Group Tot School: All About Me

Get comfy... This is a long one! Ha!

Last week, we held another group Tot School session and the theme was, "All About Me."

Along with the tray activities, there were crafts, play dough, journal "writing" and circle time.

It was fun. It was a little wild (I'll talk at the end about some changes we're going to make).

Oh. Did I mention we had about 20 tots here?

20.

That's a lot of two and three year olds in one space. :)

Let's look at the trays...

Learning Our ABCs

Dollar Tree plate, labeled with letter stickers, and cards to sort (copied from a suh-weet book from my even sweeter friend Amy! I'll have to find the link for it because it really is awesome)

Using Chopsticks

Lovin' on our new lobster chopsticks, the kids transferred shells into the mold.

Tonging Preferences

Tonging the tiny foods on the "Like" or "Do Not Like" sides of the mat

Bear Family

Sorting and categorizing bears by size or color

Learning to Listen

Kiddos followed directions as to where to move the ladybug (which I made on a floral pebble)

Learning Patterns

Unifix cube pattern sticks were built to match the popsicle stick models

Decorating Me!

Kids used a cutout to decorate and then glued it in their journal

Spelling My Name

(that was Maddie, before Tot School, writing a story for me)

Classifying Actions

Deciding how our actions at school and home are either good or not so good

Tonging Flowers

Pouring Pebbles

Creating a Number Line

Adult or Child?

Sorting magazine pictures

Drip, Drop

Using a dropper to transfer water

And homework.

Duh. :)

Okay, so those were the trays. Additionally, the mamas traced their tot's bodies on butcher paper (so cute!) and the kids also made dyed noodle necklaces (fine motor skills!).

There was also a mirror set up so that they could create a self portrait in their journal. :)

**Recent Changes to Tot School**

This is where I'll probably get wordy. Feel free to skip if you have no interest in running your own Tot School group. Ha!

Our blessing is that we have so many wonderful tots to learn alongside with. It's amazing.

The downside of it (if there is one) is that my family room (where the trays are set up) becomes a congested, crowded, unusable space. The kids and moms just can not get access to all the trays.

We do use the backyard but it's the indoor tray area that is posing a problem.

Also, there isn't enough room for all the moms to be sitting WITH their tot (because I've said from the beginning that this is not a play date and the reason is that the focus is on cooperative, early learning). This means that the trays are manned mostly by the kids which also means that they get demolished... Quickly. Ha!

So, for the next Tot School (next week!), we're going to try a more center-based approach. There will ONLY be five sets of moms and tots inside, working on the trays at a time. I'm really hoping (and praying; I totally pray for our kids during this time) that it will allow more space for the moms to sit side by side with their tot and the kids will be able to safely complete as many trays as they want (in about a 20 minute block before rotating out).

So why am I sharing this?? Ha! It's because Tot School is an amazing experience that we've been doing for about 9ish months. There's also a learning curve and I'm constantly having to reassess, rethink and re-plan. I spend about three hours creating the trays and then about three more making changes, adding things, eliminating things, ect.

But.

It's totally worth it. Whether you have a group of three kids or a group of thirty, I'd love to encourage you to try a Tot School (and, if you're not a type-A, perfectionist personality {like myself}, then cut that work time in half. Then, cut it in half again. Ha!).

Whether your tot goes to a traditional preschool or is homeschooled or is just learning about the world around him, it's such an amazing time to work directly with your child. It's also a wonderful way to build in cooperative learning skills and teamwork with his peers.

Anyway, I love it and can't wait to implement our new changes and see if it helps things run more smoothly!

Newer Practical Life Learning

Learning skills that are important in everyday life has always been something that I've so enjoyed exploring with Maddie.

As soon as she was old enough, I modified the house to more appropriately, and more safely, meet her needs.

Dishtowels got moved to a low drawer in the kitchen and she uses them to independently clean up her own spills.

A water bottle is kept in a kitchen cupboard so that she can clean her trays or table.

A snack basket was moved to a lower shelf so that she can independently choose her own raisins, granola bars or fruit snacks.

All these things (I hope!) give her a sense of freedom but also, that she's an important, contributing member of this family.

Here are some of her latest faves, that I'd share for posterity and also to get ideas of other things your preschoolers like to do.

A few weeks ago, she asked if she could help me unload the dishwasher. Never one to turn down help, I moved a dining room chair over and gave her the utensil basket (and no, there were no sharp knives!).

What a great sorting activity this was for her, and she enjoyed the variety.

Daddy is on quite the banana bread kick lately and Maddie is on quite the, "I can measure that, mix that and make that" kick.

It works out really well. :)

And then yesterday, she wanted to help make breakfast (she's wearing an old shirt that used to be Megan's, hence the reason she adores it and must always sleep in it). She's helped me use the grater before, but never totally on her own. We've talked about how to hold it, where the sharper parts were and she started grating. I stood and watched (well, and took a picture!) but she got through quite a block of cheese before I stopped her (the cheese was getting small and I didn't want any knuckles being grated!).

Anyway, what practical life activities do your little ones enjoy? I would love to hear!

Tot School Time: Doctors

This week in Tot School, Maddie and I learned all about doctors. Ever since getting the doctor's kit for Christmas, she's been a little bit infatuated with administering medicine, taking one's blood pressure and just generally treating "the flues."

Reading and Phonics

These were Maddie's three favorite books this week. She loves Nurse Nancy and was thrilled when her aunts found the Doctor Dan book, too!

After reading Froggy Goes to the Doctor, we had to make our own very detailed doctor's bag. It's a cute little book that took her a while to color, but she was excited with the finished product.

In Franklin Goes to the Hospital, Franklin cracks his shell and needs an x-ray. She had no experience with x-rays, so we made our own!

We talked about the ribs and she tried to feel hers (and got frustrated because she couldn't see her ribs). She attempted to cut the pieces out with me and then she glued them down on black construction paper.

We talked about ambulances...

And nurses and doctors.

She would stamp the letter and say the sound...

And then asked for watercolor crayons to color in the rest.

After reading Nurse Nancy, she wanted to become Nurse Nancy, so we made our own nurse's hat (even though I don't think nurses wear hats like these anymore!). Every time we played doctor, she'd HAVE to wear her hat!

Math

This was a fun page to recognize numbers and strengthen counting skills. I added a foam dice and some number stickers, too.

She would roll the dice, count the dots and then find that number on her nurse page. She'd cover it up with the corresponding number.

She also did a fun little counting and stamping book. I printed it out for numbers one through six, but wish I'd gone a little higher because she really got in a groove with it!

This was actually an easy page because there were the correct number of squares for that particular number. One through three were a little harder because there were extra squares and she had to carefully count and stamp.

We had a fun lesson in shapes when she created her own ambulance (her favorite project of the week, by the way).

She loves all activities that involve gluing down shapes.

Art

Maddie made a nurse by coloring in lots of pieces. Our friend Megan is in school to be a nurse, so we called this one Nurse Megan.

She cut the fringe of bangs on Nurse Megan's hair.

She decided to make Nurse Megan sad because, "She just is and that's all." Ha!

Fine Motor

This was inspired by The Adventures of Bear, and what a great activity it was.

I laid out some tongue depressors (aka: popsicle sticks) and floral rocks (seriously, I love these things! They're so versatile!).

She had to sort the colors and balance the rocks on the sticks. She did this several times throughout the week.

Practical Life

After reading Shannon's post about using knives to spread things, I was excited to try it with Maddie.

We made our own bagel x-rays to practice. Ha!

Maddie spread the butter (which she thought was delicious! She usually only eats bagels with cream cheese and she kept saying, "This butter is better!" and then laughing hysterically). Then, she used some bone-shaped sprinkles to add on the ribs. Finally, she added a red hot "heart."

And then, ate her x-ray right up.

Pretend Play

So, Maddie loves her doctor's kit, but I thought it'd be fun to make her a more realistic one, too. I grabbed one of her shoe boxes and covered the lid with black paper and a red cross (which she says means that "Jesus is watching over her doctor's kit."). Then, I filled it with tongue depressors, cotton balls, a tiny flashlight, bandages (I peel the outer paper off so that she can just peel the backing off and apply) and a real digital thermometer.

She is absolutely in heaven with this! The thermometer is, by far, the favorite thing and I'm pretty sure that all of her dolls get their temperature taken constantly (along with Mike and me! I later added in a small package of diaper wipes and showed her how to clean the thermometer!).

And so, that was our week in Tot School! We had a great time and are looking forward to Valentine's activities next week!

Check out the activities of other tots by visiting Tot School!

Tot School Time: Winter

It's time for another posting of Tot School, and this week was all about winter, but primarily snow. I really enjoyed doing themes throughout the holiday season and am still enjoying it. I find that while I do need to plan a little more thoughtfully during the week, the actual aspect of planning is much easier.

We read lots of winter-themed books that I pulled from our shelves (the benefit of owning enough books to start a small children's library). Among our favorites this week were Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear, Snowstorm Surprise (on the inside cover, this one says my name and July '82; I love how my mom always dates when we get/got books!), Bear Snores On and The Jacket I Wear in the Snow.

I tried to link a language arts activity with each book, so we'll see how I did.

The most important thing is that Maddie had a blast (the snow chalet might be the best part of the week, if you ask her) and she can now tell you several things.

1. It does not, and probably never will, snow where we live.

2. It would be fun if it snowed here.

3. We would wear mittens, scarves and boots if it did snow. We should probably buy these three things just in case it does snow here (my girl loves a good Target shopping trip!).

Since this was a mini unit, I tried to group her activities by type of learning...

Language Arts

She made two books this week. One was about snow days and one was about a melting snowman (totally not a favorite!). She likes to sit and read them after she colors them in.

After reading, The Jacket I Wear in the Snow, she set to work coloring and stamping a little girl in snow attire.

She put a lot of effort and time into this one!

I found these stickers on clearance at a teacher supply store. They were $0.75 and I'm so mad I didn't pick up more than one pack because they are super versatile.

For this particular activity, she had to choose which clothes one could wear in the winter. She stuck them on this paper that I labeled "Winter." I think we'll do one of these for each season, as we study them.

After reading The Snowstorm Surprise (I love Richard Scarry!), we made our own snowflakes.

While I drew a snowflake with glue, she snipped white paper into tiny pieces. I'd also provided a bowl of white items (tiny beads, pompoms, sequins and jewels).

She glued all the components on, and also asked for some S stickers, since it is a s-s-snowflake. She shook silver glitter on to make it sparkly.

Practical Life

She spooned and transfered dyed rice using a teaspoon...

And transfered ice cubes (aka: larger, flat floral rocks) into the paint palette. She enjoyed spooning the rice, but said that this activity was, "a little boring."

I don't know how practical this one is (who really dresses a teddy bear?!), but it was good to talk about winter clothing. She had to make different combinations to dress the bear for the cold weather. I found this puzzle at the Target dollar spot last year and whenever I bring it out, she's always thrilled to work with it. I think she did this particular activity every single day.

Math

Alright, this didn't technically start out as a math project, but that's what it evolved into.

The point was to make a wintery scene, so I cut out shapes (squares and triangles) she could use to assemble a house and also some bare tree trunks. I laid out white paint and cotton balls, too.

As she started gluing the pieces down, she said, "I'm gonna make it a pattern, okay?" I thought that was a very clever idea and watched in (slight amazement) as she did the gluing and arranging all on her own.

After it was glued down, she dipped the cotton balls in white paint and painted a snowstorm.

This one of those projects that she couldn't wait to show Daddy when he got home from work.

We talked about different sizes and categorized pompoms. I laid out three ramekins, a bowl of pompoms and three index cards, labeled, "BIG," "Medium," and "small." She had to place the cards in and then tweeze the pompoms (this picture shows it semi-done so that you could see what I was talking about) into the correct bowl.

She also loved this one and did it daily. She turned it into an ice cream scooping activity and got a huge kick out of watching me eat the "teeny tiny ice cream scoops."

This idea came from the fabulous Wilson Ramblings blog. I put three balls of snow (or, um, dough) in her paint palette. She speared each ball with a toothpick and then slid the pony bead onto the corresponding toothpick.

We started with three beads of each color and then I changed up the numbers. As she slid the bead on, we'd count up. As we took the beads off, we tried counting backwards.

She worked on patterns with this round paint palette (I'm loving my paint palettes lately, huh?!). I put a bowl of snowballs (pompoms) out, along with silver tongs. These tongs are really sturdy and she has to use a little more force to get them working.

She made a blue-white pattern all around and then declared, "I made a snow wreath! We make wreaths at Christmas. I miss Christmas so much. I'm so sad." Silly girl.

Science

This was an activity I'd done back in my classroom teaching days and was thrilled to find that the local teacher's supply store still carries this snow product.

Since my little California girl has never seen real snow, this was a fabulous alternative. You just mix a scoop with some water and watch it rise. She was amazed and immediately dug in to play. It was a tad bit disappointing for her because she couldn't build a snowman.

There are so many things you could do with this, like freezing it (we talked about the changing properties and then broke up the big pieces) or sprinkling salt on it to watch it melt (she didn't like that part as much).

I laid out some snow dough (still using Amanda's recipe; it's the best!) and small animal figures. She and Daddy flattened the dough out and made animal tracks through the "snow." She loved this and did it many, many times!

Art

This idea came from the Frugal Family Fun blog and is one of my favorite art pieces Maddie's ever made. I taped a snowflake off using painter's tape (it peels off really easily) and laid out white paint and a sponge (in a three pack from the Dollar Tree).

Oh, and of course we had to have glitter, too!

She stamped the snow and sprinkled the glitter...

And then we peeled off the tape. Doesn't it look great?!

It was so fun for Maddie, both the painting and the great reveal. She could've done a million of these.

This idea came from both Michelle and Valerie! First, we re-read The Mitten and then set to making mitten suncatchers.

I cut a mitten template out of scrapbooking paper and stuck it on some Contact paper. Then, Maddie snipped tissue paper into itty-bitty pieces (or, confetti, as she liked to call it) and sprinkled it on the Contact paper.

When she was done, I sealed it shut with another piece of Contact paper and cut it out.

This picture totally doesn't do it justice, as it really is very pretty. She chose to give it to Daddy and he's going to hang it in his classroom window.

I found these little gems in the dollar section at Michaels (does every store have a dollar section now?!). These were penguin shapes, which worked to review our penguin unit and continue with our winter and snow theme!

She used the little wooden dowel to scratch shapes into the penguin. I don't know if you've seen this paper before, but it's really cool. As you scratch it, a swirl of rainbow colors appear underneath, which is quite the thrill for a toddler!

Oh, and I thought it was very sweet how Maddie made sure to give each penguin a scarf, mittens and boots. :)

This was a dot stamper page where she had to match the colors...

She worked really hard on this!

She decided that it needed a little sparkle (as in, she wanted the glitter but Mommy was oh-so-tired on this day and had the quick idea to grab sparkly stickers instead). She matched the star stickers onto the corresponding dot.

Oh! And check back later to see how we used the sticker backer from this sheet!!

Physical Activity

Again, another idea from Valerie and her amazing blog: Carpet ice skating. If you have even one room of carpet (which is all we have), try this!

I wrapped Maddie's feet in wax paper and off she skated. I don't think I haven't heard so many shrieks of happiness and giggles! We both got in on the fun and then...

Daddy came home and went ice skating, too! What a great way to pretend play (and burn some extra energy!).

And so, there's our winter unit! We had a great time and I think I'm finally starting to feel more comfortable with theme-based work. Check out the activities of other tots by clicking HERE.