Mother Goose Time, Oyster Pearls Craft and the Letter "O"

Oyster Pearls Craft and Lesson

Mother Goose Time shared a wonderful oyster pearls lesson plan with us this month, as part of the Ocean Commotion theme for April.

The girls loved making their own oyster shells with pearl bracelets inside!

Ages: Pre-K and up

Supplies:

• Beads (real pearls can be white, pink, yellow, green, blue, brown or black)
• Paper plate
• Pipe cleaner
• Paint

Holding up the paper plate, we discussed how the paper plate is shaped like an "o", as in oyster.

We looked at pictures of oysters and oyster pearls. I showed them a real pearl necklace, too.

I decided to show my daughters a video on youtube explaining why oysters have pearls. It's pretty

gross, but it's nice that something pretty can be made out of something so gross. The video explains that either a parasite or a grain of sand gets stuck inside the oyster. The oyster protects itself from the foreign matter by covering the grain of sand or parasite with lacquer, which is hexagonal aragonite crystals of calcium carbonate. (Of course, they don't know exactly what those words mean, but they get the general idea when they see the video show the process.)
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=T18E58vOTus

Then, the girls got to paint their oyster shells. First, they painted the inside. They decided on yellow, even though it's usually pink. (Mother Goose Time included most of the needed supplies.)

As one side of the paper plate dried, they worked on their bracelets.

They strung several white beads onto the pipe cleaners.













"Look, a pearl bracelet!"

After they finished making their bracelets, they painted the outside shell (other side of the paper plate).

We folded the wet, painted plates and let it dry that way, so they would look like a oyster shells.

Field Trip to See Real Oysters and Pearls

One thing we love to do is go on field trips to see exactly what we are learning about in the real world. So, we went to Downtown Disney and visited one of the oyster shell
jewelers.

We were tempted to buy a pearl, but we just looked at them. :) The jewelers have the oysters in the shell, and if you decide to buy one, they will open the shell for you and you can pick out jewelry to have the jewelers set the pearl in.



You can see the oysters with pearls inside here.








After you choose and oyster and take out the pearl, you can get jewelry for your pearl.






It was fun for the girls to see a real oyster shell, create their own oyster shells and pearl bracelets, while really having an understanding of where real pearls come from... The ocean, not a bucket.

Mother Goose Time, Discovering the Ocean Floor

Exploring the Ocean Floor Fun

Mother Goose Time included this "Ocean Commotion" preschool curriculum web in the April box!

It's great to hang this up for the kids to see. Each day, they explore the next activity on the web.

I enjoy using this web to explain writing to my 2nd grader, too. You can use the same type of web for any type of writing (story, report, biography, etc...)

Seashell Discovery, Music, Counting, Dancing and Acting

When my 3-year-old daughter discovered the seashells inside her Mother Goose Time preschool curriculum box, she was thrilled!

The seashells are beautiful. Wow!

She used the seashells to make music.

"Look Mom, the seashells are instruments!"

"Wow, it looks like animals live inside. Do animals live inside, Mom?"

We talked about the types of animals that live inside seashells. Which she found fascinating.

She even noticed that they were supposed to fit together on her own, and she opened and closed the shells.

She counted the seashells.
"1-2-3..." (up to twenty)

She counted in Spanish, too!

She sorted the seashells, and then counting the types of shells.

My daughters danced around the seashells on a blue ocean blanket, while we listened to the Mother Goose Time Ocean Commotion CD.

"I'm a fish!"
"I'm a dolphin!"
"I'm a sea turtle!"

They also loved exploring the ocean floor using their play magnifying glasses on this colorful poster.
They found a green plant, seashell, and octopus...

"Look Mom, this green plant looks different than the other one."

They turned the play magnifying glasses over and did more exploring, acting out discovery.

Then, over the weekend, we took a trip to downtown Disney to see the beautiful aquarium at the Rainforest Café.

We even made our own aquarium. We talked about the habitat, temperature of the water, and how we have a fresh water tank, rather than salt water (like the salt water tank at Rainforest Café).

The girls love to relax and watch the neon tetras swim in their new fish tank.

They can't wait to learn about large sea creatures next, such as the whale, octopus, dolphin, shark and sea turtle.

We'd love to share our adventures with you as we have fun learning. You can subscribe above, and you'll get an email next time we post our adventures.

What's your favorite ocean lesson? I'd love to hear your ideas in the comments below.

Ocean Water Science Experiment with Mother Goose Time

I love how Mother Goose Time lesson plans can easily be differentiated, depending upon the ages and abilities of your children. This science experiment is a great example.

My daughters are three-years-old and seven-years-old, so their abilities are different from one another. My older daughter studies challenging curriculum appropriate for a 2nd grader. Mother Goose Time offers my older child a little break from academics, while still giving her the opportunity to learn and create, along with her little sister.

My three-year-old daughter loves sharing Mother Goose Time with her older sister, and each day is a fun and new adventure. It's so nice that each day's activities are separated in a separate bag with activities for both children, which is inside the themed, monthly school bus box. I love the daily curriculum guide that suggests songs, assessments and reflections.

 

Here is a fun ocean water experiment we enjoyed this week!

Ages: Preschool through Elementary Age

Mother Goose Time provided the above, pictured instructions sheet for the experiment.

Instead of bowls, we used a plate for the sugar and salt. I wrote "salt" and "sugar" below each one with a dry erase marker. I also wrote on the cups, being sure to keep the writing far below where they will drink.

The girls made their predictions...

How do you think ocean water tastes?

They prepared their supplies, and completed the experiment while using their senses of sight, smell and taste.

The girls smiled, laughed and discussed their observations.


Best of all, they had fun, sister bonding and as they learned that ocean water is salty and tastes about the same as a cup of water with one teaspoon of salt in it.

We Love Mother Goose Time Preschool Curriculum

Mother Goose Time has asked me to be a Blog Ambassador. Being a former preschool through 2nd grade teacher, I truly understand the time involved and value of Mother Goose Time curriculum. This little box saves me hours of preparation, and makes a huge, positive difference in my 3 year old daughter's day. Our second grade daughter loves the activities, too.

I had ordered a month of curriculum earlier this year for our 3-year-old daughter, and I was really impressed. I'm pretty particular, so it takes a lot to impress me. The curriculum is typically used at preschools, but it is also perfect for homeschooling a preschooler.

The art, music and science activities can be helpful for elementary-age children, especially if they need a break from their academic work. The Mother Goose Time curriculum box is delivered to your door, and the box is made to look like an adorable, little school bus. When you open the box you'll find an entire months worth of activities, teacher handbooks, CD for the theme of the month, calendar and circle time CD of songs, and monthly note for the parents, plus more I'm probably forgetting. Each days activities are packaged in a separate bag, so it doesn't get mixed together. Each bag has everything you need for the days lesson and activities, such as a craft! You can order for any number of children. I decided to order two kits, so our 2nd grade daughter can enjoy the crafts, too. The crafts are ideal for preschool through elementary age children, which is ideal for homeschool families. This saves a tremendous amount of time. I'm actually shocked that they can fit so much in the box. You can also add on the Experience God curriculum, if you like. I did, and the kids love it.

Every once in a while you will need to provide your own paint, glue or tape, but most things like googly eyes, feathers, construction paper and other supplies are provided.

This month our Mother Goose Time theme is Ocean Commotion. We just got our box and we can't wait to get started. I'll be taking pictures of the children's work to share with all of you. Mother Goose Time will also post our children's activities on their social networking sites.

In addition to working on our Mother Goose Time activities, I'm planning a field trip for our daughters to visit The Aquarium of the Pacific, and we just visited the Pacific Marine Mammal Center. The docents there gave us a wonderful presentation and tour explaining how important it is to clean up any trash we find around by the gutters. I know it sounds silly, but you can actually be saving a baby seal, sea turtle or dolphin simply by keeping the gutters clean of debris. I never would have known this made such a difference. The children were able to see animals that had been harmed, simply because of trash from gutters! If we are going to teach our children about the ocean, let's also teach them how to save the ocean and the beautiful animals in the ocean. :)

I love how Mother Goose Time teaches children good character. You can feel it in the lesson plans, it's really built into the program itself. I was really impressed when I saw this video of Tim Tebow on their website. Mother Goose Time is a wonderful example of a company that gives to people, not just in the wonderful services they provide, but also in the extra, unexpected ways they choose to give back to the community. I love Mother Goose Time, and I'm truly looking forward to sharing their wonderful preschool curriculum with my blog readers.



What fun activities do you like to use when teaching children about the ocean?

What preschool curriculum do you use?

What ocean theme picture books would you recommend?

Please share in the comments below.

Author Notes:
I'm writing a picture book this month about ocean animals. :) Immersing myself in these activities has really got my mind thinking about marine mammals. I think as a personal goal I'll write a children's picture book to go along with our theme each month. Fun!

Free Printable Life Cycle of Pumpkin Mini Book

Here's a free Life Cycle of a Pumpkin Mini Book posted at Teachers Pay Teachers.
This little book easily folds, with no staples required and it prints on a single 8.5x11 page.
This little book is ideal for 2nd graders, but it can be fun for all ages.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Life-Cycle-of-a-Pumpkin-Printable-Mini-Book-348738

On my Smart Printables site I posted:
Free Family Tree
http://carolbrookebooks.wordpress.com/2011/10/18/family-tree-activity/

Jack-o'-Lantern Art and Writing http://carolbrookebooks.wordpress.com/2011/10/21/my-jack-o-lantern-art-and-writing/

Trick-or-Treat Ghosts Mini Book and Puppets
http://carolbrookebooks.wordpress.com/2011/10/27/my-trick-or-treat-ghosts-mini-book-and-puppets/

My laptop and computer are no longer functional! I miss my Adobe Illustrator. I am typing this post on my 
iPhone, which I wish was easier to do. My Smart Printables site has more of the work I created after learning Adobe 
Illustrator. I will be up-dating this site more when I get a new computer.

Happy Halloween!

If you haven't seen the Personalized Sight Words Flash Cards I made, here they are.
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Printable-Kindergarten-Dolch-Sight-Words-Flash-Cards-Kit-Personalized-Princess-348990

:) Carol Brooke

My Dreams are Dead! Have You Ever Felt that Way?

Last night I said those words. I never thought that I would say that. I've always been tougher on the inside than what people measured me up to be... But too much has happened in my life. I just feel like all the art and writing I've done through the years has given me so much pain... Having my name taken off of around 100 blogs and printables, ideas conceived by me being sold without royalties distributed to me, and  a very time consuming product I designed never being created because the publisher realized the design was too expensive to print after all. I have decided that I will give no more until I have an agent. I need an agent. I will not allow myself to be taken advantage of any longer. That's why I've been keeping all my art and writing to myself over the past three years. Of course I had a baby and a preschooler to care for, but something that used to trust has now died. I had plenty of ideas to share, but I didn't. I had people who wanted my work, but without trust I couldn't give.

I reached my breaking point last night after my husband got back to give me a "break" to paint
something for the SCBWI Agent's Day. I was trying to paint some dolphin, but it looks bad. BTW, I can't remember the last time I had time alone before that. So, getting in a painting mood wasn't easy with a puppy barking all crazy in the background. (We got a new puppy that likes to use people as chew toys, which apparently they grow out of IF you train them. I wish I would have known that first.) Anyway, when I was putting on my pajamas our very active and smart 3 year old daughter decided to run downstairs and open up the paint I put away and paint all over the couch. Being exhausted and then having to hurry and clean is hard. I felt sorry for myself and started to cry. She
told me that mommies are not supposed to cry, only babies. I did want to stop crying, but I couldn't. She has very rarely seen me cry.

The next morning (today), my darling daughters helped me find a pen and pencil drawing of Toucons in Love I can bring to the SCBWI Agent's Day. My older daughter mentioned how much she loved that drawing, which I had forgotten about. It wasn't easy to find. My daughters were so cute. They started praying that we would find it. We just moved 3 times in 9 months and there are still boxes in the garage. They jumped around in the empty boxes as I tore open each one hoping to find my drawing. Fortunately, we found it. I then took a pic of if with my iPhone and made business
cards while also taking care of my children and the teething puppy. I am an old mom. I should have had kids earlier. I need more energy. Since I am still alive, my dreams must be alive, too. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother to write this.

When I was a child I didn't wish to be an artist and writer. I was an artist and writer, and I still am. I just need a really honest and nice agent to sell it to the best place for it. I have bills to pay. I have donated and given away my work for many years now. I still want to give and donate, but I also want to be paid.

I had a very hard life as a child. Do you see those awful bangs? That is only one reason why I was sad. Who wouldn't be sad with a haircut like that? LOL, I was so happy that I won the art contest because like I said, my life was rotten. My parents divorced and I lived in a bad neighborhood. The good news is that I remember winning a trip to the art store because I got the blue ribbon. I could hardly believe it when I saw it next to my butterfly drawing. I picked out beautiful colored pencils in a metal box. I used to line them up in rainbow order. I still love doing that.

So, what have I learned from all this?
Even when I have crooked bangs and a horrible life I have to draw and write. I just won't use paint for a while. I'll stick to colored pencils and pen. I do feel so lucky to have my family. I appreciate my loving and caring husband, daughters, sisters, mom, nieces and nephews. Thank you for believing in me. I love you all. Thank you, My Heavenly Father, for answering our prayer to find my drawing.

I hope this post helps you remember not to ever give up. I'll keep reading it myself. I need occassional reminders. You know what's really amazing about our dreams? The dreams we were given are not really about us. Over the years, I'm beginning to see that when we share what we love it helps people in amazing ways we would never expect.

Princess and Dancing Shoes Coloring Pages!

Print these free princess and dancing shoes coloring pages for your child!

Your child can have her own princess, Kindergarten, sight words flash cards with her own personalized princess this summer! The flash cards will be available at Smart Printables.