Nocturnal and Diurnal Animals

At night as it is getting dark the girls and I often lay out on the trampoline watching the bats flying overhead. They are fascinated that some animals are just waking up and heading out when they (and other animals, like the birds we see settling in to the trees) are about to go to sleep.
Today we used the animal pictures from our Spot Light Game to learn about nocturnal and diurnal animals, and some that are both!

WE USED:

* animal pictures
* cardboard
(we cut and folded out a medium size postal box)
* paint or coloured paper
(black, yellow, grey)
* paper
* textas/markers
* scissors

First we cut and opened up a medium sized postal box, then painted one side yellow (for daytime) and the other black (for night time). The centre strip we painted grey to represent the animals who are both nocturnal and diurnal.

I used markers to make some simple explanation cards.

One by one we sorted the pictures; I would tell the girls when each animal was awake and they would put them on the nocturnal or diurnal side (or in the centre).
Squeak was fascinated by the bilby picture :-)

I'd love to do this activity again with a wider range of animals, particularly a bat which Bubble was very disappointed we didn't have!

Phonics Seeking Game

This simple phonics matching game was a hit with both girls today, Bubble because she is very 'into' letters and Squeak because she loved racing around the house grabbing things!
This game could easily be adapted for a scavenger game where each player draws out a certain number of letters and has to find corresponding objects around the house/classroom.

WE USED:

* letter flashcards
(we made some by cutting speech cards in half and writing letters with a marker)
* objects from around the house

First we mixed up our letter cards so they were out of order, then flipped them face down in a pile.

Bubble turned the cards over one at a time revealing a different letter each time. We would practice the phonic sound/s for the letter and have to race each other to find something in the house that began with that sound.

Some examples:

For Y Bubble found a yellow cheese and I found a yolk.

A = apple and ambulance.

O = oranges and oval.

B = bee and book.

C = cup and carrot.

Glass Stone Stacking & Patterning

We use our glass stones for all sorts of things; in our imaginary play scenes, counting games and as 'money' when playing shops, laid side by side to make roads and write letters.
Yesterday we used them for a fine motor stacking activity and also patterning games so that Bubble could practice sequencing and Squeak her colours.

WE USED:

* glass stones
(you can find bags of these at most dollar or home decor shops)

Bubble found stacking the stones challenging, it gave her fine motor control a good workout!

Both girls enjoyed the patterning activity; we made sequences of varying lengths, making them longer as we went.

A two colour sequence.

Three colour sequence.