Toys: Spaghetti Doll House, Mega Blox Road Racer and track Set, Traffic Rug and Race Cars.
Discussion: What are Germs?
Before snack time we read about what a germ is. We learned that germs are all around us. Germs are so tiny that we cannot see them without a special machine called a microscope. There are different types of germs. Some are called viruses and some bacteria and they could make us sick. They come in many different shapes.
We learned about proper hand washing and then went to the bathroom to practice scrubbing our hands and singing the alphabet or a Happy Birthday song while we clean under our nails, "inside, outside, and in between" our fingers, rinse and then dry our hands on a clean towel.
Snacks: Sliced apples and Goldfish Crackers
Recess:
Germ Identifying Activity: After recess, we all lined up and washed hands and those who chose to used some lavender lotion. We sat in a circle to begin a "Getting to Know You" ball activity. I made a big show of sneezing on the ball (in the which I slipped some tiny purple glitter--representing "germs" onto the ball.) As we rolled the ball around and shook hands, the glitter was distributed so that pretty soon, the children looked down to find the glitter germs all over their hands. We read some books and talked about how you don't see germs but they are there. That is why we wash our hands--to keep from catching or spreading germs. We also practiced "safe sneezing" into an elbow, sleeve, shirt front, or tissue and then washing hands.
Jack's Show N' Teach looks like a giant germ seen under the microscope in some of our books!
We enjoyed listening to and singing The Green Grass Grew All Around. (The children laughed at the end of this cumulative song because they speak of a tiny germ that jumps on a flea.)
After playing outside, we came in and practiced washing our hands. Then we applied lotion to our chapped hands. In circle time we played a ball game and I made a dramatic show of sneezing (tiny purple glitter) all over our ball and then passing it on to the children. Then we shook hands and repeated a get-to-know-you game from the first days of school. When we looked down at our hands, we were able to "see germs" (glitter) and how they had spread from my hands to their hands. Some children choose to wash their hands and others wanted to keep their sparkling hands for our art activity.
For our follow-up art activity, we used glitter glue to trace hands (the glitter representing microscopic "germs"). In our mini discussion group, we talked about how frequent hand washing before meals/snacks and after playing outside or being at school will keep us from catching germs and getting sick. We also spoke briefly about coughing and sneezing into our elbow, hands, or a tissue and then washing our hands to keep others from catching the same "bug." Also, we need enough sleep and to eat nutritious foods to keep us healthy.
Some of the books we read and talked about today:
Another book about how medicine works to help us feel better after getting a "bug" is Buz by Richard Egielski.