GREEN

The world is turning GREEN this time of year. Here are some ways to 

celebrate the color with a poem, reading, math, science, and art.

Green
by Dr. Holly

Green grass,
Green trees,
Green pickles,
Green peas.

Green grows
And green makes
Green lizards,
Green snakes.

Green leaves
Pop out in the spring;
Green is such
A lovely thing!

Color Recognition (Visual Skills)
Sing this song to the tune of “Do You Know the Muffin Man?”
Do you see the color green, the color green, the color green?
Do you see the color green somewhere in the room?
Each child gets up and touches an object that is green. (Adapt the song for other colors, beginning sounds, etc.)

Hint! Cover a cardboard roller from a pants hanger with green paper to make a green pointer!

Remember (Listening Skills and Model Writing)
Read the poem to the children one time. Ask them to recall the different objects in the poem that are green. Write their responses on the board. Read the poem a second time and see how many more objects they can remember. Read over the list together.

If I Were Green (Oral Language)
Have children close their eyes and pretend they are green. What are they? Write this sentence at the top of a sheet of paper and run off a copy for each child. “If I were green I would be ________.” (Younger children can dictate their responses, while older children complete their own sentences.) Put their papers together to make a class book.

“Eye” Can Graph (Math Comparisons)
Pass a small mirror around the classroom. Encourage each child to look at their eyes and describe what color they are. Make a bar graph by cutting out eyes from construction paper. Let each child color in a section by the color of their eyes. What color do the most people have? What color do the least number have? Have children go home and look at their parents’ eyes. Are they the same color as their eyes?




Natural Green (Science Investigation)
Ask the children to think about all of the things in nature that are green. Write their list on the board as they call out objects. “Are all of these the same shade of green?” Take the class on a nature walk and have each child collect one “specimen” that is green. Bring their objects back in the classroom and compare. Are they all the same? Have children describe their differences. Can they sort the objects? Did they collect plants or animals? What animals are green? What time of year do you see the most green?

Green Collage (Creativity)
Provide children with green paint, green crayons, green markers, and green paper. Invite children to create a “green collage” on a piece of cardboard or a paper plate.

Scratch and Sniff Green (Word Recognition)
Give each child a heavy piece of paper. Write the word “green” on their paper with school glue. (An adult will need to do this for younger children.) Let each child take a spoonful of lime jello and sprinkle it over the glue. (Model how to shake it around and then dump off the excess.) After it dries, children can “scratch and sniff” the word green.

JUMP ROPE RHYMES

JUMP INTO SPRING

It's almost spring and you can't help but smile and have a spring in your step. And speaking of steps and springs reminds me of how much fun I had jumping rope as a child…and then teaching my students to jump rope. For some of the children it was easy, but other children really had to work at it. Being persistent and not giving up is a good thing to learn. Jumping rope also encourages social skills, motor skills, counting, and oral language. It’s good for the body and the brain!

Here are some chants we used to say, but you can adapt them if you don’t like the words. You could also use these on a rainy day. Just have the children get a pretend jump rope and jump along as you say the rhymes. What a perfect brain break for kids from pre-k through the primary grades.

*You can jump on two feet or alternate hopping on one foot at a time.

Bubble Gum
Bubble gum,
Bubble gum in a dish.
How many pieces
Do you wish?
1, 2, 3, 4, 5…(How high can you count?)

Bathing Beauty
Bathing Beauty
Thinks she’s a cutie
All she wears is bathing suities.
If you jump to 24, you will get an extra turn.
1, 2, 3…24

Cinderella
Cinderella dressed in yella.
Went upstairs to kiss her fella.
Made a mistake and kissed a snake.
How many doctors did it take?
1, 2, 3…8

Engine No. 9
Engine, engine number nine
Going down the railroad line.
If the train jumps off the track
You will get your money back.
How much money will you get?
1, 2, 3, …10

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, turn around.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, touch the ground.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, read the news.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, tie your shoes.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, go upstairs.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, sit down in your chair!

Blue Bells
Blue bells, cockle shells, eevie, ivy, over.
I like coffee. I like tea. I like you to jump with me.

Here's my "Jump Rope Rally" video so we can jump together!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Y1UBTOFEzA


Jump Rope Rhyme Book
It might be fun to give children copies of the rhymes and let them make a book of jump rope rhymes. They could illustrate these and use them for independent reading.

*Do you remember any jump rope rhymes from your childhood that you could teach your students?


*Have students ask their parents to teach them a jump rope rhyme they did as a child.

SPRING INTO WRITING

Spring is the perfect time to "grow writers"!

Spring Acrostic

After a spring walk, have children write the word spring vertically down the left side of their paper. Can they write a word (or sentence) for each letter that is a sign or symbol of spring? 


Hint! With younger children do this as an interactive writing activity.

Spring Poem
Have children fill in the words to create their own poem or a book.

SPRING
Spring looks like____.
Spring smells like ____.
Spring sounds like ____.
Spring feels like ____.
Spring tastes like ____.
I like spring!


Web
Brainstorm spring vocabulary words and then encourage children to make a web using words or drawings.

I Want to Go Out and Play Book
(Writing an opinion)
Give each child a sheet of paper and ask them to draw a picture of why they like to go outside. Ask them to write (or dictate) a sentence about their drawing. Make a cover that says, “I Want to Go Out and Play.” Put their pages together, hole punch, and insert book rings.

Sit and Write
(Descriptive writing)
Each child will need paper, a clipboard or cardboard to write on, and a pencil or crayon. Have children spread out in a comfortable area and write stories, poems, or descriptions of what they see.

FIRST DAY OF SPRING 2025

Spring, spring, where are you? March 20th is the “official” first day of spring, so here are some activities that you can use in your lesson plans to help kids PLAY and LEARN!

Spring-O
Make a bingo card with signs of spring and objects that children can find on your playground. Children can walk around the playground and and color in the objects as they find them. Children could do this activity individually or with a partner.

Scavenger Hunt
Here’s a spring hunt for older students. Divide them into groups of 4 and give each group a clipboard with the items below. Have them record their answers. When you return to the classroom groups can share their results and compare answers.


Can you find a sign of spring? 

Can you find something older than you? 

Can you find something younger than you? 

Can you find something rough? 

Can you find something that feels soft? 

Can you find something living? 

Can you find something dead? 

Can you find something smaller than your fingernail? 

Can you find something bigger than you? 

Can you find something green? 

Can you find something yellow? 

Can you find something that smells good? 

Can you find some trash? Pick it up and throw it away! 


Long and Short
Give children a piece of string or yarn. Challenge them to walk around the playground and find objects that are "longer" than their string and "shorter" than their string.

Spring Crown
Give child a sentence strip and invite them to draw signs of spring. Let them collect small objects they find on the ground, such as leaves and flowers, and glue them to the crown. Adjust to crowns to the children's heads and staple.

Alphabet Walk
Divide children into groups of four and give each group a sheet of paper with the letters of the alphabet. (They will also need a pencil and a clipboard to write on.) Challenge groups to find as many objects as they can for the letters in the alphabet. For example: A-acorn, B-bird, C-cloud, D-dirt, etc.

HAPPY BIRD DAY!

You can see me tell one of my favorite stories on this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfZuGmjlyPM

Two Little Bluebirds
Two little bluebirds sitting on a hill. (Stick up both thumbs.) One named Jack (Wiggle right thumb.)
And one named Jill. (Wiggle left thumb.)
Fly away Jack. (Put right thumb behind back.)
Fly away Jill (Put left thumb behind back.)
Come back Jack. (Bring back right thumb.)
Come back Jill. (Bring back left thumb.)

Opposite variations:
One named Happy and one named Sad… (Say happy and then sad.)
One named Loud and one named Soft… (Say loud and then soft.)
One named Fast and one named Slow… (Move one fast and one slow.)
Continue letting children think of names and motions for the birds.

Paper Plate Birds and Nests
Let children make birds or nests out of paper plates similar to the ones in the picture.

 

What’s in the Egg?
First, brainstorm all the different animals that come out of an egg. Now, you’re ready to make a flip book called “What’s in the Egg?” Fold a sheet of paper in half lengthwise, then fourths and eighths. Open and cut the crease to the middle fold. Fold in half to make 4 little flaps. Children draw eggs on the front of each flap. Open the flaps and challenge children to draw 4 different things that might come from an egg. When they hold this book up to the light, they will see their little critters inside the egg.

Baby Bird Story
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1SnEagA4jljOGhrSnJKWVVfekU/view?usp=sharing

It was spring time and mother and father bird decided to build a nest. Who can tell me some of the things they might have used to make their nest?
(Fold the paper in half and cut accordingly.)

Mother bird sat on the nest and laid a beautiful egg. (Open the nest to reveal the egg shape.)

Now, mother bird could not leave the egg. She had to sit on it and keep it warm and safe. Even when it rained and the wind blew hard, mother bird had to sit there and protect her egg. Fortunately, two little bugs who lived in the tree made friends with mother bird and kept her company. This is one little bug. His name was _____. (Use a child’s name in the class.)

      

(Draw a little dot for the bug.)

This is the other little bug. Her name was _____, (Use another child’s name in the class.)
(Draw another little dot on the opposite side.)

One day as mother bird was sitting on the egg, she heard a little cracking sound. She looked down and saw a little crack in her egg. (Cut a little slit on the fold slanted toward the eyes.)

Then she heard a great big cracking sound. (Cut around the eye and slit as shown stopping before you get to the end of the egg.)

And guess what mother bird saw coming out of the big crack in her egg? She saw her baby bird! (Open the egg and bend up the beak as shown.)

How To
As a writing activity ask children to write "how to build a nest."

DON'T WAKE UP THE BIRDIES!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfZuGmjlyPMBirdies 

Don't Wake Up the Birdies!

Way up in the sky (Put hands in arm pits and flap arms
The big birdies fly. like a bird.)
Way down in the nest (Make a nest by cupping hands.)
The little birds rest.
With a wing on the left, (Wiggle left arm like a wing.)
And a wing on the right, (Wiggle right arm like a wing.)
The little birds sleep (Put head down on palms as if sleeping.)
All through the night.
SHHHHHH! (Put finger over lips.)
DON’T WAKE UP THE BIRDIES!
Then up comes the sun. (Put arms over your head.)
The dew falls away. (Bring down palms.)
Good morning! Good morning! (Put open palms around your head.)
The little birds say.

Sing and Act
Let children dramatize this song. Choose one child to be the mother or father bird. Let the other children be the baby birds.

Lunch Sack Nest
Open a paper lunch sack and roll out and down until you reach the bottom and it looks like a nest. Children can roll play dough eggs for the nest, or they can make a paper bird for the nest or a little bird from two tissues. (I demonstrate on the video.)

*Make the shape of a tree on a bulletin board. Staple the nests in the tree and then let children make birds out of construction paper to go in the nests.

*Staple on a pipe cleaner handle and you've got a little Easter basket.


Bird Watchers
Take a nature walk and see how many birds you can identify.

 P.S. A teacher shared this website where children can learn to identify birds and their calls. It's so engaging even for adults like me!
https://www.aaastateofplay.com/50-bird-species-sounds-they-make/?fbclid=IwAR3JkCpq5zt33DNG-QVeSDSR5Hku-c5PUKiYVRXh_17xvRjEZ_7AzcksUkw

VENNS AND TIME LINES

Did you know that John Venn conceived the Venn diagram around 1880 to teach elementary set theory? The Venn remains a useful tool to compare and contrast in our classrooms today.

Children can compare and contrast themselves with a friend. How are they different and how are they alike?

Children can demonstrate primary and secondary colors with Venns.

How about comparing books or characters with a Venn?

Animals (frogs and toads), plants (palm tree and cactus), or foods (apples and oranges) can be explored with Venns.

Letters (curves, lines, lines and curves) can even be sorted with a Venn diagram.

Time Lines
Time Lines are a visual way for children to recall the sequence in a story.

Time lines can be used to illustrate the life cycle of plants and animals.

Children can record the day’s events with a time line or use a time line to organize tasks that they must accomplish at school.

Time lines can also be used for history lessons or as an autobiography.
(What was I like when I was a baby…what am I like now…what will I be when I am grown.)

Hint for Pre-K teachers! Model using these graphic organizers with your students. It will increase their print awareness and be useful (prior knowledge) when used in future grades.