Early Childhood Activities

By GreenDragonBooks

Over 700 child-tested activities, from a variety of teaching systems, are included in this overflowing encyclopedia of projects, games, and activities. Language and artistic skills, musical and physical awareness, and science and social studies are some of the subjects addressed. While dancing, singing, cutting, and pasting, the children will be so busy having fun, they won’t realize they are learning

• Language: English
• Publisher: GreenDragonBooks
• Release date: Nov 4, 2014

GreenDragonBooks

Welcome to Green Dragon Books, a new company for the 21st century. The company, originally called Humanics Publishing, was founded and has been continuously publishing since 1969, making it one of the oldest publishing houses in Southeastern United States. Initially based in Atlanta, Georgia, the first titles were developed in response to the need from the education community for quality classroom materials to support parents as the prime educators of their children. In the mid-1980s, the company expanded its focus to include titles specializing in personal development, philosophy, and management. Moving into the 21st century, the range of topics now includes health, religion, science, mysteries, children's books, finance and politics. Green Dragon published the best-selling book, The Tao of Leadership, by John Heider. Our mission is to develop authors and their works deemed successful, and contribute to the knowledge base for the planet. Our books take their place promptly in the mainstream of contemporary publishing. We are constantly seeking new authors in areas of child development, Eastern philosophy, human potential, and mystery; these are some of the many areas we have demonstrated our expertise.

Book preview

PREFACE

Early childhood education is vitally important to the welfare of young children. It is therefore essential that teachers and parents of young children have at their disposal the best activities from every available source for use in the classroom and home. Included here are ideas from traditional schools, Montessori schools, the British Infant schools, Head Start programs and experimental classrooms. In addition, this book contains the suggestions of noted educators and ideas taken from conventions, conferences, kits and workshops. Activities from seven subjects are presented: art, language arts, mathematics, music, physical education, science and social studies. This comprehensive survey of early childhood activities will provide teachers and parents with ready access to hundreds of select ideas from teaching systems worldwide.

Art has no nationality. It can be adapted from any teaching system to fit into another; it can be adjusted to suit any child. It is the creative mainstay of early childhood education.

With the understanding that performance is infinitely more valuable than the end product, teachers should encourage honest and innovative efforts without pressuring students to attain specific results. The child who becomes totally absorbed in the process of creating often finds self-satisfaction in terms of emotional growth as well as artistic rewards. This self-satisfaction in turn has a positive affect on the total learning environment.

The most important single element in a successful art program is variety. By offering a different activity each day, the teacher insures that children will approach the art table eagerly and with a sense of anticipation. Included in this volume are high interest projects and crafts designed specifically to appeal to children and to match their developmental level.

A. PAINTING AND COLORING

Easel Painting

The art table and one easel should be sufficient for the average classroom. Prepare the easels with a variety of clean, bold colors each day. On occasion, substitute pastels for variety.

The least expensive type of paint seems to be powdered tempera that is mixed with water. For economy, it is best to only half fill the paint cups. Save leftover paint by removing the brushes and covering each paint container tightly.

Newsprint or other inexpensive paper is adequate for daily use. Use the classified section of the newspaper or wallpaper samples for novel substitutes. Long handled brushes, 1/4, 1/2 or 1" in size, are recommended for small children.

The only instructions that experts advise giving children at the easel are to keep each brush in its own color and to wipe brushes on the side of the paint container to prevent excessive dripping.

Easel Painting With One Color

Using a single color, prepare graduated shades of the paint with black and white paint. Line the jars of the various shades of paint in order from darkest to palest at the easel.

Painting at Tables With Odd-Sized Paper

Provide unusual sizes and shapes of paper for children to paint. Suggested shapes are:

Long paper (suggests buildings or trains)

Square paper

Round paper

Wide paper

Free shaped paper that is torn around the edges

Topics for Painting

Franz Cizek, founder of the Juvenile Art Class in Vienna, Austria, in 1897 established a basic system of revolutionary techniques which remain valid today. Usually the teacher or the students suggest a topic and the class engages in a descriptive and colorful conversation which helps each child create mental word pictures.

After this verbal motivation, the teacher provides students with pencils, paints and crayons. Give the students large sheets of paper (12 × 18). Have the children draw the picture first with pencil and then color it. The only other instruction to give the children is that they draw large figures. Some suggestions for topics are:

Self-portraits

Me and my family

My house

My doll (pet, toy, etc.)

I am running (jumping, swimming, fishing, riding, eating, swinging, falling, bathing, etc.)

I visit Santa Claus (grandmother, the doctor, etc.)

I see a gigantic rainbow.

The balloon man comes to my street.

The ice cream man comes to my street.

The flower lady

A big city (farm, zoo, circus, park, train station, etc.)

I land on the moon (a star, another planet)

Circus clowns

Space man

Faces (large portraits)

I go to the beach (the mountains, the desert, a lake, etc.)

Paint a happy picture (a sad picture)

Paint a summer picture (winter, spring, autumn)

Paint what you think is out the window

Paint a dream

Paint the Indians who used to live here

Paint an explosion in a paint factory

Paint a fairy (monster, ghost, giant, witch, etc.)

Paint another child in the class¹

Skating On Paper

Lowenfeld and Brittain originated this activity and it has been used successfully in many classes.²

Wax Relief Painting

Wax Relief Seascapes

Wax Relief Paintings of the Seasons

Wax Relief Design Using Circles and Lines

Sponge painting

Sponge Painting Around Stencils

Powdered Tempera Pictures

Wet Paper Pictures

Crazy Colors

String Painting

Blowing Paint

Bubble Paintings

Window Paintings

Stained Glass Paintings

Seasonal Paintings

Spatter Painting on the Floor

Body Portraits

Cooperative Portrait

Bouquets

Montessori Metal Insets

Montessori schools have an activity which seems to be unique with them: the use of metal insets combined with colored pencils. Ten metal insets are offered the children. They are the oval, the triangle, the pentagon, the circle, the ellipse, the square, the quatre-foil, the rectangle, the curvilinear triangle, and the trapezoid.

Children learn to trace the inset after it is lifted out of the frame. They then learn to trace its outline or stencil.

In the Montessori system, children are introduced to these shapes in stages. In the first stage, they may trace one shape and color it in. They work on small pieces of paper on a coloring tray. After they have begun to learn to hold the pencil properly and color evenly, they may use two shapes. They then also have the option of using one shape in two different ways on their paper.

Next, the children may use three shapes or one shape in three different ways. They are gradually introduced to shading and color mixing. The final stage is for the child to create original designs using as many shapes and colors as desired. He may make these designs on large sheets of paper.

Whatever art project Montessori students engage in, they are required to take special care of material and clean up after themselves by washing brushes, wiping up paint spills, returning equipment to its proper place, etc.

Group Painting