Twelve Days of Thanksgiving - Day 10

Days of Thanksgiving

I've always loved these ideas that extend through multiple days to celebrate the holiday seasons (did you catch my 13 Days of Halloween posts?). This year I found ideas for the 12 Days of Thanksgiving and I couldn't resist sharing them with you. The ideas in this post came from a very vintage magazine called Copycat Press from 1990 (which just doesn't feel like it should be labeled very vintage, but I suppose that's because I am very vintage myself!) 

The ideas are centered around using the poetry from It's Thanksgiving by Jack Prelutsky. I didn't have this book in our Club library, but I did find a few versions of read alouds online. Here's the one that includes the entire book (which is helpful since you'll use different poems each day).

Tenth Day of Thanksgiving
Remember the anticipation you felt as you made a wish and pulled as hard as you could on the turkey wishbone? There's a little bit of a dreamer in all of us. Focus on this when you read "The Wishbone." Reproduce the wishbone pattern below [from the original publication from Copycat Press]. Ask members to make a wish and explain why they would like this wish and explanation inside the wishbone reproducible. Challenge the group to think of non-material wishes... for their family, for the environment, or for the world! Cut out the wishbones and glue them to a piece of construction paper. Display them on a bulletin board with the title "MAY ALL YOUR WISHES COME TRUE!"

Click on the image above to be taken to a larger image of the reproducible. You're welcome to use this in your Clubs, classrooms, or any kind of after school program. If you share it with others, please share my blog as well. Thank you!

Additional Idea: After you have read "The Wishbone" ask children to share their experiences with wishing on wishbones. Afterward, invite them to make these wishbone booklets to share with their families. First have members color and cut out several copies of the wishbone booklet (image above). Ask them to write or draw about a Thanksgiving wish on the back of each page. To make a front cover, have members cut out only the wishbone from the booklet page and glue it onto a 9-inch paper plate and title the cover "My Thanksgiving Wishes." Finally have them stack and staple their pages between the front cover and another paper plate.

Twelve Days of Thanksgiving - Day 5

Days of Thanksgiving

I've always loved these ideas that extend through multiple days to celebrate the holiday seasons (did you catch my 13 Days of Halloween posts?). This year I found ideas for the 12 Days of Thanksgiving and I couldn't resist sharing them with you. The ideas in this post came from a very vintage magazine called Copycat Press from 1990 (which just doesn't feel like it should be labeled very vintage, but I suppose that's because I am very vintage myself!) 

The ideas are centered around using the poetry from It's Thanksgiving by Jack Prelutsky. I didn't have this book in our Club library, but I did find a few versions of read alouds online. Here's the one that includes the entire book (which is helpful since you'll use different poems each day).

Fifth Day of Thanksgiving
Have the kids read silently the poem "I Went Hungry On Thanksgiving." Then have the group create some language experience stories. Ask members to tell about a time when they were incredibly hungry and couldn't stop eating. Members should describe the sights and smells and their reaction to them when they experienced these feelings of fullness or hunger. Have the class read their stories. Compare and contrast the feelings.

Note: Be aware of childhood hunger and the fact that not all of the kids in your care come from families where there is no shortage of food. If you have concerns with this activity possibly causing children to feel left out, you might alter the activity to have members think of a time where they wanted to do something, but could not because of circumstances they couldn't control - for example, a trip that was canceled due to weather or a missed party because of the flu.

Click on the image above to be taken to a larger image of the poem. I created this printable with graphics purchased from EduClips (<-- and there's the link in case you want to purchase some of her awesome work). You're welcome to use this in your Clubs, classrooms, or any kind of after school program. If you share it with others, please share my blog as well. Thank you!

13 Days of Halloween 2018 - Day 2

One of the favorite stations at our Club is the Lego Table. We've transformed an old Foosball table into the Lego table (because you use what you have, m'I right?). For Day 2 of the 13 Days of Halloween we're going to have a Halloween Lego build-off. Our kids thrive on healthy competition and this seems like a great one because our executive director just ordered oodles of Legos for us, 'cause she knows what's up.

For our Lego Build-Offs we have a hard and fast rule that no sculptures become decor. The kids love to see their creations admired, but that means that others won't have an opportunity to build and that's not a fair trade. 

So instead, once a child completes their sculpture, the fill out a Lego Build-Off ticket that tells their name, the name of their creation, the number of blocks they used, and gives a space for them to tell what makes their sculpture great. The staff working in the Table Tops room then snaps a picture of the member with their creation and then boom, the sculpture is disassembled and ready to become a new work of art. If you would like a copy of the Lego Build-Off Ticket, click on the link above to download it from my google drive.

If you wanted to have your kids work toward building a pre-designed project (because following directions is a VERY important skill to master) here's a great idea from Frugal Fun for Boys and Girls that's a pumpkin lantern.

Now if that seems a little more in-depth than you want, here are some ideas from Brick Player and Little Bins for Little Hands.

What fun ways do you use to add diversity to your Legos? Let me know!