Putting The Pretty In Preschool

Finding Beauty In Everyday Early Childhood Experiences

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St. Patrick’s Day Activities

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St. Patrick's Day activities for the early childhood classroom. Sensory tray, writing center, and dramatic play center ideas included.

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It’s March, but there is still lots of snow outside in Edmonton.  St. Patrick’s Day activities and the green color they surround us with are so welcome.  Here are three centers my class is currently playing in.

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St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Tray

Items included in this sensory tray:

  • spinach rice vermicelli noodles (broken up)
  • green bowls, sieves, and scoops
  • green buttons, beads, and bead garland
  • shamrock and leprechaun shaped erasers
  • green coins
  • leprechaun mini hats
  • shamrock ice cubes
St. Patrick's Day rice noodle tray with leprechaun hats, green sieves, utensils and loose parts.

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The green vermicelli noodles are a great find, as they are “ready-made” for this activity.

Green rice vermicelli noodles for sensory play.

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St. Patrick’s Day Play Kitchen

Pretend play is hands down one of children’s favorite activities to do.  When effort is put into adding details to a play kitchen, children respond with delight.

St. Patrick's Day house center dramatic play accessories. Tableware, play food, jewelry, coins, and decorations are included.

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St. Patrick’s Day pretend play items:

  • St. Patrick’s Day themed plates and napkins
  • shamrock felt decorations (to use as cookies)
  • shamrock felt garland (taken apart to be “pretzels”)
  • green and yellow pom-poms (play food)
  • green and white flowers
  • shamrock-shaped tray
  • green serving utensils and ice cube tray
  • shamrock table scatter
  • bead necklace
  • gold coins

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St. Patrick’s Day Creating And Writing Center

St. Patrick's Day writing center with office supplies. Themed tracers, stickers rulers, rubber stamps, erasers, hole punches, and writing papers are included.

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The items in this creating and writing center are:

  • felt pens in varying shades of green
  • shamrock ink stampers
  • shamrock paper punch
  • leprechaun hat and shamrock tracers
  • St. Patrick’s Day erasers
  • St. Patrick’s Day stickers
  • sticky note pad
  • green stencil rulers
  • paper and pencil
  • gold coins
  • St. Patrick’s Day glasses
  • flowers and Irish blessing for decoration

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All these activities are stocked with accessories easily found at Dollar stores or party stores. They are versatile pieces and can be used in the same or different ways in upcoming years.

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World Book Day Story Book Feature: Just Itzy

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World Book Day Just Itzy storybook theme. Spider sensory and small world activities for young children.

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World Book Day is held every year on the first Thursday in March. It is a celebration of authors, illustrators, and books.  And it is most of all a celebration of reading.

The impact of the picture book “Just Itzy” spanning my preschool storytime, a teacher aide’s home, and three children and their classrooms makes the story worthy of a shout out for World Book Day.

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The “Just Itzy” Story

“Just Itzy” is written by Lana Krumwiede and illustrated by Greg Pizzoli. This story was one of the many books about spiders I chose last Fall in gathering resources for a Spider theme. It is an entertaining read about a spider named Itzy Bitzy and his first day of school. In the story, Itzy wants to catch his lunch instead of taking a lunch box that had been packed for him. In learning to make a spider web to trap food he becomes part of the nursery rhymes “Little Miss Muffet”, “There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly”, and “The Itsy Bitsy Spider.” By the end of the tale, Itzy builds a successful spider web AND rescues his big brother Gutzy who had been teasing him about his “smallness.”

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The Story’s Reach

My class enjoyed the story. The teacher aide liked “Just Itzy” so much she borrowed the book from a library for her three children. After numerous readings at home, the story was further enjoyed at her children’s school:

  • Both grade school children took the book to school to show it to their teachers and classmates.
  • One teacher had the teacher aide’s child read the book to the class.
  • The teacher in the kindergarten class ordered the book, and it fit in perfectly with the Fantasy Theme the students were working on.

The teacher aide said that for weeks afterward, their family would add humor to their day by chanting “Keep your eye on the fly,” a saying Itzy’s “spindergarten” teacher taught the class about never giving up.

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“Just Itzy” Story Centers

Spider Small World

Spider themed small world with translucent pipe builders, spiders, a fly, flowers, and a spider web on a patch of grass.

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This small world has

  • a play grass base
  • Safari Toob flowers
  • different-sized toy spiders
  • a toy fly
  • a cupcake liner spider web
  • translucent pipe builders

It is winter in our city at the moment. This activity would be great in the summer using a patch of grass and some real flowers!

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Spider Light Table Activity

Spiders, a fly, a spider web and translucent pipe builders on the light table.

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An opportunity to reenact the “Itsy Bitsy Spider” nursery rhyme on the light table or regular table with

  • a large plastic spider web
  • small toy spiders
  • a toy fly
  • translucent pipe builders

Most spiders at this center are very tiny so they fit in the pipe builders.

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Spider Web Sensory Bin

An all-black spider web sensory bin with noodles, rice, beans, spiders, and loose parts.

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Items in the bin:

  • black rice
  • black rotini noodles
  • black beans
  • plastic spiders
  • loose parts such as buttons, beads and hair ties
  • spider web made from rope

Toy tweezers would work well with this activity.

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The storybook “Just Itzy” is an engaging read that works wonderfully for the beginning of school, anytime in Fall, and on World Book Day.

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Chinese New Year Sensory Bin

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Chinese New Year 2019 Rice Sensory Bin

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The Chinese New Year officially begins on Tuesday, February 5, 2019, and it will be the Year of the Pig. The pig is the 12th and last zodiac animal. Some ancient storied explanations are:

  • The pig was the last to arrive at an important meeting because he slept in.
  • A wolf destroyed the pig’s house so he had to rebuild it before he could get to the meeting.
  • The pig stopped to enjoy a feast while taking part in a race. He resumed the race but not surprisingly came in last.
  • Being pretty pudgy, the pig moved the slowest in the race.

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Fascinating Facts About Pigs

Although pigs often get associated with being smelly and dirty, they keep quite clean if they are in a temperature-controlled environment. They only roll around in dirt when they get hot, and this is because they cannot sweat.
As far as smarts go, pigs are considered to be one of the most intelligent animals in the world.  As pets, they can figure out how to open a cupboard and can be trained to shake a hoof and rollover.

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Predictions For The Year Of The Pig

The Year of the Pig might just be a positive one for everyone!  People born in the Pig Year are attributed with an agreeable personality, balanced lifestyle, hardworking nature, and enjoyment of life. These qualities are thought to have a positive influence on all people.

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Related:

Year Of The Rat Noodle Bin (Chinese New Year 2020)

Year Of The Ox Sensory Tray (Chinese New Year 2021)

Year Of The Tiger Chickpea Bin (Chinese New Year 2022)

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Local Celebrations

In recognition of Chinese New Year, this weekend there will be celebrations all over the city of Edmonton.  Events will include lion and dragon dances, music, dancing, and cultural performances. There will be karaoke singing for seniors and crafts for children.  West Edmonton Mall will host a talent show as part of their itinerary. The University of Alberta will hold a Lunar New Year Gala, so Asian students can celebrate the holiday and make new friendships while staying in Edmonton to further their studies.

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Chinese New Year Sensory Bin

Here’s a sensory bin to celebrate Chinese New Year 2019. The rice base is a neutral color, but colored yellow rice would work well too.

A Chinese New Year 2019 rice sensory bin.

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Items In The Sensory Bin:

  • brown rice
  • red bowls
  • red spoons
  • Asian themed tins
  • small red cups
  • chopsticks
  • gold coins (borrowed from my St. Patrick’s Day stash)
  • gold and red buttons
  • red and gold jewels
  • red garland pieces
  • gold stars
  • toy dragons
  • toy pigs

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Coffee Playdough Turkey

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Easy to make playdough turkey. Feathers, espresso beans, and a wiggly eye complete the bird.

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Use this aromatic coffee playdough recipe, or your favorite sensory dough to make a playdough turkey.

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Coffee Playdough Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cup flour
  • ½ cup salt
  • 1 cup old coffee grounds
  • ½ cup cold coffee

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Mix and knead all the ingredients in a large bowl. Add a little more flour if needed.

Store in the fridge until use. Take the dough out of the fridge to warm up if there is time.

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Making The Coffee Playdough Turkey

Have children use a large turkey-shaped cookie cutter to make a turkey shape. Set out feathers, espresso beans, and googly eyes for children to decorate their birds with.

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A freshly made turkey.

A freshly made coffee playdough turkey.

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A dried coffee playdough turkey ready to display.

A coffee playdough turkey that has dried and is ready to display.

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With this unique sensory experience, preschoolers are bound to have fun smelling and molding playdough turkeys and other creations of their choice.

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Transparent Page Divider Activities

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Transparent page divider activities. Art, science, math, and photography ideas that are suitable for all ages.

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School supplies are stocked everywhere, sales are on, and I’m buying a substantial amount of transparent page divider packets. I’m using them for their usual purpose and setting lots aside for early learning activities. Read on for ideas on how to incorporate these layering page dividers in photos, art, and light table play.

Transparent page dividers used in math, science, art, and photography activities with children.

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Transparent Page Divider Jellyfish

Page divider jellyfish bells and transparent stir stick tentacles offer an invitation to create on the light table. The jellyfish can give each other “hugs” so new colors are discovered.

Light table jellyfish made with transparent page divider shapes and stir sticks.

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Geometric Shape Creations

Cut geometric shapes in various sizes and a tray of transparent gems inspire open-ended creating.

Cut geometric transparent page divider shapes set on a light table with transparent jewels.

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Christmas Tree Decorating

Christmas trees cut from page dividers and set out on a light table with transparent star links and game pieces offer a festive invitation to decorate.

Transparent Christmas trees, star links, and game pieces.

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Page Divider Picture Accents

A strip of transparent color layered on pictures adds a striking element. Black and white animal themed coloring pages and calendar pictures work well as subjects too.

Sketch Art picture of meerkats looking into a pumpkin enhanced with a transparent page divider strip.
Sketch Art Meerkat And Pumpkin Photo

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Sketch Art photo of a pier enhanced with a transparent page divider strip.
Sketch Art Pier Photo

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Country barn photo enhanced with a strip of a transparent page divider..

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Handprint Turkey Art Accent

A strip of a transparent page divider enhances black and white turkey handprint art.

Handprint turkey enhanced with a strip of transparent page divider.

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