Tinker Bell is a super cute movie and has several sequels that are definitely worth watching. This movie was the first one that Dragon paid attention to at around 18 months old. So of course, I had to include it in her lessons.
Singing, listening to different pieces, learning piano
Crochet
The project she is working on (currently she is making herself a poncho)
Basic Information
We talk about the days of the week and play games with the cutouts of the names. We do the same thing with the names of the months of the year. You can find the print-outs here.
Printing words
Download materials
Counting objects/math-type activities
Practice counting objects and writing how many of each type – in download materials
Count leaves after collecting them on nature walk
There used to be four fairy friends – now that Tinker Bell has joined them, how many are there?
Storytime
Activity
Nature walk – look for different kinds of leaves, acorns, maple keys, flowers, etc (weather dependent – you want no rain the day before as well as day of)
Week 2 was even better than the first. Dragon tried very hard in her virtual class through the school, and raised her hand several times to talk to the teachers – she even said some words in French. She worked hard on printing words with the letter ‘i’ (poussin, maison, voici, and poulailler (chicken coop – why she insisted on trying to spell that word rather than ‘ici’ is beyond me)) and on understanding how to break down numbers into their smallest components (4 into 1&3 and 2&2) and understanding the French names for the numbers. There were still technical problems, but not on our end, thankfully. I’m incredibly impressed by the patience and kindness of the teachers.
The part of the week taught by me went fairly well. There were a couple of hiccups with the paper doll project… well. You’ll see in the comments.
Dance
Ballet was fun and she got her first Martial Arts this week.
Good toes
Music
We listened to a bunch of French music. Coeur de Pirate was the favourite and I foresee using this CD often.
Crochet
We managed to get a few more stitches in.
Basic Information
I added a new category – basic information. In here, we talk about the days of the week and play games with the cutouts of the names. We will do the same thing with the names of the months of the year. You can find the print-outs here.
Days of the week
Months of the year
Printing words
Worked really well. The blank sheet was used on the second day with the filled in sheet as a guide for spelling.
Words
Words!
Counting objects/math-type activities
The download sheet worked really well. She got to practice writing numbers and she counted well.
I feel like she’s understanding more, or perhaps we’re just reading books she’s more familiar with?
Activity
Sewing a button – This ended up being a huge success! I cut a scrap of fabric and let her pick whatever button she wanted. She had a bit of trouble threading the needle (very small eye) and tying the knot in the thread, but she grasped the concept of sewing the button on very quickly and is so very proud of herself!
My button!!
I ended up making a pillow for her little chair, so she got to see how a sewing machine worked (and how to ask Grannie for help!). We measured the chair and transferred the measurements onto the material. We talked about adding seam allowance, and what that means. We discovered that the ties need to be on the inside of the pillow before stitching if you want them to be on the outside of the pillow when you turn it right side out (again, thank you Grannie for catching that mistake!). And I showed her how I finished off the stitching with an invisible stitch after stuffing it.
Make paper dolls (web) – do not use this link. The clothes are missing flaps and do not stay on the dolls. Keladry was super patient about colouring each item (she outlined them and made colour-coordinating clothes for the dolls) and even did some cutting, but we both agreed that they were not worth keeping. This activity definitely need to be re-thought. Maybe a simpler, larger doll and fewer outfits? Or maybe buying a simple set from the store would be better than printing one out?
This week is Moana, the 2016 film by Disney. I thought it would be nice to be able to go star-gazing when it’s not too cold but gets dark a little bit earlier. And this week has great viewing opportunities for Jupiter and Saturn at the beginning of the week (Mon-Wed).
Singing, listening to different pieces, learning piano
Crochet
The project she is working on (currently she is making herself a poncho)
Basic Information
We talk about the days of the week and play games with the cutouts of the names. We do the same thing with the names of the months of the year. You can find the print-outs here.
Printing words
Downloadable materials
Counting objects/math-type activities
Practice counting objects and writing how many of each type – in downloadable materials
Star gazing – Best days to view Jupiter and Saturn this week are Mon-Wed 2020 (just check weather first!) During the day – talk about the two planets and what to expect while observing them – add in some planet worksheets for colouring (web link, web link)
Bake with coconut – cookies? Any option you like
Objects floating in water (experiment link, printable worksheet in downloadable materials)
Dragon’s first week of Jr Kindergarten went well. There were some hiccups with technology for her virtual classes for her real school on the first day, but after getting a new link (and downloading new firmware for the camera) the second day went much smoother – other than several meltdowns from a very tired Dragon. We’re trying to figure out how to have her be part-time (one day a week), with the teacher’s assistance.
We listened to a bunch of French music. Coeur de Pirate was the favourite.
Crochet
We managed to get a few stitches in.
Printing words
Worked really well. The blank sheet was used on the second day with the filled in sheet as a guide for spelling.
Writing words
Counting objects/math-type activities
The download sheet worked really well. She got to practice writing numbers and she counted well.
Counting
Storytime
She enjoyed the books, but I’m not sure she understood them
Activity
Baking – cake – talked about mixing colours and measurements.
The cake!
How do we make purple? Red and blue food colouring (and blueberries).
Stuffing yellow icing into the piping instrument
Piping the yellow sun
The sun!
Look what I made!
We had leftover yellow icing, so Papa added to the design.
Perfect cake.
Painting – free-style with Crayola washable paint on paper – talked about mixing colours.
The sky
Adding grass…
Rapunzel’s tower
Rapunzel’s hair
I’m finished, mum!
Completed picture
Make a paper lantern – need construction paper,paper bag, stencil (in download material), cardboard box, paper towel folded in fourths, and screwdriverthumb tack, and pen (instructions are Number 11). Put the paper bag over the cardboard box, and slide the folded paper towel in between the box and the bag. Place the stencil over-top of the bag/paper towel. Use the screwdriver to punch holes in the stencil/paper bag. Be careful not to move the stencil, or you will mess up your design. (Edited in italics after attempt.)
First attempt at the lantern – the push pin was too small for her to hold, and the cardboard too stiff to push into. She pushed on my fingers as I made the pricks – not as much fun for her.
It worked REALLY well, but better for an older kid.
Attempting to get a good picture of the lantern without the mottling of the construction paper.
Using the screwdriver and a paper bag was much easier for her
She did the whole thing by herself! (I held the paper in place.)
Singing, listening to different pieces, learning piano
Crochet
The project she is working on (currently she is making herself a poncho)
Basic Information
We talk about the days of the week and play games with the cutouts of the names. We do the same thing with the names of the months of the year. You can find the print-outs here.
Printing words
Download materials
Counting objects/math-type activities
Practice counting objects and writing how many of each type –in download materials
Work on clocks – putting numbers on a clock and understanding hours (web link to blank clock faces)
Cinderella has how many stepsisters?
How many different types of animals help Cinderella? Mice, birds, dog, horse
The first week, we will be focussing on Tangled, the DIsney movie released in 2010. We are starting on September 7, even though it’s a holiday, because we’re just watching a movie on the first day. So her first real day of school will be the 8th.
I thought it was fitting after several months of quarantine to watch a movie about a girl locked in a tower for 18 years.
Singing, listening to different pieces, learning piano
Crochet
The project she is working on (currently she is making herself a poncho)
Basic Information
We talk about the days of the week and play games with the cutouts of the names. We do the same thing with the names of the months of the year. You can find the print-outs here.
Printing words
Download material
Counting objects/math-type activities
Practice counting objects and writing how many of each type –(in download material)
One Stabbington brother plus one Stabbington brother equals how many?
Three people stole the crown, but one had a change of heart. How many are still bad guys?
Storytime
Activity
Baking – cake
Painting – free-style with Crayola washable paint on paper (please note that this might be a good outdoor activity – check weather in advance and move days if necessary)
Make a paper lantern – need construction paper,paper bag, stencil (in download material), cardboard box, paper towel folded in fourths, and screwdriverthumb tack, and pen (instructions are Number 11). Put the paper bag over the cardboard box, and slide the folded paper towel in between the box and the bag. Place the stencil overtop of the bag/paper towel. Use the screwdriver to punch holes in the stencil/paper bag. Be careful not to move the stencil, or you will mess up your design. (Edited in italics after attempt.)
As you may be aware, we have chosen to keep our Dragon home from Jr Kindergarten (Maternelle) this September. This is entirely due to Covid-19. We have nothing but the highest respect for the teachers who are working very hard to keep themselves and the children in their care safe.
We have yet to talk to Dragon’s Kindergarten teacher about the virtual learning that we have signed up for. We hope to hear from them late this week.
I have looked at the Ontario curriculum for Kindergarten and its overall expectations. You can see them here.
To this end, in order to supplement what the teachers will be providing, we will be following a home-based curriculum around a different movie each week. Dragon helped me come up with the movies and ideas for the activities, and is super excited to do these.
I will be posting the weekly lessons here on Wednesday the week before, including any worksheets I plan on printing out.
Each day will include the following:
Dance (ballet and martial arts on alternate days)
Music (singing, listening to different pieces, learning piano)
Crochet on the project she is working on (currently she is making herself a poncho)
Basic Information about the days of the week and months of the year. You can find the print-outs here.
Printing words related to the movie of the week (as she already knows how to print individual letters) ENGLISH template, FRENCH template (both in Word; if you want a different format, let me know and I’ll see what I can do) You will need the KG Primary Dots font in order to see these properly. The weekly questions will be PDFs, so you don’t need the font for those, only if you want to make your own.
Please be aware that this is supposed to be as support for what the teachers provide, and therefore there are components missing from the daily routine.
