First Grade CCD 2014-2015: Lesson 6: God Speaks To Us (10/20/14)

This post has moved: http://ccdlessonplans.blogspot.com/2014/11/god-speaks-to-us-first-grade.html 

20 Literacy Activities About Quilts

Winter is on the way! Snuggle up with your beginning readers and try some of these quilt-themed literacy activities collected from my story time archives and other education sites around the web.

 

Bedtime Stories & Songs

• Cuddle up in bed with a quilt and sing some lullabies. 
• Read The Quilt Story. This book was written by Tony Johnston and illustrated by none other than Tomie DePaola. I probably read this book to myself 200 times as a kid, and it still holds up even as an adult!
• Learn a quilt pattern for each letter of the alphabet in Eight Hands Round by Ann Whitford Paul.
• Celebrate each season of the year with the poems and quilt-themed illustrations in Pieces by Anna Grossnickle Hines.
• Imagine what could happen if a quilt were alive in the dreamlike picture book The Quilt by Ann Jonas.

 

Flannel Board Stories

• "The Quilt that Grandma Made" is a poem from Highlights High Five magazine that I adapted for the flannel board.  It's one of my favorite story time activities for the letter Q. 
• On her blog, Miss Mary Liberry created a flannel board for "A Blanket for the Princess" from Storytime Magic. When a princess wants a multi-colored blanket for her bed, a wise old woman suggests a quilt instead.

 

Quilts to Make

• Make a reading quilt. Reading is Fundamental (RIF) provides a list of materials and simple instructions to follow. 
• Create a story quilt inspired by scenes from a favorite book. Literature Circles Resource Center has instructions and examples. 
• Download a printable Phonemic Awareness Rhyming Quilt from Lakeshore Learning. (The link is under the Language Arts section in the middle of the page.) 
• Color a Queen and Quarterback Quilt. (The link to this activity on Pinterest is dead, but the blog it leads to is called Dinosaurs Toys.) Google Images is a great site to search for Queen and Quarterback coloring pages.
• Make a DIY Ziploc Quilt like the one shown in this post at Pre-K pages and play Swat the Bugs, where each bug is labeled with a different letter and your child must find and swat the letter you name.
• Print out a Sight Word Quilt (free printable created by Molly K.) and use it to mark off familiar words as you read.

Letter Knowledge

• Color quilt patterns by letter. Making Learning Fun provides five free printables for the Churn and Dash, Turkey Tracks, Variable Star, Water Wheel, and Weather Vane designs.
• If you're looking for a long-term project try sewing a Quilted ABC book like this one from Sew Inspired. 
• Practice writing the letter Q with these free printable letter tracing worksheets from Guru Parents.
• Glue pictures of items that start with Q around a letter Q (printable available from This Reading Mama.)
• Use scrapbook paper to create a quilted letter Q. Crystal and Co. has a printable pattern and photos to show you how to make it.

 

Fingerplays

• Count quilts from 5 down to zero with Quilts Galore. Fill in the names of family members or your child's friends to personalize the rhyme. 
• Count up everything your child needs at bedtime with Canton Public Library's "Good Night!" 

LibraryAdventure.com: Meet Emily Andrus, Youth Librarian

This month's Library Adventure interview profiles Emily Andrus from Queen Creek Branch Library in Queen Creek, Arizona. Learn about Emily here.

10 Picture Books For Siblings of New Babies

A common request in libraries I've worked in has always been suggested books for preschool children who are about to become older siblings. Here are ten options that have satisfied many parents.

• There’s Going to be a Baby
  by John Burningham and Helen Oxenbury
  By speculating as to what the new baby will be like as it grows up, a little boy accepts his new role as big brother. 
• Brand-New Baby Blues
  by Kathi Appelt and Kelly Murphy
  A big sister sings the blues about the ways her newborn brother has changed her life, but soon her resentment turns to love.
• Pecan Pie Baby
  by Jacqueline Woodson and Sophie Blackall
  As she and her mom await the arrival of the new baby, Gia worries about how their relationship will change when the new addition joins their family.
• Julius, the Baby of the World
  by Kevin Henkes
  Lilly isn't crazy about new baby brother Julius until a cousin begins to tease him and she comes to his defense. 
• Peter’s Chair
  by Ezra Jack Keats
  The new baby at Peter's house is using all of his old things, which prompts him to consider running away. 
• One Special Day
  by Lola M. Schaefer and Jessica Meserve
  Spencer shares a lot in common with various animals - he has the strength of a bear and the speed of a horse! But when his baby sister is born, he also finds that he has a quiet, gentle side just perfect for interacting with a new sibling.   
• A Baby Sister for Frances
  by Russell and Lillian Hoban
  After her sister Gloria is born, Frances decides to run away and live under the dining room table.
• That New Animal
  by Emily Jenkins and Pierre Pratt
  Marshmallow and Fudge Fudge, the family pets, don't much like the new baby... at least not until Grandpa tries to hold him. 
• How To Be a Baby-- By Me, the Big Sister
  by Sally Lloyd-Jones and Sue Heap
  A knowledgeable big sister explains everything babies do.  
• A Friend for Minerva Louise by Janet Morgan Stoeke
  Minerva Louise, a chicken, notices a lot of new things happening around the house, but can't quite connect the dots to figure out that a baby has arrived.