Preschool-Swine flu Prep: Germs and health care

I will post pics of what we do each day, but here is our plan for preschool this week.

Books:

• Those Mean Nasty Dirty Downright Disgusting but... invisible Germs by Judith Anne Rice
• A trip to the Doctor by Margot Linn
• Germs are not for Sharing by Elizabeth Verdick
• Germs make me Sick by Melvin Berger (this was a Reading Rainbow book)
• Achoo! All about colds by Patricia Brennan Demuth
• Germs by Judy Oetting
• Going to the Dentist by Fred Rodgers
  
• Bill Nye the Science Guy's Great Big Book of Tiny Germs as a reference book

Activities:

• Sneeze Experiment: Grab a spray bottle, fill it with water and food coloring. Use the spray bottle and tissues to "fake sneeze" and to show how germs spread. Explain the right way to sneeze, to prevent germs spread.
  
• Heart rate activity: Feel your heartbeat at rest, dance to fast paced music, then feel your heartbeat again afterward. Exercise is a very important part of staying healthy, explain why it is important to get exercise each and every day. What types of activities will get your heart rate up?
• September is Yoga Awareness month. Discuss how stress affects your health. Practice Yoga and deep breathing.
  
• Talk about how nutrition and vitamins affects our health.
  
• Grow germs to study them in "petri dishes": In a saucepan mix 1 bullion cube, 2 tsp sugar, 1 cup water, and 1 envelope of gelatin. Divide the mixture between little sauce cups, or foil muffin tins and let cool in refrigerator. Once they are cool and solid, touch one with your unwashed finger (make sure to label and keep track), one to a light switch, leave one out for 15 minutes, wash your hands and touch one, and leave one covered as your control dish. Observe what happens. Germs that land on the nutrients in the cups grow and multiply, they will make colonies big enough to see without a microscope.
• Does washing hands work experiment: Tear a paper towel in half, get each piece wet and put each of the two pieces in a plastic ziploc bag. The take your hands outside and rub them in dirt, touch your dirty hands to a slice of bread. Put that slice in one of the ziploc bags with a paper towel in it. Then wash your hands thoroughly. Touch your clean hands to another slice of bread, put that slice in the other bag with a paper towel. What happened? You should see mold growing on the dirty bread after a few days. Washing your hands takes off all the microscopic germs
  
• Use syringes with the needles removed to paint a picture. This is an especially good activity for kids who are nervous around needles.
• How germs are spread: Have the children all use lotion on their hands, then put superfine glitter on their hands. Go about your day. Where does the glitter end up? That is where germs would be also.
• Why do we keep food in the refridgerator?: Take two soda bottles, fill them halfway with warm water. Put a packet of yeast into each bottle, and 1 TBL sugar in each. Fit a balloon over the neck of each bottle. Place on bottle in a warm place, and the other in the fridge. Which balloon blows up, and why?
• Make a stethescope from pipe cleaners, tin foil, and cotton balls.
• Make a doctor bag .
• Use cornstarch to show how germs are spread.
• Discuss brushing teeth the right way. Use an empty egg carton for "alligator teeth" give children an old tooth brush, and white paint to "brush/paint" the alligator teeth right. Explain how we have to get between the teeth. Practice flossing.
• Discuss first aid, what to do in various situations.
  
• create a stuffed animal first aid station. Any bears who neeed "stiches"?, Use Plaster of paris and white gauze to cast an animal.
  
• Finger cast finger puppets: Use plaster of paris and gauze to create a finger cast. let dry, then decorate the cast.
• Use a paper plate to create Mr Yuk. Then go through your home and talk about all the items that are poisonous using Mr Yuk. Go to your local poinson control center and grab some Mr Yuk stickers, lable everything in the house that is hazardous with the stickers.
  

Narnia wrap up: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe

This post is linked to the Weekly Wrap up @ Weird, unsocialized, homeschoolers.

The rest of the book went by in a blur. Once the action in the book really started moving, the kids didn't want to put the book down. I would never deny them books, so we made it through the last five chapters all in one sitting. Hence the "wrap up" title. So here are the discussion/narration questions for the last five chapters.

Discussion/Narration:

• The petrification of the little party of animals having tea is really the first true tragedy we witness in the book? What does this make you think about the witch? Does this change how Edmund sees the witch?
• Although Edmund has been feeling sorry for himself because of the change in how the witch was treating him, when the animals are petrified, it is the first time that Edmund has felt compassion for someone other than himself. Do you think that Edmund's ability to feel for others signals the beginning of his change and repentance? Discuss Compassion?
  
• Why does Aslan have Peter fight the wolf? Couldn't Aslan have fought the wolf easily? Peter's fight with the wolf is his entrance from childhood to adulthood.
• When Aslan sacrifices himself, the stone tablets break. Aslan's sacrifice of love breaks the witches unforgiving reign (remember she was the one to round up those who did wrong) and ushered in a new vibrant, forgiving era. Discuss how this mirrors what Jesus did.
• The battle scenes after Aslan rises again show the struggle for good against evil.
• In the battle scenes Edmund fights bravely. Why do you suppose that was important for Edmund? Do you think he had lingering guilt? In a sense, Edmund is redeeming himself in the same was Aslan redeemed him, but it is important that each person redeem themselves as well.

Activities:

• We watched two versions of the book. We watched the Disney version of the movie and the BBC version of the book. We all agreed that the BBC version was more accurate to the book, but the Disney movie was more fun to watch even though there were inaccuracies.

In closing, we were all sad to see the end of this unit. We LOVED it. It was fun and the kids really extended what we did in class, into their imaginative play and their discussions. That for me is the surest sign that what I am doing is sparking the kids imaginations. The kids lobbied to read Prince Caspian instead of our next choice "Ramona the Pest". I think that we will go ahead with Ramona, and then we can read Prince Caspian next semester.

These blogs show the past posts backwards, so just in case you are looking for the rest of the series here are the lessons in order....

• Intro to Narnia
• Vocabulary list
• Lesson Two: Chapters 1&2
• Lesson Three: Chapters 3&4
• Lesson Four: Chapters 5&6
• Lesson Five: Chapters 7&8
• Lesson Six: Chapter 9&10
  

Preschool Week 1: Handwashing Unit Study, Swine Flu Prep

I am a bit of a germ/pandemic freak. Somewhere in Sugarland my parents are laughing hysterically. I have the reputation in the family as the person most likely to open doors with her elbows.

So given the predicted surge in the swine flu epidemic, I thought it was the perfect time for us to have a "health and hygiene" unit for our preschooler. (and lets face it, the rest of us could use the reminder too).

So we learned how to wash our hands:

• warmish water
• generous soap
• lather the palms, tops of hands and in between fingers and nails while singing "happy birthday" song twice.
• rinse
• grab ONE paper towel (we are still working on this)
• turn of faucet with used towel
• throw towel in trash (another sticking point)

Then we added bubbles to the sand and water table to wash off all our water toys and have some bubble playtime.

The older girls enjoyed making little books that explain handwashing. Tomorrow we are going to do bubble painting!

Lesson 6: TLTWTW Chapters 9 & 10

Chapter 9 summary:

• The story shifts to Edmund, as he walks to the witch's castle he is debating with himself over the white witch.
• He makes it to the White witch and tells her everything he knows. She is scared and orders her dwarf to bring her sledge

Chapter 10 summary:

• Meanwhile, the kids are making their way to the stone table. It is a long and tough journey.
• Mr beaver finds them a cave where they can rest
• They here bells and assume it is the white witch's sleigh, but its really father christmas.
• Santa gives them all very useful tools

Analysis:

• Describe Edmund's argument with himself on his way to see the white witch. This shows his downward spiral, he isn't being surprised... and he is plotting to lord it over his siblings, wants to get even with them.
• Santa comes when Aslan comes to Narnia. What could this mean? Why do we celebrate Christmas?

Activites:

• make a lion mask
• look on line for how beavers make dams
• will Loew's cut wood for a shield like Peter's for me?
• get wooden daggers/swords for the kids?
• let the kids act out the scenes we read today
• make jingle bell necklaces to mimic the sleigh bells.
• make a candy sleigh
  

Lesson 5: TLTWTW Chapters 7&8

Chapter 7 Summary:

• The children come across Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, who assure them they are friends.
• The Beavers tell the Children about Aslan, but won't say anymore, warning that the woods are alive with dryad spies. So they invite the children back to their house for dinner.
• Edmund wants to run away to the White Witch, but instead goes with the others to the Beaver's home.
• They prepare a feast of fish and potatoes

Chapter 8 Summary:

• Mr. Beaver tells the children that Mr. Tumnus has been taken away by the White Witch's secret police.
• He tells the children about Aslan, the rightful King of Narnia and tells the children that they must go to Aslan.
  
• Mr. Beaver explains that the children are to meet Aslan at the stone table to fulfill a prophecy.
• He explains that the White witch is not human, but half Giant and half Jinn. Descended from Lilith on one side.
• The children notice that Edmund is gone and want to mount a search party, but Mr. Beaver says not to waste the time, that Edmund had the look of a traitor and he ran off to join the White Witch. Everyone wonders how much of their plans Edmund heard.

Questions/Discussion points:

• Why do the children demand that Mr. Beaver show them a sign that he is a friend? Is that a smart thing for the children to do? Is it possible to be wise and smart while still having faith?
• What do you think of the children's reaction to Aslan's name? Aslan is supposed to be a representation of Jesus, Lewis was trying to portray the power that is in Aslan's name, much like Jesus.
• The meal that the children eat with Mr. and Mrs. Beaver is the total opposite of Edmund's encounter with the white witch. Lewis goes into great detail about this meal, and how satisfying it was. The children had an honest hunger, and the meal was satisfying to the children.
• In this chapter we get a description of Aslan, what did you think of him? Is he friendly? is he good?
  

Activites

• Make a lion craft here.
• Beaver Toilet paper craft here.
• Have whitefish and potatoes for dinner
• What do you think a Dryad would look like? try to draw one.
• Draw a contour tree
  

Child originated learning

Yesterday, even though it was Sunday, we were all set to do a full day of school. We had taken off a day to hang out with Daddy during the week, and I was anxious to complete everything I had scheduled for us this first week.

But over the weekend I had cracked a tooth, and I had a headache, and a sore throat. Basically, I was a wreck.. I didn't have the patience I normally have and I just couldn't muster the will to get started. So I put school off a bit and got started on the kitchen. I felt so GUILTY for it. The whole time I was washing dishes I was beating myself up over it, I was so disappointed that we hadn't been able to put check marks next to everything I had planned.

So I walked into the school room and I found this scene. These girls of mine were writing a story of Narnia, their very own creations all their own idea. I heard them arguing different parts of the story back and forth, trying to pick the direction they wanted their stories to go, choosing a setting for their stories and remembering details from the book. They were so insanely creative with these stories.

I realized....I had been a fool standing at the sink beating myself up. Sure, I could have busted up all this natural learning they were doing to impose my ideas and my schedule on them. But frankly, I think they learned more all on their own inspiration then they would have with mine.

Pictures of the White Queen

These were our project with Narnia today. It was fun, but I had to draw the outlines for the queen. Yikes, thank goodness I wasn't interested in making her pretty. The kids had a blast making these. We still need to add the white fur trim, but I think they came out rather well.

PS, it is rather difficult to get gluey glitter off your kitchen table. Next time we will put down newspaper.