Rainbow Fish Activites

After reading Rainbow Fish aloud to my class, I would attempt to integrate its moral into several activities in my classroom. After explaining the importance of sharing, I would divide my classroom in pairs. Instead of giving each individual child a napkin during snack time, I would allow each pair a napkin. The meaning of the excersize would remain obscure until I announced that we would have goldfish for a snack. (I chose goldfish snack crackers to represent the variety of fishes in the story.) Next, each pair would receive a handful of goldfish on their napkin. This activity would force each member of the class to practice sharing and to even begin to work as a team.

I have always vowed that when I have my own classroom, I will have a fish for a classroom pet. So, obviously after the story is read, it would be the perfect opportunity to purchase my fish. My goal of responsibility, teamwork, and sharing would occur everyday when a group of students would be chosen to feed the fish that day.

Rainbow Fish

Rainbow Fish, by Marcus Pfister, is excellent to include in the Pre-K/Kindergarten curriculum. The story tells of a beautiful fish who learns the benefits of sharing. At the beginning of the tale, we notice that the fish has many shiny scales, and he soon becomes the envy of the entire ocean. When a little blue fish politely asks for one of his scales, rainbow fish denys his school mate's request and yells "Get away from me!" Immediately after, the rainbow fish discoveres that he possesses not one friend. At the end of the story, Rainbow Fish comes to the realization that the only way that he will truly be satisfied is if he gives away his scales to his friends. Rainbow Fish does, indeed, discover that the act of giving wins over more friends that an exterior of stunning scales.

It is no surprise that Pfister incorporates the moral of sharing into her story. It is obvious that her targeted audience (elementary children) struggle with sharing on a daily basis at home and even in the classroom. By reading of Rainbow fish's journey to maturity, elementary students learn that sharing and being kind to their pupils usually results in an abundance of friends. It is never to early to begin to ingrain generousity in our children. It is our job as educators to gain access to this moralistic literature so that we may teach our students virtuous and moral that will guarantee success in their futures.

Ella Enchanted

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5_gtIj7L84



In class this week, Mrs. Robinson suggested that after we read the story, Ella Enchanted, we should watch the motion picture released in 2004. She explained that we should recognize that our princess veers away from her strong willed character in the paper back. Not only am I in full agreement with my instructor, but I also noticed that the film and the book were comprised of different story lines.
For example, in the novel Levine is adament about displaying a heartless father with love for only his possessions. However, the films shows us the opposite. Even though the father is not one of the central characters in the movie, he still shows unconditional love towards Ella.
The next series of differences occurs in the second half of the story. For instance, in the film Ella is asked by the current king (Char's uncle) to stab Char in the heart at the stroke of midnight after Hattie eagerly confesses Ella's curse. Ella chains herself to a tree to prevent her wrongdoings. To Ella's disadvantage, Lucinda appears in a cloud of fairy dust, unchains Ella and finally dresses her in an elegant garb for the ball. The actions of Lucinda practically enable our princess to murder the prince. The spell is broken when Ella commands herself not to kill the prince. A further attack is thrown in Char's direction when the king coats his nephew's crown in poison. The creators of the film seem to be so concerned with the elaborate plot that they lose Ella's witty character that we see from the book in the process.
Surprisingly, not a single event listed above from the movie is seen between the pages of the novel. Lucinda does put Ella into beautiful garments for the ball, however, this is after she has transformed herself into a squirrel and a small child to experience the effects of Ella's curse. Ella attends the ball and poses as Princess Lela. Her spell is broken when Ella tells the prince that she will not marry him after the many requests.
The website above is actually one of my favorite scenes of the film. It represents evidence of the embellishments in the plot. Here, we see Ella singing and dancing at the giant wedding celebration. Take a look. :)

Teddy Bear Week

I am constantly thinking of new and inventive ways to incorporate the books that I plan to read in my future classroom into my Pre-K/Kindergarten curriculum. I have organized a Teddy Bear Week in honor of the book, Corduroy.

Teddy Bear Week would obviously begin with the reading of the story, Corduroy. At the beginning of the week, I would bring a teddy bear to the school, and as a class we would all think of a name for our new visitor. Throughout the week the classroom leader would have the responsibility of making sure "Teddy" is safe and comfortable by taking him to lunch and recess and reading to him at storytime. (The leader would be drawn by popcicle sticks with each child's name on each stick at the beginning of each day on this particular week.) At the end of the week, my class would have a Bring Your own Teddy Day. After our lessons for the day, I would have the class share their Teddy's name, and we would eat a picnic outside with our very own "Corduroy's".

Corduroy

The tale of Corduroy by Don Freeman represents my childhood. When I think of the story I cannot help but to remember the aroma of freshly baked cookies and my grandmother's southern drawl as she would read me Corduroy just after our afternoon snack. So, naturally I could not resist discussing Corduroy in my journal.

Corduroy tells of a stuffed bear and his adventures in a department store. The bear lives in a toy department and is never purchased because of a missing button located on his overalls. We follow Corduroy as he attempts to find the lost button in the shopping mall.

Corduroy offers enjoyment for both the child and the parent. Children adore the tale because of its imaginative plot. Children love to explore, imagine, and fantasize, so what better way to intrigue a child by having them read of a talking stuffed animal who goes on a risky adventure. Adults, on the other hand, benefit from the moral Corduroy offers. The young girl in the story does not mind that Corduroy has a missing button and purchases him anyway. This teaches young children that their true friends will accept them for the quality of their character, not for the way that they look. They should not try to change their appearance for the benefit of others as Corduroy did in the story.

The tale of Corduroy is a marvelous story, and it is perfect for "storytime" in all Pre-K and Kindergarten classrooms.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hEHdFMexpc

Above is a link of a video that will take you on Corduroy's big adventure. The story of the talking stuffed bear is read aloud.

If you GIve a Mouse a Cookie Activities

http://www.hubbardscupboard.org/if_you_give_a_mouse_a_cookie.html

The link above is a site that has fun and inventive excersizes and activies created for the Preschool and Kindergarten grade levels. The website includes math games, literacy projects, and a "create a snack" activity all centered on the story, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Even though the excersizes on the internet site were originally created for a "family night", the games may also be utilized in the classroom. My three favorite activities were"Create a Snack", "Mouse ABC Tic Tac Toe", and "Cookie Jar Math".

In my Kindergarten classroom, one week out of the year would be designated If You Give a Mouse a Cookie Week.As a teacher, I would utilize several of the activies in my curriculum for the week. At the first of the week, I would actually read the story to my class. Located towards the front of the classroom would be a jar of cookies. Without counting, my students would estimate how many cookies were in the jar.This activity would undoubedly help the children get used to the ideas of estimation and probability. As a treat, each child would receive a cookie from the jar.

"Mouse ABC Tic Tac Toe" and "Cookie Jar Math" would be conducted on different days of the week. The "Mouse ABC Tic Tac Toe" activitiy helps children to identify the sounds of their letters and to recognize the items that begin with the particular letter. The "Cookie Jar Math" activity, on the other hand, helps students to learn the basics and fundamentals of addition and subtraction through visualization. The details of these two activities are found on the website.

Lastly at the end of If You Give a Mouse a Cookie Week, I would conduct the "Create a Snack" excersize. The mystery snack would be a mouse cracker made of Ritz crackers (ears), a Town House cracker (face), a chocolate chip (nose). I would add to the mouse's face whiskers by cuting tiny pieces of licorice. I would take students in groups of 5 and have each child help me make these delicious treats! Yum Yum!

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff was one of my absolute favorite childhood stories. I have come to learn that the way into a child's heart and mind is through their funny bone, and this book undoubedly embodies that motto. Its humorous illustrations and creative plot line work hand-in-hand to intrigue younger audiences.
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie tells of a mouse who is NEVER satisfied. After the cookie is given to the mouse, the rodent is persistant in asking for more favors from his human companion. These "favors" range from a request for a single glass of milk to the demand of the restroom for a rather messy hair trim. It is no surprise, that at the end of the story, that the young boy is found collapsed on the kitchen floor taking a nap surrounded by the messes accumulated throughout the day.
There are several aspects of the story that make for an interesting and entertaining read. Illustrator, Felcia Bond, contributes to this excitement with her amusing illustrations. Children giggle as they see the tiny rodent fly from his "powder puff bed" in his under wear or when the see little hairs swarming around the mouse as he gives himself a "hair trim".
Even though the story is an enjoyable read for all audiences, it must be noted that Numeroff is directing her story for elementary-aged children. It seems that Numeroff is almost allowing the mouse to represent this age child who can never resist pulling on Mama's skirt with a never-ending list of "wants".