Tag Archives: kids

Oct16

Fall Fun

Posted on October 16, 2016 by jd785

The weather is finally getting a little cooler and we are thinking about all the fun things that happen in the fall! The sensory group explored colorful, eye catching boxes. The fine motor group decorated some fall leaves and the language group made a tasty treat!

SENSORY GROUP

Fall festivals are so much fun with hay rides, pumpkins, decorations, and people in costumes! Our fall festival box had a base of raffia hay and silk leaves. There were lots of fall symbols including pine cones, jack o lanterns, turkeys, and squirrels to explore and discover in the box.

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

College football is a big part of fall around here. The students loved the shaker pompoms—-so much fun to cheer for your favorite team! They also had fun filling the game day cups with black and white “referee” paper shred or a little football.

Recognize the change in the motion of an object is a science access point.

We love our orange and black rice box—-it is SO eye catching! The students had fun scooping the rice and beans into the little pumpkin bowl or looking for a jack o lantern picture at the bottom of the box.

The math access point solve problems involving small quantities of objects or actions, using language, such as enough, too much, or more, can be addressed with this activity.

The Owl Run is a race our school hosts for all the middle schools in our district. It is a popular event that we all look forward to each year. To represent the race, the students stamped our schools’ initials into yellow moon sand—-yellow is one of our school colors! There was also a t-shirt cookie cutter because you always get a t-shirt after a race 🙂

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

We brought out one of our favorite umbrellas this week. Our fall umbrella is a pretty simple one—- just some fall garland and craft foam leaves attached to a yellow umbrella—but it is completely eye catching! A little hand held fan helped add to the experience by blowing the leaves around with a gentle breeze. Some of the students also loved the feeling of the air blowing on their faces.

The science access point recognize a seasonal change in the appearance of a common plant can be addressed with this activity.

This week our messy play was indeed messy—-we used pumpkin puree! The Dollar Tree stocks cans of pumpkin so this was pretty inexpensive. In addition to an interesting texture, it also has a nice aroma which added to the experience. Most of the students were pretty intrigued by the pumpkin—–others not so much 🙂

Use senses to recognize objects is a science access point.

Some craft foam and plastic symbols of fall (such as leaves, the letter F, and bats) were scooped out of the water. Bath and BodyWorks cinnamon pumpkin scented bath gel in the water made it smell really nice.

The social studies access point associate an object with an event can be addressed here.

The matching lotion was rubbed on various body parts to give our students a yummy reminder of all the fun they had. They were able to communicate whether they “liked” the scent or not—-it was pretty much a universal LIKE!

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

FINE MOTOR GROUP

Due to a district holiday, we only had one fine motor group this week—-but it was a fun one! We used this template: leaf-template

First we discussed the color of our leaves 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 squeezed some gold paint onto their leaves and spread it around using paint brushes. They were pretty intrigued with the metallic paint!

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

Ta Da!

Feeling fallish 🙂

LANGUAGE GROUP

We got back into cooking during our language group and made a fall treat: Pumpkin Fluff Dip! Here is a link to the recipe: lets-make-pumpkin-fluff-dip

We started out by making the pudding. We used the Pixon core 50 communication board throughout the process to model how symbols are used for communication. Our students helped PUT the pudding mix into the bowl. They all took turns feeling how COLD the milk was and then PUT the milk in the bowl as well.

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

Each student had a TURN pressing the switch to activate the mixer. So fun!

Next, we took turns smelling the pumpkin puree. This smell was not a favorite for some of our students but others thought it was pretty yummy!

We PUT the pumpkin puree into a different bowl and added half a container of whipped cream.

Then we added some cinnamon after taking turns smelling it.

We used communication symbols to let the students tell us if they “liked” the scent. For the most part, it was a pretty popular scent 🙂

We mixed the pumpkin and whipped cream and then added the vanilla pudding. We counted out the bowls for our students.

For the ones who are on a puree diet, they ate the Pumpkin Fluff Dip by itself. For our students who eat solid food, we added some crumbled up Nilla Wafers.

YUM!

It looks like we are ready for fall around here! Join us again next time for more fun—–Group by Group!

Oct9

Famous Scientists

Posted on October 9, 2016 by jd785

Famous Scientists

This week we learned about some famous scientists. We chose this theme to compliment the Unique Curriculum unit for some of our grade levels. The sensory groups explored boxes related to individual scientists. The fine motor groups created science themed art projects and the language group performed some fun science experiments!

SENSORY GROUP

Galileo and Neil DeGrasse Tyson are famous for studies in the area of astronomy. Our little astronomers loved our solar system umbrella. With its twinkly stars and hanging planets, it was a real hit.

Recognize a space-related object is a science access point.

Stephen Hawking knows a LOT about black holes. We used black kinetic sand for our “black hole” box and added a star shaped cookie cutter. So much fun and irresistible to both our students and staff 🙂

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

The thermometer was invented by Daniel Fahrenheit. In honor of him we filled a box with some “Insta-Snow”. While not quite as cold as the real thing, it still feels a little chilly!

Distinguish between hot and cold objects is a science access point.

We think our chimpanzee habitat would be a hit with Jane Goodall, she is an anthropologist who studies wild chimpanzees! Included in this box are binoculars, a variety of chimps, play fruit, and a voice output device with monkey sounds we recorded from You Tube. The monkey sounds were a huge hit!

The science access point recognize common objects related to science by name, such as animal or plant, can be addressed here.

Kepler was a famous mathematician. In our box of white cornmeal were numbers 1-9 for our students to find. We haven’t used this cornmeal box for a while and it has a really intriguing texture for our students.

Associate quantities with number names is a math access point.

Mary Anning was a famous fossil hunter. The students had fun hunting for dinosaur skeletons buried in our box of moon sand. They also had a lot of fun with the dinosaur molds.

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

Since our theme was all about famous scientists, we decided to put pop rocks into our shaving cream to start a “chemical” reaction. Those crackling pop rocks sounded pretty cool!

The science access point recognize and respond to different types of sensory stimuli is addressed with this activity.

Charles Darwin’s boat the HMS Beagle sailed in our little ocean—-passing a giant sea turtle along the way!

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

Since we found out that chimpanzees like all sorts of fruit—not just bananas—-we used Bath and Body Works mango tangerine scent for both our water and lotion this week. The citrusy scent was a real hit with the students!

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

FINE MOTOR

On Tuesday our students made a galaxy!

We started by discussing the shape of planets found in galaxies and used communication symbols to identify a CIRCLE.

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

Then we used a circle punch to cut “planets” out of wallpaper scraps. You have to push pretty hard to make the punch work, so the students needed a little help with this. Of course, we counted how many planets each student cut out.

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

Next they painted watered down glue onto black paper and the planets were placed on the glue.

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

Sparkly stars were added using chunky silver glitter.

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

Ta Da!

It’s a galaxy!

On Wednesday the students painted with corn syrup! We have done this before and always love how the syrup retains its “wet” look after it hardens. VERY COOL!

First we discussed the color of our syrup—-we had added some food coloring 🙂

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

The students identified the color using communication symbols.

We poured a little of the syrup onto their science lab beakers, cut from poster board using this:beaker-template

The students used regular paint brushes to spread it around. Yes, this did get a little sticky and messy but it was WAY fun 🙂

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

TA DA!

Let’s do some experiments!

LANGUAGE GROUP

Our students turned into little scientists today! We tried out 2 different experiments today. Here is a breakdown of each experiment: experiments

For our first experiment, our students helped POUR some baking soda into a pan. Then, our students helped fill up some cups HALFWAY with vinegar. They also got to choose what color should be put into each vinegar cup.

Recognize when an object is added to (addition) a situation, is a science access point.

Once everything was ready, each student got a chance to use droppers and SQUEEZE some of the vinegar onto the baking soda.

Our students loved seeing the colorful fizz!

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

For our second experiment, we filled up a measuring cup HALFWAY with vinegar. We added some food coloring as well. Our students got to CHOOSE the color glitter they wanted. They also got to help SQUEEZE some dish soap into the measuring cup. We STIRRED it up.

Finally, we got a big spoonful of baking soda and POURED it into the measuring cup. We gave it another little stir and watched it foam up! It was pretty amazing how much foam came out of our experiment!

What an exciting week! Join us again next time for more fun and learning——Group by Group!

Oct2

Opposites book

Posted on October 2, 2016 by jd785

Opposites book

We talked all about opposites this week during our groups. We found that there are opposites EVERYWHERE! The book goes over just a few of these such as wet/dry, up/down, and dark/light. Our wonderful students are featured in the book demonstrating opposites. When reading the book, we had our verbal children fill in the opposite. For instance, “Some toys are BIG and some toys are ….” and the students would say “LITTLE”.

Check out the book to see all of the different opposites we talked about!

Here is a link to the book: opposites-are-everywhere

Oct2

Opposites

Posted on October 2, 2016 by jd785

Opposites

We had a lot of fun putting this unit together and the students really loved seeing their friends in the book. The sensory group explored boxes filled with opposites. The fine motor groups made art projects that explored texture differences and the language group performed experiments!

SENSORY GROUP

This first box was filled with ROUGH AND SMOOTH textures including plastic spaghetti strands, bath scrubbers, container lids, and beads.

Lots and lots to touch and explore.

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

BIG and LITTLE was the theme of this box. A box filled with balls—-what could be more fun than that 🙂

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

Our discovery bottles were filled with beads that floated UP and DOWN as the bottles were shaken or turned.

The math access point recognize a movement that reflects a spatial relationship, such as up and down, is addressed here.

LIGHT and DARK were explored with our light box. Our students really love lights, and the colorful ones we put in this shoebox were especially attractive.

Recognize a source of light energy is a science access point.

Our students pushed HARD cookie cutters into the SOFT playdough. As a bonus, the cookie cutters were also opposites—-ANIMAL and PLANT!

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

Students practiced scooping IN and OUT in the purple bean box. White beans are really easy to dye using food coloring and they turn out really eye catching!

The math access point solve simple problems involving putting together and taking apart small quantities of objects can be addressed here.

Oobleck kind of IS an opposite—-it is both a LIQUID and a SOLID! We added some confetti to give it some extra visual appeal. Sparkly, floaty, messy, and fun—–he students had an absolute blast:)

The science access point track objects that fall to the ground can be addressed here.

Hands got WET as the oobleck was washed off hands. We added some SINK or FLOAT objects for fun experimentation.

Recognize one way people use water is a science access point that can be addressed here.

After hands were DRY, it was time for lotion. It wasn’t easy coming up with a scent for a theme about opposites! We decided to use Bath and BodyWorks pink lemonade scent since the name has pink but the lotion is yellow—-not exactly opposites but close enough for us 🙂

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

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday our fine motor group used sand to make their SMOOTH paint feel ROUGH!

First we identified the color of our paint—-we used a bright, eye catching PINK!

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

Next the students used brushes to spread the paint around their paper. We used black paper so our pink paint would really pop!

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

Then the students shook some pink sand onto the paint to add texture. Our sand was really fine and came out of our spice container quite fast! Suffice to say, the table ended up with plenty of sand too 🙂

The math access point solve problems involving small quantities of objects or actions, using language, such as enough, too much, or more, can be addressed here.

The science access point track objects falling to the ground can also be addressed 🙂

Ta DA!

It can’t really be seen in the photo but these did turn out pretty cool.

On Wednesday our fine motor group we made FLAT arrows BUMPY using tissue paper.

We started by discussing the color of the arrow and used communication symbols to identify it.

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

Then the students tore and crumpled tissue paper into little pieces. They dipped the paper balls into glue and pressed them down onto their arrows—-lots of pincer grasp practice here!

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

Next they squeezed glue onto the back of the arrow and patted it down onto a piece of orange paper.

Recognize when an object is added to or taken away from a situation is a math access point.

TA DA—-

we are going in the right direction!

LANGUAGE GROUP

We did 2 different activities that looked at opposites. Our first activity was about things that SINK and things the FLOAT.

We got 6 different objects. Our first job was to make a prediction if we thought the objects would sink or float. We talked about how things that are HEAVY tend to sink while things that are LIGHT tend to float. Each student got a chance to hold an object and predict if it would float or sink.

Our predictions resulted in everyone believing that all of the objects would float!

Observe and recognize a predictable cause-effect relationship related to a science topic, is a science access point.

Now to put them to the test. Each student got to put an object into a tub of water. We looked to see if they sank UNDER the water or if they stayed ON top of the water.

We found that we were 50% correct in our predictions. 3 of the objects did float; however, the other 3 sank.

Our next activity focused on WET and DRY. For this we used “Squand” which is made by RoseArt. Our students got to POUR some of the Squand into a bin of water. They saw that the sand went from being DRY to getting WET in the water.

We found that when we pulled the sand out of the water, it was DRY once again!

Such a cool activity and very impressive to both the students and the adults—we were all completely fascinated! This stuff is the COOLEST!

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

Sep25

Extracurricular Activities

Posted on September 25, 2016 by jd785

Extracurricular Activities

What kids do after school, extracurricular activities, is our theme this week. We found out there are LOTS of things to choose from! The sensory groups explored boxes related to specific activities. The fine motor groups made some fun art projects and the language group helped figure out what items are needed for different activities!

SENSORY GROUP

Many extracurricular activities involve sports that use balls. The students molded white foam into different sized balls—-SMALL like golf balls, MEDIUM like baseballs, or BIG like volleyballs.

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

Our ballet box was a real hit! We put in some fluffy feather boas, pieces of tulle, and a butterfly headband. Ok, so the goofy headband was a bit of a stretch as a ballet prop, but we did record music from the Swan Lake ballet on a voice output device 🙂

As the ballet props are tried on, the science access point recognize one or more external body parts can be addressed.

Cheerleading is another activity some of our students enjoy. We put in some shaker pompoms and our students totally got their cheer on!

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

Learning a musical instrument is another popular extracurricular activity. The ever-popular finger drums were found in this box, along with a tambourine, and electronic maraca. Our students totally rocked out!

Recognize and respond to common sounds is a science access point.

Many students, including our own, have fun at their school’s After School programs. We represented ours with a rice box in our school colors and some alphabet letters. There was also a picture of a teacher reading to children to find at the bottom of the box.

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

We went back to sports with our messy play. Since many sports include round balls, we asked the students to make round circles in shaving cream.

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

After the students rinsed their hands they got to go fishing in our little water pond. With rivers, lakes, and the ocean nearby, fishing is a fun extracurricular activity that many of our students enjoy! There were 2 fish to find—–a big one and a little one!

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

Our scent for our water and lotion was vanilla sugar from Bath and BodyWorks. We thought this scent reminded us of Girl Scout cookies! A delicious reminder of the fun we had exploring different extracurricular activities.

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

FINE MOTOR GROUP

Students at our school are always proud to show off their Special Olympics medals so we let our future olympians make some of their own using our go to favorite—paper plates!

We started by discussing the shape of our paper plate and using communication symbols to identify it.

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

Then the students painted their plates using gold paint and then added glitter for additional sparkle—-we never pass up the opportunity to add a little sparkle to our projects 🙂

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

Next the students placed a small circle with “1st” printed on it DOWN onto the plate. The paper stuck to the paint easily so glue was not needed.

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

Ta Da!!!

Our students are winners for sure!

Our other fine motor group made art projects related to another fun extracurricular activity—-fishing! We used this:fish-template

First the students used communication symbols to pick the color of the crayon they wanted to use to color their fish. We used Easy Grip crayons for this project and the crayons lived up to their name—–they were easy for the students to grasp!

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

Ta DA——

let’s go fishing!

After the students finished coloring their fish, we attached a paper clip to the tail and put them on the table.

Our fishing rod was made from a sturdy cardboard tube with a cute flower magnet attached with yarn. Recognize that objects can stick together is a science access point.

The students were completely intrigued with how the magnet picked up their fish. This activity was a real HIT 🙂

LANGUAGE GROUP

This week we changed it up a little bit in our language group. We discussed some of the items that people will need if they are participating in extracurricular activities.

The 5 activities we focused on were baseball, basketball, fishing, music, and cheerleading. Each of our students took turns indicating which item fit with which activity.

For each turn, the student was presented with 2 pictures of different items. They were asked, for example, “which one do we need for baseball? A baseball bat or a fishing pole?” They would then have to point to the correct item.

After they chose the item, they would point to the pixon symbols for “we” and “need” and then point to the item to convey “we need baseball bat”.

We used the photos from the book for a visual prompt.

The students finished by gluing down their picture choices.

THEN, since this is the language group and we like our snacks, we each got to eat a Thin Mint in honor of the Girl Scouts 🙂

Well we hope we inspired you to try some new extracurricular activities! Join us again for next time for more fun and learning——Group by Group!

Sep11

People of the American Revolution

Posted on September 11, 2016 by jd785

People of the American Revolution

Our students are learning about the American Constitution and Bill of Rights as part of their Unique Curriculum unit this month. To compliment the unit, we decided to learn a little more about the people who helped form our country. Our sensory groups explored boxes related to different patriots. The fine motor group discussed shapes while making their art projects and the language group “invented” a dessert.

Due to the Labor Day weekend and another hurricane day, we had a shortened week and couldn’t do all our groups but we still had lots of fun!

SENSORY GROUP

Paul Revere, who road his horse through the streets sounding the alarm that the “British were coming”, was a silversmith. We filled his box with silver beads and 2 different sized horses. As usual, the students had a blast with the beads—-always a favorite!

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

Abigail Adams probably drank lots of tea—–that is before her friends dumped it in the Boston Harbor 🙂 There were upper and lower case letter A’s and a picture of Abigail herself to find while sifting through the tea leaves.

The students enjoyed both the feel and the aroma of this box.

Recognize two objects that are identical to each other is a math access point.

The Marquis de Lafayette was a frenchman who came to help with the American Revolution. The colors of the French flag are red, white, and blue like our rice! We put in the numbers 1776 and a picture of the Marquis to find at the bottom.

In addition to visual and tactile discrimination, the science access point: track the movement of objects that are pushed or pulled, can be addressed in this activity.

Thomas Jefferson not only wrote the Declaration of Independence but was also an architect.

Our students got to be little architects building their own buildings with blue Floam!

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

We learned that Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals! For his box we put in Wikki Stix strands that could be shaped into CIRCLES like glasses.

Yeah, we had a little fun with this 🙂

Recognize objects with two-dimensional shapes, such as circle or square is a math access point.

Shaving foam was used to add hair to George Washington’s head. Of course he also ended up with “hair” on his chin, cheeks, and nose!

The science access point recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move is addressed here.

Patrick Henry enjoyed hunting and fishing so we had the students go fishing in our little pond. There were 2 fish to catch with a large scoop.

Since the fish could be counted, the math access point associate quantities with number names can be addressed here.

We thought that Bath and BodyWorks country apple scent was perfect this week. After all whats more american than APPLE PIE! This yummy scent was a hit with our students and a great reminder of all the things we learned about the people of the American Revolution.

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

FINE MOTOR GROUP

This week our students made Ben Franklin kites.

We started by discussing the shape of our kite—–a DIAMOND. We also discussed the TRIANGLE shapes that could be seen as part of the kite—-we thought that was pretty cool!

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

Then they decorated their kites using colorful markers. This was also a great opportunity for our students to practice their communication skills asking for “more” markers or letting us know they were “all done”.

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

After they finished coloring their kites, the students used glue to attach a key made with this: key-template. We love the story of how Ben Franklin attached a key to his kite to study electricity, so of course we had to have keys for our kites! After they students put glue onto their keys they had to turn their key over and pat it DOWN onto their kite.

This activity addresses the math access point: recognize a movement that reflects a spatial relationship, such as up and down.

TA DA—-

—–lets go fly a kite!

LANGUAGE GROUP

We kind of stretched it a little bit this week to incorporate inventing, one of Ben Franklin’s specialties, into our group. We decided to invent a new recipe—–we’ll call it, Banana Split Pudding!

Here is a link to our recipe: lets-invent-a-banana-split-pudding

We used Pixon picture symbols throughout so that our students could request and inform.

The targeted symbol was presented to each child and they had to locate it on a Pixon board with 50 symbols on it.

We started by making some instant banana cream pudding. When getting the milk out, we passed it around and talked about how it was COLD. We poured 2 cups into a measuring cup and then poured in into a bowl.

Recognize the temperature of items, such as food, as cool or warm is a science access point.

Then we carefully added the pudding mix!

Our students got to use a wireless switch to activate the mixer.

This is always fun for them and everyone got a turn!

Recognize a predictable cause-effect relationship is a science access point.

We then counted out how many cups we needed for each student and found that we needed 6. Everyone helped count!

We put 3 spoonfuls of the banana cream pudding into each cup. Cara had already whipped up some chocolate pudding since we know that time is of the essence 🙂

We scooped in one big spoonful of the chocolate pudding into each cup.

We all know that banana splits have whipped cream and cherries so we topped off each cup with whipped cream and chopped up cherries.

Lastly, and most importantly, we ate our newly invented dessert! In the opinion of our students———YUM!

Thank you for joining us and we hope you enjoyed learning a little about some of the people of the American Revolution! We will see you next week for more fun and learning Group by Group!

May8

Rhode Island book

Posted on May 8, 2016 by jd785

Rhode Island book

Since Rhode Island Independence Day is May 4, we decided it was the perfect theme for this week. We learned lots of new things, like the state flower (violet), the state beverage (coffee), that the first circus in the United States was held there in 1774, and lots of other neat facts that are included in the book. We also have a few of our students taking in some of the sights on the front cover and the “the end” page, so check it out!

Here is a link to the book: Let’s Learn About Rhode Island

May8

Rhode Island

Posted on May 8, 2016 by jd785

Rhode Island

We are giving a little shout out to our friends at the Cornerstone School in celebration of Rhode Island Independence Day! Our sensory groups explored some boxes related to different facts about the state of Rhode Island. The fine motor groups used unusual items for their Rhode Island art projects and the language group made an icy treat—-yum! Read along to see all the fun we had this week 🙂

SENSORY GROUP

Rhode Island was named for the red clay that lines its shore. We used red moonsand to represent that clay and cookie cutters with the state initials were included.

The students always have fun with moonsand, it has such a great texture!

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

This box was filled with coffee beans to represent the state beverage—–what an aroma! There were lots of little R’s to find and we included a fun little cup for scooping.

The science access point uses senses to recognize objects can be addressed here.

The first circus held in the United States took place in Rhode Island! Our circus box was filled with colorful objects associated with the circus. There was rainbow basket filler, styrofoam circus peanuts, a popcorn container, and puzzle piece clowns.

We also included a fun noise tiger noisemaker that was really popular with the students.

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

George Cohen was a composer who wrote Yankee Doodle Boy and You’re a Grand Old Flag was represented with our red, white, and blue rice. There was a big measuring cup and small spoon for scooping fun and comparisons. There was a flag picture to find at the bottom of the box.

Recognize similarities and differences in size of common objects is a math access point that can be addressed here.

Jewelry making is a key industry for Rhode Island so we had some discovery bottles filled with sparkly “gold” and “jewels”.

These were irresistible!

Track objects in motion is a science access point.

Gilbert Stuart was an artist from Rhode Island who painted the portrait of Washington that was used for the dollar bill! Our little artists mixed shaving cream with food coloring to come up with their own original works of art 🙂

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

The first water driven cotton mill was built in Rhode Island. Our students experimented with water power while watching our water wheel spin. They found it pretty fascinating!

Observe and recognize a predictable cause-effect relationship related to a science topic is a science access point that can be addressed with this activity.

Rhode Island is nicknamed the Ocean State so we used ocean scent from Bath and BodyWorks this week. It was a pretty strong scent that our students really noticed and liked having it rubbed on their skin.

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

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday our students painted violets—-the Rhode Island state flower!

We started by discussing the color of violets and then identifying the color using communication symbols.

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

Next they used a paint brush to make green leaves and stems on their paper.

Recognize that pushing and pulling an object makes it move.

Then they used a soda bottle to stamp purple violets. We reminded the students to stamp UP and DOWN.

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

TA DA—-beautiful violets!

On Wednesday we discussed the fact that shipbuilding is another key industry of Rhode Island and made sailboats!

First we asked students to identify the shape of the sail—-a triangle!

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

Then they used paper cutters to cut out their own sails. Of course we counted the sides as the sails were cut!

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

The students used a glue stick to adhere their sails to popsicle sticks and pushed them into a pool noodle slice.

Recognize the next step in a sequence of activities is a math access point.

Time to see if the ships are seaworthy!!!!!

Ta Da!!!!!!

LANGUAGE GROUP

It’s been getting pretty hot here lately, so since Del’s Frozen Lemonade is a fixture in Rhode Island, we decided to make our own using this recipe: Frozen Lemonade

We started by mixing the lemon juice concentrate, water, and sugar. Our students got to TASTE and SMELL the lemon juice.

Although some of our students actually didn’t mind the sour flavor, others had a different opinion 🙂

Uses senses to recognize objects is a science access point.

Our students activated the blender to mix the ingredients by pressing a switch hooked up to a power link. They are getting so much better about holding the switch down, although some of them continue to tap it, making the blender turn off and on really fast.

They had a BLAST with this step!

Recognize that electrical systems must be turned on in order to work is a science access point that can be addressed here.

We gradually poured in the ice and blended until it was smooth. Once it was done, we counted out the cups for all of our friends and they all got to try a little bit.

As with the lemon juice, most of them really enjoyed it and others………. not so much:)

Definitely a drink to cool us off in this heat!

Hope you had as much fun as we did learning about Rhode Island. Join us again next time for more fun and learning——-Group by Group!

May1

We Love Star Wars

Posted on May 1, 2016 by jd785

We Love Star Wars

The Force was with us as we explored a galaxy far, far away——it was all about Star Wars with fantastic galactic fun for all our groups and some special guests who joined us on “bring your child to work” day! The sensory boxes had things to touch, smell, look at, and listen to! Pinterest helped us find ideas for our fine motor groups and language groups!

SENSORY GROUP

Our galaxy umbrella was a HUGE hit with the students. We used some scrap headliner fabric attached to poster board to make our Death Star and were totally pleased with the result! There were some little spaceships attached with fishing wire and with the Star Wars theme recorded on the voice output device this was one super cool umbrella—–the students LOVED it!

Recognize a source of light energy is a science access point.

We put a variety of Star Wars paraphernalia into this box. There were figures and key chains representing of some of the main characters from the movies (thank you Jeannie for the donation). We found a fun “light saber” at the Family Dollar Store and the students had a blast with it—–lights and sounds with the push of a button, how cool is that!

The science access point observe and recognize a predictable cause-effect relationship can be addressed here.

Luke Skywalker lived on the planet Tatooine which has a desert landscape. Our homemade “sand” had a little bit of cinnamon in it so it was not only not only fun to touch but it smelled really good too!

We put in a variety of wooden shapes so our students could build some local “structures”.

Recognize common three-dimensional objects such as cylinders or cubes is a math access point.

Of course, we had to include a box dedicated to the ultimate bad guy—–Darth Vader! We put in some accessories from a “Darth Tater” kit in a box with our grey Floam so the students could build their own Vader.

The science access point recognize that the human body is made up of various parts can be addressed with this activity.

Kraft mac and cheese came out with these cool Star Wars pasta shapes. It took a couple of hours to dye but SO worth it! There were black Darth Vaders, yellow CP3Os, blue R2D2s, green Yodas, and red star fighters for sorting fun. The students also loved picking up handfuls of the colorful pasta!

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

We made a green jello swamp for our little Yoda—-complete with snakes, spiders, and a cute giant lizard.

Some of the students were a little hesitant to touch the cold, sticky goo but others thought it was pretty fantastic stuff 🙂

Recognize the temperature of items as cool or warm is a science access point.

Those sticky hands were rinsed off in water scented with “Ewok” mahogany woods from Bath and BodyWorks. Ms. Kim donated these fun Star Wars themed diving sticks that were perfect for our water play activity. The students really loved watching the water stream out of the bottom of these sticks!

Track objects in motion is a science access point.

The matching lotion was a hit with almost all of our students.

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

FINE MOTOR GROUP

On Tuesday our little Jedi turned to the dark side and made paper plate Death Stars. We adapted this idea from http://fun-a-day.com .To prep ours, we drew the lines with glue rather than white crayon.

We started by bringing out our galactic umbrella to give the students inspiration. It was a hit 🙂

After the umbrella was reluctantly put away, we discussed the shape of the paper plate and asked the students to identify the shape using communication symbols.

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

Then the students painted over their plates with watered down grey paint using a sponge brush.

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

Ta Da……..

………looks like Darth Vader is in the house 🙂

We went Wookie on Wednesday! The idea for this project came from http://funfamilycrafts.com

Instead of fun fur used in the original project, we used furry duct tape purchased at Walgreens. The duct tape was adhered to some 6 inch rulers to prep this for our students.

We started by asking the students to count how many eyes a Wookie has and to identify the number using communication symbols.

We did the same thing for the nose.

Associate quantities with number names is a math access point.

Next the students cut strips of paper to use for the strap that Chewbacca wears. The paper cutter worked perfectly for this task!

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

Then the students glued googlie eyes, pompom noses, and strap onto their Wookies. To work on one-to-one correspondence we placed target glue dots onto the fur.

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

Ta Da!!!!

The force is strong with these young padawans 🙂

LANGUAGE GROUP

We made another yummy snack this week—— Galactic Ice Cream Sundaes! Our students got to make choices of what they wanted using picture symbols, gestures, and verbalizations.

The first choice they got was to tell us how many scoops of ice cream they wanted in their bowl. We used big numbers showing “1” and “2” and our students would either point or place their hand on the amount they wanted.

Associate quantities with number names is a math access point.

Next, they got to chose which kind of syrup they wanted: chocolate, strawberry, or butterscotch. They were provided with symbols and again, would point or put their hand on the one they wanted.

Adjust body movement or nonverbal expression with prompting as necessary to communicate wants and needs is a language access point.

When asked if they wanted whipped cream, they would either use head shake/nod, verbalize no/yes, or point to a symbol no/yes. If they said yes, they had to show us how many squirts they wanted using the “1” and “2”.

They REALLY like this part 🙂

Finally, we poured some Star Wars cereal on top for a crunchy effect and let them choose which color pretzel/icing “light saber” they wanted: RED or GREEN.

We think we hit this one out of the galaxy!

YUM!!!!!

We hope your May the Fourth festivities are a blast! Be sure and join us again next time……Group by Group!

Jan19

The Places I Go Around School

Posted on January 19, 2014 by jd785

The Places I Go Around School

It was literacy week at our school and the general theme was “all the places you go”. We decided to focus on the all the places you go around school. Cara’s book was a huge hit—-our students loved seeing themselves or their friends faces in the book. Our sensory boxes were a lot of fun to put together, the fine motor art projects turned out so well, and our language group scavenger hunt was a blast!

SENSORY GROUP

The cafeteria is one of the favorite places around school—-that’s where all the food is after all 🙂 We filled the cafeteria box with paper shred and then added lunch related items including straws, play food, an ID card, and little tray.

The students had a lot of fun picking out their favorite food items and of course this led to lots of language opportunities. The straws we included turned out to be quite popular also—-placed into the milk carton or just waved about, our students loved them!

The science access point recognizing a model of a real object is addressed here. As with all our activities and boxes this week, the social studies access point associating a place with an activity in the classroom or school is also addressed.

We are so lucky to have a large sensory room at our school and needless to say it is one of the most popular places at school. Our students LOVE the sensory room and one of the favorite pieces of the equipment is the colorful ball pit!

Our colorful pompoms are round spheres just like the balls. We included 2 different sized pompoms in this box to compare or match. The plan was to address the math access point recognizing similarities and differences in size of common objects and the science access point to identify objects by one observable property, such as color…..

BUT kids being kids, the science access point of tracking falling objects was usually the one that was addressed 🙂

Music is another area that our students love to visit. We recorded a music clip on our voice output device and gave the students a shaker bottle instrument to jam along with the beat. We made the shaker bottle using a plastic soda bottle, adding some colorful beads AND hot gluing the lid on—-to at least slow down busy little hands 🙂

The science access points to recognize and respond to different types of sensory stimuli and apply a push or pull to move an object are addressed with this activity.

One of the most exciting places to go at school is the bus ramp BECAUSE that means it is time to go out for community based instruction. Like kids everywhere, our students enjoy riding the bus to exciting places.

For this box we added 2 different colored school buses to drive along black bean roads. We asked our students to find the bus that was the same color as the buses they ride, addressing the science access point to identify objects by one observable property.

Our students love making clay projects in art. Instead of clay, we brought back our green play dough from a few weeks ago. It still had the wonderful peppermint scent we had added and our students really enjoyed the aroma. We included 2 letter A (A for Art) cookie cutters.

The science access points recognizing an object by one observable property, applying a push or pull to move an object, and recognizing a change in an object are all addressed in this activity.

There are 3 playgrounds at our school—-how cool is that! Going to the playground is probably the number one favorite place of most of our students. So many fun things to do from climbing, to swinging to digging in the sandbox!

For our mini sandbox we taped a picture of a play ground (cut from a catalog) to the bottom of the box for the students to find as the sand was pushed aside. We also included a small measuring cup and spoon to practice scooping skills, bilateral skills and eye hand coordination.

The math access point solving problems involving small quantities of objects or actions using language such as enough, too much, or more are explored in this activity. Another math access point, recognizing differences in sizes of containers that hold liquids (capacity) is also addressed.

Probably THE most favorite place at our school is the pool! Our PE teachers do such a great job and it is such a therapeutic place for our students.

We used Bath and Bodyworks Dancing Waters scent in our water—-it is kind of hard to find chlorine scented bath products 🙂 We also included 4 foam swim noodle pieces and a measuring spoon. The students practiced their scooping and eye hand coordination skills again as they tried to scoop water into the noodle holes.

Math access points addressed here include recognizing two dimensional shapes such as a circle and using one to one correspondence to identify sets of objects with the same amount to 2 can be addressed in this activity.

We finished with the Dancing Waters lotion to help us remember all the fun we had! Our students really liked the soft aroma of this scent and enjoyed indicating where they wanted the lotion on their bodies.

As usual this activity addresses the science access points of recognizing one or more external body parts and recognizing and responding to one type of sensory stimuli. It also addresses the language access point of adjusting body movements of nonverbal expressions to communicate desires or preferences.

FINE MOTOR GROUP

The playground was the theme for our Tuesday art project. We started by counting out rectangle shaped paper and using a sponge brush to paint on some glue.

The math access point recognizing a 2 dimensional shape is addressed. The science access point recognizing a change in an object is also addressed.

Then we scooped crushed yellow cereal “sand” onto the glue. This activity promotes scooping skills and eye hand coordination. We also counted how many scoops each student put on their paper.

The science access point recognize a change in an object is again addressed. The math access point solve problems involving small quantities of objects or actions using language, such as enough, too much, or more is also addressed.

We precut a bunch of playground pictures from some old catalogs and let our students choose which one they wanted to add to their pictures.

Our students with physical challenges used eye gaze to indicate their preferences.

This activity addresses the language access points of responding to informational materials and using body movement or nonverbal expression to communicate preferences.

We love the way these turned out—–and so did our students!

TA DA!!!!!!!

On Thursday we chose the cafeteria as the theme for our art project.

We counted out rectangle pieces of paper and discussed the paint colors, red and yellow, that we were going to use with our big apple and small corn cob. A fork was stuck into the apple to make it easier for our students to handle—-it worked really well!

We started by stamping 1 red apple print.

Next 1 yellow corn cob print.

The math access point recognizing differences in sizes of objects is addressed, in addition to the math access point recognizing 2 dimensional shapes.

Then we asked our students ” what color comes next?”.

After we stamped another apple print, we again asked “what comes next?”.

We thought the students would need a lot of assistance with this BUT they did really well—-our students ROCK!

The math access point recognizing the next step in a simple pattern or sequence of activities is addressed in this activity.

TA Da!

So proud—-and rightly so!

LANGUAGE GROUP

Since we are talking about all the different places you go, we decided to have a scavenger hunt and find 3 different places around our school.

After reading Cara’s book, we looked at the directions for the scavenger hunt. We went over what we had to find FIRST, NEXT, and LAST. The directions had a picture of the places that we had to find.

The math access point to indicate the next step in a sequence of activities is addressed.

The social studies access point recognizing a picture of a location is also addressed.

FIRST we had to find the music room. On the way, we would stop and ask the students to show us the way to go. They would point in the direction we had to go.

NEXT we had to find the art room. Since our students go to art and music once a week, they were easily able to locate these rooms.

LAST we had to find the playground. Our students DEFINITELY know where the playground is! Once we got to the playground, we looked at the directions again and went over what places we had just found.

All done and time to play!

Another great week! Join us again, there is more fun and learning to come—-Group by Group.