Winter & Christmas Books!

December is such a busy month at work and at home. Here is a list of the books we read during December! We focused on /s/ and /s/ blends the entire month.

Merry Christmas, Splat!


The Snowy Day


Where oh Where is Santa Claus?

Red Color Bags!

You will be receiving this month's color bags in your child's backpack shortly. Please help your child find one or two things around your home that are RED that they can put in their bag and bring to school by Dec. 9. 

 Here is the song we are learning in class and practicing each week for the month of December:

Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp

In Class:
This week in class we read Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp and practiced our /s/ blend words (s + another consonant like STomp SPoon SWing, etc)!

We sang Here Come the Dinosaurs by Laurie Berkner (this is a huge hit!). During centers, we did a small group language/artic activity with dinosaurs. We took turns building the 3 magnetic dinosaurs and finding which one it matched with on the board. Then we learned some fun facts about each dinosaur. We described what they looked like, what they eat, and what they did in the book. We also practiced saying their names!

Home Activity:

Make your own dinosaur book! There are two book pages on each printed page so print and cut them all in half. Assemble them and staple together with My Dinosaur Book as the cover. Go through the book with your child and have them find all the items on each page. Have your child color the items hiding in each picture after they say each /s/ blend word 3 times. Help them remember to get their snake sound! You can cue by making a snake go up your arm with your index finger while you make the ssssss sound. Practice this book every day- it is great practice!!!

Brown Color Bags!

You will be receiving this month's color bags in your child's backpack shortly. Please help your child find one or two things around your home that are BROWN that they can put in their bag and bring to school by Nov. 6. 

 Here is the song we are learning in class and practicing each week for the month of November:

Skeleton Hiccups

In Class
In class this week we read Skeleton Hiccups and focused on the /h/ sound!

The kids thought this book was hilarious and we talked about how the hiccups can make so many things hard for us to do. Some kids said they LOVE having hiccups, while others (like myself) find it quite bothersome :)

In the APPLE class, Miss Marcia provided us with materials to make these delicious skeletons!

Home Activity:

Print off the following skull page (if its not here yet, come back later today and I'll have it loaded!) and target word page. Cut out the skull and tape/glue/staple it to a piece of construction paper or cardstock. Try to make the top of the head "bubble up" a little, and leave it unglued at the very top (see example below). You can have your child practice target words and once they have said them, store them inside the skull! Make sure they get their good /h/ sound!

Example:






Here is a cute reading of the book for your enjoyment!

Sixteen Runaway Pumpkins

In Class:
This week in class we read Sixteen Runaway Pumpkins! We were practicing the initial /p/ sound.

This is a cute book with lots of rhyming and problem solving. At the end, they eat pumpkin pie. Our question of the day was "Do you like to eat pumpkin pie?" Many of the kids said yes, but there were a few avid nay sayers :)

During centers, children got to take turns bowling. After practicing target words correctly, they got a turn to knock down the /p/ins with the /p/umpkin! (In the book, the pumpkins become the "hill rolling bowling ball kind). This activity was a huge hit and our pumpkin ended up losing his nose... but it was found and reattached!

We also did a Purple Pumpkin Pail sound bucket full of items starting with /p/ which each child got a turn with.

Home Activity:

Print off these initial /p/ words and cut them apart. Place them on the floor in random arrangements, facing up or down (you can choose!). Use a beanbag or small stuffed animal and toss it, trying to land on a card. When you land on a card, say that word 10 times! Make sure your child uses their good /p/ sound!

Here is a cute reading of the story on YouTube!

Go Away Big Green Monster

In Class:
This week in class we read the book Go Away Big Green Monster!!

After reading the book, we also did a fingerplay/puppet where we did the whole story by putting all the pieces on and taking them off. The kids were good at remembering what came next and great at using the /g/ sound on all the "go away" parts!

Everyone got a chance to put up there name on the Question of the Day board. Each class was about half and half- some were scared of the Big Green Monster and others knew he was just some "Spooky Fun" :)

In APPLE class, we also made our own Green Monsters to eat. As we ate the parts, we said for example, "Go Away, (ears)" and ate the ears. We enjoyed our yummy treats! Thank you Miss Marcia!

Home Activity:

Make a puppet with this template and a paper lunch bag. Have your child color the monster however they like. You can have your monster eat the target word cards. Or you can hide your monster and then when someone finds it you can tell him to GO AWAY, and have someone else hide and find him. 

There is a cute animation/song of the book here:

Orange color bags!

You will be receiving this month's color bags in your child's backpack shortly. Please help your child find one or two things around your home that are orange that they can put in their bag and bring to school by Oct. 16. It is ok if they come in late, we will still give your child a chance to share!

 Here is the song we are learning in class and practicing each week for the month of October:

Mrs. McNosh Hangs Up Her Wash

In Class:
This week we focused on the /sh/ or "quiet" sound, and we read the book:

At centers, Miss Emily made a fun activity where children hung items on a clothesline, just like in our story. We did Question of the Day and each child got to say "yes" or "no" if they use a clothesline at their house to dry their clothes. We discussed what things you are supposed to hang on a clothesline, as well as things that don't belong on a clothesline. Mrs. McNosh put some silly things on her clothesline, so we took turns talking about what we thought was the silliest thing she hung!

Home Activity:

Print off Mrs. McNosh. Attach a string or yarn across the top of the page by taping or stapling it to each side, so that it looks like Mrs. McNosh is hanging things up on the line. Print off the page of items to "hang on the line". You can hang them with clothespins or paperclips. Have your child say whether it belongs on a clothesline or not. If you want to turn it into a speech sound activity, print off the "sh" words and glue them on the back of the clothes/items. When they hang one up, have them practice the "sh" word on the back.

Hang these items if they belong on a clothesline:

 Glue/tape these target words to the back and practice them with your good quiet sound!

If You Give a Moose a Muffin

In Class:
This week we have been reading If You Give a Moose a Muffin.

To go along with our book, Miss Emily made an awesome articulation activity. Children took turns feeding the moose muffins, and each muffin had an initial /m/ word on it. They thought it was very fun to make the moose get "full" of muffins.

Home Activities:
You can make your very own Moose Feeding activity! Print the following on cardstock if possible, and cut out the muffins. Cut an opening for the moose's mouth so you can slip the muffins in. Have your child say the target word on each muffin at least 3 times before feeding it to the moose! You can cue your child to put their lips together if they have a hard time with the /m/ sound.

Here is a counting activity. Cut out the numbers and the muffins. Place a number in the square so that the plate says "Put (3) muffins on the plate." and help your child count out three muffins on the plate. Change the number and have them do it again. 

What Color is Your Underwear?

Sorry this one is a little late getting up on the blog. Enjoy!

In Class:

This week we read the book What Color is Your Underwear? We had lots of giggles and awkward stares while reading our book and doing our silly activities.

As part of circle time, we each got to take turns wearing silly underwear (don't worry it was all brand new!) over our clothes while we practiced /w/ words. Here is a picture of me, as the kids explain to me that my underwear isn't supposed to be on top of my pants! I also had one child tell me "I no want to see that!" while shaking his finger at me. It was one of the best language activities we have done all year.

Miss Emily made an awesome activity that targeted story recall, sequencing and answering questions. Children took turns in small group recalling the order that the animals came in and what color their underwear was.

Home Activity:
You may need to save this "photo" of the description so you can enlarge it to read the instructions.

Here are the templates (you will need to save to your computer and print both documents as a full page):

Who's Making That Smell?

*You are encouraged to get the books we read in class and read them at home. The library is a great place to get the books if you don't have them already! Please print off and do any home activities that are posted throughout the year. This is a great way to keep your child progressing on their goals! If you ever need a paper copy of the activities, just let me know and I will send one in your child's backpack. Another great way to use this page is to talk to your child about what we did in class. You can show them the pictures and ask them "tell me about..." to get some good language and descriptions. Give them support where needed so they always feel successful in their speech and language skills!*

 In Class:

This week we are reading Who's Making That Smell? Its a fun lift-the-flap book that is very interactive. We are targeting /s/ blend words, such as smell. 

To go along with the smell theme, we took turns smelling different scents and deciding whether is "smells good" or "smells bad." It was interesting to see what the kids thought smelled good and smelled bad. 

Meet Miss Emily!! She is an SLP assistant intern from ASU. She will be helping me through December. She made a fun game for centers called "Smack!" The kids took turns smack-ing the flies with a fly swatter. Then they pulled the fly off to see what s blend word was behind it. It was a huge "hit" (a little pun intended) and the kids have asked to do it again another time. Thanks Miss Emily!

Home Activity:

If you didn't receive one of these elephants in your child's backpack, you can make one with the template below.

Use your elephant to find things around your house to smell with his trunk. Ask your child if it smells good or smells bad. The kitchen is a great place to find lots of smells! 

Print on cardstock if you have it. Have your child color their elephant to make it their own!

Please let me know if you do not have consistent access to the internet or a printer and I can send home these activities in your child's backpack!