The Little Red Hen

Over the last three weeks, we have been reading various versions of the famous story The Little Red Hen.  We began by reading the version by Paul Galdone.  As we have read these stories, we have story mapped on our interactive white board.  Over Spring Break, I had found a variety of versions that I was able to locate through my school library as well as other schools in the district.  Story mapping is so powerful and after only reading a couple of versions, it was powerful to see the connections my learners were making.

We listened to Gator Gumbo by Candace Fleming and my class began comparing the Gator to the Fox in the Gingerbread stories!  We had many discussions and conversations as we talked about the characters, setting, and endings.  It was encouraging to see the conversations that the text and story map helped ignite.

After children were familiar with a variety of versions of the text, I set up our dramatic play center so they could retell the story.  I made masks for them to use and included other props like a sifter, whisk, mixing bowls, tickets, and a puppet theater.  There are things you can not always predict - one of which is the success of a dramatic play idea.  One of the best parts of all the work that went into the story mapping is hearing them use the common language of the text during their play.  "Not I" said the...

We read Cook a Doodle Doo by Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Crummel in the middle of our adventure.  In this book, the animals work together to make strawberry shortcake.  I like to eat.  I really like to bake.  I have really great childhood memories baking with the people I loved.  I believe that there are children today who do not get the same experience and I think the hands on opportunities are important if we want children to understand fractions, measurement tools, and the variety of uses of word in our language.

We used Bisquick for our base for the dessert.  It shortened the length of time we invested in the recipe but still gave them opportunities to mix and measure.

At the beginning of this adventure, I began incubating chicks.  I love this and have done it with every class that I have taught, except one group of my first graders.  However, it is stressful.  The children were interested in the incubation process at the beginning and then interest died off for a bit until it got closer to the 21st day.

Monday evening one of the eggs cracked!  The 21st day actually was on Thursday so he was early.  By Tuesday, when he still had not gotten out, I knew he most likely would not.

 

On Wednesday, I was able to see this one come out of the shell! My student teacher was teaching and I happened to be at the incubator when the egg was really moving.

 

The chick stayed in the incubator until he was dry.  He was all over the place and up in the business of all the other eggs!

We had a total of 3 eggs successfully hatch out of a dozen.  It wasn't a great turnout but considering the turner had been taken off twice and I had to begin tracking the turning off the eggs despite an automatic turner, I think it was successful.  It is an experience that they will remember and one that enriched the story mapping of The Little Red Hen.

 

We read many other books about the life cycle including some pictured above.  We planted seeds a week ago.  After listening to Chickens Aren't The Only Ones, we compared and contrasted the chicks and plants.  

 

Here is part of our work.  It still needs a title and labels.

We also made bread this week from scratch.  It was a two day process.  We measured and mixed one day, let it rise the following day, and then baked.  

 

The smell of vinegar brings back so many childhood memories!  I hard boiled eggs in the oven.  Thank you, Pinterest!  On Friday, the children colored one egg.  They loved it!  Many mentioned it being their favorite part of the day.

 

Our sensory table was taken over by some animals!  There are also bugs buried in the dirt.  The children were using their imagination to have bug parties. There was lots of problem solving going on as they talked about how the bugs and farm animals did not like each other.

Learning in Dramatic Fashion

One of my favorite things to plan for and set up is the dramatic play learning center.  Through the years, I have picked up things along the way and saved materials so set up is easy.  My teacher closet is full of dramatic play storage boxes.  There are ideas that I use every year at particular times and there are ideas that pop up because of something that a particular class says, does or is interested in.

I usually leave dramatic play for 2-3 weeks, it just depends on the interest around whatever is in the center.  I know to change the center when no one goes to it anymore.  I haven't had that problem this year!  My class is extremely interested in the center.  They are always excited to learn what's going to open next.  So far this year, we have had a grocery store, movie theater, pizza parlor, and barbeque.  Starbucks is opening as soon as we go back to school.

I like the center to be open ended enough where they can bring in their ideas and imagination but I also think it is important that they have props that help stimulate their ideas and drive their play.  Incorporating environmental print and math concepts that we are working on is also important.  For instance, I have coins in the cash register and often times although the prices aren't realistic will make sure that the prices reflect numerical amounts that they can understand. 

Here are some pictures of the center from this year...

 

Barbeque Center!  Most items were found in the dollar section of Target during the summer months.  The aluminum foil was my take on a grill.

Are you looking for great ideas to enhance dramatic play for your learners?  Pre-K pages has lists of possible dramatic play center ideas as well as the materials that would provide a valuable experience for children.  You can find them here. 

I also enjoy extending dramatic play to math and literacy through cooking activities or graphing.  When we had the pizza parlor in the center, we cooked pizza and wrote the recipe using interactive writing.  This month, we will drink hot chocolate and graph whether we like it or not. 

I think dramatic play offers a variety of learning experiences that are not limited to when children are at centers.  What are some ideas for dramatic play that your class has enjoyed?  What is your favorite center to plan and set up for?