One of the wonderful things about doing preschool at home is that we can work it to fit our schedule! Our original plan was to discuss the Ocean in August, but the month was so busy that we just extended our lessons into September. And it was perfect since we visited the beach the last week of the month! Can you say perfect ending to the unit? :)
Our monthly plans tend to be a list of dates with a short description of what I hope to do - just enough to remind me. And if we don't get to the plan that day, it just shifts to another day! With a 3 and 1 year old we only plan one activity per day and use teaching moments to go over other important information as it comes up. Here are just a few of our favorite ocean activities:
We used toilet paper rolls to make "baby octopuses!" Just cue strips on one end to make 8 legs and set the kids free with the paints! I was really impressed with how much time and attention my 1 year old gave to this project!
Cheap target dollar section stickers for the win! I drew the ocean line and set the kids loose with stickers and crayons to create their very own ocean scene. To add a little extra challenge for the 3 year old, I had him practice with his scissors to cut out the ocean line. Just added a next level of learning without much hassle! I also looked up ocean coloring pages on Google since they both love coloring.
Another tip I'm so glad I ran across - journals!! I bought both kids a notebook and put their names on it. At the start of each unit we make an intro page in their notebook. This time it was just a hand drawn ocean scene they colored. I also write the unit title in capital letters and have my 3 year old practice identifying those letters throughout our unit. We can also do fun things like - which animal lives in the ocean and which on land?
Last thing, I try to buy one or two books related to the topic that we can keep. This time around we got an Under the Sea Sticker book (with reusable stickers!!) and a fun fold-out book called Big Book of Big Sea Creatures. It has giant pictures of fun sea animals full of neat facts - mommy learned quite a bit too! :) And a trip to the beach to pick up sea shells was a great end to the month!
Let me know what you're studying this month . . . and if you've found any fun ways to teach it to your kids! Always looking for some new ideas!!
