Tag Archives: science

Nov19

Thanksgiving and Letter L

Posted on November 19, 2012 by jd785

It was all about Thanksgiving in our Fine and Sensory Groups this week. In our Language Group we looked at words that started with Letter L.

Sensory Group—Thanksgiving

We filled this box with play food (squash and other vegetables), turkeys and corn (popcorn kernels)—things you might find at your Thanksgiving feast. We also put in some crochet squares—like the blanket you might snuggle under after the feast!

Of course there is always a game on TV, so we had to put in a small football!

Some pilgrim and native american stickers, and feathers to remind us of the first Thanksgiving. A gift card and small box reminded us of all the shopping we might do after the big day 🙂

And finally, the words Home and Family to remind us what the holiday is all about.

We just loved the different ways our students interacted with the items in the box. In this picture, this little girl is making her turkey eat the corn—-so CUTE!!!

This student, after examining the other items,

became really intrigued by the words

—-working on his literacy, gotta love it 🙂

This box addresses a variety of access

points related to language including

attending to print materials by looking

and touching, and

communicating recognition of familiar

objects.

Our brown feather boa looked just like turkey feathers. As we discuss the fact that birds (like turkeys) have feathers, we address the science access point related to sorting animals by observable characteristics.

Of course, we are also addressing the science access point of responding to sensory stimuli! Our students love to touch and rub the feathers or watch them move about.

Draping the feathers around your neck is kind of fun also 🙂

We thought of pilgrims with our black and white box.

Big soft pompoms and small, hard beads gave us

materials to contrast, compare and count.

This addresses the science access point of

identifying objects by observable properties.

It also addresses the math access points of

recognizing a three-dimensional object (sphere),

differences in size of objects, recognizing two

objects that are the same size and/or color and

as seen in this picture—comparing quantities to 3.

The two discovery bottles reminded us of the first Thanksgiving participants. Beads for the native americans (Wampanoag) and a blue one like the ocean the pilgrims sailed across.

As the students interact with the bottles they are exploring the science access points of applying a push or pull to move an object and tracking objects as they move.

Some of our students loved shaking the bead bottle really hard to hear them rattle, others (as seen in this picture) turned them slowly, watching the beads move around.

Wrist rotation is addressed while turning the bottles in this manner.

Our next box reminded us of more yummy Thanksgiving

food! We filled it with some potato flakes.

A turkey was taped to the bottom of our next box and

could be seen when the potato flakes were

pushed aside.

We also put in the letter T for Thanksgiving—

and turkeys!

The potato flakes have an interesting texture—

soft yet slightly crunchy—-very intriguing.

Locating the letters amongst the flakes

addresses tactile discrimination.

We pushed a turkey cookie cutter into ooey gooey cranberry sauce in our next box.

And just like the response “what is this stuff” given at the Thanksgiving table to canned cranberry sauce—our students weren’t quite sure what to make of it 🙂

Interacting with the cranberry sauce addresses the science access point of responding to sensory stimuli.

Handling and manipulating the cookie cutter addresses grasp skills.

Hands were cleaned in Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin

from Bath and Body Works.

And then we rubbed the lotion on our hands to

leave the group smelling like delicious

pumpkin pies.

Rubbing the lotion on the different extremities

helps build body awareness. Of course, the

lovely aroma is there to help them build

memories of all the wonderful things we

learned today!

Fine Motor Group—Thanksgiving

On Tuesday, after reading Cara’s awesome book, we passed out these cute craft foam turkeys we found in the dollar section at target—10 for a dollar, thats a pretty good deal!

We counted our turkeys as we passed them out, addressing math access points.

Then our students picked out “gobble” sticker from a choice of 3 colors. It will be alternate assessment time before we know it so we are really trying to get as much practice as we can, choosing from an array of 3.

We decorated the turkeys with foam stickers.

Foam stickers are a little thicker than

paper ones, making them easier to grasp

for our students.

We further adapted the activity by

partially peeling off the backing. This

allowed them to work on their pincer

grasp skills.

A few feathers and a fun googlie eye completes a rather fabulous turkey….

TA DA!!!

These turkeys are almost as cute as our students 🙂

On Thursday, for our art activity we made

some pilgrim hats!

We started by cutting a small rectangle

off a strip of paper using our

adaptive scissors.

This addresses the math access point of

recognizing a 2 dimensional shape.

Then we cut out a yellow rectangle—bigger than the white one!

We glued the small rectangle onto the large rectangle.

This addresses the math access point of recognizing similarities and differences in size of common objects.

It also addresses grasp and release skills in addition to spatial relationships.

This was then glued onto the white paper strip.

Placing the pieces addresses spatial

relationships and eye hand coordination.

It always helpful to get a second opinion on

placement—to make sure you got it just

right 🙂

We set aside our paper strips and then counted out our paper plates and after writing our names, turned them over and painted them black.

The shape of the paper plates was discussed addressing the math access point of recognizing a 2 dimensional shape.

While the students were painting, their paper strips

were taped to some black cups (found in a

Halloween clearance section).

An adult made a circle of colored glue on the

plate and asked the students to put the cup on

“top” of it.

This addresses spatial concepts and eye hand

coordination.

This cute little pilgrim hat deserves a pretty big…..

TA DA!!!!!!

Language Group—Letter L

We started by Listening for L words in Cara’s sound game.

It was Lots of fun.

Then we Listened to a Little Lion roar. This toy was found

in Target’s dollar section—our favorite part of

the store 🙂

It has a button on the stomach that you push so

it is also great for addressing finger individuation

skills.

Then we strung some Large beads…a great activity for promoting bilateral skills.

For our students who are more physically impaired, we adapted the activity by putting the bead on the string and letting them pull the string “up”—-addressing spatial concepts.

After the beads were all strung we counted them, targeting math skills.

Of course we also talked about the different colors of the beads—so much learning in one little activity 🙂

Next we Lit some Lights using our Powerlink and a

switch to enable all our students to participate.

We Loved Looking at the Lights!

This activity addresses the science access

point of recognizing and responding to

sensory stimuli and the access point of

recognizing a change in an object—the lights

come on when the switch is pressed.

After Listening and Looking, we moved to smell and touch with some Lavender Lotion.

Most of our students really Loved it!

This activity also addresses the science access point of recognizing and responding to sensory stimuli.

We finished by stamping some spots on a Leopard!

Our stamper was made by wrapping a dish

scrubber with bubble wrap (using a twist tie to

secure it).

This activity addresses eye hand coordination

and visual discrimination as students stamp

on the leopard—not the table 🙂

He’s so cute you just have to roar—Loudly!

That was our Last activity, we did a Lot more than usual today!

There was a Lot of fun and Laughter in our Language group today! Here are some of

the L words we found.

We had a great week and hope you join us again after Thanksgiving for more fun, Group by Group!

Gobble gobble 🙂

Nov5

Fall and Letter J

Posted on November 5, 2012 by jd785

Fall and Letter J

It got a little chilly this week, perfect for talking about Fall in our Sensory and Fine Motor Groups! In our Language Group we learned about words starting with Ms. Joy’s favorite letter—J. We hope you are enjoying seeing our students—we think they are awfully cute 🙂 One of our teachers, Ms. Bennett, has been projecting the blog onto a big screen and her students have been having so much fun looking for their pictures.

Sensory Group—Fall

Jumping into a pile of leaves…….AKA the sensory room ball pit!

Is this fun or what!

Our students love both jumping into and burying themselves in the colorful balls. So much wonderful vestibular and proprioceptive input to help build body awareness!

This also helps address the science access point of recognizing one or more external body parts as we discuss which parts of their body are covered by the balls.

Now, back to the classroom…..

We started with Cara’s book, as usual, and

when we got to the page about the wind

blowing the leaves we turned on the hair

dryer (on “cool” setting of course). Each

student got a chance to hold the leaves

and feel the “wind”. They all loved it!

Lots of smiles all around 🙂

This activity addresses the science

access point of indicating awareness of

air moving.

More leaves in our next box, along with a variety of fall related items. We put in a small football, scarecrows, squirrels, playfood apples and hamburgers (for tailgating at those football games), pine cones, pieces of yarn in fall colors, and LOTS of silk leaves. A lovely assortment of textures to feel and examine.

Finding objects in the box involves both visual and tactile discrimination skills.

This box also addresses the science access point of recognizing that plants have leaves.

Our colorful pom pom yarn was so much fun.

It reminds us of nice warm sweaters that we

wear when it starts to get chilly outside!

We found this yarn at Michaels.

Its wonderfully soft and fun to pull apart

addressing bilateral skills.

It also addresses the science access point

of recognizing clothing worn by humans

in different weather (seasons)

Of course, its so great for draping over

and around you like a scarf or hat.

This, of course, addresses the access point of giggling at least once daily 🙂

A box of assorted dried beans made us think

of some yummy warm soup on a cool

autumn evening. Our students love to bury

their hands into the beans as well as

empty and fill the different containers.

You have to love the two fisted approach

shown here 🙂

This addresses the math access point of

recognizing differences in sizes of

containers (capacity).

Here in the south, fall means FOOTBALL! We put in some pom poms, mardi gras beads and shakers in the colors of our favorite teams. Our students LOVED the shakers—they were a huge hit.

Most of them even ignored the mardi gras beads in favor of the the shakers—and the beads are usually a favorite!

This box addresses the science access point of recognizing an action as fast or slow.

Our cornflakes sounded just like dried leaves.

Wonderfully noisy, our students had a great

time with this box.

A few did try to sample

the “leaves’ but for the most part they just

enjoyed smashing and crunching them.

This activity addresses the science access

point of recognizing and responding to

common sounds.

Cool weather means warm breakfasts…like oatmeal!

We searched for the letter F as we sifted through it. A delightful tactile experience.

You can’t really see it in this picture, but a piece of paper with leaves was taped to the bottom of the box to be found as the oatmeal is cleared away. With these boxes being clear, we can tape pictures to the bottom of the box thus being seen without getting torn up as students explore the contents.

Our own little genius moment 🙂

Fall means camping and campfires—and

that means s’mores! Yum Yum!

Our oobleck looks

just like melted marshmallow don’t

you think?

As the oobleck changes from a solid

to a liquid this addresses the science

access point of recognizing that the

appearance of an object or material

has changed.

Always fascinating!

Fall is also apple picking time and our Country Apple scent from Bath, and Body Works was the perfect scent to help us remember all the wonderful things we did today.

Smell is an important memory trigger, so we always end our group with some aromatic water and lotion activities.

Fine Motor Group—Fall

Fall is our theme so OF COURSE on Tuesday

we had to make a colorful tree! First we

passed our our rectangular pieces of paper

and practiced writing our names on the

back. Then we used our assorted

adaptive scissors to snip colorful pieces

of paper. What a great way to practice our

emergent cutting skills.

This also addresses the math access point

of recognizing a common object with a

two-dimensional shape.

The colorful paper pieces were dipped into glue and placed onto the tree.

Those tiny pieces of paper are just perfect for facilitating a pincer grasp. In addition, eye hand coordination and spatial relationships are addressed in this activity.

What a fabulous colorful fall tree!

TA DA!!!

Love how the artist added his

own touch by crumpling

some of the pieces to add

more dimension.

Pure genius!

On Thursday, after reading Cara’s book again, we made some cute little scarecrows.

First we used our adaptive scissors or paper cutters to cut 4 strips of yellow paper.

This addresses the math access point of using quantities to 4.

As the paper cutters are shared with classmates, the students address the science access point of sharing objects with a partner—-sharing and taking turns is a very important skill!

We said we needed 4 strips…

Here is 1!

They need to look just

like this 🙂

The science access

point of recognizing a

change in an object is

addressed here.

We glued them to a round white paper plate and……

…..added a precut brown hat.

This addresses the math access point of recognizing common objects with two-dimensional shapes.

Next came an orange triangle nose and 2 googlie eyes!

More math access points!

TA DA—done without any assistance…..

pure AWESOMENESS!!!!!!!!

These little scarecrows are ready for duty….

…..you crows out there better watch out 🙂

Language Group—-Letter J

We started with Cara’s sound game.

It had some really cute sounds this week.

This activity addresses the science access point of recognizing and responding to common sounds.

We helped Tigger…..

Jump!

This addresses the

math access point of

recognizing a

movement that reflects

a spatial relationship.

Then we unscrewed a Jar…….

……to find a Jungle animal.

Unscrewing the jar addresses bilateral coordination and wrist rotation.

We finished by making Jingle bell Jewelry!

Threading the pipe cleaner through the bell addresses bilateral skills.

Counting the bells also allows for the opportunity to address more math access points—-and we love that.

Jazzy and Jingly….totally fun don’t you think! These were a total hit with our students, they really loved shaking their arms and listening to the bells.

We loved finding all those cool J words today!

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

Oct14

Italian Heritage Month and the Letter G

Posted on October 14, 2012 by jd785

Italian Heritage Month and the Letter G

It was all about red, white, and green—the colors of the Italian flag— in our Sensory and Fine Motor Groups! In our Language Group we looked at words that start with the letter G.

Sensory Group—Italian Heritage

Cara’s book helped us learn about Italian heritage. Our students did such a great job activating the voice output device to read the repetitive line. With the switch we are working on timing of the hit and activating it just one time.

This addresses the access point of responding to familiar print media.

Our color boxes were filled with assorted red things Joy collected around the OT room.

We included beads (large ones to avoid choking hazards, of course), chenille stems, pom poms, a big bow from a valentine wreath, package ties, finger puppets etc.

You name it—if it was the right color, it went into the box 🙂

Hmmm—-this looks interesting 🙂

The main idea of these boxes is to encourage exploration to compare and contrast the differing properties of materials and our students were definitely intrigued!

Most students dove into every box exploring the contents with equal enthusiasm. A few students, however, either did not engage or became overly excited with one of the color boxes. It appeared that the particular color was either over or under stimulating to them.

Beads are always a favorite……and, of course, if beads are in a box—you have to put them on!

These boxes address a number of science access points, including identifying objects by one observable property and recognizing objects as the same.

We practiced scooping with our mix of red, white, and green beans. They were so pretty and colorful.

As the cup is filled, the math access point of recognizing the differences in the capacity of containers is addressed.

A large letter I was placed in our rice mix —-more red, white, and green of course!

We also taped an Italian flag to the bottom of the box—a little

surprise to find.

We added red pepper flakes and green oregano to our playdough to continue our colorful theme. It also had the added bonus of adding an interesting aroma.

We used our heart shaped cookie cutter—-because we LOVE Italy 🙂

This addresses the math access point of recognizing two-dimensional shapes.

Red and green glitter made our oobleck sparkle!

We practiced our pre-writing designs making

vertical strokes.

Most excellently done in

this picture, as you can see 🙂

We rinsed our hands in grape scented lotion. They grow lots of yummy grapes in Italy!

Then we finished with some vanilla sugar lotion so we could leave the group smelling like delicious cannolis—yum yum 🙂

This activity addresses the science access point of recognizing and responding to different types of sensory stimuli.

Fine Motor Group—Italian Heritage

We rode on some “gondolas” in the sensory room.

Our bolster swing is a huge favorite with our students and a really fun way to work on sitting balance!

After the sensory room we returned to the classroom to read Cara’s book and begin our art project.

We counted out 8 pieces of paper and wrote our names on the back.

Each time we count out our pieces of paper we are working on the math access point of identifying quantities.

Today we are doing spaghetti (well actually string, ha ha) painting.

We asked our students to choose which color they wanted to paint with first…..

…..sometimes its hard to make that choice 🙂

Then we dipped our strings into the paint

and got to work!

This activity addresses eye hand

coordination.

Ta Da!

…….Red,

……………white,

…………………and green!

Gotta love that smile 🙂

On Thursday we made some pizza pies!

We counted out our paper plates and then used red markers to color some

red pizza sauce. A variety of markers were used including these

pipsqueak markers from Crayola.

Our students are spending more time engaged with scribbling and

we are very excited about their progress!

Time to add the cheese—-some shredded yellow paper which looked pretty realistic so we did have to remind some of them that it was paper :).

Eye hand coordination skills are addressed during this activity. Also, strengthening is addressed while squeezing the glue onto the plate.

The math access point of indicating a desire for more of an object is addressed.

Can’t forget the pepperoni!

Our circle cutters work great for making perfect pepperoni pieces and our students really like using them.

Identifying a 2-dimensional shape is a math access point.

Each student counted how many pieces of pepperoni they put on their pizza.

This addressed the math access point of showing one-to-one correspondence.

Time for some pizza.

YUM! YUM!

Language Group—-Letter G

We used our thumbs to Guide our dog.

Go dog Go!

Then we Gathered some Green Grapes using our tongs to

Grab them.

Got to count them as well, to address math access

points:)

Next we Glued 2 black foam circle eyes and 1 black oval mouth on a paper plate.

The texture of the foam was very helpful for our student with a visual impairment.

Then we tore some paper streamers,

Glued them on to the back of the plate to make a……

Ghost!

Good job!

We played Cara’s sound game and listened for some G sounds.

Great fun!

And we finished by looking at some of the

G words we found today.

What an awesome week! Please come

back again, Group by Group.

Oct7

Animal Habitats and the Letter F

Posted on October 7, 2012 by jd785

Animal Habitats and the Letter F

This week our Language Group looked at words that start with the letter F. Our Sensory and Fine Motor Groups learned about animal habitats which tied into this month’s Unique Curriculum theme.

Sensory Group—Animal Habitats

We started out in the rainforest. Joy twist tied some green garland, curling ribbon, and twisted paper strips to a black umbrella to make the rainforest “canopy”. We added jungle sounds to a voice output device, a water mister, and a stuffed monkey.

Simple idea but very effective—our students were enchanted! We prompted them to activate the voice output device then brought the rainforest over their heads. They got soooo excited when it was their turn!

Pressing the voice output device after cessation of the sounds addresses the math access point of indicating a desire for more of an action or object.

Had to put another picture in…. our students are just so cute!

We couldn’t get the shot but she was using the monkey to

activate the voice output device—could that be any

more adorable 🙂

From the rainforest to the arctic tundra!

We used about 5 boxes of instant tapioca granules which look just like snow crystals. They have an interesting, slightly coarse feel. We put in a polar bear and some white felt bunnies which blended into the background—just like they do in the arctic! Our letter A’s being different colors really contrasted well.

This box addresses visual discrimination skills. It also addresses the math access point of one to one correspondence—counting 2 bunnies and 1 polar bear.

Our desert box had the letter D, sand, rocks, snakes,

scorpions, and lizards.

Again lots of opportunities to count things and to

compare the different properties of the

soft sand and hard rocks.

The forest/woodland box was filled with pine cones,leaves and moss. Since it was a larger box we put in a large letters F and W, along with a variety of little animals to find hidden in it.

Using the finger puppets addresses bilateral coordination as the student places them on their fingers and also finger individuation as they animate the animals.

Comparing the differing colors of the leaves and differing textures the other materials addresses the science access point of comparing objects by observable properties.

We looked at a soil habitat next (using our coffee grounds for the dirt).

Its strong aroma immediately engages the students! It contained

some spiders, bugs, worms, and centipedes.

Our students loved running their fingers through the soil

and glimpsing the word “soil” taped to the bottom of the box.

Of course, it was also so much fun to pick up and examine all the different bugs to be found hidden in the soil.

Pincer grasps are promoted when picking up the small animals and math access points are addressed when counting them.

Green jello made an excellent swamp habitat for our frogs

and gators!

The cold jello added another sensory dimension and

allowed us to discuss the science access point of

recognizing materials as warm or cold and also the

science access point of recognizing objects that are

identical to each other when counting the frogs.

Some students were a little hesitant to touch this cold and wet material….

…..but others dived right in 🙂

Hands were rinsed in our pond habitat. We used

“Into the Wild” body wash from Bath and

Bodyworks—it seemed perfect for our habitat

theme!

Grasping skills were promoted while

reaching for the floating fish or ducks.

In addition, one to one correspondence and the

concepts of large and small which are math

access points.

We finished with some banana scented lotion (yes banana scented lotion, can you believe it!) we found at World Market.

Our students loved the aroma and feeling it rubbed on their arms—or back of the neck, for students who do a lot of hand exploration.

A lovely scent to help us remember all the wonderful animal habitats we visited today.

Fine Motor Group—Animal Habitats

We started as usual by reading Cara’s book and using the voice output device to help read the repetitive line.

On Tuesday we jumped like rainforest monkeys in the sensory room.

What a fun way to get some proprioceptive and vestibular input which is so important for our students to help build body awareness and gross motor skills.

Then we came back to the classroom and began our

art project—-paper plate fish!

We counted out our plates as they were handed out

and we discussed the plates color (white) and

circular shape.

Then we cut out a triangle shape using our adaptive

scissors. Discussing the different shapes addresses

the math access point of recognizing

two-dimensional shapes.

Joy twist tied some bubble wrap to handled pot scrubbers (these things make the best adaptive art tools) and we stamped our fish—lots of fun!

Then we added one great big googlie eye!

Pincer grasp, finger isolation skills are

addressed here in addition to visual

spatial relations and math concepts.

TA DA! Ok, we realize you don’t really see the fish but this was such a great picture we had to put it in. Their TA DA moment if very important to our students as you can see 🙂

On Thursday we made some turtles.

We started by counting out our poster board turtles and then our

egg carton shells—working on the math access point of rote

counting yet again 🙂

We asked our students to put the shells ON TOP of the turtles,

addressing spatial concepts and eye hand

coordination.

While the adults hot glued the shells to the bodies, our students put on their paint shirts—working on dressing skills.

Then we painted the little turtles. Using the brushes

gives our students practice with writing tools and

addresses eye hand coordination.

They really got into this!

Isn’t this awesome, our own little pond habitat—

we LOVE it!

Language Group—Letter F

First we used our Fingers to operate the Fan—-

which blew air into our Faces.

Can you see that dimple, just too cute 🙂

Then we Found Five Fish with different Features.

YIKES, we didn’t get a picture of all the fish but to give you an idea: a Fantail one from a Fishing game, a Fat ball shaped one, a Felt one, a water squirter that blew Fresh air.

We dropped them into a Fishbowl, addressing eye hand coordination and the math access point of rote counting.

Our Favorite was the Fidgity Fish —it vibrated!

Lots of sounds were Found while playing

Cara’s latest sound game.

We had a Fiesta to say Farewell to

Ms. Robin’s Fabulous intern Julie.

And Finished by using a Funnel to help

get the salsa back in the jar.

Some of the F words we Found today!

Join us again for more fun and learning next week, Group by Group.

May8

Week 31—Mexico and Measuring Time

Posted on May 8, 2012 by jd785

Week 31—Mexico and Measuring Time

Our Fine Motor and Sensory Groups learned about Mexico this week in preparation for Cinco de Mayo! The theme for our Language Group was Telling Time.

Sensory Group—Mexico

Our students really enjoyed Cara’s book. We had fun discussing what we saw in all the bright colorful pictures and took turns wearing this awesome hat—thanks Ms. Dani!

Our first box contained a variety of items related to our theme to give lots of language opportunities. We put in straw which is what traditionally is used to make baskets and sandals and paper streamers like the ones on pinatas.

Hidden amongst this were sea shells (for the beautiful beaches), a Mexican flag, a toy taco (yum), butterflies and a colorful bird. We put in the word “Friends” because the people of Mexico are our friends.

We also recorded some traditional Mexican music on a voice output device that was tucked into the straw and activated by both accidental and deliberate touches.

The colors on the Mexican flag are red, white and green. This box filled with soft round pompoms and long hard beads addresses color identification in addition to math access points when counting items or comparing shapes.

More red, white and green with our box of rice.

A great tactile feel as it sifts through the fingers and as the rice is shifted a surprise picture of a cactus (there are lots of cacti in Mexico) taped to the bottom of the bottom of the box.

We love eating refried beans, burritos and other Mexican foods that contain beans—yum yum 🙂 With the addition of a spoon, scooping skills are addressed. The beans are also a wonderful tactile sensation as they trickle through fingers….

…. or when in a bottle, fun to

shake!

Corn tortilla’s are also a part of Mexican cuisine and were represented here with our cornmeal. Students searched for the letter M for Mexico and the number 5 for Cinco de Mayo.

Of course, its also fun to scoop and catch as it spills down—-just plain wonderful stuff!

Monarch butterflies migrate to Mexico each year, so we brought back our pasta butterflies and put in some laminated pictures of monarch butterflies.

The green caterpillars and orangey red butterflies had both shape and color comparisons.

And they are just so bright and colorful 🙂

We added green food coloring to our shaving cream and made guacamole (unfortunately not edible though!). Before we added the green food coloring we hypothesized “what will happen” to address science access points.

Shaving cream is always popular and a fun medium to practice pre-writing strokes.

We rinsed our hands in lime scented water and then rubbed some lime scented lotion on our hands to help us remember all the wonderful things we learned about Mexico.

Fine Motor Group—Mexico

On Tuesday, we had a great time reading Cara’s book and had fun discussing what we saw in all the bright colorful pictures. For our art activity we made some Papel Picado banners which are colorful paper fiesta decorations.

First gave our students a choice of 3 colorful rectangles of tissue paper (recycled from presents past).

Then we folded it over twice and made sure that the folds were pressed really flat. We had pre-folded and then opened the paper back up as we anticipated most of our students would need help with this step.

We used either hole punches or our table top scissors to make cut outs in the tissue paper.

Counting the cutouts in the paper addresses math access points.

This is how it ends up looking when

unfolded, pretty terrific!

And look at how bright and colorful they look decorating the hallway.

On Thursday, we read Cara’s book again and proceeded to make some maracas for our fiesta!

First we used our paper cutters and adaptive scissors to cut a strip of bulletin boarder trim (it was a give away and therefore free, and we like that!)

We gave each student a recycled water bottle, counting as we passed them out, of course. The strip of boarder trim was then taped around the bottle.

Manipulating the tape promotes thumb finger opposition in addition to eye hand coordination.

Then we placed 8 cups filled with different items onto the table.

We discussed what each cup contained and then gave 1 to each student.

The students were instructed to put their items into their bottles. This activity promotes bilateral coordination and pincer grasp skills.

We adapted this activity by using a funnel for those students whose grasp and release patterns were not as precise.

The cap was screwed on (working on wrist rotation) and Ta Da—-a fabulous maraca!

As each student got their Ta Da and shook their maraca, we discussed the different sounds they each made (addressing science access points, differing properties of materials).

Everyone LOVED shaking their maracas 🙂

Language Group—Measuring Time

We talked about different ways to measure time and then had each student begin putting together their own Friday schedule. Using a completed schedule for reference, they were given 3 choices as to what came next on the schedule.

We also referenced time of day, addressing math access points.

Breakfast being first was easy but choosing “what comes next” was more difficult.

Some of our students needed us to give them some assistance by pointing to the model’s visual cue.

And here is the final product!

Continuing with our look at time measurement, we discussed the end of the school year and began making a summer countdown paper chain.

We started by using our paper cutters to cut strips of paper.

Don’t you just love the teamwork in this picture 🙂

Next we used the stapler to fasten a strip into a circle.

And took turns putting another strip

of paper into the chain.

We counted the loops periodically and discussed how many more we needed—addressing math access points. Its getting bigger!

Wow, 18 loops in the chain. It will be so much fun to take a loop off day by day as we countdown to summer 🙂

We finished as usual by looking at some of the time related words we discussed today.

Its been a great week but things are getting a little crazy around here with IEP’s, field trips, special programs and some unexpected surgeries! We may not be posting regular groups for a while but we are planning some alternate posts such as how we organize all our “stuff” and other logistical information. We are also planning to upload some of Joy’s original drawings as templates for you to download. And we will DEFINITELY be back in the fall with new ideas and activities Group by Group!

Apr30

Week 29—Earth Day

Posted on April 30, 2012 by jd785

Week 29—Earth Day

This week out theme was Earth Day for our Fine Motor and Sensory Groups. Unfortunately we had to cancel our Language group this week.

Sensory Group—Earth Day

Cara’s latest book gave us lots of ideas on how to save the earth. We passed around a stuffed globe as a prop while reading the repetitive line.

We filled our first box with shredded paper (something we can recycle!). Scattered about were some toy cans and bottles, cardboard, and plastic toys—-all things we can recycle. We also put in the word “home” to remind us that earth is our home and we need to keep it clean. A little energy saver sign, reminding us to turn out the lights when we leave the room. We put little people in the box to discuss that it is people who are responsible for keeping our earth clean.

As you can imagine, our students loved the paper shred, so much fun to shake and wave around!

From space, our planet looks like a big blue and green ball. In our next box we put a variety of green and blue items. From hard beads and blocks to soft pompoms and chenille strings.

Lots to material properties to contrast addressing science access points.

Our next box continued our blue and green theme. We recycled our playdough from our under the sea week!

We added some green glitter which gave it a nice sparkle and had car and tree cookie cutters to remind us to plant trees and combine car trips to save gas.

We love using playdoh to improve fine motor skills but math access points can also be addressed when counting the shapes cut out. In addition, prewriting skills can be addressed when making letters with the playdough.

More blue and green! We added some green split peas to our blue rice and it turned out so pretty and eye catching. Our students looked for big and little letter E’s hidden in the rice.

How about a box of aluminum foil!

Something we can recycle and ever so much fun to crumple and wave around.

It also makes noise as it is played with, adding a nice auditory component!

Our sensory bottles helped us discuss global warming. One bottle was filled with clear hair gel and some foam shapes. The foam shapes don’t move around the gel—it looks just like solid ice, and thats how we want our ice caps to remain! The other bottle was filled with hand sanitizer, clear marbles, and some more foam shapes. The foam shapes and marbles move around in the hand sanitizer, just like melting ice.

They made a really cool visual comparison.

Next we made some clean mud. We tore up a roll of toilet paper (from the dollar store) and sprinkled in a bar of grated soap (from the dollar store). Tearing up the paper help address bilateral coordination.

We added a cup of warm water—eye hand coordination and measurement!

Then squished and squeezed until we ended up with mud! Its got a really cool consistency which some of our students

liked—-and

others absolutely did not!

Fortunately, we had a bowl of Juniper Breeze (from Bath and Body Works) scented water in which to wash hands 🙂

We finished with our Juniper

Breeze lotion to remind us of

our beautiful earth.

Fine Motor Group—Earth Day

We read Cara’s book, again using the stuffed globe as a prop.

Then we counted out 8 large blue construction paper blue circles and used a communication board to find the number 8.

Green paint was added to a mixture of glue and shaving cream and we asked our students to guess what was going to happen.

Everybody got a chance to stir the mixture—-and we watched as the glue and shaving cream mixture turned green!

A fun way to address science access points.

We put the mixture on one hand and counted out loud as we printed on the paper 2 times.

For our students who were unable to tolerate the paint on their palms (tactile defensiveness), Joy adapted the activity by painting her own hand and placed the students hand on top to help make the print.

Ta Da! Doesn’t this just like the earth!

It will be even cooler when it dries because our mixture dries just like puffy paint. The raised texture will also make it perfect for our student with a visual impairment to explore.

On Thursday, after reading Cara’s book again, we made Recycle Man!

We used an aluminum pie plate for the head and counted out 2 bottle cap eyes. 1 yogurt container became a nose and can tabs made teeth.

Of course we counted everything as we put it on but we also described the position (ex. on top, under) to address more access points and spatial relationships.

As our Recycle Man is on a vertical surface, shoulder stability is addressed items are placed.

We chose which cap to use as a

belly button…

….and added it to our aluminum roasting pan body!

Perfect!

Then we counted out 8 cans (1 for

each student.

And used them to make arms and legs

for…..

Recycle Man!!!

Isn’t he awesome!

Hope you had fun celebrating Earth Day with us this week. Join us again Group by Group!.

Apr9

Week 27—Easter Time

Posted on April 9, 2012 by jd785

Week 27—Easter Time

This week the theme for our Sensory and Fine Motor Groups was Easter. We did not have a Language Group this week because the class went on a field trip.

Sensory Group—Easter Time

We read Cara’s book and used our voice output device to read the repetitive line.

Some of our students use their hands or their heads and a few even use their feet!

Then we started exploring our sensory boxes. Our first box had a variety of easter related items including easter grass, plastic eggs and carrots, easter cookie cutters, purple/pink/yellow pompom’s, a little plush chick and duck.

The Easter grass was a huge hit and pulling apart the strands promotes bilateral coordination in addition to fine motor skills.

Counting pompoms or carrots addresses math access points. Discussing size, shape, color and texture addresses science points.

It’s amazing how much you can fit into one little box!

Next we explored bright yellow feathers and big white pompoms—-our version of chicks and bunnies! These items let us compare and contrast the various properties of these materials, addressing science access points.

We loved these fluffy feathers. It was so much fun to pick up a handful and watch as they drifted down. There were so many feathers, that some of the students ended up looking a little like Big Bird 🙂

Visual tracking is addressed as the feathers drift down and pincer grasp skills are addressed as the students pick up the feathers. Tactile discrimination is also addressed.

We also had fun with our easter garland. We draped on or wrapped it around our students. It was also fun to grab it and shake it.

The little egg decorations really fluttered around, very visually interesting and soft to the touch.

We looked for the letter E in our green rice. Its bright green color looked just like grass with tiny little white easter eggs (navy beans). We also taped some easter egg pictures to the bottom of our box which could be found as the rice was brushed aside.

It was really eye catching and our students loved sifting it through their fingers.

This activity addresses visual and tactile discrimination in addition to literacy.

We also addressed visual skills with our sensory bottle filled with jelly beans. Our students loved shaking it and listening to the rattle as it was shook.

We did have to carefully watch the bottle as a few of the staff really wanted a sample 🙂

Our bunny and sheep fake fur was fun to rub and touch. Soft and cuddly just like little bunnies and lambs.

While it was the same color the textures were different (science access points).

We made our own version of marshmallow peeps by mixing cornstarch, shaving cream and yellow food coloring.

Soft and squishy just like marshmallows! This is the same stuff we made last week (minus the food coloring) and it was just as much fun this week—awesome stuff you HAVE to try it 🙂

We discussed how the materials changed as we mixed them, addressing science access points.

Finger painting in chocolate pudding, practicing prewriting strokes and the letter E.

It doesn’t get much messier than this!

Our students were pretty good about not sampling but as you can see in the picture, our hands needed to stay pretty close!

We rinsed off in vanilla sugar scented water and rubbed our hands in vanilla sugar scented lotion—to remind us of all the yummy candy we hope to find in our easter baskets, YUM!!!

Fine Motor Group—Easter Time

We read Cara’s book and students took turns using our bunny puppet.

It was so cute to watch as they waved it around or made it hop.

For our art activity we started by passing out 8 pieces of blue paper.

We counted the papers as we handed them out and discussed their rectangular shape addressing math access points.

Of course they have to “sign” their names!

Then we used our hole punches to cut out circle shapes and compared them to larger circles we had previously cut on the ellison machine addressing more math access points.

Squeezing the hole punch helps with hand strengthening.

We squeezed glue onto our blue paper.

Also great for hand strengthening and bilateral coordination.

We put some green easter grass and the big yellow circle onto the glue.

We found we probably should have put the easter grass on last instead of this early in the process—it was very entrancing to our students, making it hard to move onto the next step 🙂

Then we glued on our small circle and a precut orange triangle—more math access points 🙂

Spatial relationships are also addressed.

Our little chick is starting to come together!

We added a yellow feather—the finishing touch 🙂

Spatial relations and fine motor skills are addressed when completing this activity.

Ta-Da—a cute little chick

complete with googlie eye!

Don’t they look awesome hanging outside Jeannie’s classroom!

Love it! Love it!

On Thursday, we read Cara’s book again

and all had fun pointing to our

favorite candy—although it was kind of

hard to make a choice 🙂

Then we gave our students a choice of 3 craft foam eggs.

We discussed their oval shape addressing math access points.

We got these eggs (10 in a package) in the dollar section at Target—we love a bargain!

We decorated the eggs using craft foam stickers—so cute.

We helped the students peel the backing off of the stickers, practicing pincer grasp skills.

Then we counted the stickers, addressing math access points.

Our students are also working on being able to identify numerals.

Super cute!

What a colorful bright egg!

Hippity Hoppity!

We had a great time this week, join us again next week —-our Language Group will be back—for more fun and learning Group by Group!

Apr1

Week 26—Butterflies and the Letter Z

Posted on April 1, 2012 by jd785

Week 26—Butterflies and the Letter Z

This week are theme was Butterflies for our Sensory and Fine Motor Groups. We are finishing the alphabet with Letter Z in our Language Group.

Sensory Group—Butterflies

Cara’s book explored the life cycle of the butterfly with our students asking the question “what happens next” using the voice output device.

In addition to literacy and math access points, we are going to be addressing science access points today!

Our first sensory box was filled with colorful flowers, leaves, a variety of butterflies, caterpillars made from chenille stems and a body scrubber—its that long pink and white thing in the picture—doesn’t it look like a giant caterpillar :).

This box was so colorful with lots of contrasting colors and textures.

Discussing how these items relate to each other in the life cycle of the butterfly addresses science access points.

Our next box was filled with caterpillar eggs, AKA lentils. Our students hunted for the letter C and found a cute little caterpillar peeking out as well.

The students grasped these lentils by the handfuls—they loved them! Even our students who are quite tactile sensitive, couldn’t resist these tiny beans 🙂

This box addresses visual and tactile discrimination skills.

We used a cookie cutter to cut letter B’s in our purple Bubber (available from Amazon in addition to a variety of catalogs).

We chose the Bubber because its soft powdery texture reminded us of butterfly wings. Its pretty purple color also a lot like that of a butterfly.

Of course, we also just love the way it feels–not just our students but the adults couldn’t put it down 🙂

The white fiberfil in our next box reminded us of the silky strands of the butterfly cocoon.

Its just so much fun to grab this stuff and shake it around or pull it apart!

Pulling apart the strands addresses bilateral and fine motor skills.

Contrasting smaller pieces from larger pieces addresses math access points.

Our next box contained some colorful red butterflies (bow tie pasta) and green caterpillars (celletani pasta). Very eye catching with the bright colors. You dye it in basically the same way you do rice but it takes a LOT longer—so be patient!

Pincer grasp skills are promoted when picking up individual pieces. Counting them and comparing the contrasting shapes addresses math access points.

Making one of the caterpillars crawl up a students arm promotes giggles 🙂

These fuzzy colorful caterpillars (some pencil covers!) filled our next box. Very eye catching also and our students dived in. They loved grabbing handfuls and watching as they dropped back into the box—or the floor 🙂

Tracking falling objects is a science access point.

Counting caterpillars is an opportunity to work on math access points.

We mixed shaving cream and cornstarch which turned into this really cool texture—sort of a cross between playdough and Bubber. It was so much fun to squeeze and mold into cocoons.

We just loved this stuff, its just really hard to resist!

Science access points are addressed in addition to fine motor skills during this fun activity!

We rinsed our hands in plumeria scented water and then rubbed on the lotion, its floral scent reminding us of the flowers the butterflies go to for their food.

Recognizing water as a liquid and whether it is warm or cold addresses science access points.

Fine Motor Group—Butterflies

On Tuesday we started by reading Cara’s book. We also practiced making the butterfly sign with our hands.

Butterflies start out as caterpillars and that is what we made in our art activity. We started by dipping pom pom’s into glue then placing them on a clothespin.

This is a great activity for practicing pincer grasp skills and eye hand coordination.

We counted the pom pom’s using our multi-message voice output device, addressing math access points.

We finished by adding some chenille stem antenna and googlie eyes.

Aren’t these caterpillars just so cute 🙂

On Thursday after we read our book again—- we turned our caterpillar into a butterfly!

First we placed a 3 dimensional butterfly (found in one of the schools science kits) on a light board for our student with a visual impairment.

Of course, all the students enjoyed running their hands over the contours.

Then we began our art activity by counting out our coffee filters (addressing math access points).

Then we colored them using markers. Some of our students made just a few marks but others enjoyed using a variety of colors.

After they were finished coloring, we sprayed the coffee filters with water.The water makes the colors run, kind of like tie dye—pretty cool.

Squeezing the spray bottle is great for hand strengthening and spraying water is always fun!

We let them dry for a few minutes and then scrunched them up—working on thumb/finger grasping patterns.

We placed it between the clothespin from Tuesday and…….

Ta Da—the caterpillar has turned into a butterfly!

This student really enjoyed making hers “flutter” around—so cute!

Our butterflies look so beautiful clipped to these branches…..

aren’t they just fabulous!

Language Group—Letter Z

We started by unZipping bags and taking Zoo animals out (we used Beanie Babies).

The students had fun seeing what animal ended up coming out of their bags.

A chenille stem loop made a great

adaptive Zipper pull for some of

our students.

Then we squeeZed scrap paper to make matZo balls to “feed” our animals a Zesty meal.

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

Then we tore black paper into strips—some of them in a Zig Zag pattern.

We glued them onto a white lunch bag.

Tearing the paper addresses bilateral hand functions.

Squeezing the glue addresses hand strengthening

Placing the black paper on the bag addresses visual spatial skills.

We adapted this for our students with physical challenges by letting them color their Zebra instead. Our students love pressing the switch to make the airplane color their picture.

Then we glued on 2 ears and a snout.

And added some googlie eyes—we love googlie eyes 🙂

Look another Zany Zebra!

Our students had so much fun playing with their puppets.

Everybody had a turn playing Cara’s

sound game.

And we looked at all the fun Z words we found today.

Whew! We made it to the end of the alphabet but there is still more fun ahead so join us again next week Group by Group!

Mar12

Week 24—Money and the Letter X

Posted on March 12, 2012 by jd785

Week 24—Money and the Letter X

This week our Sensory and Fine Motor Groups learned about money. We picked the theme to relate to the schools Unique Curriculum theme of economics. The Letter X was the theme for our Language Group.

Sensory Group—Money

We read Cara’s book “There are Many Different Kinds of Jobs”. We chose careers that children often say they want to be when they grow up and related each of our boxes to the different jobs.

Our first box was related to money. It had green paper shred because our money is made of paper and dyed green. We also put in some paper money and coin replicas. Our coins were larger than real life to avoid any choking hazards. We put in beads with dollar signs (we found these at Target in their St. Patricks Day section!) and some gift/credit cards. We also put in a money clip, car key (you often drive to work), and a piece of leather (purses and wallets are often made of leather).

Our students had a lot of fun with this box—some of them really enjoyed collecting the money. Which, of course, gave us an opportunity to work on math access points!

The next box had a construction theme—what fun to drive a dump truck! We used assorted beans for our gravel and put in a couple of toy trucks and the letter C. We also hid a little surprise at the bottom—a picture of a dump truck was taped to the bottom of the box!

In addition to practicing scooping skills, uncovering the truck addresses visual and tactile discrimination skills.

How about becoming President! We filled our next box with the patriotic colors of red, white and blue.

Soft pompoms and hard beads allow us to contrast properties of materials which is a science access point. Sorting and counting the different colored pompoms relates to math access points.

We also included a letter P for President to address literacy skills.

Pink and white rice, a crown—yes, its a princess sensory box!

Nancy made this bracelet we by wrapping strips of tulle around a rubber band. This was a huge hit with some of the students. Very visually interesting to watch the tulle move as a hand was waved.

Concepts of same and different are addressed—the 2 crowns are the “same” and the spoon is “different”.

We also included the letter P to address literacy.

Another exciting job would be a circus performer which is the theme of our next box. We filled it with some colorful packing peanuts, puzzle pieces depicting different circus performers, and the letter C.

The packing peanuts can be sorted by color and allow opportunities to practice pincer grasp skills.

We talked about being a firefighter while finger painting in shaving cream. It looks just like the foam used to douse fires!

We practiced prewriting patterns and letters by finger painting in the foam.

Encouraging students to interact with the foam helps address tactile sensitivity issues.

When finished finger painting, hands were rinsed in water. Our students always enjoy the opportunity to play in water. Its fun but can also be very calming and relaxing for our students.

We also included some theme related items to encourage visual tracking. A glittery baton—just like a circus performer—was a great tool to practice forearm rotation movements. Watching the movements of the glitter as it moved in the water water from one end of the tube to the other related to science access points.

One of our I-spy bottles (made from some plastic juice bottles with lids tape shut) contained some toy coins (along with rice and beans for contrast).

Fun to roll and watch the coins sift through the rice.

The other bottle contained some brightly colored princess jewels.

Both of these bottles could be rotated to encourage visual tracking or shaken for auditory input.

Coin and color identification skills can be addressed using these bottles.

We finished by using some rose scented lotion—

to remind us our future looks “rosy” 🙂

It had a very distinct aroma that all our students reacted to.

Rubbing the lotion on our hands promotes bilateral coordination. For those students who tend to put their hands in their mouths, we rub lotion on their upper arms or the back of their necks.

Fine Motor Group—Money

We read “There are Many Different Kinds of Jobs” which our students loved. They recognized the different professions and all seemed to have a favorite.

After reading the book we made some piggy banks. We started by using an electronic cutting machine. Our students were SO excited and could hardly wait for their turn to press the button– their eyes were glued on the machine 🙂

Listening skills, following directions, turn taking and finger individuation skills are addressed while operating the machine. Watching the mat board move as the machine cuts encourages visual tracking.

We counted out the 7 pink circles that we cut, then we counted 8 students.

Hmm, I think we need 1 more circle!

Working on math access points 🙂

We cut out some smaller circles and some triangles—getting lots more turns to press that button and make the machine go!

Counting the circles, and comparing their sizes addresses math access points. We also worked on shape identification and the concept of same and different with the circles and triangles.

Now to assemble our little piggy! We glued 2 triangles to the big circle to make ears. Then we glued the small circle on top of the big circle.

We used our food coloring enhanced glue to give the students additional visual cues for placement.

Picking up those small pieces really works on precision grasping skills! Squeezing the glue helps strengthen grasp.

Comparing all the sizes and shapes, in addition to counting different items addresses math access points.

We glued the piggy on a piggy bank.

The bank was made by wrapping paper around some different containers, such as mixed nuts or icing, and cutting a slit in the top.

Here is a cute little piggy bank—just waiting to be filled on Thursday!

On Thursday, we read Cara’s book again. It was fun seeing which jobs the students became excited about —construction worker and princess were some of the top choices 🙂

Lets start filling up the piggy bank! We printed some dollar bills (we found these on the Activity Village website).

Our students used the paper cutters to cut along lines that we highlighted—“follow the yellow brick road”!

This activity addresses eye hand coordination and visual tracking.

Time to color the money, green of course!

We used a variety of markers. We like these Crayola pipsqueaks that are perfect for little hands.

We really like how this student is demonstrating some nice bilateral coordination skills—stabilizing her money with her right hand while coloring with the left! She has not always been able to do this, so we were pretty excited.

We also like these Crayola tripod markers that are easy for little hands to grasp. Talk about Universal Design!

This is a fun way to practice using writing tools and coloring in a designated area.

Some of our students knew exactly what to do with the money. After all, its never too early to start saving 🙂

This student folded her money up to fit in the designated space, performing some algebraic functions——related to math access points!

We did save some of the dollars to buy snacks—a great opportunity to reinforce what money can be used for.

This student just handed his dollar to Jeannie and is signing “more”. He knows the value of a dollar 🙂

Those little hands are just so cute!

Language Group—Letter X

We did something a little different (Ms Garland came up with this awesome idea) in our language group this week, a scavenger hunt—X marks the spot!

First we eXmined our map, looking for treasure all around the school.

Using maps addresses social studies access points, sequencing and following directions.

This is going to be eXciting!!!

At our first stop we found 2 stretchy tubes.

Pulling the tubes apart—using maXimum effort—works on upper extremity strengthening and bilateral coordination.

They also have a very satisfying sound as they are pulled apart.

We used our stretchy tubes to make an eXtreme X!

Crossing the tubes to make the X and laying it on top of the tape addresses visual spatial skills.

We found this boX at the neXt spot.

Looks like we are in for some bubble fun!

Instead of blowing the bubbles, you have to squeeze!

How eXtraordinary!

Dipping the wand into the bubble mix addresses eye hand coordination. Squeezing the blower works on grip strength. Visual tracking skills are also addressed while following the bubbles.

Discussing the effect of wind of the bubbles addresses science access points.

We followed the map to this spot were we had to imitate an X.

This student did an eXcellent job, don’t you think!

We finally reached the treasure—cookies iced with an X—eXactly what we were looking for!

Needless to say, we all wanted to eXamine them pretty closely 🙂

Time to make our

eXit.

Here are some of the X words we found today— we may have lost a post-it or two on our trek today 🙂

Please join us again next time for lots more fun and learning Group by Group.

Nov20

Week 12—Thanksgiving and the letter L

Posted on November 20, 2011 by jd785

Week 12—Thanksgiving and the letter L

This week our Sensory and Fine Motor groups had a Thanksgiving theme while the theme for our Language Group was the letter L.

Sensory Group—Thanksgiving

We started our session by reading Cara’s book “On Thanksgiving Day” using the voice output device to say the repetitive line.

Our first discovery box was filled with all sorts of Thanksgiving themed objects such as leaves, felt pilgrim faces, a scarecrow, big and little turkeys, soft orange and yellow yarn, hard gourds AND a plastic turkey leg 🙂

Math access points were addressed when discussing big and little turkeys as well as counting them.

Science access points were addressed comparing the hard gourds with the soft yarn.

Its amazing how much you can fit into one little box!

Our students really enjoyed searching through the box

to find their favorite things. Others got more creative and started dropping leaves on their teachers head as she was bending down to pick something up 🙂

Our harvest mix of beans (reminding us of soup that might be made with Thanksgiving leftovers) contained turkeys and T’s. We were able to work on matching colors in addition to counting.

Finding the letters and turkeys among the beans also addresses visual and tactile discrimination.

The beans were a huge hit in one of our middle school classrooms and as 3 students gathered around the box, one young man made sure to note “look we are sharing”. How sweet!

Our feather boas became soft turkey feathers………..so much fun to touch and drape around necks. For some of our students the soft feel of the feathers was especially enchanting.

We were also able to work on some visual tracking by picking up the boas and moving them around.

We picked up this soft pompom yarn in fall colors from Michaels. It reminded us of a soft warm blanket you might use while watching football games on Thanksgiving day.

It was fun to squish while talking about the properties of materials, a science access point.

Our students also enjoyed being draped with the yarn or working on their fine motor skills by pulling the strands up.

The pumpkin pie scented play dough had a wonderfully yummy aroma,

absolutely delicious but our students resisted the temptation

to sample it 🙂

Hand strengthening was addressed when squeezing the play dough and using our turkey and leaf cookie cutters.

We practiced writing the letter T in sweet potato pie puree, messy but fun!

The texture was a little challenging for our students with tactile issues but most of them at least got a finger in.

And rinsed our hands in Cinnamon Pumpkin (from Bath and Body works) scented water and finished with the lotion to bring Thanksgiving memories for the rest of the day.

Between the pumpkin pie playdough, scented water and lotion, it was quite the aromatic delight for lovers of all things pumpkin!

Fine Motor Group—Thanksgiving

On Tuesday we read Cara’s Thanksgiving book. Our students especially loved the pages with food and loved pointing to their favorites. After our story we made a little turkey that Jeannie designed.

First, we colored a an index card brown. As we passed out the index cards we counted them and discussed their shape, addressing math access points.

The index card was then set aside for a moment (after 2 holes were punched in the middle).

Next, we took a pipe cleaner (pre assembled by Jeannie”s

staff using a small pompom, tiny googlie eyes, a small piece

of pipe cleaner, and a small piece of craft foam) and began

stringing folded (with a pre punched hole in the middle

near the fold) cupcake liners.

Our students had so much fun picking out and counting

the colorful liners.

A quick twist of the pipe cleaner secures everything in place. Then the pipe cleaner is threaded through the holes in the index card to give it a base to sit on. A very cute turkey–sorry, no picture of it finished 🙁

On Thursday after reading “On Thanksgiving Day” again, we made pumpkin pies!

First we counted out 4 strips of orange paper for each student. We also counted the brown paper plates as we passed them out.

Our students tore the paper strips into small pieces, dropping

them into their bowl. Tearing the paper addresses bilateral

coordination and is a good pre-scissor skill building activity.

Our students worked on hand strengthening by squeezing glue onto the plate.

Then they practiced their pincer grasps by picking up pieces of torn paper and placing them on the glue.

We presented 3 spices (nutmeg, cloves, and pumpkin pie) and let our students smell them. After smelling each one they chose their favorite by either pointing or smiling and then got to shake it all over their plates.

Thanks to Laurie B. for this idea. Also the choice of 3 items correlates to our alternate assessment.

With the addition of a dollop of cotton ball “whipped cream” a delicious smelling, low calorie pumpkin pie——YUM!!!!

Language Group—-letter L

We shone a Light to show which puzzle pieces to Lift up. We especially Liked the Lunar moth, Ladybug and Lightning bug!

Holding the wand over the puzzle helps build shoulder stability. Picking up the puzzle pieces addresses following directions and eye hand coordination.

We also counted the puzzle pieces, working on math access points.

Next we Laughed while a squeezing a Little Lion and shaking a Large Lion.

Squeezing this finger fidget works on strengthening pincer grasp.

We hot glued a shower curtain ring to the Large Lion to make it easier for our students with physically challenges to grasp.

Next each student was given a precut Lion face (drawn by Joy) and a paper plate.

We counted them as they were passed out and discussed the circular shape of the plate.

Then our students were asked to make a choice of 3 markers to use when coloring both the lion’s face and paper plate.

Our students have different ways of communicating their choices, these include pointing, vocalizing, facial expression, or eye gazing.

For students with physical challenges, Joy attached markers to a switch toy with velcro. This allows our students to independently color along with their classmates.

Putting the toy in a box lid helps keep the toy contained.

As usual, everyone wanted to use the switch to color also their pictures—and of course we Let them 🙂

After we finished coloring, we glued the pieces together to make a very Lovely Lion!

We finished as usual, by playing Cara’s listening game.

Lots of Laugh’s as usual!

Look at just some of the Lots and Lots of L words found today.

Its sometimes hard to collect all of them for our pictures, as our students really Like to examine them 🙂

What an awesome week! We hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and we will see you afterwards for more fun and learning Group by Group!