to play with both girls.  This activity is great for teaching counting and 1 to 1 correspondence as well as practicing fine motor skills.   

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To play, we used our mini muffin tin and one of our large foam dice, then we each got a cup of M&M’s.

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We took turns rolling the dice and then matching the M&M’s to the dots on the dice.  This really helped Juliette (2.5 years) practice counting and to see how many she needed.  For Emily (almost 5 years old) this was great practice in recognizing the amounts shown on the dice, she would say how many she needed and then get them.

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Finally, she placed one M&M in each spot in the mini-muffin tin and then the next person took their turn until we filled up the whole tray.

While working together to fill up the tray we did a lot of counting.  The girls were excited when we finished and Emily thought it would be a good idea to count each color of M&M’s to see which color we had the most of.  This was a great opportunity to extend this for Emily and talk about comparing amounts. 

This game can be changed to fit any theme that you are working with, instead of candy you can use mini erasers, buttons, coins, pom poms or any other small items.  You can also use ice cube trays or printed grids instead of the mini muffin tin.  The PreKinders site has a lot of printable grids available for many different themes.

Little Hands-on ABC’s and 123’s is a bi-monthly feature that focuses on practical and simple ideas that you can do at home to help your tot develop their letter and number skills.

 

Michelle

Friday, January 20, 2012

In My Heart ~ Psalm 46:10

 
Be Still {Psalm 46:10} is #12 from Seeds of Praise. image

Full Page Verse Printable… image


Verse Mini Book {which could also be cut into mini flash cards to have kids put the verse in order}…  image


Copy Work Tracers {print & cursive} image


Copy Work Sheets…   image
Full Verse Coloring Pages… 
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Visit the main Seeds Family Worship Printables page here.

Visit Seeds Family Worship to learn more about their ministry here!

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Thursday, January 19, 2012

Once Upon a Book ~ The Gingerbread Man Art & Sensory Ideas

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Each Thursday this month, we’ll be focusing on one area of activities to go along with the book The Gingerbread Man. The ideas are short and simple, but FUN to start the learning with your tot! Be sure to check back each week in January for more fun gingerbread ideas!

This week you’ll need to get your hands on some gingerbread cookie cutters. If you have different sizes, all the more fun!

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Book Summary: An old lady makes a gingerbread for her husband’s lunch. When she opens the oven, he comes to life and runs out the door! Run, run as fast as you can, you can’t catch me I’m the Gingerbread Man! He shouts as he runs from the old lady and her husband, a pig and a horse. Finally at the end of his journey he meets a fox that offers to help him across the river.

Art

Pull out some paper and add some paint to a paper plate. Dip the gingerbread cookie cutters into the paint and have fun stamping onto the paper. 

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Sensory

Pull out your tubs of playdough and use the gingerbread cookie cutters to make cute little gingerbread men from playdough {and let your little one have fun mixing the colors too ~ it’s ok!

 
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Don’t miss the other gingerbread theme ideas to go along with The Gingerbread Man!

LaToya

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Montessori at Home: A Quick Start

Montessori at Home

There is a pull to purchase new items when it comes to the school room.  But I am going to challenge you to stay home.  Don’t even think about walking over to your computer to jump on Amazon or Oriental TradingYour only task after reading this blog post is to create a simple learning moment that is relevant to your child.

Your child. 

Not mine.  Or your neighbor’s.  Or Sally’s son who goes to pre-school. 

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If you think that you need a bunch of fantastic, bright, wood toys for your Genius, STOP.  Your Genius needs your 100% attention and doesn’t need to be dragged to the store for a bunch of items from the same category or stare at a mom zoning at the computer screen.

Today’s task?  Create a Montessori Moment at Home.  Each time you see this feature, we will focus on an idea found in John Bowman’s book, Montessori at Home!

Now there are two ways you can accomplish this next task,

  • You can purchase and download the book Montessori at Home!  Glance at the Practical Life and Sensorial sections for ideas. or
  • Brainstorm ideas that would nurture an interest your child already has that would enhance and build upon their current abilities.

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For example, Naomi (my 1 year old) has been feeding herself with her hands for several months.  Seeing as though she is nearing her 1/2 birthday, I decided that it was time she begin to work on using the proper utensils, such as a spoon.  I gathered multiple sizes and colors of spoons, in addition to a variety of bowls, a plate, a cup, and a napkin. 

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To do what is referred to as an “activity cycle,” it is recommended to have a floor rug or table mat that your child works on.  Instantly, my imagination began sewing this beautiful, brightly colored blanket for Miss Naomi to reside upon for our Montessori Moments. Then I discovered that a busy rug or mat will actually serve as a distraction.  So, here are some parameters for you:

  • a good size of rug or blanket is 2 x 3’
  • stick with something that has a short nap
  • find a mat that is a solid, light color (beige, green, or gray)
  • non-skid shelf lining works well
  • carpet samples

Because I lacked the majority of these items, I had Naomi sit on our wood floor with all other objects removed but what we were working on. 

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Next time, I hope to begin the “activity cycle” more like Bowman’s suggestion in his book, involving my children more:

  1. Create a work space.  Get out a rug, blanket, or table mat.
  2. Unveil the activity by bringing it to the workspace.  (You will probably see a lot of our activities on trays.)
  3. Encourage YOUR child to clean up and place the activity where it should be stored.
  4. Put the rug away. 

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Your child will become used to the habit and know what to expect each time. 

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What are you waiting for?  Go and have a Montessori Moment at Home with your Little!

signature button Jodi

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Now I Know My ABCs ~ Letter B

imageAll printables for this unit can be downloaded for free on my website, Animal ABCs.

Letter B ~ Bearb bear

Bb Bear Extras…Bb Bears Extras


Bb Bear in Action

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Have more bear fun…


More Letter Bb Fun…


All printables for this unit can be downloaded for free on my website, Animal ABCs.

Did you miss…

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