Jump into Literacy
By Rae Pica
Loved it! I totally agreed with her that learning should be through hands on activities, not through sit down worksheets or flash cards.
Chapters: Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing
Intro: What Movement, Music, and Listening have in common. It is a must read!
There are tons of activities and valuable information on why and how and what is important.
Downside: Many of the activities presented in this book are for day-cares or other large groups settings. I was able to adapt many ideas to fit just us.
Quote: When children learn, create, or dance to songs, they experience flow and phrasing. When the songs have lyrics children must ponder the meaning of words. And because those words are important to them, they have much more relevance than vocabulary lists or a spelling test.
-Jump Into Literacy: Active Learning for Preschool Children
Rea Pica
Chapters: Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing
Intro: What Movement, Music, and Listening have in common. It is a must read!
There are tons of activities and valuable information on why and how and what is important.
Downside: Many of the activities presented in this book are for day-cares or other large groups settings. I was able to adapt many ideas to fit just us.
Quote: When children learn, create, or dance to songs, they experience flow and phrasing. When the songs have lyrics children must ponder the meaning of words. And because those words are important to them, they have much more relevance than vocabulary lists or a spelling test.
-Jump Into Literacy: Active Learning for Preschool Children
Rea Pica
Talking, Drawing, and Writing
By Martha Horn and Mary Ellen Giacobbe
I will have to write a full review later because I am only on chapter three. I love it so far. It is written as lesson plans for Kindergartner's but is easily transferred into your daily drawing times with kids.
I changed a few things immediately when sitting with the kids and watching them draw. Truly amazing results! I like when some one tells me better ways to ask questions and help guide their work with out stifling creativity. I always worry with too much direction they will "shut down" and this book is helping me help my kids have more detail and better stories to go along with their drawings. -Oh yeah, and the kids LOVE the work they are doing. My little girl has made 30....yep 30 "stories" and can't get enough of it. My son has produced much less but has gone back to pictures to add details and wants to send them to grandma and others because "I think they will really love these". :-)
I changed a few things immediately when sitting with the kids and watching them draw. Truly amazing results! I like when some one tells me better ways to ask questions and help guide their work with out stifling creativity. I always worry with too much direction they will "shut down" and this book is helping me help my kids have more detail and better stories to go along with their drawings. -Oh yeah, and the kids LOVE the work they are doing. My little girl has made 30....yep 30 "stories" and can't get enough of it. My son has produced much less but has gone back to pictures to add details and wants to send them to grandma and others because "I think they will really love these". :-)
