A Day of Mother Goose Time

 Mother Goose Time makes it easy to just open and go.  Very little prep work is required.  We don't always start at the same time, but we have a set routine we follow.  It makes it easy to transition from one task to the next when Elli knows exactly what to expect.  We always start with circle time.  This is when we look at the daily topic poster and discuss what we're learning.  We also sing songs and go over the weather and calendar.  

Sometimes there are short games to play during circle time, such as guessing what sounds animals make when they're in danger.  

I also use the daily coloring pages from member resources during circle time.

Once that's all done we start on the days lesson.

 There are usually a few games for the kids to play.  Today Elli worked on recognizing the letters and their sounds for Y, G and Q.  Games make literacy and math work more fun. 

Each day usually has either a make and play craft or an invitation to create.  Today Elli made a duck call.

Every day has a suggested book that ties in with the theme.  When we don't have the book and can't find it at the library I'll either find a different related book or see if I can find it being read on youtube.  

Elli loved playing Be Careful Bunny, and we played it multiple times.

Closing time is when we complete the my little journals and talk about what we learned.  It's also when we do the STEAM station ideas.  Today Elli played different instruments and listened to the sounds they make.  She really likes using the ukulele.  

We also receive add ons from Mother Goose Time that I incorporate into our day.  We use the dance n' beats at different times.  Sometimes Elli dances after breakfast while I clean up around the house, other times we do it for our closing time, and sometime she waits for her sister to get home from school so they can dance together.  Dance n' Beats comes with a DVD of choreographed dances for the songs on the monthly CD.  It also has a book with extra ideas.  Dancing is a great way to get the kids up and moving, all while having fun.  It helps increase their balance and coordination and enhance their gross motor skills. 

Staying Close to Adults

Today with Mother Goose Time we learned about staying close to your parents.  The girls played a math game using the pig counters from this months box.  They would put numbers in mud puddles and then add all the pigs to get a total.  We worked on adding, subtracting, and counting.

We talked about how animals stay in herds for safety and how it's important to stay with the group.  The girls used a photo of sheep for inspiration.  They were given cotton balls, markers, and festoons to create their own art work.

Elli used the cookie cutters and shape stamps from this months box to make herds of shapes in playdough. 

Veterinarians

This month with Mother Goose Time we've been learning about baby animals.  This week the focus was on keeping baby animals safe.  We started by learning about veterinarians.  

We talked about what happens when an animal breaks a leg.  The girls practiced bandaging stuffed animals.  We talked about casts and made paper mache bowls.  They measured and mixed flour, water and salt and then dipped newspaper in it.  They used the newspaper to cover bowls, and then painted them after they were dry.

 The girls also painted water bowls for their stuffed animals.  They used a photo of painted bowls for inspiration.

They had lots of fun playing sick piggy.  They would roll the pocket cube and put the same number of pigs in a tray.  Then each pig got a shot of water to make it feel better.  These kinds of games are good for reinforcing number concepts with Elli.

Carrying Babies on the Chest and in the Arms

Every monthly box from Mother Goose Time comes with a rhyme time poster.  This months rhyme was Rock-A-Bye Baby.  We talked about words that rhyme and recited the poem while Elli rocked her baby cat.

We did some more literacy work by focusing on the letter Y.  Elli would roll the cube and if the animal could carry it's babies in the arms then she would make a Y.

We talked about animals that swim fast and slow.  Elli held a baby on her chest, and then would swim fast if I held up the otter card, or slow if I held the manatee.

Addie loves the invitations to create that come every month.  She asks that I save them all for when she gets home from school.  For inspiration the girls were given a picture of a manatee and some shells, sand, and paper.  Elli wanted to make an otter, but Addie made a manatee.

Elli also made a gorilla during another invitation to create.  She got oval cutouts, paint, and a comb.  She used the comb to paint fur onto her gorilla, which she made out of the ovals.  She thought it was a lot of fun painting with a comb.

I wrapped up a 5 pound bag of flour in a blanket and gave it to Elli to pretend it was a baby.  Then we went around the house and tried to find things that weighed more than and less than the flour.

And as always, Elli colored the daily topic pictures that I printed from members resources online. 

Carrying Babies on the Back and in a Pouch

The girls and I have been having so much fun with this months Mother Goose Time theme.  This week we've been learning about how babies are carried.  We spent 2 days learning about carrying babies on the back and in a pouch.

We used the pattern blocks, one of the manipulatives from this months box, with the shape design mats.  The girls made different marsupials out of the shapes.  Elli also used them to feed her leopard, which she worked on carrying on her back.  I would call out a color and shape and she'd have to find it to feed the leopard.

I read the monthly participation story to Elli and she used the story telling set to retell the story.

Every month comes with a new I Can Read book.  Elli used the sight word pointers to find the words in the book.  These are great for beginning readers.

Elli worked on her find motor skills and letter recognition by completing the letter G page of her my little journal.

Elli made her own turtle.  When Addie got home from school she asked to make one as well.

The girls made their own pouches with joeys in them and then pretended to be kangaroos.

Every month online at the members resources there are daily coloring sheets.  The kids have been loving the pictures this month,

Carrying Babies in the Mouth

Week 2 of Mother Goose Time's baby animals theme is all about carrying babies.  For day 6 we talked about how animals carry their babies in their mouths.  

We talked about what it means to be gentle.  Elli carried a piece of bread around the table in her mouth without leaving teeth marks in it.  She was pretending to be a cat carrying a kitten.  She thought it was really funny that animals carry their babies like this.

We talked about how some fish babies hide in their parents mouth if danger is around.  Elli made her own fish out of a cup.

I filled the fish craft up with pieces of bread (I didn't have goldfish crackers) and Elli worked on guessing if there were more or less than 5, and then checking the answer with the help of the counting cards.

Elli played carry the baby.  There were 6 photos of animal babies on the floor.  She would roll the pocket cube and then pick up the correct animal baby and carry it "home" using tongs.

Elli completed the number 5 page of her my little journal.  She drew a fish and gave it 5 fingerprint babies.

The fish craft got some more use.  Elli made play dough fish and would put them in the fish cup to avoid danger.