St. Patrick’s Day Activities

March 12, 2019 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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’s three centers my class is currently playing in.

St. Patrick's Day rice noodle bin with leprechaun hats, green sieves

St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Bin

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

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

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 tableware, play food, jewelry and decorations.

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

St. Patrick’s Day Creating And Writing Center

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

For more St. Patrick’s Day activities, click here.

To find out how the city of Chicago celebrates St. Patrick’s Day, click here.

Igloo “Glamping” Pretend Play

March 10, 2019 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

Igloo “Glamping”

It’s been said that you should buy beautiful things you are drawn to, even if you are not sure how they will fit into your color scheme or wardrobe collection.

When I purchased a narwhal themed sequin pillow, I wasn’t sure how I would use it in preschool play. I loved seeing color and shape change sequins in children’s clothing, and thought a sensory item like this would be nice to explore in the classroom.

Then I saw some “Glamping” pretend play posts on social media and knew this pillow would be perfect for an igloo “glamping” pretend play center.

Igloo “Glamping” Center Accessories

Pop up igloo
Fur rabbit skin
Narwhal themed sequin pillow
Bird puppet
Toy flashlight
Water bottle
Drinking glasses
Food bowl and spoon
Fishing box and reel
Paper fish
Camping chair
Stuffed snowy owl
Polar bear puppet
Toque, hat and mittens

Fishing gear and play food containers. — Fishing Gear And Play Food Containers

Camping chair and accessories. — Camping Chair And Accessories

There is a rope with clothespins strung behind the igloo to hang up fish to dry. The activity is great for fine motor control.

A color changing light gives the igloo a green glow.

For information about igloos, click here.

“Glamping” is a form of luxurious camping. Are you a camper or more of a glamper? Share below.

World Book Day Story Book Feature: Just Itzy

March 6, 2019 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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 story time, a teacher aide’s home, and three children and their classrooms makes the story worthy of a shout out for World Book Day!

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.”

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.

“Just Itzy” Story Centers

Spider Small World

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!

Spider Light Table Activity

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.

Spider Web Sensory Bin

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 be a work well with this activity.

Little Miss Muffet Spider Craft

Click here for a cute “Little Miss Muffet” handprint spider craft by messylittlemonster.

Is there a story book theme you would like to see featured on the blog? Share below!

For a post on Book Inspired Tree Art, click here.

Hawaiian Party

March 3, 2019 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

Here’s a Hawaiian Party that works for all ages. We did it with a group of seniors, preschool children and their parents. It was dreamed up because this school year our preschool classes were invited to visit a seniors home to socialize with the residents. February was a great month to show some kindness, so we planned our visit then.

Hawaiian Holiday Theme

Hawaiian Holiday was the theme of choice. Our city was in the middle of a cold weather spell, so the thinking was “If we can’t be in Hawaii, (where we would ALL rather be), then let’s bring Hawaii to us.”

Our preschool brought food and activities for the visit.

As seniors, preschool children and preschool parents entered the social room at the home, music from the CD “Golden Hits Of Hawaii” wafted through the air. (This is a favorite CD of Hawaiian music, and we’ve played it at school on some of our coldest days. The music lifts our spirits every time.)

As everyone chose a spot to sit, they were invited to make a paper lei.

Next our school group performed some action songs for the seniors and parents. Songs from Dr. Jean Sing Along Read Along books and CD were our choice. (Dr. Jean has many singing and learning activities available on her website and her You Tube Channel.)

Hawaiian Party Food

Then refreshments were served. Hawaiian themed paper plates were passed out.

Little muffins with parasols for decoration were offered.

Each table got a palm tree scene fruit plate.

Crispy coconut rolls were a last minute find for the palm tree trunks.

A selection of cookies rounded out the snack options.

Extra fruit was available to make sure everyone would have some.

Closing Activity

Our last activity was choosing a Hawaiian themed picture to color. These Kids Kraft scented markers were a hit.

One senior was proud to show us her finished work. We thought it was snap worthy!

As we were preparing to leave, many seniors showed appreciation for our visit. They said we brightened their morning, which is what we had hoped for! Preschool parents who helped supervise our activities were complimentary. A good time was had by all.

Share a favorite Hawaiian activity below. I would love to hear it!

The Hawaiian Island Mauna Kea has numerous telescopes for deep space viewing. For space activities, click here .

Chinese New Year Sensory Bin

January 29, 2019 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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.

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 roll over.

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.

Local Chinese New Year 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.

Chinese New Year Sensory Bin

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

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)
Red and gold buttons
Red and gold jewels
Red garland pieces
Gold stars
Toy dragons
Toy pigs

For other sensory play ideas, check the Sensory Play page on this blog.