Saturday, May 19, 2007

W week: W is for Windsock


Connor made this windsock on Friday, the day we do an art project. He loved putting stickers on and didn't want to stop. Of course the windsock is green, but we had to use two pink streamers too because we ran out of green crepe paper. Connor said, "The green streamers are cool and the pink ones are cute. Right, Mom?" We hung his windsock outside to decorate our house for spring.

Thursday, May 17, 2007

W week: Water Play


Connor loves to play at the kitchen sink and will do so for an hour if I let him. Being a mom who always wants things clean, I rarely allow him to do this. But he's getting older and is more capable of keeping the water in or near the sink. I let him play once last week and he loved it, so I decided that in honor of W week we'd make an activity of it. Abby even joined in. I got out the funnels and the baster and the measuring cups and he went crazy. Abby couldn't reach quite as well, but still thought it was great to be standing by her big brother at the kitchen sink.

Letter Reinforcement Idea


Pardon the terrible photo, but I had a great idea last week. Rather than taping on the stars we'd been using (or failing to use because I didn't want to get out the tape), Connor wrote the letter V to mark off his chart last week. I thought it was brilliant. Connor thought it was great fun to use Sharpies. And we actually started using his chart again!

V week: Volcano (a little late)


Well, you never can predict precisely when a volcano will erupt. Right? I'm actually not sure about how well they can predict volcanic eruptions. But we didn't get a chance to make our volcano until Tuesday night, during W week.

But it was still fun! Connor and I made the mountain by coloring rocks and grass and dirt and trees and volcanic rock on paper that we had taped onto a water bottle. When Alan got home we prepared for the eruption. We just put some baking soda into the bottle. (Use a funnel; it makes it so much easier.) Then we poured in the vinegar and our eruption was immediate. We tried twice and both times Connor jumped back and smiled with excitement.

Fast forward 9 years or so and he'll be making a much cooler volcano for the science fair, right?

Monday, May 14, 2007

W week: plans

I'm a little late planning this week. Today was a "free" day. We'll start W week tomorrow.

Here are the plans for W week:

word cards: walk, window, wish, water, wind
poem:

Wee Willie Winkie

Wee Willie Winkie
running through the town,
upstairs and downstairs
in his nightgown,
rapping at the window
and crying through the lock,
are all the children in their beds,
it's past eight o'clock.


Monday (science or social studies): We walked up to our friends' house today to play. :)

Tuesday (math): days of the week. We know a song that talks about the number of days in the week being seven. We'll review the days of the week and what each day is memorable for in our schedules.

Wednesday (scriptures/Gospel): We've read the story of Jesus walking on the water before, but we'll review it and review the miracle that it is and the faith that Peter had to walk on the water like the Savior.

Thursday (movement/music): water play. Connor loves to play at the kitchen sink in the water. I'll find some fun new toys for him to play with and let him go Wild! I'll turn on some music for him to enjoy and we'll review hearing the violin from V week.

Friday (art project): wind sock. We'll make a wind sock from an oatmeal cylinder. Connor can decorate it with paper and stickers and then we'll hang streamers from it and hang it outside where we can watch it catch the wind.