Oral language
Children will understand basic information, including the meaning of several novel words, presented in a book read aloud.
New:
Be Prepared: Today’s reading focuses on children’s understanding of basic information presented in a book. The plan described below is for a single reading of the book. Select 3–5 novel words in the book to define for children. See the Language/Literacy section of the ELM Curriculum User Guide: 3–5 Years for additional information. Write the following at the top of the chart paper: Words We Understand. See Language/Literacy Week 2, Day 1 for guidance on the first-time reading of a book with children.
Open the session by reminding children that books help us learn new words. Point to the chart, read its title, and write and defined the words you identified for children to learn (see Be Prepared).
Display the book cover and read the title and names of the author(s) and illustrator. Engage children with the book, using a strategy focused on the book’s front cover. See Week 46, Day 5 for examples.
Read the book without inviting talk until you have finished reading. Point to and describe illustrations directly related to the text. During and/or after the book reading, explain characters, events, or words that may be challenging for children to understand. Ask questions or offer descriptions that help children focus on key parts of the story. See Week 46, Day 5 for examples.
Ask questions, such as the following, to help children remember important aspects of the book:
Use children’s responses to provide a quick recap of the story. See Week 46, Day 5 for examples.
Review new words introduced today. Point to and read each word on the chart. Help children remember how the word was used in today’s book.
Offer a book-related transition to children’s next activity. See Week 46, Day 5 for examples.
Extra support
Enrichment
Pattern knowledge, Geometric and spatial knowledge
Children will strengthen their understanding of how to make different kinds of patterns.
Review:
Offer the Week 20, Day 2 activity to review how to form different kinds of patterns.
Support children in making an ABCABC pattern with different sizes of the same shape.
Be Prepared: Prepare for each child two cutouts of three sizes of the same shape. Example: two small circles, two medium-size circles, two large circles. Total: six circles. Use basic shapes (triangle, circle, square, rectangle) so children may have a choice about the shape they use to form an ABCABC pattern with different sizes of the same shape.
Open the session by displaying three sizes of a triangle. Ask children to describe what is the same about the three shapes. (all triangles) Ask what is different about the shapes. (different sizes)
Add three more triangles of different sizes to your group of three so you have a total of six triangles of three different sizes. Demonstrate making an ABCABC pattern with the triangles, beginning with the smallest and ending with the largest. Invite children to say “small, medium, large, small, medium, large” as you point to each triangle in your pattern.
Explain that we can make a pattern like this beginning with the large triangle. Demonstrate making an ABCABC pattern with the triangles, beginning with the largest and ending with the smallest. Invite children to say the size of each as you point to each triangle.
Display cutouts of the three other shapes and invite children to say their names. (circle, square, rectangle) If children seem uncertain about whether a shape is a square or a rectangle, display each and describe their differences. Display and describe the different sizes of each shape.
Explain that each of us can have six cutouts of the same shape. The cutouts are in different sizes. Each of us can make a pattern, beginning with the smallest and ending with the largest or beginning with the largest and ending with the smallest. It is our choice. We can glue our shape pattern to a piece of paper.
Provide each child with six cutouts of the same shape, attempting to accommodate children’s shape preference if possible. Encourage children to sort their cutouts by size before arranging and gluing on the paper. Provide help as appropriate. Encourage individual children to point to and say their pattern. Provide an area for children’s patterns to dry.
Good health practices
Children will strengthen their understanding of ways to stay safe on a bicycle.
Review:
Offer the Week 27, Day 5 activity to review ways to stay safe when riding a bicycle.
Engage children in a discussion of safe and unsafe choices in riding a bicycle.
Explain that we will talk about ways to protect ourselves when riding a bicycle or a tricycle. Ask children what it means to protect. (to keep something safe from harm)
Display side-by-side the pictures of children with and without helmets. Invite children to identify the picture that shows a child who has not made a safe choice. Encourage children to describe why the choice is not safe and why the child wearing a helmet has made a safe choice.
Point out in the two pictures that both of a child’s hands are on handlebars. Ask children what might happen if we use one hand only while riding on a bike.
Point out that in both pictures the children are looking straight ahead. They are paying attention to where they are going and what is around them. Invite children to pretend they are riding a bicycle and not looking straight ahead. (prolonged looking behind them, looking up in the sky, looking at the ground) Explain that sometimes we need to look to the side or the ground to find out what’s coming. But we want to use a short look. We want to look ahead.
Review your room’s (or center’s) rules for riding tricycles. For each rule, ask children to describe why the rule is important.
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Understanding Feelings
Social-Emotional
Skill and Goal
Emotion knowledge
Children will deepen their understanding of what it means to feel loved.
Materials
Needed
*Printables provided
Key
Concepts
Review:
Also
Promotes
Offer Week 17, Day 2 to review what it means to feel loved.
Support children in individually drawing a picture of a feeling loved or a situation that makes them feel loved.
Explain that today each of us can draw a picture of what we look like when we feel loved or a situation where we feel loved. Follow-up prompts, if needed: “What does your face look like when you feel important and special?” “When do you feel especially important and special?” Examples: when a parent hugs and kisses you at bedtime, when a grandmother reads a book with you, when you play with your baby sister/brother.
Provide each child with a piece of paper and put markers on tables for children to share. Some children may wish for you to take some dictation about their picture. If time and interest permit, invite children to show and describe their picture.