Thanksgiving Book List

Littlest Pilgrim by Brani Dougherty
Thank You, Thanksgiving by Dave Milgrim
The First Thanksgiving: A Lift-the-Flap Book by Kathryn Lynn Davis
Fancy Nancy: Our Thanksgiving Banquet by Jane O'Connor
The Very First Thanksgiving by Rhoda Growler Green
Turkey Trouble by Wendi Silvano
Thanks for Thanksgiving by Julie Markes
Thanksgiving Treat by Catherine Stock
'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey
Gus, The Pilgrim Turkey by Teresa Bateman
Little Bear's Thanksgiving by Janice
Just so Thankful (Little Critter) by Mercer Meyer
A Very Grumpy Thanksgiving (Care Bears) (not high literature, but I know some of the girls like Care Bears and its not that bad)

These are the ones Cherie had:
More Than Moccasins by Laurie Carlson
North American Indian (DK Eyewitness Books)
Corn Is Maze: The Gift of the Indians by Aliki
Friendship's First Thanksgiving by William Accorsi

These ones I haven't read, but they were some of the first to come up on Goodreads when you type in Thanksgiving.

Thank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving by Laurie Halse Anderson
Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende Devlin
A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Eve Bunting
Arthur's Thanksgiving by Marc Brown
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving by Charles Schulz
Clifford's Thanksgiving Visit by Norman Birdwell
Franklin's Thanksgiving by Paulette Bourgios
Its Thanksgiving by Jack Prelutsky
The Thanksgiving Story by Alice Dalgliesh
The Berenstain Bears' Thanksgiving by Stan Berenstain

Pumpkins! Book List

Pumpkin book list.  I haven't yet marked which ones are available at the local libraries.  

Duck and Goose Find a Pumpkin by Tad Kills
Its the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown
Pumpkin Day, Pumpkin Night by Anne F Rockwell
Its Pumpkin Time! by Zoe Hall
Five Little Pumpkins (several versions out there)
Where's Baby's Pumpkin by Karen Katz
The Runaway Pumpkin by Kevin Lewis
Oh My, Pumpkin Pie by Charles Ghigna
The Perfect Pumpkin (My Little Ponies)
Mouskin's Golden House by Edna Miller

Pumpkin Pumpkin by Jeanne Titherington
Pumpkins by Ken Robbins
Big Pumpkin by Eric Silverman
From Seed to Pumpkin by Wendy Pfeffer
The Very Best Pumpkin by Mark Kimball Moulton
Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin, Pie by  Jill Esbaum
Pumpkin Jack by Will Hubbell
Pinkalious and the Pink Pumpkin by Victoria Kann
Apples and Pumpkind by Anne Rockwell
I Love You, Little Pumpkin by Sandra Magsamen
This is NOT a Pumpkin by Bob Staake
Pumpkin Eye by Denise Fleming
Biscuit Visits the Pumpkin Patch by Alyssa Satin Capulcilli






Other Halloween Titles:
My First Halloween by DK Publishers
Max's Halloween by Rosemary Wells
Maisy's Halloween by Lucy Cousins
Halloween Mice by Bethany Roberts
Halloween Faces by Nancy Davis
Halloween Monster by Catherine Stock
Halloween Day by Anne F. Rockwell
Dinosaurs' Halloween by Liza Donnelly
By the Light of the Halloween Moon by Caroline Stutson
What's in the Witch's Kitchen by Nick Sharratt
Three Little Ghosties by Pippa Goodhart
One Witch by Laura Leuck
Goodnight Goon: A Petrifying Parody by Michael Rex
Trick or Treat by Melanie Walsh
No Zombies Allowed by Matt Novak
There Was an Old Monster by Rebecca Emberly
Go Away Big Green Monster by Rebecca Emberly

Halloween Picture Books

Found this cool Pinterest pin with many great Halloween titles!

Halloween Books For Kids -

More Apples from Pinterest

Collection of Apples Activities including Apple Printable Packet

Trees Book List

This list is what I could come up with from what my family has read, what was highly rated on Amazon, and the books Cherie brought with her at our two sessions. 

You can search both libraries for books titled "Trees" and "Leaves" and find many non-fiction texts what would be nice for just looking at the pictures and discussing what you see. 

Bold = available at Auburn Library
Italics = available at Lewiston Library

Trees:
Sky Tree by Thomas Locker
The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstien
Franklin Plants a Tree by Paulette Bouregois
A Tree is Nice by Janice May Udry (Caldecott Medal)
A Grand Old Tree by Mary Newell DePalma
Be a Friend to Trees by Patricia Lauber
Outside and Inside Trees by Sandra Markle
Have You Seen Trees by Joanne F Oppenhiem

Leaves:
Fletcher and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlinson
Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf by Lois Elhert
Leaf Man by Lois Elhert
The Fall Leaf Project by Margeret McNamara
The Little Yellow Leaf by Carin Berger
Eye Like Nature: Leaves by H.P. Wood
Leaves by David Ezra Stein
Leaves Fall Down by Lisa Bullard
Fresh Fall Leaves by Betsy Franco
The Fall of Freddie the Leaf by Leo F. Buscaglia (Careful, this one is in the special section about death)

Why Do Leaves Change Color by Betsy Maestro
We're Going on a Leaf Hunt by Steve Metzger
Look what I Did with a Leaf! by Morteza E. Sohi
Ruby's Falling Leaves by Rosemary Wells
I am a Leaf by Jean Marzollo
Leaves! Leaves! Leaves! by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace

Related topics: Fall, Seasons, Seeds

Reflection 10/3 (by Jacky)

This reflection is really about Natalie and I than how the day went.   I really liked our schedule today.  I felt the pacing worked much better.  The problems we had today had to do with Natalie and me, not the activities or setting. 

First of all, I have to commend William's patience today.  He played independently very well and allowed the other moms to help him do his craft and clean him up.  He didn't cry when I left the room. 

I walked away from today with a deeper understanding of how Natalie and I don't work well together when we are frustrated.  Something about doing the crafts is frustrating her, and I'm not helping. 

I think I'm bringing too much baggage to the situation.  I'm worried about her inability to use the scissors because of how her arthritis used to effect her hands.  Even though she is symptom free right now, I'm always worried that her being behind or her stiffness returning.  Especially where it took us so long to diagnosis her JRA before, I worry that we will miss some early sign.  Whenever she gets especially emotional, I worry her pain is returning because that was how she was during those six months.  But, thinking about it now, the over the top emotions are probably more of her way of coping with stress than a reaction to just pain. 

I'm also left wondering why she isn't more involved.  She isn't doing things she normally can do at home, such as saying answers she knows or gluing and painting.  I'm unsure if it is needing time to warm up to the environment and exceptions or if she is a learner who needs more time to process before answering and trying things herself.  But this is not the Natalie I see at home or during free play. I think I have an unfair expectation of her.  Does she really even understand what school is?  Am I taking that for granted?  Because she is so bright and social, I think I just assumed that transitioning into a school structure wouldn't be too hard for her. 

It really irks me when she proclaims that she can't do something.  She is so smart and capable, I know she can accomplish pretty much anything with practice.  But when we introduce something new (scissors in this case, but it was the same with getting dressed and undressed) she gets so frustrated so quickly.  It grates on my nerves so fast and really blinds me from helping her, not that she will let me help her much when she gets so worked up.  

As she got more and more upset, I decided to remove her from the table.  If we were at home, it probably would have been a time out, but instead, I did something I read on an attachment parenting web site.  Even as she struggled, I hugged her and told her I was going to keep hugging her.  After a minute she calmed down and asked for Baby Kitty, then when I returned with her, she curled up in my lap for a few minutes.  Soon she was ready to go back and try again.  I am happy that I tried this and that it worked.  It just felt better to work it out this way since I didn't really want to punish her for her emotions, but needed her to calm down.  But I am still left concerned about her getting so worked up in the first place.

Overall, I worry about this behavior when she starts formal schooling.  She can't be breaking out into tears when she drops her glue cap like she did last week.  One of the major reasons I wanted to give this preschool a try was to see how she would react and to start working through this problem. 

I think Amanda's idea might be a good place to start.  She suggested that sometimes we work with children that aren't our own.  I like this idea for two reasons.  First of all, I am interested to see if the same behavior would appear if I wasn't the one directing Natalie.  Though I wonder if I was in the room if it would still occur anyway.  I think sometimes she deliberately acts up with Mike when I am in the next room to get me to pay attention to her again.  I really think me getting away from the kids more often is causing this.  Anyway, the second reason I like this suggestion is so that sometimes I could focus on William.  I'd really like to work more with him, especially showing him things like shapes and colors and using parallel speach, but Natalie's needs so often intrude. 

Apples 10/3/12 Schedule (by Cherie)

MMM Schedule for 10/3/12

10:00-Morning Centers (snack, play dough, books, free play, baby play) Children will rotate and move through centers with their own choosing and pace and with guidance from Mom.
Snack-Children can enjoy a themed snack. Having children enjoy their snack as a rotating center will save us time and table space. Plus, I can have it on the table ready to go first thing without worrying about preparing it during learning time.
Play Dough- Working with mediums like play dough helps with building those important muscles in the hands and fingers that help with fine motor tasks, such as holding a pencil and scissors.
Books- Hold your child in your lap and offer to read a story to them. Point to pictures and ask them questions about the pictures or provide your own background knowledge and insights to the story. Example..."Remember when we saw or we did....." Children may also choose to look at books by themselves.
Baby Play- The baby play center is a sensory center that allows babies to use their senses to explore a baby-safe activity. I will post the activity online for viewing.

10:30- Morning Circle- Morning circle is a time to greet one another and to recognize the presence and importance of each child. During morning circle we will: sing the good morning song, sign the alphabet, discuss the color and animal of the day, sing a theme based song and review important concepts that we are learning.

10:40- Shake out the Wiggles and Dance to a Song or Two. I have the Jack Hartmann collection that we can begin. We'll gather back into our circle with Ring Around the Rosie.

10:50- Arts & Crafts & Science Exploration Demonstration (The arts & crafts project will begin with a guided step-by step process. Once the child is working on their project, the steps should be repeated to the child from Mom or other helping adult. It will be easier if the materials stay limited to the child on a as-needed basis. For example, take out the crayons, when needed, Take out the glue only when needed and then put away. Take out only the scissors when needed and then put away. Keeping only the materials needed during each step of the project will cut down on 'art material clutter and help the child stay on task. Materials will be kept on the counter, so that adults can take what's needed at the appropriate time.

11:00- Arts and Crafts & Science Exploration Centers
The group will be split up into 2 groups. 1/2 the group will begin their arts & crafts center that was demonstrated.
The other half of the group will engage in a science exploration that was demonstrated.
Both activities will be posted online before Wednesday so that Moms will have a complete understanding of the activities they are expected to guide their child through. Children can begin Free Play/Free Choice Time when they have visited both centers.

11:30- Free Play/ Free Choice- Hopefully we will get to go outside and play today! (Moms can choose to lead a group game for those children wanting to do so, such as duck, duck goose or red light-green light.)

11:50-Closing Circle-We'll end with a story and the good bye song. Children will add a sticker to their attendance chart before they leave.

How Does An Apple Tree Grow?

A few apple related items I saw on Pinterest for trying at home.

Source: education.com via Lisa on Pinterest

Source: teacherkimbo.blogspot.com via Jacky on Pinterest

Source: mrskilburnkiddos.wordpress.com via Kelly on Pinterest

Source: thefirstgradeparade.blogspot.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: happyhooligans.wordpress.com via Kristi on Pinterest

Source: iheartcraftythings.blogspot.com via Marianne on Pinterest

First Day Reflection (by Jacky)

Not that I had an doubts before, but after this morning, I truly know that I have no interest in teaching small children in a formal setting.  Huge respect for Cherie not only organizing today, but running her own Kindergarten in the past!  Eight kids were stressing me out when I wasn't even "in charge,"  so its pretty mind blowing to me how she (or anyone else) handles 20 or more!

I thought our schedule was pretty great.  We had more than necessary planned, which is always a good idea in case something falls through or is a totally flop. 

What stressed me out was my own children.  I struggled keeping track of both of them, and because of that felt like I didn't do a good job with either of them.  While I didn't exactly want to chase after William as he ran around with crayons, for example, I had expected that type of behavior from him and its developmentally appropriate.  But, Natalie seemed out of sync with the group a lot of the time.  She seemed lost when it was time to search for something red, and she didn't offer answers to any questions that she knew answers to.  She has never been in an environment so structured before, so I'm wondering if adapting was the cause.

Here are some initatives I'm going to work on to make the next few weeks run more smoothly.

• Give them both a fair sized snack soon before we leave so that Natalie isn't complaining about wanting to eat in the middle of activities.  While I'm not really sure how truly hungry she was, it did give perspective on the importance of breakfast for school age children.  
• Even if she goes before leaving the house, take Natalie to the potty several minutes before circle time starts.
• Keep Natalie and William's things together in one place.  
• Prep Natalie the night before about the next morning.  Remind her of the structures (like circle time) and tell her the theme. 
• Try to incorperate more transitions into our day.  Thus far, we are organized by routine at our house.  The kids know what to expect next because it is similar every day.  But in a new environment like today, Natalie was lost because she didn't understand the structures.  She was expecting just free play based on our routines.  
• Find a way to help Natalie transition from free play time to the focused activities, including making sure she puts toys back before starting an activity.  This is not for neatness, but because today I observed that these toys prevented her from focusing and occasionally distracted another child. 
• Make a focused effort with Natalie about reducing her crying.  It really got to me that she was reduced to tears several times in just two hours.  Continue talking to her about calm down strategies and using her words to explain her needs. 
• If the activity is appropriate, make sure William gets a seat so he can participate.  Today he was wandering off so I couldn't interact with him or Natalie. 

Books about Apples

I have read many, but not all, of these titles. The Lewiston Public Library carries the titles in bold.


Ten Apples Up on Top by Dr Seuss
The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall

Apples Here! by Will Hubbel
Little Apple Goat by Caroline Jayne Church
I am an Apple by Jean Marzollo
Apples by Gail Gibbons
Curious George Apple Harvest by H A Rey
How Do Apples Grow? by Betsy Maestro
Ten Red Apples by Pat Hutchins
The Apple Doll by Elisa Kleven
Apples, Apples, Apples by Elizabeth Helfman

For 1 and under:
Apple by Nikki McClure
Five Red Apples (Pat the Bunny) by Dorothy Meserve Kunhardt
Max's Apples (Nick Jr board book)
What Color is Your Apple (Begin Smart)
Orange Pear Apple Bear by Emily Gravett

Also, the fairy tale of Snow White also features a very important apple! Lewiston Library carries at least five different versions of the story, including Disney's.

Related topic of apple pie:
Where is the Apple Pie? by Valeri Gorbachev
Apple Pie ABC by Alison Murray
Amelia Bedelia's First Apple Pie by Herman Parish
All for Pie, Pie for All by David Martin

Apples Orginal Schedule (by Cherie)

MMM Schedule for 9/26/2012

Upon Arrival (9:30)- Morning Centers (independent play, color or play dough) A time for children to explore on their own and choose what activity they'd like to engage in. I will have baby centers too:) Make sure to be on time for morning centers so your child has time to acclimate to the environment and be ready for a successful transition.

Good Morning Circle (9:45) A time to greet one another and engage in concepts that we are working on. Once a month we will have show and tell. Circles are a good way to practice sitting for a few minutes too. Since this is a Mom & Me, it's a good opportunity to get in a few good lap cuddles as well. Wandering to be expected.

Arts & Crafts (9:55)-Painting with Apples and Tubes & Torn Paper Apple Craft (Choose one, choose two....it's up to you!) Moms will be expected to tuck away art work in a safe place after it's finished and help their chid tidy up/wash up.

Free Play (whenever children are finished their arts & crafts...some children will be finished after 2 minutes, some after 20 minutes.)

Snack (10:30)- (Apple Juice or Water, Graham Crackers & Apples) Collect your seeds today :)

Science Activity (10:40)- Planting Apple Seeds (Collect from Apples @ Snack Time) Take home and grow!

Math (10:50)-Collecting, Counting and Sorting Leaves (Take Leaves home with you for an optional at-home leaf book project or other leaf related project. Please post your ideas or share your child's work with us next week.)

Free Play (11:00)

Closing Circle (11:25)

Good Bye Song & Stickers