Early Learning Lesson

Seeing Colors

Talk about the colors of foods and then play a color-identifying game.

Materials

• plate of colorful food

Here's How:

1. Choose a food on the plate and say, "I see (color). The (food) are (color)."
2. Continue with different colors. Ask, "Do you see any (color) on the plate? What is it?"
   
3. Make a game out of the color identification. "I'm eating red. Can you guess what it is?"
   "Yes, red strawberries. YUM!"

From Teaching Young Children (EMC 4506)

Kindergarten Connection

"Hidden Friend"

This is a game that helps children learn to use deductive reasoning.

What to Do:

1. Silently choose a child in the class to be the hidden friend. Describe the child using clues. Begin with general clues and become increasingly specific.
2. Before giving each clue, ask, Who has seen my hidden friend?

Here are some sample clues:
Who has seen my hidden friend? My friend has buttons and a collar.
Who has seen my hidden friend? My friend has brown hair.
Who has seen my hidden friend? My friend has earrings.
Who has seen my hidden friend? My friend's name begins with B.

3. Ask children to raise their hands when they think they know the hidden friend. Encourage them when they are on the right track:

Good observation. Frankie does have buttons, a collar, and brown
hair. But Frankie is not the hidden friend this time. Listen to my next clue.

From Reading Readiness Essentials, Circle Time Activities (EMC 739)

Word of the Week

harmony
noun
If you work in total cooperation with others, you work in harmony.

The ball players worked in such harmony that they easily won the game.

Which words mean something similar to harmony?

• argument
• agreement
• friendship
• togetherness
• disagreement

Tell about something that you do in harmony with your classmates, your family, or a friend. Do you think people are able to get more done when they work in harmony?

From A Word a Day, Grades 1-3 (EMC 2717)

Ten-Minute Activity

“Vowel/Consonant Colors”

Language Arts
Skill: spelling patterns

Materials:

• chalkboard and chalk
• crayons (two colors)
• paper

Here’s How:

1. Write spelling or vocabulary words on the chalkboard.
2. Have students copy each word on paper using crayons. One color should be used to write the vowels and the other color to write the consonants.
3. Encourage students to talk about the vowel patterns they see in the words.
4. If time permits, list the words on the board according to their vowel patterns. For example, list and contrast words that follow:

• the consonant/vowel/consonant pattern (CVC)
  cap
  tab
  mat
• the consonant/vowel/consonant/silent e pattern (CVCE)
  bake
  cane
  bike

From Ten-Minute Activities, Grades 1-3 (EMC 784)

Word of the Week

bedlam
noun
a scene of noise and confusion

There was bedlam on the decks of the Titanic when the ship began to sink.

Which of these events might cause bedlam?

• an earthquake destroys a neighborhood
• a snake gets loose in the classroom
• a bouquet of flowers is delivered
• a fire hydrant floods a city street
• a poet reads her work at a bookstore

Imagine a scene of bedlam. Describe what is happening and what caused it.

From A Word a Day, Grades 4-8 (EMC 2718)

Ten-Minute Activity

Horsefeathers
Science
Skill: facts review

Materials: lists of science facts

Here's How:

1. In advance, prepare several lists of statements about topics the class has studied in science. (Although you could be extemporaneous, the fun of the game depends on a rapid succession of statements.)
2. Explain to students that the expression "Horsefeathers!" means that something is ridiculously untrue. Inform them that you are going to rapidly relate science information, but that at some point you will say something untrue. When they hear that statement, they are to shout, "Horsefeathers!"
   

A game of Horsefeathers might proceed like this:
Fish have fins.
Fish breathe with gills.
A fish will die out of water.
A group of fish is called a school.
A whale is a fish.
Horsefeathers!

Electricity is a form of energy.
Electricity is created by moving electrons.
Electricity is a solid.
Horsefeathers!

Variation
After students have played this game a few times, challenge them to create prompts for the game.

From Ten-Minute Activities, Grades 4-6 (EMC 785)

Science Activity

Changing Shadows
Earth Science
Process Skill: Predicting

Go outside to the playground area with your group. What shadows can you see?

• Draw one object and the shadow it casts. Also draw where the sun is located in relation to the object and the shadow.
• An hour later, go back to the same spot. How has the shadow changed? Draw the object, shadow, and sun again. Compare your two drawings.
• Now compare your drawings with the drawings of other members in your group. Do you see a pattern? Write a prediction about the shape and position of the shadow an hour from now. Tell where the sun will be then in relation to the object.

From Science Cooperative Learning Cards (EMC 5006)