Early Literacy Spots in the Wild

In spring, we are wild about our new early literacy spots. These displays help promote language and learning, and transform the library into a learning environment.

One of our more popular spots is a column that acts as a giant ruler. This spot encourages children to use a tool of measurement and to evaluate relative sizes.  Each season we come up with different objects against which children can compare their size. This spring we chose pictures of wild animals. We used:  an ostrich (8’), yak (7’), bison (6’), polar bear (5’), lion (4’), komodo dragon (3’), coyote (2’), and a fox (1’)

Need a captive audience? There’s no better place than the bathrooms! We have two family bathrooms in the children’s department. While little ones are squirming or waiting for their siblings to finish, I created two displays to get kids and grown-ups talking and thinking.

 

Over in the Meadow

I love imbuing the environment with text. In this spot, I simply placed a stanza of the traditional rhyme, “Over in the Meadow,” with a photo of the animal appearing in that particular verse. I chose photos over illustrations to help children connect the natural world to the story.

Animal Homes

This is a simple matching game where children are encouraged to identify which animal belongs in a particular animal home: a tree, cave, or burrow. I included pictures of a bat, bear, rabbit, gopher, monkey and a squirrel. My hope is to encourage dialogue between children and adults about animals and the world in which they live.

Light and Shadow: Preschool Science and Math

Groundhog’s Day has come and gone, but the shadow of its promise of longer, warmer days lingers! For preschool science in February, we explored the world of light, reflection, and shadow. These activities are meant to promote lively discussions between children and their adult partners, which builds vocabulary and knowledge of the world.

Shadow Mural

Children stood in front of light from an overhead projector and observed their shadows. During this open-ended activity, children and their grown-up partners had the opportunity to talk about how shadows change as the object is moves. Then, the children posed as their grown-up traced their shadow on paper with chalk. Children added words, labels, and even some made-up shadow shapes to complete the mural.

Create a Shadow Puppet

Children cut out and decorated shapes, which they attached to a craft stick. This simple, open-ended craft, allowed children to explore shapes and the shadows they create.

Guess My Name

Secret, shadow boxes sat on a table alongside a bucket full of plastic animals. The grown-up placed an animal in the box, without letting the child see. Children shone a flashlight through the hole and tried to guess the animal based on the shadow projected on the wall.

Catch a Shadow

Bugs hung, suspended in the air, waiting for their shadow to be caught. Children could catch a shadow on a piece of paper and trace the shape, or simply catch it in their hands.

Night and Day

In this activity, children could explore the relationship between the sun and earth regarding night and day. A floor lamp was stationed in the corner, next to inflatable globes.

Mirrors

Children and grown-ups had fun exploring reflection using mirrors, flashlights, and a disco mirror ball.

This program took awhile to think through, but has become one of my favorites. Stay tuned for the results of my weather program!

I Spy with My Winter Eye…Early Literacy Spots

How do you promote early literacy without saying a word? Early literacy spots! At MCPL, we create interactive displays, “early literacy spots,” designed to promote language and knowledge for preschool children. I try to rotate the spots seasonally. Here’s what I came up for winter:

One of our lovely interns, Angela Hircock, transformed one of our columns into a giant ruler. This unassuming column has become an important destination to our young patrons. It also effectively encourages children to use a tool of measurement and to evaluate relative sizes.  Each season we come up with different objects against which children can compare their size. This winter we chose pictures of objects and with the help of yet another shining intern, Maggie Block, we arranged them according to size.  The objects included:

Evergreen tree 8′; Zamboni machine 7′; Ski: 6′; Snowboard: 5′; Shovel: 4.25′; Sled: 3.33′; Snowshoes: 2′; Ice skate blade: 1′; Large mittens: 8.44″; Cup of Coco: 4.5″

Early Literacy spots in Unlikely Places

Need a captive audience? There’s no better place than the bathrooms! We have two family bathrooms in the children’s department. While little ones are squirming or waiting for their siblings to finish, I created two displays to get kids and grown-ups talking and thinking.

 Whose Boots?

This is a simple matching game, where children are encouraged to match the photo of boots to their most likely owner. I found some lovely photos from the Microsoft office image collection: a cowgirl, hiker, firefighter, young person in a snowsuit, and a skier – all with boots to match. This display encourages speaking vocabulary and knowledge building, in that children are asked to name and describe the people and potential uses of their boots.

Three Little Kittens Mitten Count

Alongside the traditional “Three Little Kittens” rhyme, I placed a number of red, yellow, and blue mittens. Children are encouraged to count how many of each colored mitten they can find. This activity helps to foster one-to-one counting (where each object is counted only once), as well as classifying objects based on an observable characteristic.

 

Preschool Science: Animals in Winter (part two)

Fat? Feathers? Sweaters? Which is the Best Insulator?

This activity never fails to attract a crowd.  Prior to the program, I create a set of Ziploc bags that contain yarn, vegetable shortening, and feathers. I prepare the bags so that children can place their hands inside.  Then, I place two over-sized Post-It papers on an adjacent wall. One sheet invites children to predict which insulator will keep their hands the warmest. The other asks children to document which insulator was best after experimentation and observation. Finally, I set two large bowls of ice in which children can test each insulator. This simple experiment provides a great introduction to the scientific method.

Guess the Hibernating Animal.

One of my primary goals for all activities I present to preschoolers is to encourage meaningful discussion between adults and children. This simple game gets people asking questions and using descriptive words.

Prior to the program, I cut out peepholes in sturdy cardboard squares. On one side I glued a Velcro strip. Then, I printed out and laminated photos of animals that hibernate in winter. I chose a frog, turtle, and a snake. (best to use animals that are distinct and common) During the program, I invited the children to select a photo – without their grown-up partner peeking. The child places the photo on the cardboard, while the adult peers through the hole. The adult proceeds to ask the child questions about the animal until they are able to guess the correct one. This is your basic “20 questions” with a scientific twist.

Wild Bird Feeder

I found this simple bird feeder that preschoolers can assemble fairly quickly – and should stay useful if it is under cover. The bird feeder will hopefully provide an opportunity for the children to continue their observation of animals in winter at home.

Prior to the program, we cut two semi-circles out of the bottom of a cardboard tube. Then, we punched four holes in the top. Finally, we painted the tubes a cheerful shade of red. I set out colorful duct tape to affix the tubes to small plastic plates, and festive curling ribbon to string through the holes in the top so that the feeder might hang on a tree or a hook. We sent small bags of birdseed home with the families to help them get started with their backyard bird observation.

Hibernation Station

A couple years ago, I created a large interactive display to illustrate where animals live in the winter. I created a tree, a cloud, a patch of ground, and a partial lake. Each element has a flap that reveals which animal lives in that particular habitat in winter. I pin the pieces to the wall and set out puppets. Children use the puppets to find their animal’s home. This activity appeals to the kinesthetic learner, as they move about searching with their puppet.

Preschool Science: Animals in Winter (part one)

When the weather turns cold, I turn to one of my favorite themes for preschool science: Animals in Winter. I remember as a young child wondering and worrying about how animals survive in frosty weather. Over time, I came up with a group of stories and activities that our families seem to enjoy.

Prior to Preschool Science, I present a traditional preschool storytime, which includes a mix of fiction, non-fiction and folklore. This helps my young patrons get their minds focused on our topic of exploration. This month I shared:

• Animals in Winter, by Martha Rustad
• Bear Snores On, by Karma Wilson (big book version)
• The Hat, by Jan Brett (big book version)
• Snow Rabbit, Spring Rabbit, by Il Sung Na
• Rabbit’s Gift, retold by George Shannon (oral telling with feltboard)

Then Preschool Science begins!

Dressed for Winter

This activity tied-in nicely with Snow Rabbit, Spring Rabbit. Using a projector, I traced the outline of an Arctic Fox, Snowshoe Hare, and a weasel on brown paper. I pinned the shapes onto the wall and set out glue and cotton balls. During the program the children were invited to “dress the animals for winter” by gluing the cotton balls onto the animal shapes. This activity helps to illustrate an animal adaptation, where brown fur changes to white so that the animals are better camouflaged in the snow.

Animal Tracks

This activity went through a few cycles before I came up with one that worked. First, I cut stencils out of thin craft foam of bear, dear, bird, and fox tracks. Then, I taped white paper to a table. During the program, children created a jumble of tracks in the snow. In order to create an opportunity for writing, I encouraged the children to label the tracks.

See Part Two for more