Lakewood for Middlers: June 3

Here are three invitations from Sarah and Caitlyn for middlers for this hot and sunny Wednesday.

Fine Motor Invitation: Play dough and Hammer
Using two or more different colors of play dough, have you and your child roll out some balls. Once the balls are made, place them on a tray and call out a color for your child. Whichever color you call out, have your child “smash” it with a hammer (your child can use a toy hammer or a real one with help and supervision).

Intent: This activity incorporates fine motor development by having your child use the hammer and their arm/hand muscles to smash the play dough balls. This also an opportunity to work on color recognition.

Art Invitation: Continuing with the Hammer, do some hammer art! This activity will most likely get messy, so do it outside!

Put blobs of paint on a paper and cover the paint with cotton balls. Then have your child smash the cotton balls with their (toy) hammer and watch the paint splat!

Intent: This activity allows for a different way to explore art and creative expression by painting on a material that is not typically used for play. This activity includes fine motor development by using the hammer and arm muscles adding a gross motor invitation as well.

Music and Movement Invitation: The Itsy Bitsy Monkey
The itsy bitsy monkey
Climbed up the coconut tree.
Down came a coconut and hit him on his knee!
OWWW!
Out came a lion,
Shakin’ his mighty mane,
And the itsy bitsy money
Climbed up the tree again.

Five Little Flowers
Five little flowers growing in a row,
The first one said, “I’m purple you know.”
The second one said, “I’m as pink as pink can be.”
The third one said, “I’m blue like the sea.”
The fourth one said, “I’m a very red fellow.”
The fifth one said, “My color is yellow.”
Then out came the sun, big and bright,
And five little flowers smiled in delight.

Intent: This activity encourages big body movements and incorporates songs used in the middler classroom while at school.