Co-op for 4 & 5 yos--need ideas please

[Linda]

Hi.

I've been asked to teach an 8-week co-op (about an hour a week) for 4 and 5 yos. Any fun (and may I be so bold as to request easy-to-implement) ideas? There are about 10 kids in the class. Thanks!

[angela in ohio]

A human body unit is very simple; there are so many resources out there.

A "fun with math" class, an art class, story time, a historical period (Egypt, Colonial America,) animal habitats, geography (world or U.S.)...

[Chris in VA]

I agree with the Human Body theme! How fun!
You could copy off Teacher Created Press' My Body. You could just pick 8 parts of the body (there are more than that covered) to use.
I could see it going something like,
Week One--Kids lay down on pieces of precut, brown paper (get a large roll), and trace around each other (pair them off). If any parents are staying, it would be helpful to get them to do it, but you want to cut down on the waiting time. Read a book about the body. Start learning a body poem or a couple of fingerplays. Sing Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes, or other appropriate song.

Then every week, study another part. I'd suggest heart, brain, lungs, esophagus and stomach, liver and kidneys, bones, muscles, and large/small intestine. You do an experiment/experience for each part, then have them color the part and glue it (glue stick) onto their paper outline. If you can't just leave the paper outlines there, they can gently fold them each time and carry them home in a portfolio made of two pieces of posterboard stapled on the sides (like a big pocket). Any unfinished coloring can go home, and they can glue them on at home, if needed.

There are tons of experiments out there that you could throw in. You could pull in a picture book every other week or two. If it's a Christian co-op, you can memorize a few Bible verses.

Another fun looking resource is found at the Living Learning Books site


here (http://www.livinglearningbooks.com/cart.php?target=product&product_id=16480&category_id=308)

If you could, I would also bring along a book basket of good human body books that they can look at if there's time at the end, or if they finish coloring early.
You could also do 7 parts, and spend a fun session doing experiments/experiences on the 5 senses, perhaps making their names or initials in braille (use white pony beads), learning a few words in ASL, making a sachet, playing a touch game (finding common objects in a bag to match a picture on a card is one), tasting various flavors (you can make a big tongue for everyone, and they can paste the words "bitter, sweet, sour--and there's one other taste I can't think of lol! on the tongue. Have them taste powdered cocoa for bitter, lemon juice for sour, candy for sweet, etc) and so on. (Oh--have them chew a cracker for 3 whole minutes--the starch turns sweet)

Just some ideas. I miss the "brainstorming for teacher ideas" of planning for preschool!

[abbeyej]

I would love to do a unit on "How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World" (Marjorie Priceman). If you don't know it, it's a charming picture book about a woman who goes around the world collecting the items she needs for an apple pie. Read the book on the first week, mark out the route on a map, etc, and on subsequent weeks do an overview of each of the regions she visits -- complete with another fiction and non-fiction book related to each place (or food item -- there are children's picture books on the production of vanilla, etc) and the chance to taste the foods from the place, etc. And, of course, on the last day, make individual little apple pies! :)

Alternately, Five in a Row could be adapted for a classroom co-op...

[Angel]

Last year, for 4-6 yo, and this year for 5-7 yo's. We have co-op twice a month and last year each month had a different theme like Dr. Suess month, Curious George month, Beatrix Potter month, etc. They would read the books and then do a craft, watch a video, sometimes do a gym activity for a book, for Peter Rabbit they had tea and some other type of food mentioned in the book. My dd loved this! This year they are doing something similar, it's just not based on a theme month. They are reading Wind in the Willows and drawing characters out of the Draw Write Now books and other such stuff.

I'm sorry I can't be more specific, but the idea is there. I am doing Five in a Row with dd at home this year and I do think it would easy to incorporate into a co-op setting.

HTH
Angel

[Karen in CO]

I generally do co-op classes for +-2 years of my own dd's age. So far I have done:

Animals - I read a story and did one or two crafts per week. We went through the major animal groups, fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, mammals a couple of weeks on these, invertebrate, and insects. The kids had a lot of fun.
Human body - I am doing a class now geared toward older kids, but I have also done based on the My Body book.
Ancient History crafts - I based this class on the AG. I chose a chapter for each week. I read SOTW to them and then did one or two projects from the AG.
FIAR - We read a the book then did an art project plus a craft based on each book.
Sing! Play! Create! - I did a co-op for younger kids based on this book. We read a story, sang a song or did a finger play and then did a craft project. All from the book.

[Osaubi]

I currently am teaching a co-op for the 5 to 8 age group. I use www.homeschoolshare.com (http://www.homeschoolshare.com) website. It is kind of like FIAR. We read a book, and then I pick out a coulple of things based on the book for them to do. When we did Dutchess Bakes A Cake (from FIAR) we talked about castles, knights, did a yeast experiment, and played a game called pass the slipper. Then at the end of class I got out a small homemade cardboard catapult, and let them try that. I figured that they would just have fun flinging things, but they also wanted to know how it worked. It has been a fun class to teach.

[Karenciavo]

My 5 yo loves show and tell and gym at our co-op, he takes them just about every semester. Deb in NJ is so good at preschool co-op classes; are you lurking Deb? :)

[cin]

I'm planning 2 classes for dd's co-op next year; FIAR and Galloping the Globe. They meet once a week for a total of 24 weeks.

[Linda]

Thanks everyone.

A few hours ago I had no clue what to do; now I have too many good ideas :D.

What a great board this is!