Going to the Airport

Letter of the Week - A - Field Trip

We have a little airport near our home and I took Katelynn down "Airport Road" to see the airport and the airplanes.

You can't really tell, but this is a jet! Pretty big if you ask me. Funny to see it at the little airport.

Now this is more like it. A puddle jumper!

This is Katelynn's excited face. Just kidding. She was trying to take a snooze, but she got really excited when we saw a helicopter take off!

Here she is acting like an airplane back at home. Zooooom.....zooooooom!

Other Ideas...

• Apple Orchard


• Alligator Farm


• Aromatherapy Shop


• Art Store


• Ambulance - See if your local fire department will let them see the inside of an ambulance or just simply ride by and show them one.


• Ant Farm - Find an ant hill and observe the ants with them. Sing, "When the Ants Go Marching In" song.


• Acorns - Collect acorns from the yard.

Letter "A" Snack Ideas

Letter of the Week - Letter A

Here is a list of some snack ideas for teaching the letter "A".

• Animal Crackers


• Apple Slices


• Applesauce


• Apple Juice


• Alphabet Soup


• Alphabet Cereal


• Angel Food Cake


• Almonds

Apple Pizza

Spread apple sauce, cream cheese, and cinnamon on toasted hamburger bun halves (can also use biscuits, bagels or English muffins). Then toast them for about twenty more seconds and you have a delicious treat.

Ants in Sand

Crush graham crackers in a Ziploc bag with a rolling pin into small pieces. Place some raisins or chocolate chips in the bag. Eat with a spoon or with your hands.

Ants on a Log (Crackers)

Spread frosting, peanut butter, jelly, cream cheese, etc. on a graham cracker, Ritz cracker, saltine, etc. Place raisins, chocolate chips, or pieces of fruit on top.

Ants on a Log

Spread some peanut butter or cream cheese onto celery. Top with raisins.

Letter "A" Craft Ideas

Letter of the Week - Letter A

Apple Tree- Katelynn decided that some of her apples were falling off her tree.

Ants at the Picnic - Katelynn and I used our fingerprints to make the ants and I added the body parts with a pen.

Pasta Art - First I let Katelynn color the letter A as she pleased and then I put globs of glue on the paper and she put the pasta where she wanted.

Apple Prints - I cut an apple in half and let Katelynn use it to print on paper. She decided a hand print was appropriate, too.

Toilet Paper Angel - "A" is for angel. Can you tell which one is Mommy's and which one is Katelynn's. She had a ball with this one.

Apple Shaker - This is from a previous post, but it was fun to make and believe it or not, she still shakes it.

Apple Noisemaker Craft

Letter of the Week - Letter A

You will need: paper plate (painted the day before), construction paper, scissors, stapler, glue, clips and dry beans (something to make noise).

1. Paint the paper plate with red paint the day before.

2. Try not to eat the paint!

3. Cut a white sheet of construction paper in a circle, fold and cut in half for the inside of the apple. Add some "seeds" from black construction paper.

4. Glue the apple two apple core pieces in place, as above.

5. Fold plate in half and hold with clips. Staple around edges to hold together. Leave a small opening at one corner.

6. Pour beans into opening and finish stapling closed.

Apple noisemaker!

Katelynn decided she was going to try a bean and decided that they are much better cooked. Watch little ones for possible choking hazard. Katelynn still has the noisemaker and it's been about a week. She loves shaking it and dances around. She has since picked the "seeds" off though!

Lesson Plans

How I Organize My Ideas...

I have been reading other blogs and decided that I am going to try this. It looks like tremendous fun and I am all for F-U-N!

I decided last week that it was time to start trying to do some crafts and fun activities to introduce the alphabet, shapes, colors and numbers to Katelynn. I know that she is only 20 months old, but it can't hurt! I have been doing some research and have made up a sort of lesson plan for each week.

I know that most everything at this stage will be trial and error. I want to make this fun for Katelynn and if she wants to take a break and do something else, so be it. I simply want to introduce these things to her and hopefully once she does start school, she will have absorbed a little bit of knowledge. For myself and my forgetful mind, I have organized a daily plan, but with a toddler, we all know that she will ultimately decide what we are going to do or not do! I would welcome any other suggestions or tips from all the mom experts out there!

Here is my Theme of the Week Worksheet....to make notes and ideas.

Theme of the Week:______________________________

Monday

Introduce theme on Vocabulary Board
Story:
Pictures:
Song:
Craft:
Sensory Tub Idea:

Tuesday

Shape
Color
Find things around the house
Post on Vocabulary Board

Wednesday

Letter of the Week
Letter printout (decorate / color)
Post on Vocabulary Board
Review theme /shape /color

Thursday

Number of the Week
Number printout (decorate / color)
Post on Vocabulary Board
Review theme /shape /color

Friday

Review
Booklet

LETTER: _______ NUMBER: _______ SHAPE: _____________ COLOR: _____________

Below is another sheet where I organize the story, the song, 'A' snack ideas, crafts, a "field trip", and a simple game for the lesson.

STORY:

Little Red House Fable

Once there was a little boy who came to visit his grandparents in a Norway.. Well, the small child gets bored as their is not a lot of excitement in Norway.. The boy asks his grandma what he can do. She said to go out in the town and find a round, red house that has no doors, no windows and has a star inside The little boy ponders the idea but can not figure out what he is supposed to find. She decides to go ask farmer John from next door, as he seems fairly smart. She ask farmer Scott but he can't figure it out but he has an ideal. He says, See that apple tree in my front yard, go sit under it and think lots of great ideas have come under an apple tree. So the little boy goes, sits under the tree and is about to fall asleep when out of no where a huge puff of wind comes. The tree began to sway and an apple fell out of the tree landing right next to the boy.The boy picks up the apple looks at it, and suddenly it hits him; An apple is round, red, has not windows, no doors, but wait is there a star inside. He runs to his Grandpa and asks him to cut the apple in half and sure enough, there is a star insider the apple (at this point cut an apple in half and show the star)

“A” SNACKS

· Apples
· Animal Crackers
· Apple Sauce
· Apple Juice

Apple Pizza

For a tasty treat during apple week, make apple pizzas. It is real simple and delicious. Let your children put apple sauce, cream cheese, and cinnamon on toasted hamburger bun halves (can also use biscuits or English muffins). Then toast them for about twenty more seconds and you have a delicious treat.

FIELD TRIP:

Airport Field Trip or Visit an Apple Orchard (if avail.)

Take a field trip to a local airport with your children.

GAME:

Apple Match

Cut out apples of green, yellow, and red. Put corresponding apples on a manila folder. Have your children match the apples.

CRAFTS:

Apple Shaker

What You Need:
· Paint
· Bells,rice, beans or any other small noise maker
· Poster Board or Paper Plates
· Ribbon
What You Do:
Let the students paint two pieces of apple shaped poster board (or paper plates). Then glue and staple the two pieces together (Putting Noise Maker in middle). Next attach the ribbon. Now you have a great Tambourine like noise maker for you children to enjoy.

Apple Tree

What You Need:
· Construction Paper
· Glue Stick
· Apples
What You Do:
Have Katelynn glue the apples on a tree that I make beforehand.

SONG:
Eat an Apple
Eat an apple (pretend to eat fist)
Save the core (put one hand in the other)
Plant the seeds (pretend to plant seeds)
And grow some more (make tree shape over head)

I will post all of our progress throuout the week and we shall see how it goes. Again, feel free to offer advice.