Let's Fly to the Moon (or Jupiter?)!

I know I say it all the time but . . . "I LOVE THIS UNIT"!  This is truly one of my favorites.  It still amazes me to see how much my little sponges can absorb.  The sky was the limit (literally) this week as we discussed our solar system.  We started out the week with a big surprise - a rocket ship in our classroom!

Our square snowman got a weekend makeover!  Everyone loved pretending where the next rocket would go.  Since we quickly learned that the sun is the center of our universe, we started off our week by doing a wonderful art project of the sun!  This is one of my personal favorites because even though everyone uses exactly the same material, the final results are all different.  We started with a BIG round circle and added our paint.  Next, we covered it with clear plastic wrap -

Here comes the fun part . . . next we squish it!

Everyone of course has their own technique.  Some are gentle while others literally beat the daylights out of it.  Either way, the results are amazing!  We quickly plopped the wet sun onto a LARGE piece of black construction paper and added the sun rays.  OH MY!

At this point I realized these were something special!

One of my favorite things to do during "Solar System" week is to assign each child a planet name.  This year I have 10 children in my classroom, so everyone got a planet name and we even had earth's moon!  The entire week we called everyone by their planet name.  I added new facts each day and by the end of the week my entire class could not only locate their planet on the diagram, but most could locate and name the entire solar system!

Since the big rocket was staring at us all week, we decided to "fly to the moon!".  I found this amazing astronaut over at Crayola and I knew he/she would be perfect.  I tweaked him just a little by cutting him out, adding details to the flag and removing his face (we will add ours later!).  Then we started painting!

I was amazed at how insistent my class was about painting the American flag "the right way".  Everyone wanted the little square to be blue and it had to have stripes on it!  Needless to say, I was proud!  I told everyone that they could do any planet they wanted.  I guess they really WERE listening in circle time because each and everyone of them knew that men had already been to the moon, so off the moon we went.  We made our moon by doing a good old fashion sand paper rubbing.

Finally, it was time to put it all together.  We added our rocket ship (with hand print flames), some stars and WOW!

I hope the parents loved it as much as I did!

Our Fabulous Fun Friday was SO EXCITING!  First, we are lucky enough to have an amazing Dad who is a landscaper.  I put out an S.O.S. for some rocks and he came through BIG time.  They were perfect for our moon rocks!  Everyone used silver paint to stick on some black and white tissue paper.  

After they dried we added a little silver glitter glue and . . . . 

instant moon rocks!  SWEET!

To me the most exciting part of the week happened when we headed to the kitchen on Friday.  First we made a rocket cookie for our snack.

Next, we made our very own "moon sand"!  The recipe is very simple -

                 4 cups of sand

                 2 cups of corn starch

                 1 cup of water

                 Mix together and have fun!  

AND BOY DID WE HAVE FUN!

Before we knew it we had been in our kitchen area for over an hour!  We even sent everyone home with their very own bag of "moon sand".  

Our "Solar System" week was only four days because of the "Martin Luther King" holiday on Monday.  We voted and decided that we needed ONE MORE DAY, so on Monday of the following week we savored the last sweet day of our solar system with the most amazing project, a name rocket.  First everyone wrote the letters of their names on little squares of paper.  Next, we lined them up in the shape of a rocket, added some stars and more flames AND  . . . . . .

another WOW project!  And, before you ask, YES! the children wrote their names BY THEMSELVES!   I AM SO PROUD!

It was great week.  I hope you visit us again.  Next week we will be talking about the circus!

I'm sharing this at - 

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

I wanted to have something extra special for "S" week.  I had read and seen a "sticky table" over at Teach Preschool and ever since I've been dying to try it.  My classroom is small and is also used for Sunday School on the weekends so most of classroom activities have to be stored out of site at the end of each week.  Instead of using a table, I made a sticky box!  OH MY GOODNESS, we loved it!

I hope you can see the large box over on the right.  I filled it with all different kinds of objects (Note: the drinking straws were fun but a bad idea.  Yes, they kept being put in our mouths!)  I just used an old cardboard box destined for the garbage and some very ugly contact paper.  I sprayed the box with a spray adhesive and placed the contact paper, ugly side down, to the box.  I used good 'ole duct tape to secure the paper and carefully peeled the paper off.  The duct tape proof interesting because the children kept trying to stick things to it and seemed to enjoy figuring out that the entire box was not sticky.  Another wonderful moment came when they discovered they could remove the items and then replace them in another spot.  Seriously, this was an amazing activity!  

Well, by now I hope you have seen our wonderful class snowmen!  Here is our garbage bag snowman with his very own University of Alabama Crimson Tide #14 National Championship jersey!  Lucky for me, we were also talking about the number 14! 

Since it was "S" week and I was given some wonderful BIG boxes we also made "Sammy, the Square Snowman"!

Right beside Sammy is our "world's largest snowball". As soon as we read the book, The Biggest Snowball EVER by John Rogan, we all started talking about building one ourselves.  It took quite a bit of teamwork, but it was well worth it.  Our snowball may have started out small but in the end it was over two feet tall and for the state of Alabama, that is one large snowball!

We read another wonderful book entitled Snow Dance by Lezlie Evans.  As a matter of fact, I do believe this was everyone favorite book of the week.  I know I was asked to "re-read" it at least 4 times!  We decided that since we do live in Alabama and snow is rarely ever seen, a snow dance probably wouldn't work.  Instead we made our famous "dancing" snowman. 

  

We call them "dancing snowmen" because the two paper plates are tied together with ribbon and when you hold them up they wiggle and look like they are dancing.  

Another great art activity we did this week was our collage penguin.  We spent the day waddling like penguins and talking about how they cannot fly even though they have wings.  The white belly of the penguins are filled with a variety of different white objects.  Each and every one of our collage penguins seem to take on the personality of the maker.  

Look at this one!  My sweet little "W" was hungry,

so he put some food in his penguin's mouth!

Each month I save one piece of special artwork for our end-of-the-year art show.  This month I kept our hand print snowman.  Each child used the palm of their hand to form a snowman.  Once he dries, we use a variety to hats and buttons to make each on unique.  We used our fingers to add snow all around.

We also used an old make-up brush to brush on more snow at the bottom.

I will add a mat and laminate these special little guys and girls for our our art show!

Our Fabulous Fun Friday arrived way too quickly this week.  We were having so much fun I didn't want anyone to be disappointed.  I think I delivered!  We started our by with something different - sand art!  Everyone covered a black sheet of construction paper with glue.  NO INSTRUCTIONS, just go!

Some used a little.

Some used a LOT!

Next we sprinkled on some sand. 

Finally, we added some paint.  Any color or colors you wanted!

This was extremely messy but a lot of fun! (EDITED 1/19/11 to add photo)  Here is a sample of the final artwork all nice and dry.

Of course snack time on Friday had to be special too!  Our wonderful new assistant director brought in her shaved ice machine for us to use.  

This thing was so much fun.  We all got to have a little shaved ice with our pretzels! 

 Thanks Mrs. Melissa!

Our science experiment for the week was very SPECIAL!  My sweet friend and fellow teacher, Mrs. Christi and I had filled the school's freezers and our home freezers with bowls of water.  We gave the children the large hunks of ice and a cup of rock salt.  Everyone sprinkled the rock salt on the ice and watched.  

OH MY!

As you may know if you live in the northern part of the United States, the rock salt quickly started to eat away at the ice.  We were all amazed.  BUT, we weren't finished (of course not)!  Next, we added some color.

Everyone picked several colors of paint (we used our regular school paint mixed with water) and squeezed on the color.  

The results were spectacular!

Even though they were special we waited about an hour and came back to find . . . .

Needless to say, we were all Surprised!

We ended our very special Snow Week by doing a little "snowman bowling".  Now, I do not have one of those fancy "I-Phones" or "Droids", but as soon as I said we were going to go "snowman bowling" half of my class said they play that game on their parent's phones or I-Pads.  REALLY!?!?!  We didn't use an "I-Phone" but we did use some old Christmas boxes turned into bowling pins.

Let the fun begin!

Our snow week sadly came to an end.  But it was super fun! 

I hope you come back and visit with us again.  Next week we will be talking about solar system.  I can't wait to show you what we will be doing with those big boxes next week!  

Sammy the SQUARE Snowman

I am fortunate to have some amazing parents this year.  Now mind you, I've had great parents before and I truly love each and everyone of them.  This year's group seem to "get me" when it comes to my obsession for "treasures" (I say "treasures" most people say junk).  Anyway, one of my Dads works for a farm equipment supplier.  He told me at the beginning of school that if I was ever out near his shop to stop by.  Well, on Wednesday of last week I did just that.  The first thing I saw when I walked in were these HUGE boxes.  Hmmmm . . . what in the world could I do with them. . . . .  I asked him if they were getting rid of them and he said "of course, who would want these big old things?"  Uhhhh . . . me!  It took some doing but meet "Sammy, the Square Snowman"!

He almost reaches our ceiling.  This is one really big snowman!  Oh and that big white ball next to Sammy, that's our "world's largest snowball".  I love "S" Week!
Thanks to Lee at Advanced Mowers in Bessemer, Alabama!  We love your boxes!

Our Class Snowman!

Here he is, our 2011-12 Class Snowman

Isn't he spectacular?!?!?!  We haven't named him yet but we had so much fun stuffing him with old newspaper and making him "extra fat".  We all worked together as a team and made snowballs.  As soon as we had a giant pile of snowballs we started stuffing him.  AND, don't you just love the snowy background?  That is some wrapping paper that I found on sale after Christmas.  I only paid $0.50 for it!  It was a steal!  Oh, and by the way, it is "S" week, in case you couldn't tell! ;0)

Winter Fun

Starting back to school after the Christmas holidays is usually not very easy.  But it can be especially rough for preschoolers!  This year, my class was the exception!! YEAH!  Everyone walked right in to our classroom just like they do everyday.  Well, okay, it was a little (A LOT) more chatty, but that is a good thing.  I love starting a new calendar year with new things!  I personally get bored very easily so I like to bring new things into our classroom.  This week I introduced a "PASSWORD" of the day.  I put it right on the inside of our door, near the light switch.

(Edited on Jan. 13, 2012 to add picture)

This week's word was "snowball".  Each time we left our room the students told me our "password".  We even asked visitors to read our special word.  It worked beautifully!  By the end of Friday, one of the boys showed me "our secret password" in a book!  This will definitely be a new addition to my classroom each year.

Our letter this week was "W" and of course we talked about winter.  But there are so many fun "W" words and we wanted to enjoyed them all.  We did the "wacky walk" everywhere we went.  We also tried to whisper, but to be honest, it didn't work.  Whistling was difficult but we did give it a good try.  During our circle time instead of raising your hand if you knew an answer or wanted to ask a question, we waved three fingers in the air like a "W".  All in all we all thought "W" was wonderful!

One of my "treasures" (as I call them)  that my son made me years (and years) ago is a popsicle stick snowflake.  It is one of those sweet little ornaments that I hang on my Christmas tree each year.  I took the original Christmas ornament idea and changed it just a little.  Ours is a snowflake magnet that Mom and Dad can put on their refrigerator or bulletin board AND we added a little shimmer to it.  Here is how we did it - first, we glued our popsicle sticks together using wood glue.  This allows it to be a little sturdier.  I can't tell you how many times I glued my son's back together before I figured out to use wood glue.  Next, we painted out sticks with a "magical" combination of white glue and white paint.

I loved telling everyone to use a lot of paint!  It got very messy, but the end results were so worth it!  Next, we added the shimmer - rock salt!  I know some people would probably use glitter but the rock salt has an amazing effect.

We usually do this activity on Friday because it takes time for this to dry.  On Monday I will give it a little spray of sealer (you can also use regular aerosol hair spray) and attached the magnets.  Here is a picture of last year's snowflake (I will update with our new ones on Monday).

Aren't they wonderful?

One of our Moms was kind enough to give us a can of "DIY snow".  All you do is add water and you get a substance that looks like snow.

It was fun and probably would have been more fun except there was only a small amount and we had 20 children!  Hmm. . . . what to do?  I know, make your own snow!  And that is just what we did!  I bought some bars of good 'ole Ivory Snow soap.

Cut each bar into about four pieces.  HERE COMES THE COOL PART!  We put it in the microwave for 20 seconds (watch it carefully, each microwave is different) and . . . .

That's right SNOW!

It is a little hot when it first 

comes out of the microwave 

so be careful!

ALSO, be careful and 

DO NOT get this in your eyes - 

it is soap and will burn!

Everyone had so much fun playing with it.  

We stayed in our kitchen area for AN HOUR!  Yes, this activity held the attention of 20 3-year olds for an hour!  The end results were rather messy

but really worth it!

I had one more little trick up my sleeve for "W" week - a snowball fight with a twist of course.  Each child got a piece of paper with either a color, a number, or a shape written on it.

Everyone read their paper and wadded them up into balls.

I bet you know what came next!  That's right - SNOWBALL FIGHT!  Everyone threw snowballs at each other until I yelled STOP.  Then while everyone was catching their breath, we took turns reading the word on the snowballs.  We ended up having so many rounds of the snowball fight we almost missed our playground time.  It really was FUN!

It was a wonderful week!  I can't wait for next week, it is "S" week and we will be talking about SNOW.  It gets a little tricky trying to do a unit on snow when you live in Alabama, but I hope you will stop back by and see how we do it!