Preschoolers: Languages

For more information on how I plan and prepare my preschool storytimes, check out this introduction post. I starred the materials used in the plan; multiple stars indicate use for more than one class.

The Plan

Books

Hands and Hearts by Donna Jo Napoli*
Mañana Iguana by Ann Whitford Paul
Say Hello! by Rachel Isadora**
Spicy Hot Colors by Sherry Shahan*

Theme Extension Activities

Featured CD: Putumayo Animal Playground**

Featured Track: #13 Mdube

Flannelboard: Braille Match**

Flannelboard: Little Mouse (in Spanish)

Letter of the Day: L**

Repeating Extension Activities

• Five Little Monkeys Swinging in the Tree*
• Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes
• Icky Sticky Bubble Gum
• Movement Cube

How It Went

Monday morning
This class heard Say Hello! and Hands and Hearts. Their favorite was definitely Say Hello! and I really enjoyed how willing they were to try new words in other languages. We repeated each “hello” several times and I did clarify any pronunciation issues to help the kids with their new words. The kids in this group *really* loved the Braille Match flannelboard and touching each of the pieces. All of the kids thought that the Braille felt “bumpy” and some of the kids counted how many bumps they felt as they touched their number.

Tuesday morning
I chose to read Say Hello! and Spicy Hot Colors in this class. They enjoyed both books equally, but their love went to signing in ASL “Five Little Monkeys Swinging From a Tree”. I learned how to sign this song from Marge Loch-Wouters and her version is available on YouTube for you to learn as well! My favorite moments from this included: loudly humming the words that we took away the first time so they wouldn’t say them, a kiddo who shouted “WHAT??” when I said we would sign the whole song without singing, and the utter pride and silence on their faces — some of them had their lips pressed together to avoid singing — as we signed together. I’m glad this activity went so well because I had a parent specifically request that I teach the kids ASL on our evaluation sheets last session. Also! I have a kiddo who is fluently reading in this class. They are always attentive and never disruptive, but I could see on their face this week the awe of learning something new and it was HUGELY rewarding.