Category Archives: Occupational Therapy

Dec6

December

Posted on December 6, 2015 by jd785

We learned a lot of fun facts about the month of December this week. There is actually more to the month besides holidays! Our sensory groups explored boxes related to symbols and events related to the month. The fine motor groups painted fabulous art projects and the language group made delicious hot chocolate—-YUM!

SENSORY GROUP

Each month has a special “birthstone” and the one for December is turquoise. The students searched for both upper and lower case “D”s in our box of turquoise beans. Beans are always a hit with our students but when they are this beautiful color they are even more enticing 🙂

The science access point match objects with similar observable properties, such as shape, can be addressed here.

The flower for the month is the narcissus. In this box we mixed green holly with white silk “narcissus” petals—–actually, they’re white poinsettias from the dollar store, but we think they totally worked! In addition to sorting by color, there were textures to compare.

Identify objects by one observable property, such as color is a science access point.

The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded during the month of December—–how cool is that! In honor of everyone’s hope for peace around the world we added a big peace symbol to our blue and green rice. Underneath there was a picture of our world as viewed from space.

Apply a push to move an object is a science access point addressed in this activity.

This box contained lots of different symbols of December. There were a variety of items representing the holidays of Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Christmas. A mountain goat was included to represent capricorn—-one of the zodiac signs that fall during the month. Since many people visit FRIENDS and FAMILY during this month, we added those words to the box as well.

Some of the toys made noise and these were a HUGE hit!

Recognize an object related to an event is a social studies access point.

There were also some fun Christmas tree glasses and as usual, our students totally rocked them 🙂

Too cute!

National Chocolate Candy Day falls during this month—-how sweet is that, LITERALLY 🙂 We made some delicious smelling chocolate play dough that could be cut into little candy pieces with a cookie cutter.

Recognize that the appearance of an object or material has changed is a science access point.

The Wright brothers made their first flight on December 17, 1903. While they didn’t quite make it up into the clouds that day, our little plane is flying around some shaving cream clouds in celebration of that historic day!

Apply a push to move an object is a science access point.

Hands were rinsed in water scented with Bath and Bodyworks winter candy apple scent. There were 2 different size scoops and a giant foam “D”.

Recognize differences in sizes of containers that hold liquids.

The students really liked the matching lotion! Asking if they “liked” the scent and “where” they wanted it was a great opportunity to practice communication skills.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday the students made a poinsettia craft in celebration of national poinsettia day which occurs on December 12. We used this:pointsettia template

We started by discussing the color of the paint we were going to use and the students used communication symbols to show us the color RED!

The science access point identify objects by one observable property, such as color, is addressed here.

Bubble wrap was tied with a rubber band around a kitchen scrubber and the students used that to apply the paint to their flowers. We emphasized that we were stamping “up” and “down”. Of course, they all had their own techniques 🙂

Recognize a movement that reflects a spatial relationship, such as up and down is a math access point.

After the students finished painting we taped their flowers to a large craft stick and TA DA——

——-pretty poinsettias!

On Wednesday the students painted a peace symbol in honor of the Nobel Peace Prize. We found this idea at kiwicrate.com

We started by discussing the paint colors we were going to use—–BLUE and GREEN. Again the students used communication symbols to identify the colors.

Identify objects by one observable property, such as color, is a science access point.

Before we started painting, we also discussed the shape of our plates and that the painters tape that had been placed on the paint was called a “peace symbol”. Then we squirted paint onto their plates and the students got to work!

Recognize an object with a 2-dimensional shape is a math access point.

After they had finished painting, they got to peel the tape off their plates—–they really had fun with this part 🙂 It was also a great way to practice pincer grasps.

Recognize a change in an object is a science access point.

Sending wishes for…….

…….PEACE!!!!!

LANGUAGE GROUP

Our language group made a tasty December treat—–hot chocolate!

We started by opening 2 packages of hot chocolate mix, making sure that we counted each package, and pouring them INTO a bowl. This was a great activity for practicing pincer grasps!

Then we added 2 cups of water and began stirring it into the chocolate powder. After each student took their turn we would ask them if we needed to stir MORE or if we were ALL DONE.

The math access point indicate desire for more of an action or object is a math access point.

We set the microwave for 1 minute. After we took it out we asked the students to touch the bowl—it was WARM!

To make the hot chocolate even yummier we gave the students a choice between toppings—–marshmallows or whipped cream!

Time to drink up——-YUM 🙂

Join us again next time for more fun and learning——–Group by Group!

Nov22

London

Posted on November 22, 2015 by jd785

London

Our students are learning about transportation in their Unique Curriculum units this month and we thought a virtual trip would go perfectly with this unit. Soooo many choices, but for this trip we decided London would be a perfect destination!

Our sensory groups had fun exploring boxes with lots of British flair. The fine motor groups made colorful art projects and the language group “traveled” on a scavenger hunt.

SENSORY GROUP

Time to get on the plane! We recorded the phrase “fasten your seat belts” and the sound of a jet taking off on our voice output device. Our vibrating tube added to the feeling of being on a plane and was a huge hit with our students.

Recognize and respond to different types of sensory stimuli is a science access point.

——–did we mention how much fun the vibrating tube was 🙂

This British flag banner made for lots of fun draping and waving! We also included a little souvenir teddy bear, wearing his own little British flag vest—-super cute and huggable!

Associate an object, picture, or symbol with a location is a social studies access point.

Filled with red, white, and blue paper shred this box included things tourists might see while visiting London. There were play figure people, some “crown jewels”, and London souvenirs such as a GIANT pencil!

We included some transportation vehicles like a plane, cars, and of course the ultimate symbol of London transportation—-the double decker bus!

The science access point recognize a model of a real object is addressed here.

Trains are another great way to travel around London. There were 3 letter “L”s to find and a little train to chug through this box of tea. There was also a map of the London Underground to find at the bottom of the box.

Recognize a method of transportation is a social studies access point.

The Tower of London is a must for any tourist. Our students made their own replica’s using our grey Floam. They really had fun with this. Since we didn’t have a British flag, we laminated a picture of one and used an unsharpened pencil as the flag pole—-it worked pretty well!

The social studies access point associate an object, picture, or symbol with a location is again addressed with this activity.

Red and blue glitter made for some pretty colorful oobleck—-and represented the colors of the British Flag.

Recognize that pushing or pulling an object makes it move is a science access point.

Hands were rinsed in our Calgon “english garden” scented river Thames. Roses are a symbol of Britain and lots of rose bushes can be found all over London! There was a little river boat for cruising down the river. We also included a little teapot and cup—–for tea time, of course!

Recognize differences in sizes of containers that hold liquids (capacity) is a math access point.

We used Crabtree and Evelyn rose scented lotion to finish our group and leave our students with a great olfactory memory of our trip! This lotion had a strong aroma that really got the students attention and as usual, we asked them to show us where they wanted the lotion.

Recognize external body parts is a science access point.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday our students made their own Crown Jewels! We used these pre-made crown shapes purchased at the thrift store.

We started by asking the students to pick a crown and then identify it’s color using communication symbols.

Identify objects by one observable property, such as shape, or color is a science access point.

Then they used a large brush to spread some glitter glue over their crown. The glitter glue didn’t add as much sparkle as we had hoped but still worked as glue 🙂

The science access point apply a push to move an object is addressed here.

Those crowns needed some jewels and a few old spice jars worked pretty well as confetti and sequin shakers.

Recognize a change in an object is a science access point.

Ta DA—-

their royal majesties!

On Wednesday our students made a fabulous travel poster! It was a pretty quick and easy project but it turned out really cute.

They started by using the adaptive tabletop scissors to cut squares from black paper.

Recognize an object with a 2-dimensional shape is a math access point.

After they glued their photo to a square we told them it was time to “get on the bus” and glue themselves onto the double-decker bus!

Placing their photos on the squares addresses the math access point match one object to a designated space to show one-to-one correspondence.

TA DA—-Lets visit London!!!!

LANGUAGE GROUP

Since Unique was all about traveling, we decided to do a “travel” scavenger hunt with our language group using all of the different locations that were in our book.

Before our group, we went around and put pictures of the different London sights from the book all around school, making sure that they were located in places that were familiar to our students. We took a picture of each of the locations as well.

In order to travel to each London sight, our students had to look at the picture of the location in the school and help us find WHERE it was. Our students could use gestures to point to where we should go or they could use verbalizations to tell us where it was (library, clinic, etc.).

When our students found each London sight, they had to verbalize the word LOOK in order to get the attention of the class…..

……or indicate LOOK using a picture symbol provided.

It was so much fun and we found that some of our students have a great ability to navigate around our school!

We had such a great time traveling to London this week! We will be out next week for Thanksgiving but come back in December for more fun and learning——Group by Group!

Nov15

Fall Festival

Posted on November 15, 2015 by jd785

Fall Festival

It is getting a little cooler (in our case, emphasis on LITTLE) and that means it is the time of year for fall festivals. Ours’ was just so much fun we decided that it would be a perfect theme for us—-and a way to relive all the fun!

Our sensory groups explored boxes filled with a variety of textures and scents of fall fun. The fine motor group painted a fall tree and the language group made some yummy festival food.

SENSORY GROUP

This box had lots of textures and objects related to a fall festival. There was hay and a truck for the hayride, colorful fall leaves, and some little “students” to enjoy the fun. We also included a football, pie, scarecrows, and pumpkins!

Recognize a model of a real object is a science access point.

Everyone had fun playing Bingo while eating yummy chili! So,we combined the two for this box—–adding numbers to our dried bean mix.

In addition to number identification and sequencing, both visual and tactile discrimination skills are also addressed!

Associate quantities with number names is a math access point.

Popcorn was another fun treat that we enjoyed at the festival. There were 3 upper case and 1 lowercase letter “f”s to find in our popcorn box.

Recognize quantities 1 to 3 using sets of objects is a math access point.

At our fall festival, we had a big bubble machine blowing bubbles everywhere—–there is something about bubbles that always make you smile 🙂 Instead of the machine during group, the students had to blow their own bubbles.

Of course, not all the students could blow the bubbles themselves but they sure had fun watching them drift by or trying to catch them!

Track objects in motion is a science access point.

One of the highlights of this group was our fall fun umbrella—-it is one of our favorites! The students loved looking at and touching the colorful leaves. They also had fun watching them waft to and fro as we slowly twirled the umbrella.

The science access point track objects in motion can be addressed with this activity.

The dessert booth is always a favorite at any festival. We made some chocolate cloud dough to remind us of all the yummy treats to be found there! A cookie cutter and large scoop added to the fun.

Recognize and respond to different types of sensory stimuli is a science access point.

We turned our water play into a fishing booth—–complete with fishing pole! The students really had a blast with this one and operating the fishing pole really works on bilateral coordination!

In addition to being counted, since the fish were different colors the science access point identify objects by one observable property such as color, can be addressed.

Bath and Bodyworks pumpkin was the perfect scent for our water play and lotion this week. The students REALLY liked this one 🙂

Recognize one or more external body parts is a science access point.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

Due to Veterans Day holiday we only had one fine motor group this week but it was a really fun and colorful one! For our tree painting project we used the super cool stampers made from fringed craft foam rolled and secured with rubber bands——thank you for the idea Ms. Kim! Here is the template for the tree:tree template

We started by discussing the 3 different colors of paint for our project—–red, yellow, and orange—and asking the students to identify the number 3.

Associate quantities with number names is a math access point.

The students were encouraged to stamp with UP and DOWN motions but of course, they all had their own techniques—-whether using 1 or 2 hands 🙂

Recognize a change in an object is a science access point.

TA DA——

fabulous fall foliage!

LANGUAGE GROUP

We had a very special visitor help us out with the language group this week! Our very own Jeannie! She came in to help the class make a sweet dessert that could be sold in the bake sale at a fall festival.

We made edible haystacks using this recipe: Let’s Make Edible Haystacks

First, our student helped pour some chow mein noodles into a medium sized bowl.

We then poured an entire bag of butterscotch chips into a smaller, microwaveable bowl. We talked about the different sizes of the bowls; which bowl was BIGGER and which was SMALLER. Then we heated the butterscotch up so it would melt.

Recognize differences in size of objects is a math access point.

While we were waiting, we brought the fall umbrella around so our students could look at it—-it was a HIT!!!

Once the butterscotch was melted, Jeannie poured it into the chow mein noodle bowl. Each of our students got a turn to stir it up until the noodles were all coated with butterscotch.

This was a great opportunity to address the math access point solve problems involving small quantities of actions using language, such as enough, too much, or more.

Finally, each of our students got to spoon out ONE sponful of the mix onto a piece of wax paper. We found that if we waited a little bit longer for the mixture to cool, it would form more easily into a “haystack”.

Match one object to a designated space to show one-to-one correspondence is a math access point.

Once they were all nice and cooled off, our students ate their haystacks. YUM!

Join us again next week for more fun and learning—–Group by Group!

Nov8

Egypt

Posted on November 8, 2015 by jd785

Egypt

We chose Egypt as our theme this week because on November 4, 1922 Howard Carter discovered the entrance to the tomb of Tutankhamen and we thought it would be fun to learn a little more about the country of Egypt both today and long ago!

We splurged a little with our sensory group and bought the Egyptian TOOB from Amazon and really added a lot to our sensory boxes. The fine motor groups worked on their cutting skills and the language group made a yummy Egyptian treat.

SENSORY GROUP

We used paper shred as our “papyrus” base for this box. There were a lot of different items representing both ancient and modern Egypt. From our Amazon order there were lots of Egyptian gods figures, busts of pharaohs, and of course—–a sarcophagus with King Tut!

We included “lotus” petals, palm trees, a hippo (they were considered bad omens), and a giraffe (ancient Egyptians used their tails as fly swatters!). In addition to all the ancient Egyptian items we included some modern “kids” and the word HOME—-to a population of approximately 82 million people! Finally there was a little oil holder that Joy’s aunt brought back on her Egyptian vacation—-pretty cool!

Recognize differences between cultures is a social studies access point that can be addressed here.

King Tut wore a pretty amazing blue and gold headdress. We put some shiny beads with those colors in this box and it turned out to be very eye catching. Needless to say, the students had a lot of fun with this box 🙂

Match objects by one observable property, such as size or color is a science access point.

There are over 100 pyramids in Egypt and tourists come from all over the world to visit them. In addition to the pyramids and sphinx we included a couple of camels to trek around the desert. Underneath the sand there was a picture of the current Egyptian flag to discover.

Recognize an achievement of civilization, such as art, architecture, writing, or technology is a social studies access point.

If you are doing a unit on Egypt you HAVE to include a mummy box! There were a bunch of gauze strips to wrap around a small doll. In our research we learned that the ancient Egyptians also mummified cats so we included a little plush kitty to mummify.

The science access point recognize that the appearance of an object or material has changed can be addressed with this activity.

Pomegranate seeds were a favorite treat for ancient Egyptians and still are for modern ones. We didn’t have any dried pomegranate seeds but we thought these red beans made a pretty good stand in. There were 3 letter “E”s to find, as well as a couple of “scarab” beetles.

Match objects by an observable property, such as size, shape, and color is a science access point.

Our messy play shaving cream reminded us of marshmallows—-we can thank the ancient Egyptians for that tasty treat! We printed out the hieroglyphic alphabet to let students try imitating some of the letters.

Most of them were way too hard for our students to duplicate but the semi circle symbol for “T” was a great one to practice.

Recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move is a science access point.

Hands were rinsed in our Nile River basin complete with a crocodile! We used strawberry scented Valuetime bubble bath in our water because we learned that strawberry juice is a favorite drink for thirsty Egyptian children.

Match common living things with their habitats is a science access point.

Mango juice is another popular drink found in the refrigerator of Egyptian homes so we finished our group with mango scented lotion. It had a very yummy aroma and our students really enjoyed the scent as we rubbed it on their hands and arms. There were lots of requests for “more”!

Indicate a desire for more of an action or object is a math access point.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday we made an ancient Egyptian headdress. Prior to the group the base was cutout of a yellow paper plates (found at Family Dollar store). We just cut across the bottom and then cut a square piece out of the middle. The top piece was cut from the scrap and glued to the top.

First we discussed the color of our plates and asked the students to identify the color yellow using communication symbols.

Identify objects by one observable property, such as color is a science access point.

Then the students cut strips of blue paper using the adaptive scissors.

Recognize a change in an object is a science access point.

We prompted the students to glue 2 of the blue strips on one side of the head dress, and 2 on the other side.

Solve simple problems involving joining or separating sets of objects is a math access point.

TA DA—-time to walk like an Egyptian 🙂

On Wednesday we made an Egyptian pyramid scene for our art project.

We started by discussing the shape of our paper and then counted it’s sides. We also asked the students to identify the color using communication symbols.

Recognize an object with a 2 dimensional shape is a math access point. Identify objects by one observable property, such as color, is a science access point.

Then we tore 1 piece of yellow paper into 2 pieces—-great for working on bilateral coordination! These were glued down onto the blue paper to make the “sand” for our scene.

Recognize a movement that reflects a spatial relationship, such as up and down is a math access point.

Next we used a paper cutter to cut the 3 sides of a triangle and glued our “pyramid” onto the sand. Of course, we counted aloud as we cut each side.

The math access point recognize common objects with 2 dimensional shapes is again addressed here.

Associate quantities with number names is a math access point.

Ta DA—–

let’s visit Egypt!

LANGUAGE GROUP

While researching facts about Egypt, we found that children like to drink strawberry juice and mango juice. Since we LOVE making food, we decided to take a stab at making our own juice.

We used the recipes found here: Let’s Make Strawberry Juice and Mango Juice!

We started out by making strawberry juice. Our students helped measure out the correct amounts of strawberries and sugar and we put them in the blender.

We talked about WHERE we had to put the ingredients since all of them went into the blender. We love repetition!

Once the ingredients were in the blender, each of our students got to activate the blender by pressing a switch.

We had to practice holding the button down since our students like to tap the switch which turns the blender off and on.

Once the juice was finished, it was time to taste test!

We counted out cups for the students and then cups for the adults. We had 6 students and 7 adults, so we asked our students to indicate which there were “more” of.

Determine if the quantity in two sets of objects is same or different is a math access point.

While our students were trying out the strawberry juice, we started making the mango juice. It was nice that each of these recipes were almost exactly the same!

Once each student and adult had tried each kind of juice, we voted to see which was preferred MORE.

Mango juice was the winner!

Join us again next week for more fun and learning—–Group by Group!

Nov1

Peter Pan

Posted on November 1, 2015 by jd785

Peter Pan

We had so much fun preparing for this week’s theme which was filled with fun and lots of pixie dust :).

Our sensory groups explored boxes related to the various characters seen in the Peter Pan story. The fine motor groups both used glitter to complete their art projects and the language group dressed like lost boys while playing Follow the Leader! All of the groups had so much fun seeing their friends dressed as characters in the book.

SENSORY GROUP

The color GREEN is all over the Peter Pan story—-from Tinker Bell and Peter Pan’s clothing to that enormous crocodile! Even Neverland itself is mostly green! With all that green, we had to include a box of this fabulous green kinetic sand. Kinetic sand is always pretty irresistible but with this bright color—-it was even more so!!! There was a letter “P” cookie cutter included in this box but most of us just enjoyed watching it dribble through our fingers.

Identify objects by one observable property, such as color, is a science access point.

We made a night sky for our little Wendy to fly through and included a couple of stars to count. There was also a picture of Peter Pan himself to find at the bottom of the box. The students really enjoyed running their hands through the beans—-a completely different texture compared to the kinetic sand!

The math access points recognize differences in size of objects and associate quantities with number names can be addressed here.

This Captain Hook box was filled with fun. There was treasure to find as well as some “piratey” stuff—-like a hook, an eye patch, and spy glass. There were also Captain Hook and crocodile figurines! We even put in a toy clock—–the students had a blast!

Recognize a model of a real object is a science access point.

The Mr. Smee box contained red and white pompoms and beads for sorting fun. The items could be sorted by color or texture. As usual, the beads proved to be very popular.

Match objects with similar observable properties, such as size, shape, color, or texture is a science access point.

These pixie dust bottles were just fabulous and VERY eye catching. The students loved watching the the glitter swirl around!

Recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move can be addressed in this activity.

Peter Pan told Wendy to “fly to the second star to the right and then straight on ’til morning”. We mixed our yellow play dough with lots of gold glitter for a perfect sparkle!

With the included 2 cookie cutters, the math access point recognize differences in size of objects is addressed.

Our mermaid lagoon, scented with plumeria scented bath gel from Bath and Bodyworks, had a cute little mermaid and a water lily with an extra special feature—-it lit up! The students had lots of splashy fun with this activity and were especially fascinated by the lighted flower.

Recognize sources of light is a science access point.

The students really liked the scent we chose this week. We chose plumeria as a nod to Princess Tiger Lily—-it was the closest scent we had to lilies so we went with it 🙂

It was perfect for rubbing on hands, arms, ……..and the back of a neck!

Recognize and respond to one type of sensory stimuli is a science access point.

We finished our group by turning off the lights and bringing out our fairy umbrella. This was a huge hit—-the students loved seeing all the twinkling “fairies” hidden among the flowers. Of course, we included a little Tinker Bell figure to fly around with her friends.

This is probably the prettiest umbrella we have ever made—–just magical!

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday our students turned into little pirates! We used this template: hook template to cut hooks out of poster board and taped them to large craft sticks.

We squeezed glue onto the hooks and used a sponge brush to spread the glue around on both sides. This was a great activity for working on bilateral coordination.

This also addresses the science access point recognize pushing and pulling an object makes it move.

Next we sprinkled on some silver glitter. Lots of glitter ended up on the bottom of our tray, so the students could also dip their “hooks” into that as well.

Recognize a change in an object is a science access point.

The hooks were slipped into some paper cups and……Ta Da——Captain Hook at your service!

On Wednesday our fine motor group made their own pixie dust bottles!

First the students chose which color glitter glue they wanted to use for their bottles. Then they deposited the glue into their bottles—–squeezing the bottle 3 times.

Associate quantities with number names is a math access point.

Then they got to add some regular glitter—either silver or gold to their bottle. To make things easier we used a funnel. We did help the students a little bit with this part, to make sure they didn’t dump the entire container into the bottle—-kids will be kids, after all 🙂

The science access point track objects in motion can be addressed as the students watch the glitter fall.

Warm water was added next. A 1 cup scoop was used for the water and after each scoop we asked the students if they needed “more”. When we got to the top of the bottle we discussed that we had added “enough”. Occasionally we also got to discuss the concept of “too much” 🙂

Solve problems involving small quantities of objects or actions using language, such as enough, too much, or more is a math access point.

After an adult hot glued the lids back onto their bottles we asked the students to shake everything up—-then TA DA!

Can you feel the magic?!!!!

LANGUAGE GROUP

Following the leader was the name of the game in the language group this week and it was so much fun!

First we brought out a variety of animal hats and let the students choose which one they wanted to wear. We also used a Peter Pan hat to let them take turns being the leader. The rest of the group wore their different animal hats and headbands to dress up like the Lost Boys (and Girls).

We put on the song “Following the Leader” from the Peter Pan cartoon and set off!

Whoever was the leader had to lead the rest of the group OVER the stepping stones, THROUGH the cones, AROUND the tables, and UNDER the swing.

Recognize a movement that reflects a spatial relationship is a math access point.

Each of our students got to take a turn as the leader and they all got to be a variety of different animals as the Lost Boys and Girls.

SO FUN!

Join us again next time for more fun and learning—–Group by Group!

Oct25

Creepy Crawly Critters

Posted on October 25, 2015 by jd785

Creepy Crawly Critters

Many of our students are learning about animal habitats with their Unique Curriculum unit this month. Since it is October which has us thinking about things that bump in the night, a creepy crawly critters theme seemed like the perfect complement ! Our sensory groups explored boxes related to different animals. The fine motor groups painted their animal themed art projects using unusual tools and the language group went on a creepy, crawly critter hunt—-read along to see all the fun we had!

SENSORY GROUP

Spiders—-well those are some pretty creepy crawlies and we put an assortment in this box! One of the spiders scuttled across the table after a string was pulled, which of course elicited a few nervous giggles—-from both students AND staff 🙂 We also included a discovery bottle with some floaty spiders that wiggled up and down as the bottle was turned.

Track objects in motion is a science access point.

This little desert habitat was home to some snakes and lizards. There were 3 of each for sorting and counting. The students also had fun sliding them around making paths in the sand.

Solve simple problems involving joining or separating sets of objects to 3 is a math access point.

Owls aren’t really creepy but their hoots can give you a little shiver if you are out in the woods at night so we went ahead and included them. We put in our fabulous “owl” feather boa and a super cute, totally NOT creepy plush owl.

Recognize a model of a real object is a science access point.

Put some battery operated lights and black paper shred in a box——it looks just like lots of little bug eyes staring back at you! Light boxes are always a hit with our students and this was no exception. Pretty cool—-if we do say so ourselves 🙂

Recognize sources of light is a science access point.

We brought back our black play dough from a couple of weeks ago but this time our students used a bat cookie cutter to make the classic creepy night critter.

The science access point recognize a change in an object is addressed here.

A black light helped make both our oobleck and the 3 centipedes crawling around in it GLOW! While we couldn’t make the classroom completely dark the effect was still—–WAY COOL!

Associate quantities with number names is a math access point.

There was an ENORMOUS water beetle to find in our “pond” this week. Our students quite enjoyed checking out this really big bug! The water was scented with Bath and Bodyworks twilight woods scented bath gel which seemed like the appropriate scent for this unit 🙂

The science access point match common living things with their habitats can be addressed here.

The matching lotion was a hit. The students liked the scent and, as usual, we asked them if they “wanted” some and “where” they wanted it applied—-hands, arms, neck, noses, or toes 🙂

Recognize one or more external body parts is a science access point.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

We made spider webs using marbles on Tuesday! First we counted out 3 marbles into a cup of white paint and asked our students to show us the number 3 using communication symbols.

The math access point associate quantities with number names is addressed here.

Then the students scooped out the marbles and dropped them onto a piece of black paper that was placed inside a lidded box. Of course the shapes of the paper and marbles were also discussed!

Recognize an object with a two-dimensional shape and recognize common three-dimensional shape are math access points.

We closed the lid and started shaking the box! The students REALLY had fun with this part 🙂

Recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move and track objects in motion are science access points addressed in this step.

After the lid was taken off it was pretty exciting to see how it turned out!

We removed the marbles and the students glued fuzzy pom pom spiders onto their webs—–great for practicing pincer grasps!

This was another opportunity to address the science access point match animals to their habitats.

TA DA—–

——–such creepy crawly spiders 🙂

On Thursday we painted with SPRAY BOTTLES!

We started by discussing the color of the paint we were going to use and asked the students to identify it using communication symbols.

Identify objects by one observable property, such as color, is a science access point.

The students dropped this rat stencil(made with: rat template) onto a piece of black paper and began spraying! They had so much fun with this and really did a great job of spraying onto the paper and NOT the floor or their friends 🙂

Recognize a change in an object is a science access point.

Ta ratty Da!

Pretty cute—-for a rodent 🙂

LANGUAGE GROUP

For the language group this week, we went on a creepy, crawly critter hunt. While the students were out of the room, we hid 6 different animals and insects from our book all around the room.

We turned off the lights to read the book and kept them off so we could use a flashlight to find the critters. We had real pictures of each of the critters hidden around the room, so one-by-one, we LOOKED for each of them.

Recognize sources of light is a science access point.

If the students needed clues, they had to request HELP and we would give them a clue about where the critter might be.

For example, for the centipede on the refridgerator, we said “it’s where we go to get COLD food and drinks” or for the owl we said “it’s somewhere UP HIGH”.

Seek assistance to clarify the meaning of pictures, symbols, gestures/signs, or words in classroom activities with prompting is a language access point.

Once our students located the critter, we caught it and let each of our friends look at it and feel it.

We counted all the critters we found at the end to make sure that we had the SAME number of real critters and pictures of critters.

We did it! The classroom is once again critter-free thanks to our critter catchers 🙂

Join us again next week for more fun and learning——Group by Group!

Apr5

Plants

Posted on April 5, 2015 by jd785

Plants

Spring has sprung and since many of our teachers are busy planting gardens with their students we decided that a unit on plants would be the perfect theme for this week! Our sensory group boxes were filled with plants and plant like materials. The fine motor group made beautiful floral art projects and the language group planted some REAL flowers!

SENSORY GROUP

Lots of different things to discover in this box which was filled with play food fruits, vegetables, and flowers. We also put in some picture cards and toy animals—all plant eaters of course! A piece of fabric was included because the cotton plant was used to MAKE that fabric!

Recognize a model of a real object is the science access point addressed here. The science access point recognize objects related to science by name such as plant or animal is also addressed.

The students really had fun planting seeds (dry beans) and growing carrots (play food) in our coffee ground dirt. There was also a letter G for “grow” and “garden” and hidden at the bottom of the box was a picture of a cute little groundhog…..ok, so perhaps leftover from a previous unit BUT he is a plant eater after all 🙂

The science access point recognize that plants grow is a science access point explored here.

The different parts of plants can be explored in this fun and colorful box filled with silk flowers and leaves.

The science access point recognize the leaf and flower of a plant is addressed with this activity.

We made this pretty pink batch of play dough using koolaid and we really liked the way it turned out! The students had a choice of 2 different flower cookie cutters which allowed for the opportunity to discuss concepts of “same” and “different.

Not only can the flowers be counted, but the science access point. apply a push to move an object is also addressed.

Plant seeds are food sources for many animals such as birds. We filled this box with bird seed and put 3 little birds in it for the students to find. The bird seed had an amazing tactile feel on buried hands—-super cool!

In addition to visual and tactile discrimination, the math access point associate quantities with number names is addressed.

Our green oobleck represents chlorophyll which is the green coloring in plants. We used sour apple koolaid which made it such a pretty color gave it a very enticing aroma!

The science access point recognize the change in motion of an object is addressed here.

We put some cool LIGHTED flowers in our water play this week (thanks Ms. Kim). There was also a little watering can included so the students could water them—-such fun!

Recognize that plants need water is a science access point.

We finished the group with Bath and Body works plumeria scented lotion and the matching bath gel was used in our water play. This floral plumeria scent was very aromatic, a perfect fit for our plant theme this week and a great way to help us remember all the fun we had.

Recognize and respond to one type of sensory stimuli is the science access point addressed here.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday the science access point identify the major parts of a plant such as the root, stem, leaf, and flower with our art project.

First we used the paper cutter to cut out the green stems. Our students are getting so good at this!

This addresses the science access point recognize a change in an object.

Then we assembled the flower by asking the students to place the pre-labled (thank you Dana and Olivia) pieces on the designated places using glue as a visual cue. Our students are still practicing this skill but they are getting better at it! We discussed that the flower went on TOP of the stem, the roots at the BOTTOM, and that there were 2 leaves.

The math access point match one object to a designated space to show one-to-one correspondence is addressed here.

TA DA—-fabulous floral specimens!

On Thursday we made a fun torn paper art project!

We started by choosing which flower (cut from the Ellison machine) to decorate.

Communicate a preference for objects is a language access point.

Then the students chose pieces of tissue paper to tear, crumple, and glue onto their flowers.

In addition to promoting bilateral coordination, the science access point recognize a change in an object is addressed in this activity.

The flowers look fabulous—–especially with the addition of the students cute little faces 🙂

Ta DA!!!!

LANGUAGE GROUP

The weather was beautiful when we went outside and planted some flowers during our language group. We started by showing our students the flowers we were going to plant and they took turns smelling them.

Explore, observe, and recognize common objects in the natural world through observation is a science access point.

Each of our students got to take a turn planting their own flower and we worked through the steps with them—starting with digging a hole. Typically, a spade is used. But since we couldn’t find ours, we improvised and used a spoon 🙂

This is a great opportunity to address the science access point distinguish examples of soil from other substances.

Next, we took the flower and planted it in the hole.

As the soil is pushed back around the roots, the science access point recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move.

Recognize common objects related to science by name, such as plant is another science access point addressed.

Once the flowers were planted, we watered them and discussed the fact that water was a liquid. Then we watched as the soil soaked up the water.

Recognize that plants need water is a science access point.

Finally, our nice little garden was finished! Our gardeners were pretty proud of themselves and we were proud of them too!

Happy Spring!!!!

Join us again next time for more fun and learning—–Group by Group!

Oct5

Native Americans

Posted on October 5, 2014 by jd785

Native Americans

Some of our students are learning about Native Americans as part of their Unique Curriculum unit this month. We did a Native American unit a couple of years ago so figured it would be fun to revisit the activities with a few updates here and there. There were some fantastic boxes for our sensory group to explore while they learned some fun facts about Native Americans. Our fine motor group made drums and an awesome totem pole. The language group made comparisons between Native American lives in the past and what lives are like today.

SENSORY GROUP

This box was filled with items important for many tribes. Corn was an important food source for the Apalachee and Ponca tribes so corn kernels were a perfect base for this box. This was a “something for everyone” box with lots of fun things to discover.

We included other play food such as a corn cob, squash and fish—-types of food many tribes enjoyed. Strands of raffia represented “swamp grass” which the Chinook used to make baskets.

Animals like sheep, which the Navaho raised and horses that the Comanche rode could be found hidden in the kernels. Sioux and Arapaho lived in tipis like the one in our box! Finally we included the word “Family”.

The social studies access points recognize differences in food or clothing from other cultures is addressed with this box and recognize a characteristic of early Native Americans.

The Sioux, Omaha, Comanchee, and Arapaho tribes are known for wearing feathers. We filled this box with variety of feathers of all shapes and sizes. Full of ticklish fun, while a little messy—-feathers ended up everywhere—–this really was a great box for our students 🙂

The feathers have a wonderful tactile feel but they are also fun to toss up and watch drift down addressed the science access point track objects in motion.

We had an awesome jam session listening to some Native American music we recorded on the voice output device. Even some of our students who often need help to press the switches responded to the music—-we were pretty excited! Our students also enjoyed making their own music with shaker bottles made with acorns which the Yokuts ate and beads used by the Wampanoag, Cherokee, and Kiowa tribes.

The science access point recognize and respond to common sounds was addressed here.

The Pueblo play dough was made using Black Cherry and Orange koolaid. We thought the color turned out pretty perfect! Whether trying to make their own “pots” like the famous Pueblo pottery or using the deer cookie cutter—-the students had a great time exploring!

The math access point associate quantities with number names can be addressed as the deer are counted.

The science access point apply a push to move an object is also addressed.

The Zuni are famous for their beautiful turquoise jewelry. We thought our box of turquoise beans looked pretty beautiful also! Neon blue food coloring was used to achieve the color and while it is a great effect, get ready for some “blue” fingers!

Besides the wonderful feel as they sift through fingers, there were also 4 letter Z’s to find hidden among the beans.

Track objects in motion is a science access point that can be addressed here.

Of course that can be hard to do when your teacher is distracting you with kisses 🙂

Buffalo and deer were very important to many Native American tribes. The Comanchee hunted buffalo and the Arapaho wore buckskin clothing. This box contained some fake fur “buffalo” hide and ultra suede “buckskin” invited touch. We also included some matching beanie babies for our students to cuddle.

The social studies access point identify practices of Native American is addressed again here.

Many Native Americans gathered around campfires to celebrate special occasions. Our campfire was made by mixing yellow and red food coloring with shaving cream to make orange campfire “flames”.

As always, our messy play was a huge hit 🙂

Looking at how the shaving cream changes as the colors are mixed addresses the science access point of recognizing that the appearance of an object or material has changed.

We thought that juniper breeze scent from Bath and Body works was the perfect scent to represent the importance of nature to Native Americans. All the shaving cream we used was rinsed off with water scented with this nice outdoorsy aroma—–perfect.

Two different sized measuring cups were added to the water dish. They were great for rinsing and addressing the science access point recognize differences in sizes of containers that hold liquids!

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday after listening to some Native American drum music we made our own really cool drums! We started by cutting 2 squares into 4 triangles using our paper cutter.

Recognize common objects with 2 dimensional shapes and recognize parts of whole objects are math access points that can be addressed here.

Then we glued them onto a piece of rectangular paper. We started with a blue triangle then placed a red one.

Next we asked our students which color came next in the pattern—–this addresses the math access point recognize the next step in a simple pattern or sequence of activities!

After the paper was taped around a coffee can it was time for our drum circle! We put on some Native American music and the students joined in. They LOVED making their own music——so much fun!!!

On Thursday we made a super awesome totem pole! We covered some cereal boxes with art paper and let our students choose which box they wanted to decorate.

Use body movement or nonverbal expression to communicate preferences is a language access point.

Then we discussed body parts and asked the students to point out their eyes, nose, mouth, and ears.

Recognize one or more body parts is a science access point.

We also counted the pieces—–1 nose and 1 mouth, 2 eyes and 2 ears. The students used communication symbols to indicate their understanding of associate quantities 1 and 2 with number names.

They totally rocked this—–our students are so awesome!

Our wonderful volunteers had made a selection of stylized facial features for our students to choose from to decorate their totems. We placed glue on the boxes to reinforce the concept of one to one correspondence and eye hand coordination.

Match one object to a designated space to show one to one correspondence is a math access point.

TA DA!!! Our students were so excited about their totems and they loved when we stacked—–while counting, of course 🙂 them on top of each other to made a totem pole.

This is going to look SOOOO cool outside Jeannie’s classroom!

LANGUAGE GROUP

This week was all about comprehension for our language group. Before reading the book, we reminded our students to pay close attention to what was being read. We also reminded them to look closely at the pictures included.

After the book, we went around and asked our students a yes/no question, one-by-one. We printed out the pictures that were included in the book, along with modern items seen today that would contrast things Native Americans might have used a long time ago. For instance, with the canoe we put a car, with the headdress we put a baseball cap, with the breechcloth we put jeans, etc.

Use technology resources to support learning is a language access point.

We presented one picture at a time to each student and asked if it was something a Native American from long ago would have used. They had to indicate YES or NO using a pre-programmed voice output device with the Boardmaker symbols for yes/no located on it. If they answered incorrectly, we referenced the book to check our answers.

Listen and respond to stories and information text is a language access point.

After the comprehension check, we got the voice output used in the sensory group with Native American music on it and turned it on. We passed out the shakers used in the sensory group as well as drums and bells.

Our students played along to the music——so much fun!

It was another great week of fun and learning—–join us again Group by Group!

Oct3

September After Party

Posted on October 3, 2014 by jd785

September After Party

Welcome to the After Party! Each week after the weekly blog featuring activities in the elementary department is posted, our sensory cart is parked in the media center where it is available for check out by the rest of the school. During the summer in our post about the sensory cart we included some photos of our middle and high school students enjoying the items. This was so popular that we decided to do monthly posts showcasing the fun!

Our unit on the Soccer World Cup was a lot of fun—– the fabulous Brazilian rainforest umbrella and the wacky fan were student favorites!

They also loved sifting through the red, white, and blue Team USA rice to find letters and hidden pictures!

Labor Day brought more fun activities!

The Goldilocks and the 3 Bears unit had lots of fun textures to explore!

There were also activities to promote a variety of fine motor skills…….

……including seeing which scoop could pick up more oatmeal……

……and which numbers could be found in the rice.

Everyone had a blast celebrating Elephant Appreciation Day!

There were interesting textures to explore while working on learning access point science and math concepts.

The students also loved finding the elephants floating in our discovery bottles!

We finished September with our Comic Book Superhero unit which everyone enjoyed——especially the cool glowing Ninja turtle ooze!

As with our elementary students, our older students enjoy smelling the different lotions that go along with each unit—-think we have a winner here 🙂

Well, we hope you enjoyed seeing all the fun our older students have been having with the sensory cart! We will be back with another After Party post in October. As usual, it will be filled with more fun and learning—–Group by Group!

Apr13

The Circus

Posted on April 13, 2014 by jd785

The Circus

FSU High Flying Circus performs this month in Tallahassee and that inspired this weeks theme! We had a blast planning all our different groups—-with an emphasis on COLORFUL fun! Our book is fantastic and we are so grateful to all the people who helped us with the costumes (Ms. Kim and Ms. Robin), props (Mr. Noah, Ms. Harrison, and Ms. Christy), and painted backdrop (Ms. Judy).

SENSORY GROUP

We filled this box with popcorn kernels and some colorful cornstarch packing “peanuts”. We added a variety of animals you might see at the circus such as lions, horses, and elephants. Also included were some clown figures and a ringmaster puzzle piece (an amazing find on the giveaway table!). The big red pompoms——clown noses, of course!

It really was a fabulous box filled with fun! Our students had a great time discovering all the different items we had included.

Respond to new vocabulary that is introduced and taught directly is a language access point addressed here.

Apply a push to move an object is a science access point addressed when pushing the buttons on the animals.

Our next box was filled with our bright red moon sand. It has a great texture, soft yet firm enough to mold. Students used a cookie cutter to cut circle CLOWN noses in the moon sand. This was a nice big cookie cutter so they turned out really cool looking! Of course they also had fun just squishing it with their fingers.

Recognize common objects with two-dimensional shapes, such as a circle is a math access point addressed in this activity.

This fuzzy basket filler was so colorful and totally reminded us of cotton candy! Our students loved pulling it apart or waving and shaking it. We also put in two different size cups—-a “big” one and a “little” one for our students to fill up.

Solve problems involving small quantities of objects using language, such as enough, too much, or more.

Traditionally the floor of the circus tent is sawdust! We thought our yellow cornmeal looked a lot like sawdust—-especially when mixed with some potato flakes! It had a really cool tactile feel to which our students really responded. There was a letter C and a colorful clown picture to find as the sawdust was swept away. It’s always fun to see the smiles on the students faces when they discover the hidden picture.

Recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move is a science access point addressed in this activity.

Everybody loves the fabulous, colorful costumes that the circus performers wear. This box contained a piece of cool stretchy spandex that our students had a great time either wrapping around themselves……… or playing tug of war with a partner 🙂 This was a last minute addition and we were so glad we decided to include it!

Recognizing that pushing and pulling an object makes it move is again addressed in this activity.

We also included 4 of our discovery bottles filled with sequins, beads, and glitter—-just like the costumes. These were a huge hit——our students just LOVED them!

Track objects in motion is a science access point addressed in this activity.

Circus clowns do all sorts of silly things like throwing cream pies in each others faces 🙂 As usual, the students had a great time playing in the shaving cream. Whether practicing pre-writing designs or just rubbing it around it’s always a hit!

Track the movement of objects that are pushed or pulled is a science access point addressed in this activity.

Then we rinsed our hands in vanilla sugar scented water using bath gel from Bath and Bodyworks. A measuring cup and measuring spoon were included for scooping and pouring fun

Solve problems involving small quantities of objects or actions using language, such as enough, too much, or more is a math access point addressed here.

We finished with the yummy matching lotion, leaving our students smelling like delicious sweet circus treats! A fabulous way to remember all the fun we had!

The science access point recognize and respond to different types of sensory stimuli—-touch and smell—-is addressed as students smell the lotion and feel it rubbed on their skin.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

This week we decided to do a 2 part art project—–a fun clown costume! We started on Tuesday by making clown shoes out of shoe boxes.

First we discussed the color paint we were going to use and asked our students to show us the color “red” using communication symbols.

Identify objects by one observable property, such as color is addressed here.

Then, we used a circle shaped sponge to stamp on our 2 shoeboxes. This sponge has a little handle which made it easier for our students to hold. Our initial plan was to stamp polka dots but it turned out our sponge was a little to big for most of the shoeboxes so it became a paint tool instead—–and that worked out pretty well 🙂

Recognize a change in an object is a science access point addressed. The math access points recognize a common object with a two-dimensional shape and associate quantities 1 and 2 with number names are also addressed.

On Thursday we made a clown collar using the rim of a regular size paper paper plate. We found this idea at http://www.jugglingwithkids.com

The collar was decorated with colorful pompoms——lots of pincer grasp practice! We discussed the colors of the different pompoms and counted how many were put on each one.

Then, it was time to clown up!

First we put the silly clown shoes on our feet, the collar around our neck, and either a hat or wig on our head—–this addresses the science access point recognize one or more external body parts.

TA DA!

Let’s send in the clowns!!!!

LANGUAGE GROUP

We have found that this group of students does well when there is more movement involved, so we like to include that as much as we can. This week we set up some circus games focusing on taking turns—-sharing objects with a partner is also a science access point.

For our beanbag toss, Joy drew a circus scene on a large piece of paper, taped it to a piece of cardboard and cut a hole in the middle. When our students were at this game, we talked about throwing the beanbag IN the hole. Some of our students were able to do this independently while others required some hand-over-hand assistance.

Track objects that fall to the ground is a science access point that can be addressed in this activity.

Next, we got on the balance beam to practice tight-rope walking skills! We talked about walking ON the beam. Even our students in wheel chairs were able to participate in this game by an adult pushing them OVER the balance beam. We had them hold out their arms so they could maintain their balance 🙂

Another game the students played was bowling. We had to adapt this with some of our students by using a mat so the ball could roll DOWN to get to the pins. Our students had a blast with this, especially because the ball we used made noises when rolled—–perfect for our students with visual impairments.

The science access points track objects in motion and track the movement of objects that are pushed and pulled are addressed here.

Of course, we also counted all the pins and how many got knocked down!

For the last center, we pulled out a couple of the discovery bottles used in the sensory group as well as the stretchy material. Our students loved looking at all of the SHINY colors in the discovery bottles. They also enjoyed trying to see how LONG the material got when it was stretched—–recognize that pushing or pulling an object makes it move again addressed!

Although we didn’t get to see acrobats and gymnasts perform tricks, our students had lots of fun with the games.

Well, that wraps things up for this week! Be sure to join us again for more fun and learning—-Group by Group!