Christmas Felt Board Poem

When I was working as a preschool teacher, my co-worker gave me a home made gift of felt pieces and a poem with all the staff's name inside. I thought it was so adorable, that I borrowed her idea.  Here is one of my versions.

 

 

 

FIVE CHRISTMAS COOKIES

Five Christmas Cookies with icing galore
Jenny ate the Christmas wreath
And now there are four.
Four Christmas cookies, sitting close to me.
Joey ate the star shaped one
And now there are three.
Three Christmas cookies, staring back at you.
Sally ate the red stocking
And now there are two.
Two Christmas cookies, one who likes to run.
Freddy ate that gingerbread
And now there is one.
One cookie left, let’s go to the store
And buy more ingredients
So we can bake some more.

 

Christmas Tree Felt Board Activities

Following are three different Christmas Tree Felt Activities, great for a Christmas gifts or simply keeping the young ones busy over the holidays. The first two can be used as advent calendars. While the third tree is a fun decorating activity. 

Here are decorations
You can place on the tree
Decide where to place them
For all of us to see
Now the tree is ready
So plug in all the lights
And see all its beauty
Each and every night

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Penguin Preschool Theme

With the increase popularity of Club Penguin and the many movies and television shows created for younger audiences featuring these black and white birds, penguins are fun animals to include in a preschool curriculum. Penguins can be found within a number of preschool lesson plans, such as arctic animals, ice, and birds. This article suggests ideas for a theme day (or week) surrounding penguins with preschool songs, books, crafts and other activities.

Introduce Penguins at Circle Time

Begin a theme on penguins at circle time by asking the children what they know about penguins. Record their answers and use as a starting base for the learning process. Facts to share with a preschool classroom about penguins:

• are birds, but cannot fly
• spend 75% of their time in the ocean, looking for food
• can leap out of ocean and dive in
• keep warm with a layer of blubber and their fluffy feathers
• daddy penguin will watch over the egg while mommy gets food (and vice versa)
• baby penguins are called chicks
• they waddle and they huddle together for warmth

Preschool Songs about Penguins

Song #1 To the tune of "I'm a Little Teapot"

I'm a little penguin, black and white

Short and wobbly, and adorable sight

I can't fly at all, but I love to swim

So I'll waddle to the water

And dive right in!

Song#2 To the tune of " My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean"

The penguin slides over the ice bank

The penguin dives into the sea

Look at his black and white feathers

That penguin's as cute as can be!

Preschool Penguin Creative Art Ideas

1. Blank paper with pictures of penguins to draw

2.Black and white painting

3. Material to encourage penguin creations:  oval shapes, black and white paper, cotton balls, feathers, etc.

4. Penguin painting. Find plastic penguins to waddle through paint

5. Fingerpainting framed with penguin outlines

6. Creating penguins with clay or playdough

Suggested Preschool Poem about Penguins

With five felt penguins, or other penguins made of material that can be placed onto an easel board, the teacher can use this poem at circle time:

One penguin, with nothing to do, called to a friend and then there were two.

Two penguins swimming in the sea, called to a buddy, then there were three.

Three penguins waddled to the shore, they called to a pal, then there were four.

Four penguins learning how to dive, call to a brother, then there were five!

The following are some suggested preschool books about penguins:

That's Not My Penguin by Fiona Watt (Usborne, 2007)

Tacky the Penguin by Helen Lester (Sandpiper, 2006)

Scholastic First Discovery: Penguins (Scholastic Reference, 2007)

Five Little Owls Felt Board Poem

As the days are getting shorter, and the nights longer, a great theme for any early childhood setting is nightime. For a full article on this lesson plan, click here.

Here is a fun felt board poem for a nightime theme and the night sky works well as a felt background.

Five Little Fluffy Owls

Five fluffy owls, a branch as their floor
One flew into the dark
And then there were four
Four fluffy owls sitting in a tree
One flew towards the moon
And then there were three
Three fluffy owls, wondering what to do
One said goodbye my friends
And then there were two
Two fluffy owls, looking for some fun
One found a mouse to catch
And then there was one
One fluffy owl, eyes big and round
He soared into the sky
With stars all around.

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Pumpkin Preschool Songs with Felt Pieces

                                             

Pumpkins represent fall time and Halloween with their bright orange skin waiting for a Jack-o-lantern pattern to be carved. Singing is a fun and beneficial experience for young children in any early childhood environment. Through music children experience pleasure, joy and creative expression. The following article provides preschool songs about pumpkins that can be sung throughout autumn. The songs are easy to learn as they follow classic children's songs.

Pumpkin Songs

This song fits well into a pumpkin patch visit whether in a preschool or daycare group or a family outing. The suggestion is to sing the words to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. The song helps develop rhyming skills for young children. Try singing the song, and pausing to see if any children might guess what the rhyming word might be, such as ground and fall.

I am a pumpkin, orange and round.
You will find me on the ground.
Sometimes big, and sometimes small,
You will find me when it's fall.
I am a pumpkin, orange and round.
You will find me on the ground.

Learning about how pumpkins grow is an important component to a pumpkin lesson with young children. This song can help in the teaching and learning process. The suggested tune is Frere Jacques.

Pumpkin seed, pumpkin seed
In the ground, in the ground.
Grows into a vine, grows into a vine
All around, all around.

Starting green, starting green
On the ground, on the ground.
In this lovely patch, in this lovely patch
Pumpkins found, pumpkins found.

Big and orange, big and orange
Nice and round, nice and round
I will pick my pumpkin, I will pick my pumpkin
On the ground, on the ground.

Jack-O-Lantern Songs

                                   

One of our favourite activities for the Halloween holiday is carving a pumpkin, these songs correlate well to this fun event.

To the tune of I'm a Little Teapot

I'm a Jack-o-lantern, look at me
I'm as happy as I can be
Put a candle in, and light the light
Don't be frightened, it's Halloween night.


To the tune of Sing a Song of Six Pence

First you take a pumpkin, big and round and fat
Then carve the top off, and that will make the hat
Then you carve the nose out, the mouth and the eyes
Show to the children for a Halloween surprise!


Pumpkin Fingerplay

Finally, a classic fingerplay song that has to be included in this pumpkin song list is Five Little Pumpkins. There are different versions, a popular one recorded by the well known artist of children's music, Raffi. The song works well when sung with visual aides, such as felt pieces or a glove puppet and helps develop counting skills in young children.

Five little pumpkins, sitting on the gate
The first one said, "Oh my it's getting late".
The second one said, "There are witches in the air".
The third one said, "But we don't care".
The fourth one said, "Let's run and run and run".
The fifth one said, "I'm ready for some fun".

Ooooh, went the wind, and out went the light.
And the five little pumpkins, rolled out of sight.

Singing is a crucial ingredient to creating an environment that meets the needs of the whole child. These pumpkin songs help children experience, learn and enjoy the fall season.

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Way Up High in the Apple Tree Felt Board Poem

When I was program planning for preschool, I often chose an Apple Theme for late September and early October. This is one of my favourites...

Way up high in an apple tree

Five little apples were looking at me

I shook that tree as hard as I could

And down came an apple, mmm mmm, it was good!

Easy Felt Board Story

This felt story is so easy to make and I sing the lyrics from the tune, Current Buns from the Bakery Shop. This one is about doughnuts! It is fun to sing with a group of children, and to give each child a coin to pay for his/her chosen doughnut.

Five yummy doughnuts in the bakery shop
Round and sugary with icing on the top
Along came (child's name) with some money one day
He bought a yummy doughnut and he ate it right away!


A Healthy Version:

Five Yummy Apples in the Grocery Shop
Round and yummy with a stem on the top
Along came (child's name) with some money one day
He bought a yummy apple and he ate it right away!

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Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Felt Board Story

Aside from accompanying the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin, this felt story encourages literacy in young children with its added bonus of letter recognition.

There are many youtube videos of the story. I like the ones with music...

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Felt Board Activities Promote Language Development

Friday afternoon at 5pm, last day of work before holidays, and I am waiting for two young boys (one and two) to be picked up by their parents. It is just me and them left in the room.  I want to keep them busy with a special activity that will engage them while they are waiting. I decide to bring out the teacher's felts and individual felt boards. The ones I choose are printed pieces, not home made ones, which can be more realistic in their images.

One boy is given the animals and the other is given fruit and vegetables. They are so happy. The two year old is using what words he knows to label each piece of felt. He methodically brings out each fruit and vegetable from its bag and places them on top of each other.

Whereas the one year old is choosing a felt piece, showing me each animal felt piece and waiting for animal clarification before placing the felt onto the felt board.

The activity was clearly promoting language development. Both boys were placing the pieces onto the boards with such concentration, the time quickly passed and before we knew it the parents arrived.

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Felt Board Activities: Dogs and Cats

Match the dog to his doghouse

Scat the Cat

Five Little Sailboats Felt Board Poem

Five Little Sailboats

To the tune of  Five Little Ducks

Five sailboats went out one day

Over the waves and far away

With the wind, they begin to rock

One sailboat returns to the dock

Four sailboats...

Further suggestion: use the numbers to teach number recognition

Five Little Sailboats

Five little sailboats went out one day

Into the ocean and far away

Over the waves the boats do rock

Two of the boats decide to dock

Three little sailboats in the sea

With the sun as happy as can be

Two of the sailboats want to stay

So anchors they drop, for the day

One sailboat left, away he goes

A gust of wind, it sure does blow

As he rides the waves up and down

All the way to another town!

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Ladybug Felt Board Story

Five Little Ladybugs

Five ladybugs with a leaf for their floor

One crawled away, and now there are four.

Four ladybugs left on a leaf

One climbed up a tree, and now there are three.

Three ladybugs wondering what to do.

One said goodbye, and now there are two.

Two ladybugs still having lots of fun,

When one had to leave, and now there is one.

One ladybug sitting all alone.

Finally flew home, and now there are none.

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Nursery Rhymes and the Felt Board

Hickory Dickory Dock, Baa Baa Black Sheep, Itsy Bitsy Spider

Nursery Rhymes have existed for centuries. According to Wikipedia, Baa Baa Black Sheep can be dated back to 1744! Young children, especially toddlers, still enjoy the melodic sound of a rhyme. The repetition of words along with the rhythm of the lines help in language development. In addition, many of our favorite children's songs, such as the Itsy Bitsy Spider, originated as nursery rhymes. Today, there are numerous websites, blogs and youtube channels where nursery rhymes can be found, from classic to unfamiliar as well as different versions, all which can correlate to felt pieces.

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Felt Story Books

When I am selling my hand made felt stories at the Farmer's Market, I am surprised how many people are unfamiliar with the use of a felt board and felt pieces to tell a story. To help illustrate, I made board books with photos of the felt pieces. I found the books online at www.blankslatebooks.com and followed through the easy instructions. (I also noticed blank board books at Michael's.)

I was enticed to make a full book out of felt, with pieces to add with each page, but decided to go with glue versus thread:) Me and a sewing machine are not a good mix. 

Check out these amazing creations from Etsy!! 

Follow this link for more



Follow this link for more

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Kite Felt Board Story

 FIVE LITTLE KITES

One little kite in the sky so blue,

Along came another, then there were two.

Two little kites, flying high above me.

Along came another, then there were three

Three little kites, just watch them soar

Along came another, then there were four.

Four little kites, so high and alive

Along came another, then there were five.

Five little kites dancing across the sky,

What a sight to see, way up so high!

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Toddlers and Felt Board Activities

Presently, I work in an Infant/Toddler Daycare Room where the children are predominantly between the ages of one and two. After so many years working with preschool ages (3-5), I am pleasantly surprised at how much they LOVE the felt stories. I watch their faces light up as I pull out the box. As I repeat many of the same stories, songs or poems with felts, the words and melodies become familiar to the children. It truly makes me smile as they jump up to dance, clap their hands, and sit down to listen. The felt pieces allow the children to visually make a connection to the words being spoken which fosters language development. If permitted, they love to participate in the process by placing the felt pieces on the board or removing them. A story like The Very Hungry Caterpillar involves a number of concepts and with each telling of the story, the lessons are repeated.

When I am selling my felt stories at our local Farmer's Market in the summer, I have many shoppers asking me if their toddler is old of enough to enjoy. This year, I am going to say that I think it is the perfect age for felt board activities!

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The Mitten Felt Board Story

                                               

Where I live, the snow had almost entirely melted. We could see the grass and then...it snowed and snowed all over again. *sigh*. Oh well, it is only February. So, I read "The Mitten" story by Jan Brett. I have always loved this book, and recently came upon a book called "Don't Wake Up the Bear". The felt story pieces could certainly be used for both stories.

In addition, you may want to visit my blog entry: Mitten Preschool Songs

                              

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Eric Carle Books into Felt Board Stories

Felt stories derived from published books is a popular way of enjoying the flannel board with young children. Eric Carle has always been my favorite author and artist to transfer into felt stories. His pictures are not complex and his storyline is usually systematic, lending itself to pieces coming on and off the flannel board. His stories always hold learning elements, from counting numbers to life lessons! The following photos are some of my hand-made stories that are a part of my "toolbox"  as an early childhood educator. "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" felt pieces to accompany his published book, is a popular purchase when I am selling felt stories at markets or conferences. In addition, I have written an article about creating a theme within a preschool or daycare curriculum all around the book which can be viewed on my website: Circle of Ideas.




The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Rooster is Off to See the World

Brown Bear, Brown Bear

Little Cloud

10 Little Rubber Ducks

Valentine Poems for the Felt Board

Here are some Valentine Poems that correlate well to heart shaped felts for the flannel board:

One Valentine I made for you
Make another, and now there are two
Two Valentines for you and me
Make another, and now there are three
Three Valentines, we want more
Make another, and now there are four!


1) Five Little Valentines
Courtesy of Homeschool and Beyond

 One little valentine said, “I love you.”  _______made another, and then there were two.
Two little valentines, one for me!  _______made another, and then there were three.
Three little valentines said, “We need one more.”  _______made another, and then there were four.
Four little valentines, one more to arrive;  _______make another, and then there were five.
Five little valentines, all ready to say, “Be my Valentine this happy day.”

2) Valentine Hearts
Courtesy of Perpetual Preschool Website

Contact_FullName: Chrissie
Contact_Email: childrensjunction@bellnet.ca
Area: Valentine's - songs
Idea:
Valentine Hearts, Written by the kindergarten class at Children's Junction Daycare.

5 Little Valentine's sitting on some lace
The first one said, I like this place.
The second one said, Red and pink are nice.
The third one said you can say that twice.
The fourth one said, Let's kiss an kiss and kiss.
The fifth one said, I hope you don't miss.


Further Reading Suggestion: Preschool Songs about Love

                                              Healthy Valentine's Day Snacks

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