Spring Morning Work

Ice Cube Pattern Trays 

Carrot tracing

Umbrella Gems

Theme words*Paper ONLY

The whole insect unit

Kinderpond gets Buggy

We start each unit with a letter. 

In the insect unit, we start with a brief overview.

The next day, we focus on a different insect.

I write in cursive the return address :)

I just pick random order- sort of lol

I also include how to draw cards too, on Thursdays we have 

free choice in journals, so I read praying mantis on a Thursday, 

because drawing a mantis is difficult ;) 

Ladybug Lane

Grasshopper Gateway

Bee Place

Dragonfly Drive

Ant Avenue 

Mantis Street

ButterflyBoulvard 

So each day, we get :

*a letter, 

*a how-to-draw card, and a 

*small bug icon to glue in a bug cage. 

As soon as I find this file, I will put it in my TPT store :)

I used these but added the hearts at the bottom so they could write their names.

Each picture has different choices:

* dominos

* numerals

* ten frames

*tally marks
* fingers

When I put these in centers,

I will put one copy in a sheet protector

and color code the crayons at the top.

Click on the pictures or HERE for the link.

Additional coloring sheets from HERE.

Bug stew from HERE.

The die cuts were a notebook,

the flies are from HERE.

This is a bottle-drying rack.

Add bugs and tweezers!  

Roll the cube and add that many bees to the egg carton.

I used some mini-erasers and some yellow poms.

roll the number cube and put that many bees in the hive.

May in Kinderpond- insect edition

 We kicked off our insect unit by getting a letter and a name tag for being entomologists in training!

This year, I added little paper critters that we are gluing in our bug collection.

Each day, we read a letter from that bug.

We draw that bug (we aren't doing the grasshopper or praying mantis- 

they are a little too difficult for all my children.)

We have school 4 days a week.  We journal all 4 days, 

but on the last day, we have totally free choice.

On regular days we have a two-page spread.

One side is for me and then the second side is for them.

They need to draw whatever they'd like using as many colors 

as they are old. Thank you Dr. Jean for that!

We did a directed drawing of a ladybug.

They can be four colors: black, orange, yellow, and red.

They can have spots or stripes!!

Bug stew from Pocket of Preschool

We took plastic bugs, nets, magnifying lenses, tongs, and a box.

We added them to grass ... Easter grass in the sensory bin.

Butterfly dominoes

Playdough stampers and mats.

The white ones came from Naier- check all my purchases. 

Fabric bugs

Flannel board pieces.

Here's a matching game.

Pick a toy bug and match it with the cardboard bug.

Magnet puzzle.

Pattern block bugs.

Ladybugs

I took a green craft stick with numbers on it.

The children clip that many clips on the green leaf.

Some clips are red and some I drew a ladybug on :)

These are for the light table.

The dragonflies are from Dollar Tree.

They were on a string of lights and I just popped them off lol

The creepy crawlies I think may glow in the dark.

The letters came from Target.

These bugs are HUGE. About the size of my hand!

They are in blocks area.

These are awesome for the insect unit- normally might put them in the calm down area.

These cutouts came from Dollar Tree.

I wrote a letter on each one.  

They made a match with a fly.

Then the partner would call out a letter and they would swat them!

This is a bottle drying rack lol

Children use tongs to pick up bugs and put them back in.

This is another sensory table.

Roll one of the number cubes.

Put that many bees (mini erasers) or pom-poms into the beehive.

This is our science center.

Here are more bugs and insects.

You can see our ladybug habitat.

There is paper and pencils to draw what they observe.

Class Books

I love love love using class books in my room.  When I taught in first grade, we made a book a week.  Being in 4K is no different.  I do more of the work, but they do the reading!!!

When I intro each unit I read a letter (more on those here)

Later I share the class books. Here are some I've made.  Each child gets their own page.  Even if I have to use the pages twice, they get their own page. I laminate my page and the cover page. These are usually the first and last pages.
We did these two for our insect unit:

Catching bugs found here.

This is a firefly book. We use name recognition and color words. 

The read aloud can be found here.

At the beginning of the year, we did a leaf book.

I just wrote with a marker on the line provided.

They are printed on cardstock.  

If the pages get ripped, I use packing tape along the "spine."

I also use a generic book as well.  Sometimes, I read that book first.  Sometimes, I read the class book first.

For example the "In the tree" classbook, we will also read a book that just covers the leaf colors. For more advanced students, we might make a mini-book that they get to color and add things to.  In this book, they trace the color word and color the leaf that color.

Kids love to star in the books and they are super popular during reading/library time.


At the end of the year, I break down the books, and each child gets their own page from each book we make.  I know that some teachers send home a different class book with each child too :)

Here are some other classbooks in my store.

Junior Entomologists visit Kinderpond

Learning Board-

Words he, is, it, do

Color pink

Shape- hexagon

Numbers  69-72


Name Practice- binder or

Monday-

Story: Bee Book

Poem: I See a Bee

Word Study: Buzzing Bumblebee 

Fine Motor: Bugs 
I grabbed these toys from Dollar Tree. 
Pick up bugs and add to containers.

Science: Insects can/have/are

Math: Buggy Number Sense 

Art: Play dough shapes

Writing: Bug Eyes Sheet . I grabbed these "bug eyes" in the party section at WalMart.

Theme/Life Skills: Ants in the pants game

Tuesday

Story: We Like Bugs

Poem: We Like Bugs  this is the song to go with the book :)

Word Study: I See Bugs

Fine Motor: Clip it bug words

Science: Observe meal worms Grab some meal worms from the pet store

Math: Bug Spinner

Art: Bug Finger Print book

Writing: Tracing we use smelly markers :)  
makes everything better ;)

Theme/Life Skills: Bug Stew

Thursday

Story: Ladybug books

Poem: Insect Syllables

Word Study: Ladybug 

Fine Motor: Caterpillar names

Science: Observe ladybugs  
I got this set from Amazon.

Math: Graph bugs

Art: Directed Drawings ladybug and bee

Writing: Grid

Theme/Life Skills: Scissor Skills Cootie

Friday

Story: Quiet Cricket/Quick as a Cricket

Poem: Head Thorax Abdomen 

Word Study: Sight Word Swat . I am going to put a sticker over the numbers or letters and write sight words on instead.

Fine Motor: Erasers & tongs
We will use mini erasers and tongs and fill up cups.
Either see how many we can get in a minute or roll and fill a cup.
We will use those small containers with lids from the Dollar Tree.

Science: Observe crickets

Math: Pattern Blocks

Art: Butterfly Symmetry

Writing: Trace and Write

Theme/Life Skills: Grid Game

Past units

2017  
2017 review
2016   
2016 review
2014 week 1  
2014 week 2

Shopping List:

Pet Shop:
meal worms
crickets

ladybugs** Amazon link above