colors – Nurture Mama

Preschool Theme: Rainbows and Color

March 22, 2013March 22, 2013 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

As I mentioned yesterday, this week we are having fun with rainbows and colors. Visit this post for a list of books to go along with a Rainbow and Color theme. Here are some of the activities we have done.

Make a cloud rainbow using pom poms and strips of paper (more details here from Live Learn Love)

Rainbow Letter R (more details here from No Time for Flashcards).

Sort pony beads into rainbow colors then string on pipe cleaners. Stick the chenille stems in an egg carton to make a rainbow.

Zach had a great time stringing the beads. We used a flower foam base I had on hand as a stand.

Lily made her rainbow, then turned it into a garden complete with flowers, a sun, and clouds.

Play a matching game with paint chip samples. Make a color book using paint chip samples and ribbon (more details here from Nothing But Country).

Rainbow number assessment (free printable here)

Roll and color a rainbow (printable from Criss Cross Applesauce here)

Sort fuzzy pom poms by color (use clothespins for grasping as an added challenge).

Read My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss. Draw faces with different emotions (more details here ). Make a suncatcher with tissue paper (template available here).

Science experiment: colored water mixing (more details here from Make and Takes).

Build a rainbow out of felt (more details here).

Additional Ideas

Play a matching game with the felt shapes.

Play musical chairs-in color (using colored felt squares).

Make a Rainbow Fish (using colored tissue paper)

String colored froot loops and make a rainbow

Make marshmallow rainbows

Creative colors: make a rainbow using colored craft supplies (feathers, buttons, beads, etc)

End of the Rainbow game with Skittles

Pretty Rainbow Prints (fold in half and paint one side)

Make a rainbow bracelet using foam or beads

Popsicle Rainbow

Assorted Rainbow activities available here

Books about Rainbows and Color

March 21, 2013March 21, 2013 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

This week we are having fun with rainbows and color. Here are the picture books we are reading:

Lemons Are Not Red by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Duckie’s Rainbow by Frances Barry

Dog’s Colorful Day by Emma Dodd

A Rainbow of My Own by Don Freeman

My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss

White Rabbit’s Color Book by Alan Baker

Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh

Thanks to No Time for Flashcards for her great color book suggestions!

Preschool Lesson Plans: Review A and B and 1 and 2, Number 3, Color Orange

November 11, 2010November 9, 2010 Nurture Mama 1 Comment

These lesson plans are planned for my 3 year old daughter. We don’t always do all of the activities in one setting. We focus on one topic a day. You can read the background on my preschool lesson plans here.

Review Day

Rather than introduce a new letter, this day we spent a little time reviewing A and B and 1 and 2.

I used the foam letters and numbers to play a game we call Whack It. The items (in this case letters and numbers) are scattered on the floor, and the child is given some kind of whacking tool (we use a feather duster). I call out one of the names, like “A” or “1”, and the child gets to “whack” the correct item. You can reverse positions and have the child call out the items while the teacher uses the whacker (sometimes I whack the wrong item just to get a reaction). I use this game all the time with my piano students and flashcards. It transferred really well to this review activity, and it could be used in a lot of ways. The kids always enjoy having a legitimate excuse to hit something.

Then we made a letter B collage, using beans and buttons and beads (and lots of glue!).

Number 3

Introduce the number: use a number grab bag with the various numbers we have in the house (foam number, blocks, magnet letter).

Read: 10 Trick-or-Treaters by Janet Schulman

Use the counting cups to count a snack (cheerios, crackers, grapes, etc).

Play a number/counting game: Clothespin number match from Confessions of a Homeschooler

Color Orange
Touch and feel orange colored items from an orange pumpkin.

Create a color poster using crayon, colored pencil, marker, paper scrap, paint, etc.

Go on a color hunt and search the house to find the color.

Read: Apples and Pumpkins by Anne Rockwell

Make an orange paper plate jack-o-lantern and play pumpkin drop (from No Time for Flashcards)

Creative Play

We made some really cute bottle cap spiders from Silly Eagle Books. Unfortunately I cleaned up our Halloween decorations and dismantled the spiders, then realized I had forgotten to take a picture. 🙁 You’ll have to take my word for it, they were really cute and the Sweet Bee loved making them because they involved glue and googly eyes, her two favorite things.

Preschool Lesson Plans: Letter A, Number 1, Color Green

November 9, 2010November 9, 2010 Nurture Mama 1 Comment

The Sweet Bee and I are enjoying our special school time together each day. I’m a little behind in posting my lesson plans, but I’ve got the first three coming for you this week. You can read the background on my preschool lesson plans here.

Note: I don’t always do all of the activities in one sitting. Some activities I save for her “homework” to do while the Ant Bug does her homework after school. Other days we get interrupted or she loses interest, but we often come back to it later.

Letter A