Learning Activities Pre K and Kindergarten

Suggested Learning Activities for Pre K and Kindergarten students during the COVID-19 school closure.

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Due to the COVID-19 closure, teachers were asked to provide packets of home activities. This is not intended to take the place of regular classroom instruction but will help supplement student learning and provide opportunities for student learning while they are absent from school. Assignments are not required or graded. Because of the unprecedented nature of this health crisis and the District’s swift closure, some home activities may not be accessible.

If you have difficulty accessing the material or have any questions, please contact your student’s teacher.

Week of May 11th – 15th

Grade Level: Pre-K

Dear Students and Families:

The activities below are examples of ways you can help your child practice skills they have learned at school. They do

not replace the classroom instruction that your child should be getting each week from their classroom teacher. They

are fun, additional ways to stretch children’s learning. The activities are designed for preschool learning levels and come

from the same teaching materials used in school, such as High Scope (used in Seattle Preschool Program) or Creative

Curriculum (used in Head Start and Developmental Preschool) and Teaching Strategies Gold Developmental Learning

objectives.

We will be giving you activities each week that address the early learning areas of development:

• Social-Emotional • Cognitive • Language

• Physical • Mathematics • Literacy

A new set of learning activities will be provided every Monday at each of the SPS meal sites.

If you need further accommodations for your child, please reach out to your child’s teacher, case manager, or family service coordinator.

SPS TV PreK Video Broadcast Webpage

Please check the SPS TV Broadcast webpage for the PreK learning videos collection at www.seattleschools.org.

SPS now has a Preschool You Tube Kids Channel!

The You Tube Kids Channel is: https://youtube.com/channel/UCApgbxBGyYXYnJF3IdYwyqA

Pre-K Packet Table of Contents:

Page 1 PreK Packet Cover Letter (and Broadcast Schedule)

Page 2 Preschool Home Learning Schedule (example)

Page 3-8 At Home Preschool Learning Activities (by areas of development)

Page 9-13 Social Emotional Learning Supports (RULER & The Mood Meter)

Page 14 Objectives for Development and Learning (Reference)

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PRESCHOOL HOME LEARNING SCHEDULE

Regular schedules provide the day with a structure that orders a young child’s world. During this transition from a regular preschool day to at home learning, families may consider creating a daily schedule to follow. Below you’ll find an example of a modified schedule for home learning.

EXAMPLE HOME LEARNING SCHEDULE 8:30 AM - 2:00 PM

8:30 - 9:00am Breakfast and conversation with your child

9:00 - 9:30 Read with your child and talk about different books

9:30 - 10:00 Learning Activities (See Recommended Activities)

10:00 - 10:45 Outside time (nature walk, move your body)

10:45 - 11:30 Children can help cook / clean / or help in general around the house

11:30 - 12:00 Lunch time

12:00 - 1:00 Quiet / Rest time

1:00 - 2:00pm Creative Learning Activities (Art, Music, Dance, Sensory Play, Free-Time)

Any of these ideas could be repeated or you could come up with your own ideas for a home learning schedule that works well for you and your family.

THIS WEEK: WHAT YOU CAN DO AT HOME!

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Social-Emotional:

Clean Up Chart

Math:

The More, The Better

Social-Emotional:

Talk about what makes you feel calm

Cognitive:

Make a poster

Social-Emotional:

RULER Activities

Literacy:

Erase the ABC’s

Social-Emotional:

Find a place in your house that makes you

feel good

Language:

Rhyme Time

Social-Emotional:

Talk about your

favorite activity of the

week

Physical:

Street sign scavenger hunt

This is a suggested schedule! We encourage you to try, and repeat, activities whenever it works for you, including on

the weekends. Reach out to your teacher if you want more suggestions or extensions of activities!

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AT HOME PRESCHOOL LEARNING ACTIVITIES: SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL

Area of Development: Social-Emotional (routines and expectations)

Activity Name: Clean Up Chart

Activity Description: With your child, choose what area of the house or room they will be responsible for cleaning up.

In a chart, draw pictures of the materials in the room that they will be responsible for. Post the chart in a place that is

easy to see. Notice what your child chooses to clean up: “You saw the picture of the cars and are putting them away

first!” Acknowledge that it is helpful for your child to clean up with you. Take care not to offer more support than is

needed – help your child to use the chart as they clean. Use encouraging phrases like, “You did that all by yourself! You did that faster than yesterday. I see you trying something new today. You are working hard to earn a celebration!” Look at the chart together to see what has been done. Celebrate what your child accomplishes with a dance party or

exercise time in the clean space. Some days might be harder than others for your child to be motivated. You could try

offering alternative spaces, materials, or celebrations on those days; or remind them they can try again later.

What is your child learning? Your child will learn to take care of their own materials without relying on adults. It

increases your child’s confidence and independence.

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AT HOME PRESCHOOL LEARNING ACTIVITIES: MATHEMATICS

Area of Development: Mathematics (Quantifies)

Activity Name: The More, the Better

Activity Description: Materials: Paper; glue; small objects (rocks, paperclips, shells, beans, etc.); two small jars

or clear cups; cotton balls.

Before you begin place six cotton balls in a small jar. Fill another jar with ten cotton balls.

On two separate sheets of papers and write the word MORE on one paper and the word

LESS on the other.

Now invite your child to explore the jars and to guess which jar holds more cotton balls

and to make a prediction about which one holds more and place that jar on the paper

that says MORE and then other on the paper that says LESS.

Explain to your child that they can check their prediction. Encourage your child to empty

one jar at a time and glue the cotton balls to the paper. Ask your child to count the

cotton balls and help them write the number on the bottom of the page. Repeat with

the other jar.

Provide assistance, if needed as they count. One your child has counted and glued both

sets of cotton balls, ask them which has MORE and which has LESS. If their prediction is

wrong simply cross out the word and change it.

Continue this activity as many times as you want with different materials. You can vary

the game by having two jars of with different items in each or add or take away items.

Start using the words MORE and LESS around the house!

What is your child learning? This activity will support your child’s growing ability to compare the quantities of small groups of objects correctly, use comparison words, such as more and less. Becoming

more aware of “number” words will help them begin to use comparison words in daily

conversation.

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AT HOME PRESCHOOL LEARNING ACTIVITIES: COGNITIVE

Area of Development: Cognitive (represent ideas)

Activity Name: Make a Poster

Activity Description: Use magazine pictures or drawing materials to collect and create images about a topic that your child has been talking about lately. Invite your child to use scissors, glue, and tape to create a poster of the images on large paper. Ask open-ended questions while they are working and say what you see them doing. “You are cutting out a child playing soccer for your sports poster. What do you know about soccer? What other pictures of sports can we find or make?”

Write some of your child’s words as you talk, if appropriate, to label the pictures. When the poster is finished, hang it in a place that’s easy to see. Encourage your child to share and talk about it with other family members or friends in person and during video chats.

What is your child learning? Your child is learning to expand their thinking and share ideas in a fun, hands-on way.

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AT HOME PRESCHOOL LEARNING ACTIVITIES: LITERACY

Area of Development: Literacy (identifies letters)

Activity Name: Erase the ABC’s

Activity Description: Write uppercase or lowercase letters using a dry-erase marker on a window in your

home. Encourage your child to point to a letter as you call them out. Once your child

identifies the letter, they can erase the letter with a paper towel or napkin. You can

repeat this until all the letters are erased. You can also support your child in identifying

letter sounds. For example, you could say “I’m thinking of a letter that sounds like b-b-b-

b" or “I’m thinking of the word bike. What sound does b-b-b-bike start with?”

What is your child learning? Your child is practicing naming letters and letter sounds. Children love the hunt of trying

to find a letter, as well as the fun of erasing them.

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AT HOME PRESCHOOL LEARNING ACTIVITIES: LANGUAGE

Area of Development: Language (express thoughts, participate in conversation)

Activity Name: Rhyme Time

Activity Description: Have fun with word sounds by playing a rhyme game. Start by saying a sentence such as,

“I like to smell the rose with my ______.” Encourage your child to fill in the blank with a

word that rhymes with rose like nose or toes. Remember, the sillier the rhyme the more

fun you can have playing the game together. If your child seems unsure of what to fill in

the blank, offer a hint by pointing to your nose or your toes. Try other silly rhyming

sentences. If your child is ready, ask them to make up one for you.

What is your child learning? Your child is beginning to understand how words are made up of individual sounds and

those sounds can be manipulated and changed to create different words (phonological

awareness). Phonological awareness skills include rhyming, alliteration, segmenting

words into smaller units, combining separate sounds into words, and understanding that

words are made up of sounds. Several of these skills have been closely linked to success

in learning to read and spell.

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AT HOME PRESCHOOL LEARNING ACTIVITIES: PHYSICAL

Area of Development: Physical development (gross motor traveling skills)

Activity Name: Street sign scavenger hunt

Activity Description: While walking through the neighborhood, invite your child to look at and identify signs,

like Stop and No Parking. Talk about them. This helps children understand that written

words and symbols have many important purposes: to keep us safe, to help us work

together, and to spread essential information. Try prompting your child’s thinking with questions like, “What signs do you see? I wonder what clues help us figure out what the

signs say.” Work together to identify the colors, letters, and numbers on different signs!

What is your child learning? This activity encourages your child to be an observer; to notice things around them and

to ask questions about what they are. With this activity, your child will learn new

vocabulary with the signs and be able to link the symbols to the words as you talk

through each one you find.

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RULER: SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING SUPPORTS

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which children and adults understand and manage emotions, set

and achieve goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make

responsible choices. Why does social emotional intelligence matter? Emotions influence everyday life, including:

• Attention, memory, and learning

• Decision making and judgment

• Relationship quality

• Physical and mental health

• Everyday effectiveness and performance

Seattle Public Schools utilizes THE RULER System to help teach kids to understand their emotions and make positive choice with their emotions. RULER is an acronym that stands for the five skills of emotional intelligence: Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing and Regulating emotions. See below for more information.

Emotional Intelligence

Why this type of emotional intelligence is important to young children

Recognize Emotions

Identifying emotions in ourselves and others allows us to:

• Better understand others

• Have positive social interactions

• Work well in groups

• Know when children need emotional support

Understanding Emotions

Knowing the cause of our own feelings and that an event may cause different emotional reactions in each person allows us to:

• Anticipate, manage, prevent unwanted feelings in ourselves and others

• Promote wanted feelings in ourselves and others

Labeling Emotions

Knowing feeling words allows us to:

• Communicate our feelings

• Appropriately manage our feelings

• Help children learn new vocabulary to express their feelings

Expressing Emotions

Learning how to display our feelings helps us to:

• Appropriately act in social situations

• Properly model social behavior for children

Regulating Emotions

Developing strategies to manage feelings allows us to:

• Pause before acting on unpleasant feelings

• Handle feelings in a thoughtful way

• Create a classroom environment that encourages positive interactions

The Social Emotional Learning curriculum RULER system was developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence.

To learn more visit: www.ruler.yale.edu

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THE MOOD METER

The first step to using the RULER System is getting to know and use the Mood Meter.

Children and adults experience lots of emotions. It’s important to talk about and feel ALL feelings, not just the “pleasant” ones. All of the feelings we have play an important part in learning and development. One way we learn this at school is using a Mood Meter. Each color represents feelings: Red (mad, angry, frustrated), Blue (sad, hurt, lonely), Yellow (happy, excited, proud), Green (calm, peaceful, relaxed).

Although children learn best when they feel “green” feelings, it’s helpful to recognize when children feel worried, tired, lonely, or frustrated because those feelings can teach them things too. Work with your kids to identify their feelings by pointing them the out on the mood meter and labeling the emotion. After naming the feeling, adults and children can work together to come up with some ideas on how to feel better.

ACTIVITIES TO TRY AT HOME!

Here are some ideas you can do at home!

• Feeling Faces Song • Feeling Faces Puppets

The Mood Meter and Preschool RULER were developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence.

To learn more visit: www.ruler.yale.edu

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AT HOME PRESCHOOL LEARNING ACTIVITIES: RULER

Area of Development: Social Emotional Learning (RULER)

Activity Name: Feeling Faces Song

Activity Description: Sing this song with your child to the tune of “Mary had a Little Lamb.” I can make a

feeling face, feeling face, feeling face. I can make a feeling face, watch and copy me!

Make a feeling face (e.g., happy, sad, surprised, disgusted) and see if children can guess

the feeling you are expressing. Repeat the song and let children have a turn making faces

as well. Alternately, hold up a paper plate face and have children copy the face.

What is your child learning? Your child is learning to practice the physical facial expressions of emotions in a safe way.

Additionally, they are getting to practicing reading facial expressions

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AT HOME PRESCHOOL LEARNING ACTIVITIES: RULER

Area of Development: Social Emotional (RULER)

Activity Name: Feeling Faces Puppets

Activity Description: Materials: Tongue depressors; Circles cut out for faces (in Mood Meter colors); wiggly

eyes; hair; markers; glue. Have your child glue or draw facial features onto the circles

that match the colored emotion/feeling. Then glue it to a tongue depressor to make a

puppet. Talk with your child as they are making their puppets about why and what

facial features make up each emotion/feeling that they chose. Ex. A frown means

sad…a smile means happy…furrowed eyebrows might mean angry??

What is your child learning? Your child is learning to practice the physical facial expressions of emotions in a safe

way. Additionally, they are getting to practicing reading facial expressions and using

language that describes the features of facial expressions.

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TEACHING STRATEGIES GOLD: AREAS OF DEVELOPMENT FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD

Child development and learning is complex. It would be overwhelming to try to measure every skill and behavior that

children demonstrate in these early years. The Teaching Strategies GOLD whole child observation assessment system

measures the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that are most predictive of school success.

These 23 objectives are organized in six areas of development and learning.

• The first four are major areas of child development and learning: Social-Emotional, Physical, Language, and

Cognitive.

• The content standards that we focus on in Early Learning are: Literacy and Mathematics.

Objectives for Development & Learning Areas of Development

(Birth through Third Grade)

Social–Emotional 1. Regulates own emotions and behaviors 2. Establishes and sustains positive relationships 3. Participates cooperatively and constructively in

Physical

4. Demonstrates traveling skills 5. Demonstrates balancing skills 6. Demonstrates gross-motor manipulative skills 7. Demonstrates fine-motor strength and coordination

Language 8. Listens to and understands increasingly complex language 9. Uses language to express thoughts and needs 10. Uses appropriate conversational and other communication skills

Cognitive

11. Demonstrates positive approaches to learning 12. Remembers and connects experiences 13. Uses classification skills 14. Uses symbols and images to represent something not present

Literacy

15. Demonstrates phonological awareness, phonics skills, and word recognition 16. Demonstrates knowledge of the alphabet 17. Demonstrates knowledge of print and its uses 18. Comprehends and responds to books and other texts 19. Demonstrates writing skills

Mathematics

20. Uses number concepts and operations 21. Explores and describes spatial relationships and shapes 22. Compares and measures 23. Demonstrates knowledge of patterns

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