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It is infuriating when it feels like your child ignores the directions that you have given. As a parent, it’s frustrating to feel like your child doesn’t have the listening skills that she needs to be able to understand, remember and act upon what you have told her. But this is a normal part of the development process and one of the reasons that parents of preschoolers require wells of patience in order to assist their children in growing up with normal, healthy development. You not only want to teach your child good listening skills so that she can do what you say needs to be done but you also want to make sure she has those skills so that she will do well in school, get along with peers and be able to engage in appropriate social behavior in groups.
Here are some tips to improve your preschooler’s listening skills and to get her well on the way to being able to understand what’s said to her and to act upon it appropriately.
Encourage your preschooler to repeat your directions. For example, when you say, “Please pick up your toys” and your child doesn’t move, ask her what you just said. This will eventually became a habit that your child does internally, repeating instructions in her mind once they are said and then acting on them.

Engage your child in step-based activities like cooking or origami. You can read directions to your child and then show her how to act them out. This can hone listening skills in the context of every day activities, such as cooking.
Model good listening skills. Often, when our preschoolers babble on about their days, we go on automatic pilot with our responses. Model good listening skills by paying attention to the stories that your child tells you and asking engaging questions about them.

· Play listening games with your child. Simon Says is a common listening game which requires children to pay attention to the words being said. Many computer games are now available which can help you with this.

· Play rhyming games. Rhyming is something which requires listening skills because your child has to work to identify sounds that sound the same. As your preschooler gets old enough to recognize rhymes, rhyming games will help with developing those listening skills.


· Read aloud to your child every single day. Reading to your children helps them on many different levels, including improving their listening skills. Engage your child in the reading process to make sure that she is actively listening. You can do this by asking questions, having her add on to the story or seeing if she can memorize parts of her favorite tales.


· Show your child how to use all of her senses. Explain about the five senses and give her ample opportunity to use each of them. For example, at the zoo you can ask your child what she sees, smells, and hears from certain animals. This will not only give her good listening skills but will hone her other senses and help her to develop a greater capacity for attention to details.


· Talk with your child. Simply engaging in regular conversation with you on a regular basis will teach your child listening skills.


· Use multi-step directions. When your preschooler is young, you often have to direct her with single-step tasks such as “pick up your toys”. As she gets older, you can add multi-step tasks (“pick up your toys and then put your shoes on”) so that she can develop the attention to listening to multi-step directions and following them.

Listening skills are something that your child is going to use for the rest of her life. They will be the cornerstone of communication in positive relationships, the basis for strong academic skills and the foundation of her ability to work with others in all situations. Bear in mind that it’s part of your job as a parent to exercise patience in teaching her these skills so that she can be a better listener for the rest of her life.

Suggested Readings for preschoolers.. found a real good book that is being read to preschoolers all over, today..unfortunately wasn't available at the book store for a buy...but you can go through the net for a book review and order online if u wish to...
Am gonna try a few activities at school and get back to you with the results..till then Happy Reading n Browsing!!!

Emotions need an outlet and a good morning can really turn bad if u cant share either your happiness or what is making you sad.
Morning time ...at least 5-10 mins should be devoted to letting children vent off their feelings.At our school circle time is not only for the babies its for the older children too..Message Mural is one activity we have made into a regular practice.All you need to do is-
Tape a long piece of poster/chart paper or several paper grocery bags on the wall. As the children arrive, given them crayons or markers. Ask them to print or draw on the paper a word, a message, or an illustration about something they did, or something they want to tell their friends. Later, at the beginning of circle time, encourage the writers and artists to tell about their messages.
Other children may want to add their own responses to the mural or describe how they feel.
Sharing of emotions both positive and negative becomes easy and what better than to have a friend give a suggestion or support to ones thoughts.

Cherish your memories!
Begin a tradition of having your students create a class memory book at the end of each school year. Have each child draw a picture of his favourite memory of the year and caption it with a few sentences about the event. Put the book together by punching holes and lacing with ribboon. Use poster board to create a cover with the title Mrs/Ms _________’s Class Memories of 20___ - 20___. Include a page with names of the contributors and a class picture, if possible.
In future years, children can return to your room to look at the book, and current students can enjoy looking at the memory books from previous classes.
Try it and let me know if it worked for you.....

THEMATIC LEARNING- CONCEPT -BUILDINGS
Another activity that my preschoolers really enjoyed was during learning all about “BUILDINGS”.
The concept ran through the month with them learning about the different types of buildings, materials used for making the buildings, rooms and usages of the buildings, tools and machinery used , people who help to build, works at different stages during construction.

All the concepts were dealt with one at a time through experiential learning –with children visiting a construction site, visiting the local bank , post office, library.
The carpenter paid a visit , so did the plumber, and the electrician, and so did the mason.AND ....finally everyone worked hands on to make a project on everything that they learnt.
Clay /plasticine was used to make tools , waste materials like empty can ,jars, boxes, match boxes were used for making structures, pictures of people at work were painted and coloured and pinned up with the help of icecream sticks...JUST HOW MORE INNOVATIVE CAN YOU GET!!!

1. Read a copy of the poem.


2. Highlight all the words that sound the same .


3. Practice writing the new words alongside the known word.


4. Run fingers over the words to learn the word formation.


5. Read together ...Write together.


6. Build new rhymes using the words learnt ( teacher help will be required)

Kindergartners enter your classroom eager to learn, and your role as guide to the world of Literacy is vitally important. The children go into the first grade with a firm grasp of early reading and writing strategies -a solid foundation on which to build.


Let's Go Fishing: an activity to promote reading at the Srkg level.
Material/Preparation:cardboard, magnetic tape, bowl, unsharpened pencil, apiece of string, a string, a paper clip, magnetic letters in a sorting tray.
Cut out 10-15 cardboard fish and write one high frequency word on each .Stick a piece of magnetic tape behind each .Put the fish in the bowl.To make a fishing rod ,tie a large paper clip to the end of a string and attach the string to the end of the pencil.
Skill Practiced: Reading, Forming, and Writing quick and easy words.
What Children Will Do:

1. One partner puts the fishing rod in the bowl, picks up the fish and reads the word on it.
2. The other partner makes the word with the use of magnetic letters.
3. Each partner keeps a list on a separate sheet of paper of all the words they caught.

Keeping an Art Room set and ready for the preschoolers can be a challenging task. Children will become fully engaged with their play only when the shelves are orderly and inviting.Here are a few practical suggestions- try them- they work!!

• EGG CARTONS: with edges taped together can be great scissor holders.


• ICE CREAM CONTAINERS:make good paper holders.They can also be used to store collage materials.Several containers stapled together work as a good multipurpose trays to hold a variety of small items.
  
• A SIX PACK CARDBOARD BEVERAGE HOLDER:can be made into paint caddies.You can place small plastic cups inside in each of the six slots.Or place squeeze bottles filled with paint into the slots ready for use.Children can just lift the caddy to their tables/easels.


• PLASTER OF PARIS HOLDER: is the perfect storage for marker caps that keep rolling under.All you need to do is place the marker caps upside down on wet plaster of paris.Once the pop hardens the caps shall stay in place... and markers can be removed and placed back.
• YARN,RIBBONS AND MORE...: it can be a tiring task undoing a bundle of ribbon's left behind by an enthusiastic bunch of art lovers.Here's an easy way to avoid tangling of threads and more.All you need is a cardboard box with corrugated dividers.The dividers make convenient space for individual rolls /balls of yarn, strings, ribbon's etc.You can punch a hole on the top and pull out a small strand through the whole.
• AIRTIGHT CONTAINERS: are great to hold play dough and clay and plasticine.Biscuit containers ,pringle containers are ideal for this.

A child's mind is much more creative and artistic than any art book can allow.Give them the freedom to unfurl their talent....Designate a shelf in your classroom where you can place the ART BASKET....and see the difference.....

Young children wonder about the world around them.They think to themselves:
*I wonder what will happen if i push this button.
*I wonder what the bunny feels like.
*I wonder why my plant died.
*I wonder how i can make this bubble bigger.
The discovery area is the place to find answers to these kinds of questions with a few right or wrong answers!!!
Its the place to spark curiosity and wonder!!!
Its the place to try ones hand at using new and interesting materials!!
SENSORY TUBS OR TABLES:

A sensory table can be an exciting part of the discovery area.All you need to do is fill a plastic tub with materials that children can explore.Examples of materials that you can put in the tub are- fish tank pebbles, shredded paper, confetti, seeds, fresh herbs, pieces of playdough,sand, mettalic objects , small toys, eyedropper, small pencil, crayons, brushes, twigs, leaves, flower petals, pumpkin seeds, dals pulses,sandpaper piece, silky scarf piece...the list is never ending!!!

For older children- collection of wind up toys, magnets, mettalic and non mettalic items, marbles, rice, coins, collection of things that spin, loose parts such as a screw, nail(ensure children dont hurt themselves),sunglasses, magnifying glass, small bottles for sniffing -vinegar, ginger juice, garlic juice etc...

As children explore the various materials they go through different stages of development- Awareness, Exploration,Inquiry,Utilization.Ask open ended questions that lead them to consider another view point- What do think will happen if.....? I wonder why.... How did that happen...? what do you know about.....? Can you tell me more....?

Remember that the essence of science is discovery!!!!

Today, i share an activity that i read about and tried and it turned out to be a grand success at my school.
Morning attendance was turning to be a chore that just needs to be completed ..so we decided to make it a lot more fun.

On the wall the teacher has two large laminated poster boards. One of the poster boards says “Our Class.” All the children’s names are on this board when they arrive to school each day.

The other poster board says “I Am Here Today.”Both of the poster boards have Velcro dots on them and the children’s names are written on various theme characters with Velcro attached to the back of each one of them.

During morning circle, the teacher sings a little tune that goes very much in tune with "London bridge is falling down."
As the teacher sings each child’s name, the chosen child goes to the board, picks his or her name from the “Our Class” poster board and moves it to the “I Am Here Today” poster board.

The children loved having the teacher call their names and taking a turn to move their names so everyone would know who had come to school today!

SURPRISE THEATER

Try this intriguing presentation to keep circle time exciting and inviting. This activity can be taken for both kindergarten and grade 1&2.

Create a movie-theater atmosphere!!!! Pop popcorn and put it in individual paper cups. Then move chairs to the circle time area, and set them up in several rows across with a space in the middle, just like at the movies.
Now play some fun music on the cassette player. Prop a new storybook on a table in front of the chairs. Put a powerful flash light on the table, aiming it spotlight-style at the story-book, and turn it on.
Pass out the popcorn and turn off the overhead lights. Invite the children to quietly file into their special circle time theater, sit in their seats, and eat their popcorn. Next, turn off the music and begin to read and turn the pages of the new book featured in the spotlight.


What to do Next-Guidance….


After the reader’s theater show, call the children to come out and narrate the story in their own words…. (My teachers at the Sr.Kg have found it great fun)
You can get children to try their own shadow play performance on a blank wall, using hand motions in front of the flashlight.
An after activity can be, asking children to give a different ending to the story , and illustrating any scene .

I stumbled upon this lovely Lesson Plan- am sure all my grade 1 &2 teachers will appreciate it...Learning can be made interesting if only children are given opportunities to experiment....so here’s one for all u out there who want to create a magic in your classrooms!!!!
Share it with as many teachers/parents as u can......

LIQUID OR SOLID?

A science experiment with ooblek!
With this activity children will have fun learning about the characteristics of liquids and solids, while experimenting and playing with the learning materials. This will be a follow up activity after the children have learned about liquid and solid matter. They will receive hands on experience approach to the subject of matter.
Children’s target age group: Appropriate for second or third grade classroom. This can certainly be modified for younger age groups!
Purpose/Objectives:1. Develop an awareness of liquids and their properties- substance that flows
2. Develop an awareness of solids and their properties- firm or compact substance
3. Compare and contrast liquids and solids
4. Encourage prediction and experimentation of materials used
5. Encourage critical thinking skills
6. Increase language development, language skills and science terminology
7. Social skills development as the children work in a group

Space and Materials Needed:
This activity can be done in the science center as a whole group, small groups and/or you can modify this lesson to work individually. Provide smaller containers for individual’s experimentation.
Newspaper or plastic (Lay down on tables and floor of work area)
Corn starch (Amount needed will vary depending on size of class)
Water
Food coloring of choice (optional)
Assortment of kitchen utensils(large spoon, spatula,funnel, etc.)
Bowls and/or plastic storage containers
Wet ones (for cleaning hands)
Balloons
Have examples of liquids and solids available to show as other examples

Procedure:
1. Gather in large group and discuss liquids and solids properties and characteristics. Ask “Can you think of somethings that are liquid? Solid?” Also give some examples of both to broadentheir idea of what this means. (Liquids: water, milk, and soda. Solids: rocks,wood, and diamonds. Also, you and I are solids!)

2. Before showing the children the ooblek, show the ingredients to the class (box corn starch, water, and food color). Ask “I wonder what would happen if we mixed these ingredients? Do you suppose it would be considered a liquid or solid mix? Why do you think that?”

3. After the children tell their predictions, show them the container of ooblek you have already prepared. Ask the children if they still believe it’s a liquid or solid, based on the appearance of the ooblek. (It will be shiny)

4. Say “I wonder what would happen if we turn the container upside down? What do you think will happen? Will it pour or will it stay in place? Let’s try it and see if this will tell us if it isliquid or solid.” (Turn it quickly as the material solidifies under pressure) Say “Wow, it looks like a solid because it isn’t moving. What do you think? Is it solid or liquid? Why do you think?”

5. Sit container right side up on table. Remove lid. Show the ooblek to the class again. Say “The ooblek didn’t really move when we turned it upside down. I think it could be a solid, but it looks so shiny and wet. What do you think will happen if we put our finger in it? Do you think it will be wet or dry? Hard or soft? Liquid or solid? Do you think it will jiggle? Let’s find out!”

6. Encourage all the children to touch the ooblek, but don’t force them. They will be amazed at how it feels. Ask them to describe what it feels like to you. “Is it wet? Dry? Liquid? Solid? Thick?Thin? Does it remind you of anything?”

7. After the group has all touched the ooblek, give each child their own ingredients to make some ooblek at their desk or in smaller groups (whichever works for your class). Give them the kitchen utensils, funnels, balloons and bowls to experiment and play with. Say “What happens if you put the ooblek in a balloon? I wonder why? Do you have an idea why? See if you can make a ball with it. What happens to it? I wonder why, do you have any ideas why? What happens if you hit it with your hand? What if you put your hand in slow? What’s the difference?” (The ooblek comes out of the balloon because of the air that forces/pushes it out.)

8. After some experimenting, explain how liquids can be classified by its thickness. “Some liquids are thicker than others, such as ketchup, shampoo, conditioner, honey, molasses, and paint. Some liquids are thinner, and flow freely, such as water, milk, and soda. The ooblek is acting like a solid part of the time and a liquid part of the time. The sudden force leads to the fluid acting like a solid instead of a liquid; the force makes it resistant.” Touch on the word Viscocity, which means thickness/resistance to motion.

9. Once experimenting is complete,help the class to be sure to seal their containers so they can take it home.Clean up hands with soap and water or wet wipes. Clean tables and pick up newspapers.

Guidance:
Be sure to guide the children through this experimentation, without inhibiting their creativity. Be aware that some children may not want to participate, so have an alternate lesson for that child on hand.
Evaluation and Follow Up:
Were the objectives met? Did the children grasp the concept of liquid and solid matter? How much experimentation was done? What would you add or take away the next time you do this activity? What did you learn?

There are many ways the teacher can be involved in sparking imagination and helping young children enjoy their learning experience. At our preschool we tried to make learning, Life Skills an enjoyable experience-
See this picture below- we created a restaurant in our music room-

NOODLES AND COMPANY…..

The theme a Hawain restaurant!! The children got lovely head bands to wear, with garlands made from construction paper and gelatin paper…The music teacher played the casio to add the final touch…
The teachers served children vegetable pattice and juice..(healthy diet) And they used their forks n knives to eat!!!…table manners were followed, napkins were used, and learning to eat was so much fun!!!!

Let me begin today by saying that ihave been hunting for scores of activities all my teaching carrer in hope of finding something to suit my classroom needs...well i didnt have help...so heres some help for all those teachers who visit this page...

Some Art Tricks!!

I made these in my oven with some old crayons I had been saving. I think they would make a really cute Earth Day gift! I have made these before using all colors for my special needs students to color with. This time, I just chose blues, greens, and whites to get the "earth" colors. So, first I break up the crayons into small pieces, then place them in the cupcake papers in the pan, bake them at about 200 degrees for about 20 minutes. I usually use a straw to swirl the colors around before I take them out. Once they cool the paper peels right off, leaving the crayon. These are great for special needs students to use. Some of them color with them, some do rubbings with texture plates, and some just stack them like building blocks- they are multi-purpose! :)

HOW READING ALOUD TO OUR CHILDREN WILL CHANGE THEIR LIVES FOREVER......
THE READING MAGIC !!!!!

In 1998, my daughter Shagun startled me one evening by claiming in a state of utter excitement “i can read”. She was 4yrs...Old. I smiled as an indulgent and happy parent. She couldn’t possibly read ...could she?
She ran to her room and came back with a copy of NODDY AND CHRISTMAS FATHER....one of her favourites at that point of time, and read to us one page after the other, one word after another, with full expression .We were amazed. I just didn’t know how to react.
I had read the book to her many times day after day, and thought that she had memorized it, so I opened random pages to test this new skill my daughter had unfolded before me, and the results were the same.
‘What did i do ?’ I asked myself .’what method did i use?” I was an active teacher then and all i did was READ ALOUD TO MY GIRL DAY AFTER DAY, NIGHT AFTER NIGHT, in all the precious moments we spent with each other.
READING ALOUD HAS SUCH A POWERFUL IMPACT!!!!!
Reading aloud to our children early in life helps in developing their speaking skills. They cannot learn to talk unless they are spoken to. Which is one of the reasons why most of the psychologists and speech therapists tell us that we need to have loving ,laughing meaningful conversations with our children.
Read a-loud sessions are perfect times for engaging in these conversations as both the reader and the listener can talk endlessly about the story, its pictures, its words, its characters, the values it teaches, and the creative ideas that emerge from it. Talking aloud sharpens the brains of children .It helps to develop their ability to concentrate at length, solve problems logically, critically analyse situations, and helps develop their abilities to express themselves easily and clearly. The stories they hear help them to build on their vocabulary, pick up new phrases, expressions, new sentences. And before you know it they have learnt why and how things happen .Inshort they have learnt to READ.
Words are essential in building the thought connections in the brain, the more language a child experiences through books and conversations,and not passively through television the more advantaged socially and educationally the child will be for the rest of his life. Conversely the fewer experiences the child has with words before he starts school the more stunted will his growth be.
When I was teaching ,i would often start the year by reading aloud a story to my students,to practise what i always wanted to preach.The eyes of my students would be round with fascination ,they would sit in rapt silence,completly drawn into the story.Reading aloud to them made them happier and cleverer as students.I was able to use this as a reinforcement during my classroom sessions too.
SO HOW DOES ONE READ ALOUD?
When you think of a read aloud session what comes to your mind is a rocking chair with cushions and the child comfortably seated on your lap...or an adult lying on the bed with the child tucked snugly wide eyed as the story is being read to him..AND THE EXPERIENCE IS JUST FANTASTIC!!!
There is no correct /exact way of reading aloud. It is an art where the eyes and voice play the most important part. Read a story allowing its emotions to show through your eyes.You can widen them, and narrow them, use them to think with, to be shocked ,to be scared, to be happy, to be listening with and so on.
The next is the voice..Don’t be falsely over expressive, don’t be too sugary, cutesy, or over patronising. And most importantly don’t be overwhelming to the children.
Pause can be used to great effect before a dramatic change in the story, or if there is genuine change in the dialogue of a character.
Help, words come alive while reading. Reveal the hidden meanings of words to the children, make dead sentences come to life, leap out of pages!! Love the words you read, what you love your children will learn to love automatically. If children love the words they hear they will use them delightfully in their own speaking and writing. If they love the sounds of the words they hear they will understand them better and come to read them better sooner or later.
The easiest way to achieve excellence at reading aloud is to actually see in your mind’s eye the characters unfolding, the scenes actually occurring. The first line should be SENSATIONAL....the aim is to grab the attention of the child immediately. Not only, should it be a dynamic grabber of attention it should also be a sentence that, WELCOMES them to the ritual of, READ A LOUD SESSIONS.
The endings of a story are equally important. Just as the first line was inviting, the last line of our story telling session should be a definite dismissal , a farewell till we meet again for the next session. A rapid finish is odd, a slow finish is a delicious experience, just as the final bit of your favourite chocolate finally melting in to depths of your mouth leaving a lasting , and lingering taste till you eat it again.
Both the teller and listener should find themselves in a state of bliss, a feeling of –
“ living happily ever after”.
Expressive reading is reading that is remembered. And so it is with our children. They will read with the same expressive inflections as we do, which is why we should make the effort to read with a zest and vitality and loads of variations.
Thus engaging ourselves in an activity such as Reading a Loud we share, the words, the pictures, the ideas , the rhythms, the rhymes, the pain, the joy , the hopes, the fears, the happiness, the loss, the big and the small issues of life. We connect through the minds and hearts of our children and bond with each other in a secret that connects us to then and them to us.
The fire of literacy is thus created between a child and a book and the person reading. It isn’t created by any single one of them ....it is created by bringing all three together in harmony.
We as parents and educators need to understand the huge educational benefits and intense happiness that can be brought by reading aloud to our children- all we now need to do is to read aloud two stories a day to our children in their lives and we probably will be able to wipe out illiteracy from within our generations.

Sometimes when i look around me i am overcome with this feeling of complete dismay...there is beauty around us, but how many of us seem to see nothing.We live every unique moment which will never again be ...and what do we teach our children ? We teach them that New Delhi is the capital of India, that 2+2=4. When will we teach them what they are?
We should say to each one of the: Do you know who you are? You are a MARVEL! You are Unique! In the entire world thereis no one like you.Look at you body- what a wonder it is.You will one day become a Vangogh, a Hussain, a Tendulkar....
We must teach them to be emotionally literate.Learning doesnot take place in isolation from childrens feelings.
All Children are Gifted....
Some just open their packages sooner than others....

To be a passionate teacher is to be someone in love with the field of knowledge....someone who is deeply stirred by the issues and ideas that challenge our world....someone who gets drawn into the dilemmas that face the young people who enter into our classrooms...
This is the space where i invite all like minded teachers to come share with me their concerns, their learnings, their ideas, their experiences from the classroom.Together let us polish the gems in our classroom to a PROUD SHINE!