Engage Interest: Tell the children you are going on an imaginary trip to "The Land of Nursery Rhymes." Brainstorm about what they might do in this imaginary place and who they might meet. Brainstorm presents to bring for each nursery rhyme character. Pack the presents in a large duffel bag. later on throughout the unit, give students opportunities to unpack and repack the items, recalling as they do the nursery rhyme character with whom each item is associated.
Song: To Rhyming Land We Go!
[tune: The Farmer In The Dell]
To Rhyming Land we go,
To Rhyming Land we go!
Hi-ho the derry-o,
To Rhyming Land we go!
Continue singing the song above, substituting the following verses:
Verse 2: King Cole wears a crown.
Verse 3: Jack and Jill fell down.
Verse 4: Bo-Peep has lost her sheep.
Verse 5: Boy Blue is fast asleep.
Verse 6: The cat can play a tune.
Verse 7: The cow jumps over the moon.
Verse 8: A star shines in the sky.
Verse 9: And now we'll say goodbye!
Hickory Dickory Dock
Read poem: "The Clock" (Carson-Dellosa CD-0844, p.3) Use Judy Clock. On chart tablet, divide into two columns, Work/Play. Brainstorm things that are work-related things and things that are play things.
Time For Chores worksheet. (From Brighter Vision Learning Adventures) Read the rhyme. Then look at the pictures Tell who does each chore in your family. Circle any of the chores that you help out with.
To make a mouse, start wtih a black construction paper mouse cutout. When the paint is dry, attach a wiggle eye. Youngsters will enjoy using these mice to dramatize "Hickory Dickory Dock."
*Modify the above activity by using different colors of construction paper so students with end up with mice that match the seven colors in the book Seven Blind Mice by Ed Young.
Poem and color sheet. (Poem is typed onto a paper and clipart added to enhance the poem.)
Sing a Song of Sixpence
Have toast with honey. Sample two kinds of honey. Which did we prefer on our toast?
How Many Blackbirds? worksheet. Cut out the blackbirds. Put some birds in the pie. Count the birds.
Jack Be Nimble
Make a graph for each student. Make a poster board enlargement of the same graph. Provide assorted colors of candles or candle cutouts (not to exceed 5 of one color). Have students work in small groups to place the candles by color on the large graph. Then have each student color one block on his personal graph for each candle of the same color on the posterboard graph.
KinderLit.com page of My Kindergarten Nursery Rhyme Book.
Four-scene sequencing sheet found in Frank Schaffer Publication (FS-8602) - Nursery Rhyme Sequencing.
The Jumping Song
The Jumping Song
[tune: "B-I-N-G-O"]
Let's jump up and down right now,
'Cause jumping's lots of fun, oh!
Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump!
Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump!
Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump!
Oh, jumping's lots of fun, oh!
Let's jump with our arms out wide...
Let's jump with our arms up high...
Let's jump with our hands on heads...
Let's jump with our hands on hips...
Pat-A-Cake
After reading and memorizing the familiar rhyme, give each child a toothpick and a lice of slice-and-cake cookie dough. After patting the slice to mold it somewhat, have each child use his toothpick to prick a configuration of holes representing the first letter of his name.
3 Little Kittens
Match mittens upper and lowercase letters.
Mitch mittens - numerals and dots
Three Kittens paper bag puppet
"Mitten Movement" poem (Mother Goose by the Month, p. 45). Use the mitten pattern to make mittens for each child to use as props for this cute poem.
Mary Had a Little Lamb
Mary's Little Lamb maze - help the lamb get to Mary's school
Off to School worksheet by Brighter Vision Learning Adventures. Color the path in order from 1 to 15.
To make imitation wool, shake cotton balls in a ziploc bag with powdered black tempera paint. As you remove each cotton ball from the bag, shake it to remove the excess powder. Glue several of the dark cotton balls to a sheep cutout.
Color sheet with poem and sheep graphics for poem booklet.
Old King Cole was very demanding. He always ordered people by calling for this and calling for that. Make a crown cutout sheet and make a cover called, "If I Were King Cole..." Have each child dictate what would happen if he/she were king.
Make Old King Cole Crowns - Creative Teaching Press - CTP2127 - Color and cut out pieces to the crown, then staple together to fit.
Four-scence sequencing sheet.
Jack and Jill
Sink and Float experiment. Fill a pail full of water. Create two poster-board cutouts. (Label one with sink and the other with float.) Provide several objects that will sink and several that will float. For each object, make a matching picture card. Attach a ziploc baggie to each cutout - making the float baggie appear to be above the water line. Make predictions and then try your guess. Move the appropriate card to the correct pail when trying and concluding your guesses.
Four-scene sequencing sheet.
Jack and Jill maze - Help Jack and Jill get to the well.
Jack and Jill story sequence slide book (fun!)
Little Miss Muffet
In and Out Of The Web game. Make a spinner gameboard. (Square with diagnoal corners labeled out and in with a spider picture.) For spiderwebs, glue a real berry basket near each corner. Each player is given four spider rings to start play. In turn, each child spins and puts a spider in his basket or takes one out of his basket as directed by the spinner. Play continues until one player has all four of his spiders in his basket.
Spider Counting Book. Use stamp pads to make thumbprint spiders on a programmed step-page booklet. (1-5, or more)
Color sheet and poem with clipart for nursery rhyme booklets.
Spider Shapes worksheet. Color each shape according to the particular color code.
Little Miss Muffet cut and paste and act out craft. Color a picture of Little Miss Muffet and her spider. Cut out the poem. Glue the poem at the top center of a piece of manila paper. Punch a hole in the top left corner of the paper and attach a piece of yarn. Attach the yarn to the spider. Glue Miss Muffet on the right-hand side of the page. Act out the rhyme as you recite. (Cute!)
Read The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle. Place the characters of the story in the order they appeared in the story. [Mother Goose by the Month, Carson-Dellosa, pp. 16-17]
Read Little Miss Muffet's Count Along Surprise by Emma Chicehester Clark. Very cute counting book story that reinvents the rhyme Little Miss Muffet.
Miss Muffet class book. (This idea comes from gbiss@aol.com from the KinderKorner mailring.)
Little Miss/Mr. Muffet (could substitute the child's name)
Sat on his/her __________________.
Eating his/her __________________.
Along came a ____________________.
And sat down beside him/her
And frightened __________________ away!
Wee Willie Winkie
Wee Willie Has Rhythm: Supply each child with rhythm sticks. Have children tap out the rhythm of the nursery rhyme as you repeatedly chant it together. Each time, end the nursery rhyme by mentioning a different hour. When the hour is called, have each child tap and count out that number. (If desired, you may want to display a clock set to the matching time.)
Humpty Dumpty
Paper tear project. Draw a horizontal line at the midpoint of a sheet of blue construction paper. Cut two holes below the line just big enough for fingers. Without covering the holes, glue torn bits of red construction paper below the line. Trace an oval onto white paper, decorate it to resemble Humpty Dumpty, and cut it out. Then glue it just above the holes on the paper.
Cut a tagboard oval shape. Cover it with thinned glue. Cover the glue with crushed eggshells or bits of white tissue paper. Once the glue has dried, attach wiggle eyes and create additional features if desired.
Humpty Dumpty mini booklet. Color and cut out the pictures. Glue the pictures in order onto a sheet of construction paper or use them to make a mini book. [Resource: TCM #303 Literature Activities for Young Children, Book 4]
Four-scene sequencing sheet.
Graph how you like to eat your eggs. (Scrambled, Fried, or Hard Boiled)
Practice positional words with this hands-on activity. Make a haystack shape from tagboard. Coat the haystack with a layer of glue and then sprinkle on crushed shredded wheat. Make a little boy blue puppet from craft sticks. Have students position their boy cutouts around their haystacks to match particular positions.
Make Little Boy Blue Haystacks. Melt two packages of butterscotch chips on a hot plate or microwave. Do not stir. Mix a large package of chow mein noodles with the melted butterscotch chips. Drop spoonfuls of this mixture onto waxed paper to cool. Serve theses mouth-watering treats for snack. (I have also used peanut butter chips as some children do not like butterscotch, but be careful for allergies!)
Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
Visual memory game. Place 8 to 10 different-colored star cutouts on a tabletop. Give each class time to analyze what's on the table. Ask students to close their eyes as you remove one or more of the stars. Guess the missing color star.
Story starter: If I could wish upon a star, I would wish for ...
Star Bright wishes box - Put together a tiny box pattern and cut out 5 tiny star cutouts. Students will dictate wishes for you to put onto the tiny stars. Students put wishes into the box.
Star Light, Star Bright (Brighter Vision) worksheet - counting to 15. Count the stars. Circle the number that shows how many you counted.
Hey, Diddle, Diddle
Color and cut out the 4 pictures and glue them on another piece of paper in the correct sequence.
Moon Shapes - phases of the moon
Finger-paint while listening to country fiddle or classical violin music. When dry, decorate with cat stickers.
Discuss nighttime
Old Mother Hubbard
Play Doggie, Doggie, Where's Your Bone?
4-scene sequencing sheet
Miscellaneous
Discuss real and make-believe.
Queen of Hearts' Tarts - use refrigerator biscuits and cherry pie filling. Have the children flatten the biscuits and then put a spoon full of pie filling in the middle of the circle. Fold one edge of the biscuit over and seal shut. Bake until golden brown. Wash them because the children flatten them and they cook quickly.
Riddle-Dee-Dee (Frank Schaffer 44045 - Nursery Rhymes). Challenge students to the riddles about nursery rhyme characters and stories they have learned.
Read poem: "The Clock" (Carson-Dellosa CD-0844, p.3) Use Judy Clock. On chart tablet, divide into two columns, Work/Play. Brainstorm things that are work-related things and things that are play things.
Have toast with honey. Sample two kinds of honey. Which did we prefer on our toast?
Make a graph for each student. Make a poster board enlargement of the same graph. Provide assorted colors of candles or candle cutouts (not to exceed 5 of one color). Have students work in small groups to place the candles by color on the large graph. Then have each student color one block on his personal graph for each candle of the same color on the posterboard graph.
Pat-A-Cake
Match mittens upper and lowercase letters.
Mary's Little Lamb maze - help the lamb get to Mary's school
Sink and Float experiment. Fill a pail full of water. Create two poster-board cutouts. (Label one with sink and the other with float.) Provide several objects that will sink and several that will float. For each object, make a matching picture card. Attach a ziploc baggie to each cutout - making the float baggie appear to be above the water line. Make predictions and then try your guess. Move the appropriate card to the correct pail when trying and concluding your guesses.
In and Out Of The Web game. Make a spinner gameboard. (Square with diagnoal corners labeled out and in with a spider picture.) For spiderwebs, glue a real berry basket near each corner. Each player is given four spider rings to start play. In turn, each child spins and puts a spider in his basket or takes one out of his basket as directed by the spinner. Play continues until one player has all four of his spiders in his basket.
Wee Willie Has Rhythm: Supply each child with rhythm sticks. Have children tap out the rhythm of the nursery rhyme as you repeatedly chant it together. Each time, end the nursery rhyme by mentioning a different hour. When the hour is called, have each child tap and count out that number. (If desired, you may want to display a clock set to the matching time.)
Humpty Dumpty
Paper tear project. Draw a horizontal line at the midpoint of a sheet of blue construction paper. Cut two holes below the line just big enough for fingers. Without covering the holes, glue torn bits of red construction paper below the line. Trace an oval onto white paper, decorate it to resemble Humpty Dumpty, and cut it out. Then glue it just above the holes on the paper.
Practice positional words with this hands-on activity. Make a haystack shape from tagboard. Coat the haystack with a layer of glue and then sprinkle on crushed shredded wheat. Make a little boy blue puppet from craft sticks. Have students position their boy cutouts around their haystacks to match particular positions.
Visual memory game. Place 8 to 10 different-colored star cutouts on a tabletop. Give each class time to analyze what's on the table. Ask students to close their eyes as you remove one or more of the stars. Guess the missing color star.
Color and cut out the 4 pictures and glue them on another piece of paper in the correct sequence.
Play Doggie, Doggie, Where's Your Bone?
Miscellaneous
