Tag Archives: flag

Sep14

Puerto Rico

Posted on September 14, 2019 by jd785

It is Hispanic Heritage Month and we are learning about Puerto Rico. The sensory groups explored boxes related to facts about the country. The fine motor groups made colorful crafts and the language group hosted a Carnaval de Ponce!

SENSORY GROUP

We put the letters P and R in red, white, and blue rice—–the colors of the Puerto Rican flag.

Science access point: match objects with similar observable properties, such as shape.

There were lots of different things associated with Puerto Rico in this flower filled box including animals and foods grown there. There was a big white star like the one on the flag and the words HOME and FAMILY.

We also put in photos of famous Puerto Ricans and a voice output with a recording of a Ricky Martin song 🙂

Science access point: recognize a model of a real object.

The students stamped stars like the one found on the Puerto Rico flag.

The moon sand we used for this box has such a nice soft texture the students loved!

Math access point: recognize differences in size of objects.

Gold can be found in the rivers of Puerto Rico. The students loved exploring or wearing the shiny gold beads!

So much fun!

They were fascinated by the swirling gold glitter in the discovery bottle.

This box was a hit 🙂

Science access point: track objects in motion.

Puerto Rico is known for beautiful beaches. There were sea shells to find and sand castles to build in our kinetic sand beach.

This is one of our favorite materials ever!!!

Science access point: apply a push to move an object.

Coconuts can be found in Puerto Rico so our oobleck became “coconut milk” this week—-what fun!

Goopy and drippy as usual 🙂

Science access point: recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move.

We put a boat and different size fish in our water play since Puerto Rico is an island.

Both the fish squirted water which made them extra fun!

Math access point: recognize similarities and differences in size of objects.

Puerto Rico is known as the Land of Enchantment so we used Bath and Body Works “be enchanted” scent for our bath gel and lotion.

Whether placed on hands, arms, neck, or behind ears it was a hit!

Science access point: recognize one or more external body parts.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday the students made Puerto Rican flags.

First, the students identified the shapes found on the flag—-star, triangle, and rectangle!

Math access point: recognize objects with two-dimensional shapes.

Next, they cut strips of red paper and glued them on to a piece of white paper.

The students used a variety of cutting tools.

Science access point: recognize a change in the appearance of an object.

They were asked to glue their 3 strips to the TOP, BOTTOM, and MIDDLE of their papers.

Math access point: associate quantities with number names.

Then they added a pre-cut triangle and big white star.

Math access point: recognize when an object is added to a situation.

TA DA!!

Let’s visit Puerto Rico!

On Wednesday we made Ponce Carnival masks using this template: Ponce mask

First, the students put glue on their masks using a glue stick.

Math access point: solve problems involving small quantities of objects or actions using language, such as enough, too much, or more.

Then, they chose which color glitter they wanted to use on their mask.

Science access point: identify objects by one observable property, such as color.

We added glitter——and sang our glitter song of course. For those new to us, the glitter song is our take on that old KC and the Sunshine band song. It goes like this: shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, shake that glitter, shake that glitter! Repeat as many times as needed 🙂

Science access point: recognize the change in the motion of an object.

TA DA!!!

We are ready for the Ponce parade!

LANGUAGE GROUP

There is a week-long celebration in Puerto Rico called the Carnaval de Ponce which is similar to Mardi Gras. There are parades and parties. We decided to have a social get together for the beginning of the year by having a Ponce celebration!

The language group used the masks they made earlier in the week as their costumes for the parade. They also got to wear colorful ponchos and costumes 🙂

Our students paraded through the halls……

……the crowds cheered!

We passed out beads and smiles………

………to the spectators.

After the parade, we all congregated for a “street party” in the hallways. Students got to socialize and listen to authentic Puerto Rican music.

We had so much fun dancing to the music!

Of course, what’s a party without snacks? For our party-goers we had some goldfish (Puerto Rico is an island after all), some coconut Oreos (lots of coconut in Puerto Rico), and some juice. We had sentence strips out so that students could request what they wanted.

What a great party!

It was a great week and we want to give a shout out to our fabulous volunteers who helped make everything possible.

Don’t forget to check your SPAM folder for your confirmation email if you want to follow us and join us again next time for more fun and learning——Group by Group!

Mar26

Israel

Posted on March 26, 2017 by jd785

Israel

Shalom! Our very own Nurse Jill recently went to Israel for a vacation so we decided to learn a little more about the country! The sensory group boxes were related to facts about Israel. The fine motor groups made art projects based on symbols of the country and the language group made a tasty Israeli snack.

We enjoyed learning lots of interesting things about Israel this week and hope you do too!

SENSORY GROUP

To get to Israel you have to fly on an airplane. We brought out our vibrating massager and recorded some airplane sounds (found on Youtube) on a voice output device to simulate the experience for our students. The students really liked the vibrating massager—–it is usually a hit 🙂

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

The colors of the Israeli flag are blue and white. Our blue and white rice contained letter I’s to find as well as a picture of the flag at the bottom of the box.

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

The Negev desert covers more than half of Israel! In our miniature version we included some wooden blocks to let the students recreate their own ancient ruins. Nurse Jill also brought back some little camels that we also included.

The math access point recognize when an object is added to or taken away from a situation can be addressed here.

The Dead Sea is well known tourist destination and the waters are VERY salty! The students loved scooping up the salt and watching it stream out of the bottom of the funnel. There was also a map of Israel to find at the bottom of the box.

Track objects in motion is a science access point.

As opposed to the Dead Sea, the Eilat coral reef is teaming with life! The students got to make their own coral reef using pink Floam. The Floam texture is always pretty intriguing to the students and all they also liked all the colorful accessories such as little sea creatures and sea anemones we included.

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

During Sukkot, a jewish holiday, children sleep in cabins decorated with fairy lights. We created a similar effect with a lighted umbrella which was definitely a hit with the students! This was a pretty simple umbrella to construct but it really had a lovely effect 🙂

Recognize sources of light is a science access point.

Israel is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea. Our miniature version contained 2 small and 1 big fish to scoop up.

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

Israel grows a lot of citrus fruit so we chose a yummy orange scent this week. The students really liked having it rubbed on hands, arms, or behind ears!

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

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday the students made a Canaan dog which is the national dog of Israel. We used this: canaan dog template

First we discussed the color of our paint and the students used communication symbols to identify the color BROWN.

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

Then the students began painting! We precut the dog templates out of orange poster board. A popsicle stick was taped to the back, this support made the dogs easier to hold.

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

We squeezed out a dot of glue and asked the students to add a little googlie eye. Then we helped them add a chenille stem to make a curly tail—–a feature of the Canaan dog. This was a great opportunity to practice pincer grasp skills!

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

Ta Woof Woof Da!

Such cute puppies 🙂

On Wednesday the students made an Israeli flag.

First we identified the color of the stripes on the flag.

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

Then the students used a paper cutter to cut 1 piece of paper into 2 pieces! We encouraged the students to use both hands when using the paper cutter—–practicing bilateral coordination.

Associate quantities with number names is a science access point.

Next they glued their papers strips near the TOP and BOTTOM of a white piece of paper. They glued a star of David to the MIDDLE of their paper.

The math access point recognize a movement that reflects a spatial relationship can be addressed here.

Ta DA!

Let’s visit Israel!

LANGUAGE GROUP

We were SO excited to have Nurse Jill come and help us with our language group today. We asked her what kinds of food she ate in Israel and she said that hummus was on the menu pretty much every day. So that’s what she helped us make today! Here is the recipe:Let_s Make Hummus!

We started out by putting the liquids into the blender. First we put olive oil in the blender and followed that up with the lemon juice. You know how much we LOVE taste testing lemon juice and today was no exception. We got a wide variety of reactions as usual 🙂

We talked about how the lemon juice was SOUR.

We poured some tahini into the blender next. Then we added the chickpeas and garlic.

Recognize when an object has been added to a situation is a math access point.

Since it is so pungent, we passed the garlic around for everyone to smell.

Again, we found that students either really liked it or really didn’t!

Lastly, we added some salt. Our students had to HELP put the blender on using a switch. We observed the ingredients MIXING together until they were smooth.

This was fun!!

Jill brought some matza so that our students could use it to dip in the hummus. YUM!

THANK YOU so much to Jill for coming in and cooking with us and also telling us all about her wonderful trip!

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

Apr17

India

Posted on April 17, 2016 by jd785

India

Many states in the Republic of India are celebrating the New Year this week so we thought it would be fun to learn a little more about the country.

We are lucky enough to have students whose families are from India so that made it even more special for us as they contributed some of the photos we used in our book. The sensory groups explored boxes related to different facts about India. The fine motor groups made art projects with animals that are symbolic of the country and the language group made a yummy ethnic dish to eat!

SENSORY GROUP

Our rice was orange, green, and white this week because those are the colors of the Indian flag. There were lots of letter I’s to find both upper and lower case, as well as a picture of a Bengal Tiger, which is the national animal, at the bottom of the box.

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

We went with the flag colors, paper shred this time, as the base of this box. It was filled with animals that are symbols of the country such as tigers, peacocks, lions and elephants. We learned India is the only country in the world with both lions and tigers—-how cool is that! Cricket is a favorite sport so we included a picture of that also! There was a little teapot and cup in the box because tea is an important Indian export.

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

The Taj Mahal is one of the most beautiful buildings in the world and is located in Agra. Our students tried their hands at building a replica of the Taj Mahal using our white Floam. Not quite as lovely as the white marble used for the original but our students had fun anyway 🙂

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

Dahl or lentils are a staple food throughout India. Our box of dried lentils felt so cool to run hands through—-the students loved it! There were some King Cobras to find AND match in this box.

The math access point recognize two objects that are identical to each other is addressed with this activity.

There were some interesting discovery bottles for the students to explore. One bottle was filled with sequins—-like those seen on colorful saris. If looked at closely enough, a little elephant could be found floating around too! Our peacock discovery bottle was filled with blue and green sparkly glitter which made it pretty fascinating to watch swirl.

Track objects in motion is a science access point.

The other discovery bottles were had cotton balls with scents associated with India—-sandalwood and curry. These were some pretty interesting aromas and very intriguing to our students.

Recognize and respond to one type of sensory stimuli—-in this case smell—-is a science access point.

We put some green and orange glitter into our white oobleck—–once again representing the colors of the Indian flag. It was lots of fun to practice making the vertical and horizontal strokes needed to make a letter I!

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

Hands were rinsed in our Ganges River, complete with an Indian crocodile—-ours a very cute one 🙂 India is known for periods of rain called “monsoons” so we created a little one here using a hand operated water mister fan. When pointed above the students heads it created a mini rainfall—-resulting in lots of giggles.

Our water was scented with coconut bath gel as a nod to the fact that it is an important crop in India.

Recognize weather conditions including hot/cold and raining/not raining during the day is a science access point that can be addressed here.

We finished our group with mango scented lotion. Mangos are the national fruit of India. A perfect scent to remind us of all the things we learned about the wonderful country of India! The students really liked the aroma and as usual they practiced body part identification by indicating where they wanted it applied.

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

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday our students painted a Bengal Tiger using marbles. The tigers were cut from orange poster board using this: tiger template

First the students identified the color orange using communication symbols.

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

The tiger was placed in a box, then the students scooped 3 marbles out of black paint and put them in the box.

Recognize when 1 or 2 items have been added to or removed from sets of objects to 3, is a math access point.

Next came the fun part which our students always LOVE—–time to shake, shake, shake!

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

The lid was opened and our tigers had their stripes! Googlie eyes and popsicle stick handles were then added.

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

Ta Da…………….. GRRRRRRR!

On Wednesday, our students made peacocks—–the national bird of India. We used this: peacock template

We started by discussing the shape of the coffee filter and asked the students to identify it using communication symbols

Recognize objects with two-dimensional shapes is a math access point.

They used blue and green markers to scribble on the coffee filters and then…….sprayed their art work with water.

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

The filter was then folded in half and placed on a paper plate (we had cut in half ) to make it a little more stable. The peacocks body was placed on TOP of that then everything was stapled together.

Recognize a half of an object as part of the whole object is a math access point.

Ta DA! What beautiful peacocks!

LANGUAGE GROUP

We made some curry hummus in our language group! This was a neat recipe because there were so many things for our students to SMELL.

We started by putting a can of drained and rinsed chickpeas in our food processor. One student poured HALF of the can in and another student poured the REST of it in.

Recognize when an object or person is added to (addition) or is taken away from (subtraction) a situation is a math access point.

We then measured out some sesame oil and poured that in as well. Our students got to smell the sesame oil——some liked it and others were not so thrilled about it 🙂

We then squirted some lemon juice into the mixture. This time, our students got to TASTE the lemon juice. We talked about how it was SOUR.

They made some pretty funny faces when the lemon juice hit their taste buds!

After that, we shook some curry, cumin, garlic powder, salt, and pepper into the food processor. Each of our students had a turn smelling the different spices.

These spices have some strong smells!

With all the ingredients added, the students used a switch to activate the food processor——-they always love that part 🙂

Observe and recognize a predictable cause-effect relationship related to a science topic.

Once all of the ingredients were smooth, each of our students got to taste some of the hummus on a piece of pita bread.

YUM!

Hope you enjoyed our visit to India this week! Join us 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!

Feb9

Winter Olympics

Posted on February 9, 2014 by jd785

Winter Olympics

It was all about the Sochi Winter Olympic Games this week! We learned about the Winter Olympics, the country of Russia, and had fun competing in some games of our own.

Our students are learning about maps as part of their Unique Curriculum unit this month so our theme reinforced some of the concepts they were learning about. Read along to see all our activities.

SENSORY GROUP

We looked at a map and traced the way east from the USA to Russia. It is a long way and to get there you have to ride on an airplane. We used a vibrating massager to get the feeling of the engine vibrations. The massager had 2 different speeds which made for a lot of fun—-higher speed if you are flying on a super jet! Most of our students really liked the massager but for those who were more tactile averse, we turned it off completely and let them just touch the soft velvety covering.

Recognizing and responding to different types of sensory stimuli is a science access point.

Recognizing a map is a social studies access point.

The colors of the Russian flag are red, white and blue—-just like ours! Hidden underneath our rice was a map of Russia and the letter S to find (we hid 3 in the rice).

We really enjoy watching the progress of our students as we see some of them begin to realize that there is something to discover as they brush the rice aside.

Associating a picture with a place is a social studies access point.

The Olympic flag has 5 colorful rings. Our next box had big, fluffy chenille stems in the colors of the rings. Our students practiced making circles and linking them together. Most of our students needed help forming the circles but they ALL had fun trying 🙂

The social studies access point recognizing important events in artifacts is a social studies access point.

Recognizing 2 dimensional shapes is a math access point.

Identifying objects by one observable property such a color is a science access point.

One of the most popular olympic sports is ice hockey. Our students used a circle cutter to cut hockey pucks out of the black play dough. This is the same play dough we made for our pirate unit. It was kept in the fridge and has lasted quite nicely!

Recognizing 2 dimensional shapes is a math access point.

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

Ice skating is another super popular sport. Our discovery bottle was filled with sparkly glitter, beads and sequins—-like the costumes the athletes wear. The familiar Olympic fanfare theme could be heard when the voice output device was pressed. Our students really enjoyed both of these items!

The science access point of tracking objects in motion is addressed here.

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

The next box was filled with leaves and flowers like the bouquets winners receive. Our students loved picking them up, tossing them into the air and watching them drop back down. They also loved finding the medals and quickly putting them around their necks……… BUT the most popular item was the little Sochi bear. He came all the way from Russia and was donated by one of our followers, Gena—-thanks so much!

Indicating that an object has fallen is a science access point.

Explore, observe, and recognize common objects in the natural world is another science access point addressed.

We are learning about the WINTER games so we had to include some snow—-the shaving cream version this week! It was perfect for tracing the letter S for snow and SOCHI!

Apply a push or pull to move an object is the science access point addressed here.

Hands were rinsed in Bath and Bodyworks Candy Apple scent. We got it on clearance and decided it worked for our unit—-who wouldn’t want to eat candy apples and watch the Olympics!

Measuring cups were included for scooping fun and to address the math access point recognizing differences is sizes of containers that hold liquids.

Recognizing and responding to one type of sensory stimuli is another science access point addressed.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday for our art project we made bobsleds. In preparation, toilet paper rolls were pinched and one end stapled together. For safety, we put masking tape over the staples.

Then we gave our students the option of painting their sled red, white, or blue. They used the communication symbols to choose their color and then pointed to the paint that matched the color they chose—-they did a really good job!

The science access point identify objects by one observable property is addressed here.

The language access point communicating a preference for familiar objects is also addressed.

The students then painted their bobsleds, addressing the science access point recognizing that the appearance of an object has changed.

After they bobsleds were painted, adults hot glued popsicle sticks to the bottom.

With the addition of some USA flag stickers—-our bobsleds are ready for competition.

Go Team USA!

On Thursday we made a Russian flag. We started by counting the sides of a white rectangle and also counting the rectangles as they were passed out. The math access points recognizing common objects with 2 dimensional shapes and recognizing the sides of a square or rectangle are addressed here.

Then we used our paper cutter to cut strips of red and blue paper—–making 2 more rectangles!

The science access point apply a push or pull to move an object is addressed when using the paper cutter. It is also excellent for promoting a pincer grasp!

The blue strip was glued to the bottom of the white paper and the red strip on top of that. Sochi 2014 was then glued into the middle.

Recognizing a movement that reflects a spatial relationship is a math access point addressed.

Another math access point is recognize when an object is added to a situation.

Ta Da……. a fabulous Russian Flag!

Hurray for Sochi 2014!!!

LANGUAGE GROUP

We decided to have a Winter Olympics event during our language group this week. It’s always so nice to be able to reiterate something we have talked about before, and since we had recently gone over FIRST, SECOND, and THIRD, having an event just seemed appropriate. Recognizing the next step in a simple sequence is a math access point.

We made our bobsleds from some toy boats we found on the give away table—–they were perfect! There were even slots so we could add little people. We cut out some cardboard and made each of our students a bobsled teammate by adhering their picture to a small piece of cardboard. They always love to see their picture and it makes the activity so much more personal.

Identify picture of self is a language access point.

We placed the teammates face down and our students got to pick 3 teammates to race each other randomly. Putting the racers in their bobsled was a great fine motor activity!

Once the racers were placed in their bobsled, it was time to race. A long, skinny cardboard box covered in white paper made a perfect bobsled run—-very authentic looking 🙂

On your mark…get set…GO!

The students had to wait until they heard “go!” which appeared to be harder than it sounds, but they did a great job. They had so much fun watching the bobsleds go down, cheering for their friends, and seeing who won FIRST, SECOND, and THIRD place.

Tracking moving objects is a science access point.

After a few races, we had the awards ceremony. We used a voice out device to play the Olympic fanfare as we handed out the medals—-donated by Jimmy the intern. Thanks Jimmy!

Obviously the medals were a huge hit 🙂

We had a great time learning about the Winter Olympics this week. Join us again next week for more fun and learning Group by Group!

May27

Memorial Day

Posted on May 27, 2013 by jd785

Memorial Day

It was all about the red, white and blue as we learned about Memorial Day this week. Cara wrote a wonderful book that really helped our students understand the meaning behind the holiday.

Our Sensory Group had lots of exciting boxes to discover—and we got lots of adorable pictures of our students in sunglasses 🙂

The Fine Motor Group made 2 patriotic art projects, learning about shapes in the process.

And finally, our Language Group had fun playing a game and learning some action words.

All in all, a great week!

SENSORY GROUP—

As we said, it was all about the red, white, and blue this week. This first box was filled with soft red and white pompoms to contrast with hard blue beads. Our students loved sorting the items and its always interesting watching which items the students prefer—some love the pom poms while others always go for the bling beads 🙂

This activity addresses the science access points of recognizing common objects as the same and recognizing objects by one observable property such as color.

Our discovery bottle continued our red, white, and blue theme. A little corn syrup was added to our water to slow down the movement of the beads as the bottle was tilted back and forth. The colorful beads were very eye catching and the bottle was a hit!

This addresses the science access point of tracking objects in motion.

We also brought some auditory input with a recording of “America the Beautiful” on our voice output device (we found the music on Youtube). Our students are really drawn to music and the recording was no exception.

We love how this student is creating his own multi-sensory experience 🙂

These items address the science access point of recognizing and responding to common sounds.

We love the texture of our homemade playdough but we made it extra special this week by adding cherry koolaid to the mixture! Some of our students enjoyed the aroma while others had fun cutting out big and little stars with the cookie cutters.

For some extra fun, we used a patriotic themed placemat—thanks Ms. Kim!

This addresses the math access point of recognizing differences in sizes of objects and the science access point recognizing and responding to one type of sensory stimuli.

We also used big and little star shaped cookie cutters with the blue moonsand. It has a different texture than the playdough—soft but much drier and more crumbly.

We found the cookie cutters were better used to make impressions on the surface—of course it was also fun to just grab handfuls and squish between fingers 🙂

Our students looked for the letters U S A and a hidden flag picture taped to the bottom of our red, white, and blue box. Not only bright and colorful, the rice has a wonderful tactile feel which is an important feature as some of our students are also visually impaired.

This box addresses both visual and tactile discrimination.

It also addresses the social studies access point of recognizing the american flag.

Our next box was a HUGE hit!

We filled it with bright blue foil paper shred (thanks again Ms. Kim!), toy soldiers, chenille stems, beads, sunglasses, star garland, flags, and other assorted red, white, and blue items.

This box addresses the social studies access points of recognizing the american flag and recognizing a symbol or event that represents America.

Red and blue glitter made our oobleck super sparkly and pretty this week! Our students had fun practicing prewriting patterns, watching it drip off fingers…..

or just enjoying the FEEL of it 🙂

The science access point of recognizing a change in an object is addressed as the oobleck changes from solid to liquid and back again as it is touched.

Just wonderful, wonderful stuff!

Our water play scent is always a favorite with our students. This week we added the scent Country Apple from Bath and Bodyworks. We also vary the temperature from cold to warm (never hot, of course) each week.

Our measuring cups help address the science access point of recognizing different containers that hold liquids.

This activity also addresses the science access points of recognizing water as a liquid and recognizing the different ways people use water……

……in our case for FUN 🙂

The matching Country Apple lotion was rubbed on hand, arms or necks and left our students smelling like yummy apple pies—-and what could be more american than that!

The science access points of recognizing external body parts and recognizing and responding to one type of sensory stimuli are addressed here.

It also provides an opportunity to address the math access point of indicating a desire for more of an action or object.

FINE MOTOR GROUP—

On Tuesday we decorated some great big stars! We divided our markers into trays by color (red and blue) and asked the students to tell us what color was in each tray using communication symbols.

Our students are getting better and better at identifying their colors!

This addresses the science access point of recognizing objects by one observable property such as color.

It also addresses the language access point of identifying obvious differences between referent objects.

Then, of course, we used the markers to color our stars!

First we colored with blue markers—then with the red ones. There were a variety of markers to choose from. Some had rounded tops (from RoseArt) that are particularly easy for our students to hold and manipulate. We also really like the smaller Pipsqueak markers from Crayola. Some of our students are working on increasing the time they spend scribbling while others are working on making directional strokes.

They have all made such good progress this year!

This activity also addresses the math access point of recognizing objects with 2 dimensional shapes.

We finished with some gold glitter—-we never pass up the opportunity to add a little sparkle to our projects 🙂

TA DA!!!!

Didn’t they turn out cute!

On Thursday we continued our patriotic theme by making flags!

We started by cutting 4 strips of red paper with our paper cutter—-counting aloud as each strip was cut.

Applying a push or pull to move an object is a science access point and associating quantities with number names is a math access point.

Then we glued the strips to a large white rectangle piece of paper.

We used our colored glue (food coloring added to white glue) to help our students position their strips in a horizontal manner—

some students, of course, had their own artistic vision 🙂

This activity addresses spatial relations and eye hand coordination. Squeezing the glue helps hand strengthening.

It also addresses the math access point of recognizing objects with 2 dimensional shapes.

Then we stamped white stars onto a small blue rectangle. We made the stamp by cutting out stars from thick craft foam and using double stick tape to adhere them to a kitchen scrubber (our always handy adaptive art tool).

Instead of ink, we used white paint—-mixed with gold glitter 🙂

Our students really enjoyed this part of the activity and had a lot of fun stamping their stars

This activity addresses eye hand coordination and the math access points of recognizing objects with 2 dimensional shapes and recognizing differences in the size of objects.

It also addresses the science access point of recognizing objects by one observable property, in this case color.

TA DA!!!!

Our flags turned out super CUTE!

LANGUAGE GROUP—

To get the students into the spirit of Memorial Day, we had them following some patriotic directions. We got this idea from the Carrots are Orange blog. The directions we used were: flag waving, drum beating, bell ringing, stars twinkling, eagle soaring, and legs marching.

We put the directions on an All Turn It spinner which is operated by a switch. Our students used PIXON symbols to convey the message, “it’s my turn” before they pressed the switch to see what direction they had to carry out. They really seemed to like watching it spin. After it stopped, the students used PIXON symbols to convey the message, “I do it”.

This activity addresses the language access point of associating information or wants and needs with pictures, symbols, or words.

For “flag waving”, the students waved a flag, for “drum beating” the students beat on bongo drums, for “bell ringing” they shook a bell, for “stars twinkling” we turned on battery operated christmas lights, for “eagle soaring” they outstretched their arms to mimic a bird in flight, and for “legs marching” they marched their feet.

The students totally got into the activity and loved playing with our different props!

All sorts of access points are addressed while performing the various movements including the language access point of exploring and interacting with the functions of a selected object and the science access point of recognizing external body parts!

Well that is it for the week and our last group post of the school year! We plan to be back for more fun and learning in the fall. We hope you will be joining us—Group by Group!

For now we are “too cool for school” and ready for summer 🙂