Deer Unit

Deer Unit
We've had deer are going through our backyard every day for the last two weeks.

So we decided to look up information on deer and find out what type of deer is in our backyard and how to tell the difference between the mule deer and the Whitetail deer:
1. Mule deer antlers are not single-pronged like Whitetail deer
2. ears on mule deer are larger
3. Mule deer have a black tip on there White tail, and the tails are always down
4. And mule deer jump and land on all 4 feet with straight legs, rather than two front and two back at a time


We also decided to experience trying to be a deer. So we had deer Olympics. Here are some of the facts we used to compare our habits to.

Deer leap
length of a van (Long jump)
10ft high (high jump)
Fawns play Leap frog (leapfrog game)

Deer eating
15 lbS of food during summer (weighing the amount of food we eat during the day)
2quarts water (trying to drink the same amount)
40 chews for lemon-sized food (chewing experiment to see how many choose it took to eat a cracker)

----
We also talked about a Deers defense. I asked the kids how would your defends itself first? Their natural reaction was antlers. But really there are multiple ways a deer defend it self first offensively, then defensively... all are very Asians of using their body and senses.

1. Camouflage
2. Sight, Smell, sound
3. Run away and leap
4. Fight with antlers

You could do some fun games trying to play tag or find people blindfolded, or by people making sounds, or you can talk about camouflage and try to camouflage and play outside in your backyard or woods. Etc.

Parts of a Plant Song

(tune: Oh do you know the Muffin Man?)

Oh, do you know the parts of plants,

The parts of plants, the parts of plants?

Do you know the parts of plants?

That make them grow and grow?

The roots , they hold the plant in place,

The plant in place, the plant in place.

The roots, they hold the plant in place

Soak up food and water, too.

The stem moves water up the plant,

Up the plant, up the plant.

The stem moves water up the plant

Brings water to the leaves.

The leaves soak up the rays of sun,

The rays of sun, the rays of sun.

The leaves soak up the rays of sun,

And help the plant make food.

The flower grows into a fruit,

Into a fruit, into a fruit.

The flower grows into a fruit,

Which holds the tiny seeds.

Now you know the parts of plants,

The parts of plants, the parts of plants,

Now you know the parts of plants,

That make them grow and grow.

Life of a Butterfly Poem

The Life of a Butterfly
(Tune:  Skip to My Lou) 

I'm a caterpillar, wiggle with me,
I'm a caterpillar, wiggle with me,
I'm a caterpillar, wiggle with me,
What'll I be my darlin'? 

A chrysalis, now sleep like me,
A chrysalis, now sleep like me,
A chrysalis, now sleep like me,
What'll I be my darlin'? 

A butterfly, come fly with me,
A butterfly, come fly with me,
A butterfly, come fly with me,
What'll I be my darlin'? 

Now all together, let's do all three!
A caterpillar, a chrysalis, a butterfly, three!
Move your body like this with me,
The life of a butterfly, darlin'! 

or 

 Butterfly Cycle
Suzy Gazlay 
(to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat")

Hatch, hatch little egg,
 I'm so very small.
 Teeny tiny caterpillar,
 You can't see me at all.

Crawl, caterpillar, crawl,
 Munching on a leaf.
 Crawling, munching, crawling, munching,
 Eat and eat and eat.

Form, form chrysalis,
 I'm a different shape;
 Hanging by a silken thread
 Until I can escape.

Rest, rest, chrysalis
 While I change inside;
 Now at last my time has come
 To be a butterfly.

Stretch, stretch, pretty wings,
 It's a special day;
 Soon they will be strong enough
 For me to fly away.

Fly, fly, butterfly,
 Fly from flower to tree;
 Find a place to lay my eggs
 So they can grow like me.

Candle-Making Verse

A candle's but a simple thing,
it starts with just a bit of string,
But dipped or rolled with patient hand,
it gathers wax upon the strand.
Until complete and snowy white,
it gives at last a lovely light.
Life seems so like that bit of string,
each deed we do a simple thing.
Yet day by day on life's strand,
we work with patient heart and hand.
It gathers joy, makes dark days bright,
and gives at last a lovely light.

Fingerplays: Winter

A chubby little snowman had a carrot nose.
(show long nose with a closed fist like a trumpet in front of face)
Along a came a bunny, and what do you suppose?
(Hands show the bunny hopping)
That hungry little bunny, looking for his lunch,
(wiggle nose like a bunny)
Ate the snowman's carrot nose,
Nibble, nibble, crunch
(pretend to eat the carrot)
(Oak meadow fingerplays)

* * * * * * * *

Five little eskimos by the igloo door
one went out to feed the dogs, then there were four.
Four little eskimos rowing out to sea,
one jumped on an iceberg, then there were three.
Three little eskimos making fish stew,
one burned his finger, then there were two.
Two little eskimos hunting just for fun,
one chased a baby seal, then there was one.
One little eskimo all his work was done,
went home to supper, then there were none.
(Winter, p.51)

* * * * * * * *

Chickadee, chickadee,
Flitting through the holly tree-
With your cap and scarf of black,
Sweater gray upon your back
You're warm and happy in the snow
And when I hear you call,
I know My little friend has come to say
That wintertime's just fine for play.
(From Ladybug magazine)

Fairy Tale: Cat & Mouse in Partnership

Cat and Mouse in Partnership by The Brothers Grimm - Translated by Margaret Taylor (1884)
A certain cat had made the acquaintance of a mouse, and had said so much to her about the great love and friendship she felt for her, that at length the mouse agreed that they should live and keep house together. “But we must make a provision for winter, or else we shall suffer from hunger,” said the cat, “and you, little mouse, cannot venture everywhere, or you will be caught in a trap some day.” The good advice was followed, and a pot of fat was bought, but they did not know where to put it. At length, after much consideration, the cat said, “I know no place where it will be better stored up than in the church, for no one dares take anything away from there. We will set it beneath the altar, and not touch it until we are really in need of it.” So the pot was placed in safety, but it was not long before the cat had a great yearning for it, and said to the mouse, “I want to tell you something, little mouse; my cousin has brought a little son into the world, and has asked me to be godmother; he is white with brown spots, and I am to hold him over the font at the christening. Let me go out to-day, and you look after the house by yourself.” “Yes, yes,” answered the mouse, “by all means go, and if you get anything very good, think of me, I should like a drop of sweet red christening wine too.” All this, however, was untrue; the cat had no cousin, and had not been asked to be godmother. She went straight to the church, stole to the pot of fat, began to lick at it, and licked the top of the fat off. Then she took a walk upon the roofs of the town, looked out for opportunities, and then stretched herself in the sun, and licked her lips whenever she thought of the pot of fat, and not until it was evening did she return home. “Well, here you are again,” said the mouse, “no doubt you have had a merry day.” “All went off well,” answered the cat. “What name did they give the child?” “Top off!” said the cat quite coolly. “Top off!” cried the mouse, “that is a very odd and uncommon name, is it a usual one in your family?” “What does it signify,” said the cat, “it is no worse than Crumb-stealer, as your god-children are called.”

Before long the cat was seized by another fit of longing. She said to the mouse, “You must do me a favour, and once more manage the house for a day alone. I am again asked to be godmother, and, as the child has a white ring round its neck, I cannot refuse.” The good mouse consented, but the cat crept behind the town walls to the church, and devoured half the pot of fat. “Nothing ever seems so good as what one keeps to oneself,” said she, and was quite satisfied with her day's work. When she went home the mouse inquired, “And what was this child christened?” “Half-done,” answered the cat. “Half-done! What are you saying? I never heard the name in my life, I'll wager anything it is not in the calendar!”

The cat's mouth soon began to water for some more licking. “All good things go in threes,” said she, “I am asked to stand godmother again. The child is quite black, only it has white paws, but with that exception, it has not a single white hair on its whole body; this only happens once every few years, you will let me go, won't you?” “Top-off! Half-done!” answered the mouse, “they are such odd names, they make me very thoughtful.” “You sit at home,” said the cat, “in your dark-grey fur coat and long tail, and are filled with fancies, that's because you do not go out in the daytime.” During the cat's absence the mouse cleaned the house, and put it in order but the greedy cat entirely emptied the pot of fat. “When everything is eaten up one has some peace,” said she to herself, and well filled and fat she did not return home till night. The mouse at once asked what name had been given to the third child. “It will not please you more than the others,” said the cat. “He is called All-gone.” “All-gone,” cried the mouse, “that is the most suspicious name of all! I have never seen it in print. All-gone; what can that mean?” and she shook her head, curled herself up, and lay down to sleep.

From this time forth no one invited the cat to be god-mother, but when the winter had come and there was no longer anything to be found outside, the mouse thought of their provision, and said, “Come cat, we will go to our pot of fat which we have stored up for ourselves—-we shall enjoy that.” “Yes,” answered the cat, “you will enjoy it as much as you would enjoy sticking that dainty tongue of yours out of the window.” They set out on their way, but when they arrived, the pot of fat certainly was still in its place, but it was empty. “Alas!” said the mouse, “now I see what has happened, now it comes to light! You are a true friend! You have devoured all when you were standing godmother. First top off, then half done, then —.” “Will you hold your tongue,” cried the cat, “one word more and I will eat you too.” “All gone” was already on the poor mouse's lips; scarcely had she spoken it before the cat sprang on her, seized her, and swallowed her down. Verily, that is the way of the world.

Fairy Tale: The Goose Girl

The Goose Girl by The Brothers Grimm - Translated by Margaret Taylor (1884)
THERE was once upon a time an old Queen whose husband had been dead for many years, and she had a beautiful daughter. When the princess grew up she was betrothed to a prince who lived at a great distance. When the time came for her to be married, and she had to journey forth into the distant kingdom, the aged Queen packed up for her many costly vessels of silver and gold, and trinkets also of gold and silver; and cups and jewels, in short, everything which appertained to a royal dowry, for she loved her child with all her heart. She likewise sent her maid in waiting, who was to ride with her, and hand her over to the bridegroom, and each had a horse for the journey, but the horse of the King's daughter was called Falada, and could speak. So when the hour of parting had come, the aged mother went into her bedroom, took a small knife and cut her finger with it until it bled, then she held a white handkerchief to it into which she let three drops of blood fall, gave it to her daughter and said, "Dear child, preserve this carefully, it will be of service to you on your way."

So they took a sorrowful leave of each other; the princess put the piece of cloth in her bosom, mounted her horse, and then went away to her bridegroom. After she had ridden for a while she felt a burning thirst, and said to her waiting-maid, "Dismount, and take my cup which thou hast brought with thee for me, and get me some water from the stream, for I should like to drink." "If you are thirsty," said the waiting-maid, "get off your horse yourself, and lie down and drink out of the water, I don't choose to be your servant." So in her great thirst the princess alighted, bent down over the water in the stream and drank, and was not allowed to drink out of the golden cup. Then she said, "Ah, Heaven!" and the three drops of blood answered, "If thy mother knew, her heart would break." But the King's daughter was humble, said nothing, and mounted her horse again. She rode some miles further, but the day was warm, the sun scorched her, and she was thirsty once more, and when they came to a stream of water, she again cried to her waiting-maid, "Dismount, and give me some water in my golden cup," for she had long ago forgotten the girl's ill words. But the waiting-maid said still more haughtily, "If you wish to drink, drink as you can, I don't choose to be your maid." Then in her great thirst the King's daughter alighted, bent over the flowing stream, wept and said, "Ah, Heaven!" and the drops of blood again replied, "If thy mother knew this, her heart would break." And as she was thus drinking and leaning right over the stream, the handkerchief with the three drops of blood fell out of her bosom, and floated away with the water without her observing it, so great was her trouble. The waiting-maid, however, had seen it, and she rejoiced to think that she had now power over the bride, for since the princess had lost the drops of blood, she had become weak and powerless. So now when she wanted to mount her horse again, the one that was called Falada, the waiting-maid said, "Falada is more suitable for me, and my nag will do for thee" and the princess had to be content with that. Then the waiting-maid, with many hard words, bade the princess exchange her royal apparel for her own shabby clothes; and at length she was compelled to swear by the clear sky above her, that she would not say one word of this to any one at the royal court, and if she had not taken this oath she would have been killed on the spot. But Falada saw all this, and observed it well.

The waiting-maid now mounted Falada, and the true bride the bad horse, and thus they traveled onwards, until at length they entered the royal palace. There were great rejoicings over her arrival, and the prince sprang forward to meet her, lifted the waiting-maid from her horse, and thought she was his consort. She was conducted upstairs, but the real princess was left standing below. Then the old King looked out of the window and saw her standing in the courtyard, and how dainty and delicate and beautiful she was, and instantly went to the royal apartment, and asked the bride about the girl she had with her who was standing down below in the courtyard, and who she was? "I picked her up on my way for a companion; give the girl something to work at, that she may not stand idle." But the old King had no work for her, and knew of none, so he said, "I have a little boy who tends the geese, she may help him." The boy was called Conrad, and the true bride had to help him to tend the geese. Soon afterwards the false bride said to the young King, "Dearest husband, I beg you to do me a favour." He answered, "I will do so most willingly." "Then send for the knacker, and have the head of the horse on which I rode here cut off, for it vexed me on the way." In reality, she was afraid that the horse might tell how she had behaved to the King's daughter. Then she succeeded in making the King promise that it should be done, and the faithful Falada was to die; this came to the ears of the real princess, and she secretly promised to pay the knacker a piece of gold if he would perform a small service for her. There was a great dark-looking gateway in the town, through which morning and evening she had to pass with the geese: would he be so good as to nail up Falada's head on it, so that she might see him again, more than once. The knacker's man promised to do that, and cut off the head, and nailed it fast beneath the dark gateway.

Early in the morning, when she and Conrad drove out their flock beneath this gateway, she said in passing, 

"Alas, Falada, hanging there!"
Then the head answered, 

"Alas, young Queen, how ill you fare!
If this your tender mother knew,
Her heart would surely break in two."
Then they went still further out of the town, and drove their geese into the country. And when they had come to the meadow, she sat down and unbound her hair which was like pure gold, and Conrad saw it and delighted in its brightness, and wanted to pluck out a few hairs. Then she said, 

"Blow, blow, thou gentle wind, I say,
Blow Conrad's little hat away,
And make him chase it here and there,
Until I have braided all my hair,
And bound it up again."
And there came such a violent wind that it blew Conrad's hat far away across country, and he was forced to run after it. When he came back she had finished combing her hair and was putting it up again, and he could not get any of it. Then Conrad was angry, and would not speak to her, and thus they watched the geese until the evening, and then they went home. 

Next day when they were driving the geese out through the dark gateway, the maiden said, 

"Alas, Falada, hanging there!"
Falada answered, 

"Alas, young Queen, how ill you fare!
If this your tender mother knew,
Her heart would surely break in two."
And she sat down again in the field and began to comb out her hair, and Conrad ran and tried to clutch it, so she said in haste, 

"Blow, blow, thou gentle wind, I say,
Blow Conrad's little hat away,
And make him chase it here and there,
Until I have braided all my hair,
And bound it up again."
Then the wind blew, and blew his little hat off his head and far away, and Conrad was forced to run after it, and when he came back, her hair had been put up a long time, and he could get none of it, and so they looked after their geese till evening came. 

But in the evening after they had got home, Conrad went to the old King, and said, "I won't tend the geese with that girl any longer!" "Why not?" inquired the aged King. "Oh, because she vexes me the whole day long." Then the aged King commanded him to relate what it was that she did to him. And Conrad said, "In the morning when we pass beneath the dark gateway with the flock, there is a sorry horse's head on the wall, and she says to it, 

"Alas, Falada, hanging there!"
And the head replies, 

"Alas, young Queen how ill you fare!
If this your tender mother knew,
Her heart would surely break in two."
And Conrad went on to relate what happened on the goose pasture, and how when there he had to chase his hat. 

The aged King commanded him to drive his flock out again next day, and as soon as morning came, he placed himself behind the dark gateway, and heard how the maiden spoke to the head of Falada, and then he too went into the country, and hid himself in the thicket in the meadow. There he soon saw with his own eyes the goose-girl and the goose-boy bringing their flock, and how after a while she sat down and unplaited her hair, which shone with radiance. And soon she said, 

"Blow, blow, thou gentle wind, I say,
Blow Conrad's little hat away,
And make him chase it here and there,
Until I have braided all my hair,
And bound it up again."
Then came a blast of wind and carried off Conrad's hat, so that he had to run far away, while the maiden quietly went on combing and plaiting her hair, all of which the King observed. Then, quite unseen, he went away, and when the goose-girl came home in the evening, he called her aside, and asked why she did all these things. "I may not tell you that, and I dare not lament my sorrows to any human being, for I have sworn not to do so by the heaven which is above me; if I had not done that, I should have lost my life." He urged her and left her no peace, but he could draw nothing from her. Then said he, "If thou wilt not tell me anything, tell thy sorrows to the iron-stove there," and he went away. Then she crept into the iron-stove, and began to weep and lament, and emptied her whole heart, and said, "Here am I deserted by the whole world, and yet I am a King's daughter, and a false waiting-maid has by force brought me to such a pass that I have been compelled to put off my royal apparel, and she has taken my place with my bridegroom, and I have to perform menial service as a goose-girl. If my mother did but know that, her heart would break." 

The aged King, however, was standing outside by the pipe of the stove, and was listening to what she said, and heard it. Then he came back again, and bade her come out of the stove. And royal garments were placed on her, and it was marvellous how beautiful she was! The aged King summoned his son, and revealed to him that he had got the false bride who was only a waiting-maid, but that the true one was standing there, as the sometime goose-girl. The young King rejoiced with all his heart when he saw her beauty and youth, and a great feast was made ready to which all the people and all good friends were invited. At the head of the table sat the bridegroom with the King's daughter at one side of him, and the waiting-maid on the other, but the waiting-maid was blinded, and did not recognize the princess in her dazzling array. When they had eaten and drunk, and were merry, the aged King asked the waiting-maid as a riddle, what a person deserved who had behaved in such and such a way to her master, and at the same time related the whole story, and asked what sentence such an one merited? Then the false bride said, "She deserves no better fate than to be stripped entirely naked, and put in a barrel which is studded inside with pointed nails, and two white horses should be harnessed to it, which will drag her along through one street after another, till she is dead." "It is thou," said the aged King, "and thou hast pronounced thine own sentence, and thus shall it be done unto thee." And when the sentence had been carried out, the young King married his true bride, and both of them reigned over their kingdom in peace and happiness.

Fairy Tale: Simeli Mountain

Simeli Mountain by The Brothers Grimm - Translated by Margaret Hunt (1884)

There were once two brothers, the one rich, the other poor. The rich one, however, gave nothing to the poor one, and he gained a scanty living by trading in corn, and often did so badly that he had no bread for his wife and children. Once when he was wheeling a barrow through the forest he saw, on one side of him, a great, bare, naked-looking mountain, and as he had never seen it before, he stood still and stared at it with amazement.

While he was thus standing he saw a twelve great, wild men coming towards him, and as he believed they were robbers he pushed his barrow into the thicket, climbed up a tree, and waited to see what would happen. The twelve men, however, went to the mountain and cried, "Semsi mountain, Semsi mountain, open," and immediately the barren mountain opened down the middle, and the twelve went into it, and as soon as they were within, it shut. After a short time, however, it opened again, and the men came forth carrying heavy sacks on their shoulders, and when they were all once more in the daylight they said, "Semsi mountain, Semsi mountain, shut thyself;" then the mountain closed together, and there was no longer any entrance to be seen to it, and the twelve went away.

When they were quite out of sight the poor man got down from the tree, and was curious to know what really was secretly hidden in the mountain. So he went up to it and said, "Semsi mountain, Semsi mountain, open," and the mountain opened to him also. Then he went inside, and the whole mountain was a cavern full of silver and gold, and behind lay great piles of pearls and sparkling jewels, heaped up like corn. The poor man hardly knew what to do, and whether he might take any of these treasures for himself or not; but at last he filled his pockets with gold, but he left the pearls and precious stones where they were. When he came out again he also said, "Semsi mountain, Semsi mountain, shut thyself;" and the mountain closed itself, and he went home with his barrow.

And now he had no more cause for anxiety, but could buy bread for his wife and children with his gold, and wine into the bargain. He lived joyously and uprightly, gave help to the poor, and did good to every one. When, however, the money came to an end he went to his brother, borrowed a measure that held a bushel, and brought himself some more, but did not touch any of the most valuable things. When for the third time he wanted to fetch something, he again borrowed the measure of his brother. The rich man had, however, long been envious of his brother's possessions, and of the handsome way of living which he had set on foot, and could not understand from whence the riches came, and what his brother wanted with the measure. Then he thought of a cunning trick, and covered the bottom of the measure with pitch, and when he got the measure back a piece of money was sticking in it. He at once went to his brother and asked him, "What hast thou been measuring in the bushel measure?" "Corn and barley," said the other. Then he showed him the piece of money, and threatened that if he did not tell the truth he would accuse him before a court of justice. The poor man then told him everything, just as it had happened. The rich man, however, ordered his carriage to be made ready, and drove away, resolved to use the opportunity better than his brother had done, and to bring back with him quite different treasures.

When he came to the mountain he cried, "Semsi mountain, Semsi mountain, open." The mountain opened, and he went inside it. There lay the treasures all before him, and for a long time he did not know which to clutch at first. At length he loaded himself with as many precious stones as he could carry. He wished to carry his burden outside, but, as his heart and soul were entirely full of the treasures, he had forgotten the name of the mountain, and cried, "Simeli mountain, Simeli mountain, open." That, however, was not the right name, and the mountain never stirred, but remained shut. Then he was alarmed, but the longer he thought about it the more his thoughts confused themselves, and his treasures were no more of any use to him. In the evening the mountain opened, and the twelve robbers came in, and when they saw him they laughed, and cried out, "Bird, have we caught thee at last! Didst thou think we had never noticed that thou hadst been in here twice? We could not catch thee then; this third time thou shalt not get out again!" Then he cried, "It was not I, it was my brother," but let him beg for his life and say what he would, they cut his head off.

Math Verses

The bright-eyed stars
The bright-eyed stars
Do in the numbers vest
And every one is blest:
By one when upright on earth we stand.
By two when lovingly we lift our hands.
By three when we wake or dream or sleep.
By four when the year its seasons keep.
By five when opens the summer’s rose.
By six when winter’s white snow blows.
By seven when a week its days does bring
Thus do the numbers through the great world ring.

Two are the eyes with which I see
Two are the eyes with which I see,
Two are the ears that hear;
Joy and sorrow both live in me,
And so do courage and fear.
Darkness and light must live together,
Night and day are sister and brother,
Two are the hands that give and receive,
Helping each other their best to achieve

Stepping stones
Note: Stepping stones are perfect for skip counting. You can use this to transition to a stepping stone activity.

Stepping over stepping stones 1,2,3… (or 2,4,6 or 3,6,9 etc.)
Stepping over stepping stones, come with me
The river’s very fast and the river’s very wide
So we’ll step across on stepping stones to reach the other side.

About Feet by Margaret Hillert
The centipede is not complete
Unless he has one hundred feet.
Spiders must have eight for speed,
And six is what all insects need.

Other creatures by the score
cannot do with less than four.
But two is quite enough, you know,
To take me where I want to go.

Vowel Verses

A
I am the letter A
I’m with you in angel 
I twinkle in star.
You eat me in apple
You cut when I saw
A. ah, aah, aw 

say, eight, bait, aim, cake, name
father, arm, cot, ah
cat, black, at, am, apple
call, four, cause, saw, awe

E
See, see, I am E
When I’m short “eh” is said, like in bed
Twice in three
And thrice in eleven
You need E to get to heaven
Ee, Eh, Eh E

see, heat, beet, busiest, easier, tree
met, bed, heaven

I
I is a king
Mighty and wise
“Ih” is a princeling, smaller in size.
He’ll prick you with a spindle
And tickle your chin.
“Ih” and I, I and “Ih”

five, eye, bite, size
hit, sitting, bit, prince, trick

O
I am jolly brother O
Rolling dough makes me so bold.
When I’m short I am so odd,
Now remember, 
Stop and Go Ah and O

so, go, home, boat, roll, bold
stop, hot, rock, odd, jolly

A verse for the long "O"
The sun says I glow
The wind says I blow
The stream says I flow
The tree says I grow
And man says I know.

U
U is a duke who plays on the flute
And makes the cute flute make a tune
When he is short he has lots of fun
Like a cat in the sun
He curls up like a bug in a rug.
Cute and fun
U and uh

blue, true, flute, food, boot, moon, to
cup, luck, but, sun, rug, fun 
(note: put – not the same)

Roman Numerals

Egyptian Alphabet

Alphabet Over Time

Homemade PlayDough

I love this simple recipe that doesn't need boiling water or cream of tartar. It makes four big balls. And it's awesome to have my kids make it with me and play with it, so they know where it came from and feel empowered to make their things they can play with.

1 c very warm water
4 c flour
2 T oil
1 1/2 c salt (this much, since there is no cream of tartar to preserve)
food coloring (four colors)

1. Get four bowls and divide 1/4 c water in each.
2. Add 1/2 T oil in each and add the different food coloring in each bowl as desired.
3. In a large bowl add the salt and flour together and mix.
4. Put 1 cup of the flour/salt mixture into each bowl and mix/knead each separately.
5. Store each in the fridge in a plastic bag--squeeze out air.

The consistency should be similar to playdoh from the store. :)


Ideas:
Winter: make playdough snowmen or Christmas trees and put out a bowl of trail mix (or candies) for kids to decorate as desired. They could even eat the dough--though it's super duper salty and not yummy at all! :)

Morse Code

Braille Intro

The Cloud Fable

This is a Fable from the Independent Fourth Reader, by James Madison Watson. It is about a cloud who has to sacrifice himself for the people who needed water--likened to the Atonement. Good for Easter and spring weather perhaps?

Verse: Springtime is Here

Radiant Sun from his throne in the sky, 
looked down on earth where sleeping seeds lie, 
and thought to himself, I think it's time 
for flower babies to rise and shine. 
So with his rays of gold he knocked and knocked 
at each flower family's door, 
Wake up! Wake up! he chuckled with glee 
Time to wake up and color Earth¹s floor! 
The snowdrops were first, the crocus and rosies, 
daffodils, violets, and all sorts of posies, 
yawning and stretching under Radiant Sun. 
Yes, all we flowers create spring time fun!


*waldorf verse

Leprechaun Story for Saint PAttys Day

How the Leprechauns Learned to Count Their Pots of Gold

Once upon a time, a long time ago, there was a land full of rich, green hills. Far away from the cities full of people, there were whole ranges of hills covered in nice, green grass. Now a few of these hills were hollow. And inside of the hollow places in these hills, there lived whole towns full of very small men, who dressed all in green, so that they would blend in with the green grass of the hillsides. They wanted to blend in, for they didn’t want to be seen. But despite the fact that they were very careful to avoid being noticed, the big people never came as far away as the green men lived. For they lived at the very end of the land, past the end of the rainbow, and no big people had ever found their homes before, unless they had been caught and compelled to take them there. If one of them ever ventured into civilization, he was at risk of being captured; and when he was captured, he had to do what he was told. But they were seldom or never captured, for they were very, very clever. For these little men were Leprauchans.

The Leprechauns loved gold. They loved it so much, that they always went out searching for it, even if that meant they were in danger of being seen and caught by the humans. They would collect all of the gold that they could, and bring pieces back to put into their pots, which they kept in special chambers under the hills that were just meant for hiding pots of gold in.

Now the trouble with Leprauchans, was that they were also tricksters. They could not help playing silly tricks, especially on humans, and sometimes this put them in imminent danger of being caught. But for the most part, they were still so quick, that they still didn’t get caught, and their naughty tricks just confounded the humans on whom they played them.

Among these Leprauchans, there lived a particularly clever one named Paddy O’Conner. Paddy was the perfect model of a tricky, sneaky, impossible-to-catch Leprechaun. He always played the trickiest of tricks whenever he possibly could, and came into more danger of being caught than any other Leprechaun. But because he was so fast and sneaky, he never got caught. The other Leprechauns admired him, and many asked him what secret he had, that he never got captured. But he would never answer. Instead, he would pinch the one who had asked the question, or tweak his nose, and disappear in a twinkling.

As time went by, Paddy began to get bored, because he was so clever, that nothing was thrilling anymore. When he knew that he was too quick to get caught by a human, playing tricks on them lost the element of danger and fun. So he started to play tricks on his fellow Leprechauns. One day, Seamus O’Leary came home to find that somehow, a skunk had made its way into his kitchen. On another day, Finnigan O’Brian woke up to find that he was wearing his shirt on his legs, and his pants on his head. He had socks and shoes on his hands, and when he reached up to his face to undo his pants buttons in order to see, he found that his shoes were kicking him in the face.

Then, the Leprechauns gathered together and decided that no one could possibly be behind these tricks but Paddy O’Conner.

“Paddy O’Conner,” they told him, “you must go. We do not like your tricks. We play tricks on humans, not on each other. You are hereby banished from the Leprechaun clan.”

Paddy hung his head. He had never meant to harm anyone, just to have a little bit of fun. But Finnigan said that his nose still hurt from being hit by his shoes, and Seamus said that his kitchen was so stinky, he could no longer cook in it. So Paddy could do nothing except pack his bags, and sadly leave to go out alone into the wide world. He didn’t take much with him, just a small parcel of his belongings, which he tied to a stick and swung over his shoulder. He left his gold in his gold chamber, thinking that it would be safer there, even if he could never come back.

The first person he met on the road was a milkman, sitting in front of a wagon full of milk bottles. An old horse was pulling the wagon, plodding along slowly, and the milkman was humming softly to himself. Paddy was growing tired, so he jumped into the wagon and fell asleep. It was so comfortable, bumping along gently among the bottles of milk, that he dozed sometimes, and woke sometimes, but never wished to leave. When he got thirsty, he just drank from one of the milk bottles, before sinking back into sleep again. He was so tired, and so sad from having been driven out of his home, that he forgot to be clever and careful, and he forgot to stay awake so that the milkman wouldn’t find him. Imagine his surprise when he was woken up by a rough hand squeezing him, the face of the milkman very close to his, and a gruff voice crying out, “Gotcha!”

Back in the green hills where the Leprechauns lived, everyone was so happy that Paddy had been driven out. They had a party with cupcakes and balloons, to celebrate their freedom from his tiresome trickery. But after some time, life began to grow more and more dull. Something was missing from their green hills, but no one knew quite what. Seamus was even heard to mutter to himself one day, when he thought no one could hear him, that he was getting bored.

But then something happened which  had never happened to the leprechauns before. Clancey McCormick, one of the oldest Leprechauns alive, collected an unprecedented amount of gold. When he brought it back, he found that he had more gold than any other Leprechaun had ever had before. In fact, he had so much gold, that he did not know how to count it, or where to keep it.

To be exact, Clancey had already had nine pots of gold. No Leprechaun had yet ever collected more gold than could be fit into nine pots. For that reason, the chambers in which they kept their gold were simply not big enough to fit more than nine. And, also for the same reason, the Leprechauns, as clever as they were, had never yet bothered to learn how to count any higher than nine. But on this day, Clancey collected enough gold to fill up one more pot. But when he brought it back, and tried to add it to his other nine, and count them up, he found that he simply could not do it. So he sat outside and ripped at his hair and gnashed his teeth and wailed with grief. He simply did not know what to do.

The other Leprechauns came running, but when he told them of his troubles, none of them knew how to help him. Soon, all of the Leprechauns were tearing their hair and gnashing their teeth and wailing with woe.

But then, Finnigan stopped wailing. “I know what we need,” he said, sadly. “We need Paddy O’Conner. He was so clever, he is the only Leprechaun alive who is clever enough to solve this problem. Oh, how sad that we drove him away! Oh, woe is us!”

“Oh, woe is us,” cried all the other Leprechauns, and they began to tear their hair and gnash their teeth with redoubled energy.

But then, what should happen, but a very loud “POOF!” Right near where they were all gathered. They looked up to see a cloud of green smoke just clearing. Out of it appeared none other than Paddy O’Conner, but he was held tightly in the grasp of a mean-looking milkman.

“Oh no,” all the Leprechauns murmured. “Oh, now there is nothing we can do. Paddy has been captured. He was always so very clever, always the least likely to get caught. Fancy him being the one to get captured now!”

No one went to help him, for they knew that it was the law, magical and unchanging, that if a human caught a Leprechaun, then the Leprechaun must take him to the place where he hides his gold. So Paddy had to bring the milkman to his home beneath the hill, where he had departed not so long ago, thinking never to return. He had three pots of gold under there, and he had to give them all up to the milkman. Now the milkman was about to demand that Paddy take him magically back to where they had come from, gold and all, but he did a silly thing. He took his hands off of him, to put them onto the pots of gold. And the moment you let go of a Leprechaun, he is no longer bound to you and can easily escape.

So “POOF!” Paddy disappeared in a puff of green smoke, and so did all of the other Leprechauns. The milkman took the three pots of gold, but he was lost, and so very far away from his own home, that it is doubtful he ever made it back. He tried, but more than likely, he ended up in a new city, far from his own comfortable, country road, and never found out how to return there.

But we don’t really know what happened to the milkman. We do, however, know what happened to Paddy O’Conner. He came out of hiding, and looked shamefacedly at all of the other Leprechauns, who had also come out of hiding as soon as the milkman had left. “I’m sorry,” he said to them. “I had meant to stay away, on my honor, I did. But when a human captures one of us, we have no choice but to bring him back here.”

He was expecting them to come after him and chase him away again. You can imagine his surprise when they ran to him and hugged him, and lifted him up and told him how happy they were to see him again. As quickly as they could, they brought him to the hill where Clancey lived. They showed him how Clancey had nine pots of gold, but then one more again, and explained to him how Clancey neither had room to store it, nor the ability to count it.

“Oh that’s easy,” said paddy, laughing. “We’ll just call it ten. And since your storage space is too small, we’ll have to build a new one. A much, much bigger one. That way, whenever you get another group of ten pots, you can simply put them, altogether, into the larger chamber. We’ll call that chamber the “tens” chamber, and all the things that are put in it don’t have to be counted one by one, but by groups of ten. You see? It’s easy.”

So they built the “tens chamber,” and Paddy showed them how they now had one group of ten in the tens chamber, and zero in the other chamber, which they now called the “ones” chamber, because the items in it were counted by ones. Because Clancey was such an old, clever leprechaun, he soon collected more pots of gold. Soon, he had two pots of gold in his ones chamber; then five; then nine; and finally, yet another ten. But because of how Paddy had instructed him, he knew just how to count it, and just what to do with it. He gathered all ten pots together, and put them into the “tens chamber,” next to the first group of ten pots. “Now,” he said, “I have two groups of ten in my tens chamber, and zero in my ones chamber. How wonderful. I shall go out, and collect some more!”

And that is what he did.

Now Paddy, for his part, lived his life as a transformed Leprechaun. Since losing all his gold, he decided to spend some time collecting more, for what is a Leprechaun without a pot of gold? Never again did he taunt his fellow Leprechauns. And never again did he take the humans for granted; for he had learned from experience that even the most clever Leprechauns can sometimes get caught.


*story from https://woodstockwaldorf.wordpress.com/2010/03/15/a-fun-leprechaun-story-for-st-patricks-day/

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This is a great story for counting by units of ten. We loved practicing our counting by having a "one's chamber" and a "tens chamber" and using colored popsicle sticks. Once the nine sticks in the ones chamber got to ten, we moved that colored set of popsicle sticks to the tens chamber as one set of ten and started a new color set of popsicle sticks in the ones chamber. By the end of practicing we had 70 sets of ten that made a rainbow and it was fun counting seven sets of tens in the tens chamber. :)

A Birthday Story

A great way to enjoy a birthday is to do a birthday circle. 

You can also tell this sweet, simple story to invoke a sense of the sacred on a child’s birth with the parent telling the story/watching while the child acts the story out.

Once upon a time there was a little child named____________ who was still with the angles in heaven and he/she was very happy there. He looked at the beautiful colors and listened to the lovely music, and that was where he belonged. But one day the clouds parted in heaven and __________saw the beautiful green earth below with all the people happily playing and working and he suddenly longed to go there and see what it was like. He saw all the rainbow colors of the earth, He saw butterflies visiting flowers and birds flying in the air. They seemed to be beckoning him. He saw fish swimming in the sea and all the different plants that covered the earth. he saw children climbing trees running and jumping in the meadows and walking through sand and leaves. It was all so beautiful!

So he said to his angel, ‘Please, may I go down to earth now?” But his angel looked at him and said, “No, it is too soon. You must wait a little while yet”. So the child went and was happy and soon forgot about the earth. Then one day again he saw a glimpse of the earth through the clouds again. He saw mother and fathers doing their work. He saw bakers and engineers and writers and farmers. He saw mothers and fathers loving their

children. Then he saw a beautiful mother with love and longing in her heart for a child and he asked his angel now, “May I go to her?”

The angel said, “You must go through the land of dreams first.”

The next night the little child had a dream. He dreamed that he met and man and a woman and they stretched out their arms to him and asked him to come be their child. The child told his angel the dream. The angel said, “It is now time for you to go.”

So the child asked, “So may I go now?”

“You shall see.” Said the angel.

That night the child went to sleep into dreamland and while ten moons waxed and waned he rocked in a little boat. And at the end of that time a beautiful rainbow bridge stretched from heaven to earth and on it came the child as a tiny baby and slid into his mother and father’s waiting arms. They looked in awe at this new life and said “We shall call him/her ____________ “

*story from www.earthschooling.com

Verse: Starting Something

Hands together hands apart

Hands together, we’re ready to start

*This is a short little phrase that helps kids remember to not be figety and to be respectful as we begin a new activity, while they listen to instructions first.

Verse: Dwarf Song

Little dwarves so short and strong
Heavy-footed march along
Every head is straight and proud
Every step is firm and loud.

Pick and hammer each must hold
Deep in earth to mine the gold
Ready over each one’s back
Hangs a little empty sack

When their hard day’s work is done
Home again they march as one.
Full sacks make a heavy load,
As they tramp along the road.

*This is a good song for a story about dwarves working. To help instill the value of work...but in a playful way.

Verse: Here We Are Together

This is a great verse for getting everyone to join hands in a circle and notice everyone is together.

Oh Here we are together, together, together.

Oh Here we are together in our family (gathering):

...there's _____ and ______ and ______ and ______

Oh here we are together in our our family.

Story Time Verses

Attention  Getter- Wise Owl

A wise old owl sat in an oak.

The more he heard, the less he spoke.

The less he spoke, the more he heard.

Why aren’t we more like that wise old bird

The Wise Owls (can use this to gather the circle before the above attention getter)
One wise owl sitting in a tree
Hooted to another, "Come sit with me."
Two wise owls sitting in a tree
Hooted to one more, "Come let's be three!"
Three wise owls sitting in a tree
Hooted to a fourth, "Join our family."
Four wise owls sitting in a tree
Hooted to eachother, "come quietly."
Now all the wise owls sat as still as could be

While the wise old Owl shared his great story.

Attention  Getter- Wise Owl
Be quiet your faces, be still everyone

Fix deeply on me your eyes

And out of my mind a story will come

That is old, and lovely and wise

Story Starter

Anything can happen

In a fairy tale or rhyme

When you say the magic words

Once a upon a time

The Winter Garden Tale

The Winter Garden 

(from http://junipertreepuppets.com/a-winter-tale/)

Imagine this little tale as a puppet play… I like creating surprise in my
puppet shows.  Here, the snow cave can be revealed from under a white
snowy landscape silk, already set up with little twinkle lights hidden
with white veiling, that can be turned on with a dimmer light. 
How magical it will be for your  children!

*****************

King Winter went walking one day oh so cold,

He called to the snow clouds, so it is told.

Come snowflakes, come dancing down to the ground,

Tis time for the earth to not make a sound.

Your silence and calm, and peaceful white cheer,

Brings good will to all and welcomes the year!

*****

It was early in the new year and the winds blew icy from the north.  It was the coldest day of the winter.  King Winter went walking through the falling snow across the land and he heard something. It was sounds from the animals…

Yip, yIp called the Fox. Thump, thump drummed Rabbit. Tap, tap, tap, deer’s hoof on the frozen ground rang out in the cold air, And brown bear’s tummy growled from his winter cave. Squirrel chittered, And Robin sang a sad song.

‘The animals are hungry’ thought King Winter.  ‘I know just what to do.’  

King Winter called to the old wise gnome who dwelt in winter’s hidden garden below the earth. Very soon, an old gnome came trudging through the snow. ‘Here I am dear King,’ said the old wise gnome.

‘The animals are hungry,’ King Winter said to his trusted old friend, ‘and there is a long cold winter ahead.  I need your help.’ ‘Go to the deepest cavern of the earth where seeds are being cared for until spring.  Go to your hidden winter-land garden, the earth’s root cellar.  Make soup from roots and seeds and grains.  I will build a shelter fit for a winter feast for the animals.’ Old wise gnome bowed and went to prepare food for the cold and hungry forest creatures.

King Winter then called to the snow children to make a large, sturdy snow cave big enough for the animals to find shelter from the wind.

King winter brought candles to the cave to shine light and give warmth.

Gnome and his helpers were busy preparing food in the winter garden beneath the ground, and when it was ready, they brought steaming soup for all.

King Winter called to the animals, ‘come, come and feast and warm yourselves dear forest friends.’

One by one the animals came to the welcoming snow cave.  Fox, deer, rabbit, bear, squirrel, and robin too all came and ate the good warming soup. How grateful they were.

King Winter and the old wise gnome left piles of grain and seed for them.  Enough to feed them until spring.

King Winter looked at the animals gathered in warmth, safe shelter, with food and friendship.  He looked at the old wise gnome and they nodded to each other.  Their work was done, it was time for the old wise gnome to go back to the winter garden and keep caring for the roots and seeds getting them ready for spring. And King Winter walked on over the snowy land, unfolding winter and caring for all.

*****

King Winter went walking one day oh so cold,

He called to the snow clouds, so it is told.

Come snowflakes, come dancing down to the ground,

Tis time for the earth to not make a sound.

Your silence and calm, and peaceful white cheer,

Brings good will to all and welcomes the year!

The End