Barrel of Monkeys June 13-17 2011

We visited the jungle and focused on the primate species.

Spider Monkeys are swinging superstars, using their sure-grip fingers and toes, long arms and legs and grabby tails to travel from treetop to treetop.

We read Five Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree by Eileen Christelow.

We tried swinging from a trapeze bar.

We chanted:
Five little monkeys swingin’ in a tree.
(swing arm to side with five fingers hanging down)
Teasing Mr. Crocodile,
“You can’t catch me! You can’t catch me!”
(thumbs in ears, wiggle fingers)
Along comes Mr. Crocodile,
(one hand on top of the other, moving as a crocodile)
Quiet as can be…
(finger to lips as in shhhhh)
SNAP!
(clap hands together)
Four little...Three little...Two little…One little…
No little monkeys swingin’ in a tree
(swing arm with fist hanging down)
But here comes Mr. Crocodile as fat as he can be!
(both arms out in front as in “fat”)

Tarsiers are mighty leapers and can jump from tree to tree. Grown-up Tarsiers can leap long distances and land on their two hind feet. We tried leaping a long distance and landing on our feet. We used tape to mark how far we jumped.

We read Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed by Eileen Christelow.

Then, we pretended to be monkeys as we jumped on a mattress or cushion and chanted, "Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed".
Five little monkeys jumping on the bed
(five fingers on one hand jumping on palm of other hand)
One fell off
(hit one hand on the palm of the other hand)
And bumped his (her) head.
(hand on head)
Mama (Papa) called the doctor and the doctor said,
(hand to ear as if talking on the phone)
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!”
(point and shake finger)
Four little...Three little...Two little…One little…

Walking on a tightrope takes a lot of concentration. White-faced Saki can walk along thin branches like a tightrope walker, standing tall, hands held out for balance and fingers spread. We walked on a tightrope (a piece of masking tape on the floor) just like this “monkey”. We even held our arms out from our sides to help us balance.

We played "Monkey See, Monkey Do". One of us was the monkey and had to do something for the rest of us to copy.
The monkey stamp, stamp, stamps his feet.
The monkey stamp, stamp, stamps his feet.
Monkey see and monkey do
The monkey does the same as you!
The monkey clap, clap, claps his hands…
Pats his tummy…
Etc… 

We used a monkey’s favorite food (bananas) to make a special treat- chocolate covered bananas:
Peel the bananas. Cut in half. Put a wooden stick into the bananas (like a Popsicle). Freeze bananas for about 2 hours, until sticks are firmly set in the bananas.
Melt chocolate chips in microwave or in a double boiler on the stove. Dip the bananas into the chocolate, holding on to the wooden stick. Lay the chocolate covered bananas on wax paper. Place in freezer until the chocolate is firm. Thaw for a few minutes before eating.

We used finger paint to paint like Koko in Koko’s Kitten by Dr. Francine Patterson.

Koko is a gorilla that was abandoned when she was six months old and has been raised by humans. We got a little carried away and ended up not only finger painting, but body painting!

We were each given "monkey tails" to measure things around the house... 

We finished off the week with a trip to the zoo to visit Primate Panorama.

We loved watching the orangutan.

Our favorite primate was definitely the gorilla!

If You Give a Kid a Cookie June 6-10 2011

We took on the role of bakers as we spent the week up to our aprons in spoons, spatulas, cookie pans and cookie dough!

We did a lot of practicing before we actually made real cookies. We practiced with spatulas, rolling pins, cookie cutters, wooden spoons and felt beanbag cookies.

Our sensory table was filled with cookie decorations- different sizes and colors of buttons and pom poms. We stirred them, sorted them and even used them for our gingerbread friends. 

Our next step in practicing was mixing up some playdough. We stirred it, rolled it, squished it and cut it. We used buttons, sticks and even birthday candles for decorations. Some of us made birthday cookies and sang, "Happy Birthday"!

This fingerplay is a favorite!
Five little cookies at the bakery shop, (hold up five fingers)
All decorated with sugar on top. (wiggle fingers as in "sprinkling")
Along came ____________ (child's name)
With a penny to pay, (Hold out hand as in "paying")
She(He) bought one cookie and she(he) walked away!

We used spatulas and our handprints to decorate aprons so that we could help bake at home.

After reading The Gingerbread Man over and over and over again, our first real baking adventure was rolling, cutting and decorating gingerbread friends of our own.

Wow! Aren't they beautiful? But, not too beautiful to eat... And, ours didn't even escape!

Winding down the week, we made everybody's favorite-

chocolate chip cookies!

And you all know what happens when you give a kid a cookie...

 Topping the list of favorite books of the week, were-

Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar? by Bonnie Lass and Philemon Sturges, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff and our all-time favorite- The Gingerbread Man by Jim Aylesworth and Barbara McClintock!