Tot School: Shadows

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It's time to tell you about Shadow week! Actually, it was a kind of upside-down week, too.  And shamrock and diamond week.  Sort of a non-theme week?

Our theme book was Moonbear’s Shadow by Frank Asch.  I really love that book.  And we read lots of other shadow books that I really love:

• Moonlight & Shadow by Elisabeth Jones and James Coplestone - possibly my favorite book of the week!  Cuz it has a pony in it...  
• The Dark, Dark Night by M. Christina Butler and Jane Chapman - another favorite.
• What Makes a Shadow? by Clyde Robert Bulla – Mom’s favorite, cuz it was very educational and all and I had to learn a lot
• Shadows and Reflections by Tana Hoban - a photo book - I looked for shadows in the photos... 
• Shadows by April Pulley Sayre 
• My Shadow by Sheila Gore 
• My Shadow by Susan Winter
• Simple Science Experiments with Light by Eiji Orii and Masaka Orii - I'll be honest - I didn't read this book personally.  It was more a Mom kinda book for ideas...
• St. Patrick and the Three Brave Mice by Joyce A. Stengel - because we needed SOMETHING to go with the shamrock theme...  And the author was really nice and sent us our very own copy of the book.  It was pretty cool - about mice and snakes - and I LIKE books about animals that can really talk.

So I spent lots of time figuring out where my shadow was this week.  I really like my shadow.  It really follows me everywhere, if there is light.  I tried to get rid of it - I asked Daddy for hammer and nails and shovel and stuff to make it stay away from me, but he didn't help me at all.

I made a hand shadows book.  Because you can really make animals with your hands.


We drew a pond on some butcher paper, and I drew a fish in the pond.  Then we experimented with a flashlight and my teddy bear to see if we could get bear's shadow on the fish.  Just like in the book.


We made a paper bag bear puppet, so I could act out the theme story while Mom read it.


Mom put together a basket of different objects and some "shadows" she had cut out of purple construction paper.  I had to match the objects to their shadows.  Easy peasy!


Enough of shadows...  let's move on to shamrocks!  I laced up a green shamrock sewing card with purple ribbon.  I'm still working on the whole sequence thing - I pretty much sew all over the card, not in order.


We measured some shamrocks with my very own measuring tape - in millimeters.  I helped Mom write down the measurements by writing the Ms.


We played Shamrock BINGO!  I like this game.  Mom made up a card by writing random letters on 12 shamrocks.  Then she flipped through a set of alphabet flashcards (shuffled, of course) and called letters.  If I had the letter on my card, I put a glass marker on it.


Our shape of the month was diamond, so I did some diamond worksheets.

• http://www.first-school.ws/t/cp_seasonal/s_kite_1.htm
• http://www.kidslearningstation.com/shapes/worksheets/diamond-worksheet.pdf
• http://www.education.com/files/66901_67000/66919/file_66919.pdf

Except I'm not really into following worksheet directions these days.  I'd rather draw dogs.


Our letter of the week was U, so I colored some U things (pink, of course) and made a collage.


Upside-down starts with U!  So I drew a rainbow while I was upside down - on a paper that was taped to the bottom of a chair...


We made upside-down cake.  I sneak-taste-tested it - before it baked.  Yummy!  (Don't tell - Mom didn't see me.  If it wasn't for that tell-tale stuff around my mouth...


After it was baked, I ate a few bites AROUND the pineapple.  But I DON'T like pineapple.  Or cherries.  So I didn't eat that part.


I was supposed to paint a fish - like Bear caught in the theme story.  But I painted lots of other stuff with my water colors.


And Mom and I painted this random piece (with tempera paint) together - after we discovered ladybugs outside.


Remember that letter I wrote to the president?  I got a letter back!


We experimented with ice cubes - we made them out of orange juice and cranberry juice.  They made my drinks really interesting!


I pretended to be a baby pony half the week (and a baby dragon, unicorn, zebra, goat, and goose, among other babies).  Here I am neighing with my extended mouth!


I got out my skateboard!


The best way to ride it is on my tummy, of course.



I got out the play dough - I've been using it a lot at daycare and really like it!  I had this great idea to make star-shaped shish kebabs.  And then I made fire on a stick.


I told Mom I wanted to make a dandelion.  So she showed me how to color a coffee filter with a yellow marker.  We colored four filters.


I sprayed the filters with water!  I used way more water than Mom said I should...


After they dried (which took a really long time), Mom attached all of them with a green pipe cleaner.  Isn't the flower beautiful?!  I insisted on sleeping with it.