September 13 was Uncle Sam Day, so we decided to learn a little more about one of the symbols of our country. It was a RED, WHITE, and BLUE week!
SENSORY
We brought back our blue and red moon sand and star cookie cutters from last week but added pictures of Uncle Sam and the American flag to go along with our theme.
Moon sand has a great texture that our students really enjoy.
Social studies access point: recognize the American flag.
The students had lots of fun with RED, WHITE, and BLUE beads. We put in multiples of each so the students could sort and match by color.
Science access point: match objects with similar observable properties, such as color.
The colors in our rice were so vibrant and really eye catching! The students searched for letters S A M or U S A.
Science access point: recognize and respond to different types of sensory stimuli.
We added a little Red and Blue glitter to white shaving foam and students liked watching the glitter swirl around!
Plastic plates are working out great as individual messy play trays.
Science access point: recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move.
We even continued the theme with our water play. Each student had either a red, white, or blue measuring cup!
Math access point: recognize differences in sizes of containers that hold liquids.
The perfect scent for this patriotic week—-apple from Bath and Body Works! A nice reminder of the fun we had!
Each student gets their own dab of the lotion in bottle caps we collected.
Science access point: recognize one or more external body parts.
GROSS MOTOR
For our gross motor activity this week, we thought a good way to celebrate Uncle Sam Day was a parade. Since we can’t have any parades right now, we had students imitate gross motor movements that you might see if you were to go to a parade.
For ambulatory students, they walked or marched on bubble wrap (used to represent fireworks) while waving a red or blue streamer.
For our students who can self-propel their wheelchairs, they rolled over the bubble wrap.
For our students working on sitting, bubble wrap was placed under their feet while they were positioned in supported in sitting. They stomped/marched on the bubble wrap either independently or with assistance to make firework sounds.
Science access point: recognize and respond to sounds.
They also waved streamers independently or with hand over hand assistance to celebrate Uncle Sam Day.
Science access point: recognize an action as fast or slow.
FINE MOTOR
For project one, we made Uncle Sam masks with paper plates.
First, we identified the shape and color of the paper.
Math access point: recognize an object with a two-dimensional shape.
Science access point: identify objects by one observable property, such as color.
Then, the students cut strips out of red construction paper to make stripes for their hats.
Of course, we counted the strips!
Science access point: recognize a change in the external appearance of an object.
The three red strips were glued to a piece of white paper to make stripes.
The hat was glued to the TOP of the paper plate and a piece of batting was glued to the BOTTOM.
Math access point: identify spatial relationships.
TA DA!!
Hello Uncle Sam!!!!!
For project two, the students made patriotic banners.
First, they identified the color of their marker and the shape of their paper.
Science access point: identify objects by one observable property, such as color.
Math access point: recognize an object with a two-dimensional shape.
The students were directed to draw vertical/down lines on their paper.
Science access point: track objects moving up and down.
Then, they glued on a picture of Uncle Sam (we just printed a coloring page) and TWO blue stars (cut from the Ellison machine).
Math access point: associate quantities with number names.
TA DA!!!
Our banners turned out great—-
—-and so patriotic!
LANGUAGE
We made a really pretty, patriotic snack this week. Here’s the recipe that we used: Let’s Make Patriotic Parfaits
We started by making some whipped cream. We had students HELP us by pouring the whipping cream into the BIG bowl. They first had to show us which bowl was BIG.
Math access point: recognize differences in size of objects.
Our students HELPED turn on the mixer by using a wireless switch. We had to check periodically to see if it was still LIQUID.
Science access point: distinguish between water as a solid or liquid.
We added some vanilla and confectioners’ sugar to the bowl. We put some vanilla extract on a paper towel and let our students smell it. It has such a strong smell but surprisingly all but 1 of our students liked it!
Science access point: recognize and respond to one type of sensory stimuli.
We used the mixer again until we saw some stiff peaks.
Science access point: recognize changes in observable properties of materials.
Each table had a bowl of strawberries and blueberries. We followed the steps and started layering our parfaits, starting with strawberries, HALF a container of vanilla Greek yogurt, blueberries, strawberries, whipped cream, and topped off with blueberries.
Math access point: recognize the next step in a sequence of activities.
These look so pretty and our students scarfed them down pretty fast 🙂
Join us again next time for more fun—-Group by Group!
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