LOVE YOUR MOTHER EARTH

Every day should be “Earth Day,” but is officially celebrated every April 22nd. It’s always important to think about our planet and get kids interested in protecting their environment. Your students are going to be so proud of this “Earth Book” when they take it home to share with their families.   
                                   
Materials: 8” squares of the following colors:
2 orange, 1 green, 1 blue, 1 yellow, 1 brown, 1 purple

Directions:

1. Use the attached patterns to cut out the different pages for the book.
2. To assemble the book put down the solid orange, then the purple, brown, yellow, blue, green, and end with the orange with the circle cut out.
3. Staple on the left.
4. Younger children can “read” the book by describing the colors of the earth on each page. Older students can write simple descriptive sentences on each page.
5. On the last page invite children to write or draw how they can help protect the earth.

Hint! Your students will be overwhelmed to do this all in one day, so stretch this project out by asking them to just do 2 or 3 pages a day.

Here's a pdf with the patterns.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1SnEagA4jljNnFFV0VhbU5YcEk/view?usp=sharing

I've got some great crafts and other activities to Earth Week to share with you tomorrow!

Earth Day Song  (Happy Everything CD)
Earth Day, Earth Day! Let’s all come together.
Earth Day, Earth Day! To make this world much better.
‘Cause we love our planet Earth, beautiful and blue.
We want to take care of it with everything we do.

We can recycle – tell your friends and neighbors!
Glass, aluminum, plastic and paper.
‘Cause we love our planet Earth, beautiful and blue.
We want to take care of it with everything we do.

We can plant a tree, to create green spaces;
Walk or ride our bikes to go different places.
Cause we love our planet Earth, beautiful and blue.
We want to take care of it with everything we do.

PARTS OF A FLOWER

Learning to recognize and label plants, insects, and other objects they study about is a good way to integrate writing and science. With this song learning the parts of a flower will be much easier. Children will also be amazed about the parts of a flower that they eat!

Parts of a Flower  (Tune: “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes”)
Flower (Hands around face.)
Stem (Point to neck.)
Leaves (Stick out arms.)
And roots (Touch feet.) –
Leaves and roots.
Flower, stem, leaves, and roots –
Leaves and roots.
All it takes is sun (Hands up in circle over head.)
And showers (Wiggle fingers down.)
And a seed (Hold out palm.)
Grows into a flower. (Spread fingers of right hand up through left fist.)

Flip Book

Make a flip book where children can label the parts of a flower. To make a flip book fold a sheet of paper into eighths. Open and fold in half. Cut down the three creased lines to the middle to make flips. Turn vertically as shown. Write “Flower," "Stem," "Leaves," "Roots” on the four sections from the top to the bottom. Open and draw the appropriate part of the plant under each label. Don’t forget to draw the seed!
  
Eating Plants

Discuss what parts of a plant you eat. What roots do you eat? What leaves? What stems? What flowers? What seeds?
*Divide a sheet of paper into fourths and label, “seeds,” “roots,” “stems,” “flowers.” Have children write or draw different foods they eat from each category.

Dirt Pie

Yeah, I know this isn't very healthy, but I'm sure somebody out there would like to do it at home or summer camp.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1SnEagA4jljVkxNQXRFYVRvVUE/view?usp=sharing

GOOD TIME TO PLANT!

Spring is in the air and it's time to do a little planting!
                                          
The Planting Song  (Tune: “Farmer in the Dell”)
Let’s all plant some seeds, (Pretend to dig with a shovel.)
Let’s all plant some seeds.
Hi, ho, it’s spring you know,
Let’s all plant some seeds.

The rain begins to fall… (Have fingers fall like rain.)

The sun warms the earth… (Hands over head in a circle.)

The seeds begin to grow… (Make a fist with one hand and bring the other hand up through it.)

Seed Hunt 

Have children hunt for seeds in their kitchen at home. Bring these in and plant them in plastic cups filled with potting soil. Be sure to label. Water and watch.

Seedy Snack 

Popcorn, sunflower seeds, pickles, and strawberries! What do they call have in common? They could all be part of a seedy snack. Let the children brainstorm all the things they eat that have seeds.

Planting Jelly Beans 

Have children brainstorm other things they would like to plant, such as jelly beans or pennies. Plant in plastic cups with the jelly beans and pennies between the cup and the soil so the children can observe what happens.

Veggies

Purchase carrot seeds, radishes, and other vegetable seeds that germinate quickly and plant.  Water, set in a sunny window, and have the children record the plant growth.  

*Transfer to your school garden or a container garden when the plants are several inches high.

Newspaper Tree
My kids always loved to watch me make this newspaper tree.  Open three sheets of newspaper and lay on the floor as shown. Roll up and tape. Cut down several strips from the top about 8” long. Reach into the middle of the roll, grab the center, and slowly pull up.  Tae daa!

   

ADOPT A TREE

A Louisiana teacher shared this sweet story about what happened when she let her class "adopt" a special tree on the playground. They named their tree Maggie and hugged her, drew pictures of her in different seasons, read stories and sang songs under her, wrote descriptions...you get the idea. One day as a group of children were playing, one child snapped a branch off another tree. A little boy started to cry because he said, "You're hurting Maggie's friend." I'm not sure "adopting a tree" was in their state standards, but it's a beautiful story about instilling a love of nature in children. And, it's so easy just to take a moment every now and then to focus on trees and all the living things this time of year.
                                           
National Arbor Day is April, 29, so you'll want to be sure and check out this website and plan some special activities for your class.

https://www.arborday.org/celebrate/educational-resources.cfm


Plant a Tree
Contact your local cooperative extension service, Forestry Services, or National Arbor Day Foundation for free seedlings. Discuss what your tree will need to thrive. Prepare the soil, water your tree, and record its growth.
Brainstorm
Divide children into small groups and let them brainstorm all the products we get from trees.
*THE GIVING TREE by Shel Silverstein is a wonderful book to share, but my little kids always wanted to know, "Why did he have to get old?" (I wonder the same thing sometimes!!!)

TREEmendous Writing
Let children look out the window or sit under a tree and write descriptions. Think about the colors in the tree. Are there animals in the tree? What are the parts of a tree?
*For creative writing, ask children to complete this sentence: If I were a tree I would...

Tree Identification
Get a book on trees from your school library. Take a nature walk and challenge the children to identify the trees on the school grounds. How does the bark on trees vary? Do all trees have blossoms in the spring? How are the leaves different?
*Hint! Give children a clipboard and let them draw their favorite tree.
*Let them do rubbings of leaves from different trees and compare.

Vocabulary

What's a deciduous tree?  What's an evergreen tree?

Popcorn Tree (Tune: “Turkey in the Straw”)
I looked out my window, and what did I see? (Hand over eyes.)
Popcorn popping on my cherry tree. (Hands on hips.)
What a surprise spring left for me—
Popcorn popping on my cherry tree.
Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop. Pop! Pop! (Wiggle hips to the beat.)

Faster…super fast

Spring Tree
Trace around children’s hands and arms on a sheet of paper. Let them color or paint it. Glue popcorn on the branches to look like blossoms.
Hint! If you shake popcorn in a sack with a little dry red tempera paint it will look like pink blossoms.

Petal Bookmark
Go outside and collect petals and leaves that have fallen to the ground. Lay out a 7" strip of clear packaging tape for each child. They arrange their leaves and petals and then place another piece of tape on top. Seal, trim the ends, and you'll have a spring bookmark.

WATER CYCLE

Teach your little guys this song and they'll still be singing it when they have a science quiz in high school!

The Water Cycle (Tune: “My Darlin’ Clementine”)
Evaporation (Push palms up.)
Condensation (Hands together in air.)
Precipitation all around (Wiggle fingers down.)  
Accumulation (Sweep arms in circle.)  
Evaporation (Push palms up.)  
The water cycle goes
Round and round (Make circles with arms.)

Rain in a Jar Experiment

Fill a large glass jar with very hot water. Set a pie pan full of ice cubes on top of the mouth of the jar and observe what happens. Encourage students to draw observations.

Story Bracelet

Children will be able to retell the water cycle with this bead bracelet. Have them string on the following beads as they repeat the water cycle:
Evaporation - clear bead
Condensation - white bead (cloud)
Precipitation - blue bead (rain)
Accumulation - brown bead (puddle)

Sun - yellow bead
Evaporation - clear bead
                           
Make Rain
Make “rain” as a transition activity to quiet children. Hold up one palm and tap with one finger from the other hand. Next, slowly add another finger and tape with two, then three, four, and five. (At this point you can also stomp your feet to make thunder.) Reverse the process by tapping with five fingers, then four, three, two, one. Quietly place your hands in your lap. It will really sound like a rain storm is coming and then going away.

RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY...

Here are a few poems that are perfect for children to recite, memorize, or illustrate this month.

Rain
Rain, rain,
Go away.
Come again
Another day.

Rain, rain,
Go away.
All the children
Want to play.

It's Raining
It's raining.
It's pouring.
The old man Is snoring.
He went to bed
And he bumped his head
And he couldn't get up
In the morning.
                                        

Rain on the Housetop

Rain on the housetop.

Rain on the trees.

Rain on the umbrella,

but not on me!

Rainy Day FunHave children brainstorm things to do on a rainy day. Let them all draw a picture of their favorite thing and put them together to make a class book.

                                

Rain Painting
Have children draw pictures with water soluble markers on white paper. Fill a spray bottle with water and have them make it "rain" on their picture. What happens? Dry flat.

RISE AND SHINE IT'S APRIL!!!

                                  
Start April with a smile and a song with this new video!
https://youtu.be/jyAD2OoFuoYAnd, check out drjean.org for great ways to celebrate Poetry Month. You'll find ideas for a poetry club, how to reinforce standards through poetry, how to extend poems with art, and how to turn your students into poets.
                      When your give children a song and rhyme,
                      You give them a gift that will last for all time!

Rise and Shine
Rise and shine, (Bend down, then rise and put arms in air.)
And welcome to school today. (Clap to the beat.)
Rise and shine, (Bend down, then rise and put arms in air.)
And welcome to school today. (Clap.)
Rise and shine, (Bend down, then rise and put arms in air.)
And welcome to school today. (Clap.)
We’re so glad you’re here! (Shake hands.)

A little louder… (Sing loud.)
A little softer… (Sing soft.)
Whisper version… (Whisper words.)

Hint!  When you end songs with a whisper voice it will calm children and prepare them for the next activity.