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Djinn - Welcome to the ECE conference room. Tonight we are discussing our favorite activities with Jan Brett Books. The Mitten and The Hat seem to be seasonal favorites, along with The Wild Christmas Reindeer.
Kathleen - Djinn, thank you for agreeing to host this session:-)
Djinn - I love Jan Brett Kathleen
Kathleen - I have some good news.
Kathleen - We haven't settled upon a date yet, but Jan Brett has agreed to come to Teachers.Net for a live session :-)
Djinn - I just got my copy of The Night Before Christmas! What a beautiful book.
Djinn - OHHHH- love good news!
Sandy/K/MO - I just got my copy too and her teacher packet came in the mail today. Kat that's GREAT!
Kathleen - I knew you would like that news :-)
Djinn - I can't wait - she seems so amiable
Bob R/CA - Sounds great Kat :o) You have an idea what month?
Kathleen - Dec is running out, probably Jan. or Feb.
Sandy/K/MO - I sent her an email.. and she replied and said she was glad to hear from me again. Is there a program that tells her I wrote before?
kathy/k/il - I am reading 12 different versions of The Night. . . including Jan's new one. Will have the kinders vote on favoriteversion.
Sandy/K/MO - I was surprised and pleased that she remembered
Djinn - Kathy - that sounds like a wonderful idea.
Djinn - What a wonderful way to introduce that beautiful prose.
Kathleen - Jan Brett's site: http://www.janbrett.com/
kathy/k/il - In January, read and act out different versions of the Mitten
Djinn - My favorite activity is to have students compare The Mitten stories and introduce Venn diagrams
Djinn - Sandy - what do you like to do with Jan Brett books?
kathy/k/il - Yes.. I use hula hoops for Venn diagrams, and pics of animals.
Sandy/K/MO - I have the kids retell the story of the mitten using the masks..and sometimes they will tell it from the different animal's perspective
mjayem - Djinn I did that today but with Town Mouse Country Mousev.a. - I have a page of mittens which the students can color different ways and do math activities with when reading The Mitten. I made some matching sets also for sorting and matching
Djinn - I use the masks from her website- laminated and on sticks .
Sue/Mi - When I do The Mitten I use a big sheet that is sewn together with a red mitten drawn on it. The children reenact the story by crawling inside the big mitten.
Djinn - Anyone use the margins for prediction?
Sandy/K/MO - Jan is so giving... her site is full of material
Djinn - Sue - how fun! After reading we like to stand in a corner and explode. LOL
kathy/k/il - Cute, Sue. I've only done it with rolls of paper. Fabric would be sturdier.
al-IA - Sue, that is a cute idea
Elizabeth - I love the borders Djinn, and the children love watching them for predictions
mjayem - I do Djinn I just started a Jan Brett Author study this week, and my childern love it
Sandy/K/MO - Sue, that's a neat idea :-)
v.a. - Yes I use the margins for predicting and the clothes line in The Hat for recall and telling what is missing.
Sue/Mi - The children love it.
al-IA - Sandy, did you see that Turkey she had
Djinn - Is anyone using The Wild Christmas Reindeer?Elizabeth - I'm reading that to my class tomorrow Djinn
mjayem - I use her newsnotes on her web site to make folders to go home with each book. The children love to read why she did certain things
Djinn - Me too Elizabeth- was trying to think of a follow up activity
JT - I did The Wild Christmas Reindeer today.
Sue/Mi - We will be doing it later this week.
Sandy/K/MO - I sent the kids a postcard at school from there.. and they LOVE it
Teach2 - Will read it to my class also next week....
Djinn - I think we will make reindeer ornaments with popcycle sticks.
jpm/ct - first yr teacher here needs help w/activites with the mitten
Djinn - Jpm =Welcome- You've come to the right place.
Elizabeth - I haven't planned one Djinn...We've been enjoying the stories, and the pictures...particularly the borders. I do Phoebe Gillman after Christmas and we compare the use of borders by the two authors
Djinn - Smitty - how are you using the Mitten?
Elizabeth - That's a great idea Djinn
v.a. - Jpm-- Did you see the site posted earlier---www.janbrett.com ideas there also.
Djinn - We use macaroni - Christmas tree pasta - and make patterns on construction paper mittens - very effective
Kathleen - http://www.elismorrowsch.com/FolkTale.html (Folktale Activities,
author Study)
Smitty/1/MS - We always do the play for other classes, a lot of creative writing, changing the ending, etc.
jpm/ct - i love the story but don't know quite how to use it
mjayem - If u go to this site there are tons of things to do with her books http://www.nhusd.k12.ca.us/Cabello/~classrooms/%7Er12/author.htm
Kathleen - http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/score/mit/mittg.html (The Mitten)
Djinn - You can use different mittens to sort for pairs.
Kathleen - http://users.desupernet.net/theresa/Cometlesson.html (Comet activities)
Djinn - You can also tie in hibernation - seasons -
Djinn - I love The Hat - my students last year thought the animals were so funny - we got into a great discussion about copy cats - fads, etc.Elizabeth - We read Christmas Trolls today and it sparked a wonderful discussion about the meaning of Christmas Djinn - We make a mitten- large and laced and then add pictures of the animals - sequencing and re-telling
Djinn - I do not have that book Elizabeth- but it's on my wish list!
Kathleen - We list the various name for Grandmothers after reading The Mitten
Sandy/K/MO - We make a mitten too and place in order the animals using positional and ordinal numbers and words
Djinn - Kathleen- never thought of that! Great- thanks
Kathleen - You could order the animals by size and other attributes
Elizabeth - The mitten also is a good point for discussing the various defences available to the animals
Djinn - You can also compare the animals in the differenct versions.
Elizabeth - I don't have The Hat Djinn...is it new?
Addie k/mo - with the mitten, i have a pg where the kids identify the tracks of the animals and order them by size
Sandy/K/MO - That's something my kids all say.. They don't think that all those animals would want to be in there.
Djinn - Elizabeth - came out last year - really a great book - aren't they all?LOL
Kathleen - I like doing the Venn diagrams with two versions of The Mitten tale
Elizabeth - That's a good idea Addie
Addie k/mo - do all of the animals hibernate in the mitten?
Elizabeth - They are marvellous Djinn...I could look at the pictures for ages and still find something new!
Elizabeth - Do you have any specifics for another Mitten Tale Kathleen?
Djinn - Addie- i don't believe that all of the animals do hibernate - do you tie it into a unit on Hibernation?
Addie k/mo - no, i didnt know that, kat....sounds great! i saw her in person once at the missouri ira conference. she was a good speaker
Kathleen - Elizabeth, I think the other version I have is by Tresselt, or Tesselt, not sure. But your Library will have at least one other version.
Elizabeth - I'll look forward to that Kathleen
Addie k/mo - no, i dont, but a person on the ece ring asked that question the other night and no one (to my knowledge) ever answered. i was just wondering
Sandy/K/MO - I don't think they all hibernate either. A couple of years back I had a Dad that is a prof. trapper.. He brought in animal pelts and track stamps for the kids to see
Djinn - So far we have some wonderful ideas. I am adding many to my lesson plans for Jan.
Mountainette 4/WV - Sorry I am late. - anybody ever tried guessing how many "AIMS Bears" it would take to fill a mitten?
canuk - Math link on odd/even numbers related to making pairs of mittens, also symmetry
Djinn - Rabbit, fox, owl, bear, badger and hedghog- don't think any of them really hibernate.
Sandy/K/MO - Mailbox had several things listed last year I think
Djinn - Mount - GREAT idea - how far does your mitten stretch?
Addie k/mo - i didnt think they all hibernated either, but it would make a good sorting/classifying activity. i guess you could pair up with kids from an older grade and research it
canuk - if not hibernation, winter adaptation
Djinn - Kindergarten kafe for last year has ideas - including some of mine8>)
canuk - hibernation/migration/adaptation
Addie k/mo - bears hibernate....they do have some waking periods, but i think they are considered hibernating animals
Kathleen - a little Mitten Activity from the Teachers.Net Lesson Bank: http://www.teachers.net/lessons/posts/88.html (the activity came from Mailbox Magazine)
Djinn - oops forgot - mole and mouse squeeze in too!
canuk - they don't completely hibernate, they have their offspring in the winter, or at least the Canadian ones do!
Mountainette 4/WV - Djinn - put kids in groups, give them a mitten, and estimate how many "bears" it will take to fill the mitten. Then count, after filling it, grouping in tens
Kathleen - Addie, I just learned that technically bears are not considered hibernating animals. Was news to me, too.'
Djinn - The Hat includes farm animals and can be tied to a unit
Jane/K/Mo - I like to compare the different versions of the mitten
Djinn - I love it Mountainette
Jane/K/Mo - Jan's is so special but there are some others out there too
Mountainette 4/WV - WHAT???? Bears do not hibernate????Note - Bear info -Addie k/mo - interesting, kat....i had just read in a book about their waking periods, which i didnt know, but it still had them classified with hibernating animals
http://www.defenders.org/grizza.html
http://www.discovery.com/stories/nature/bears/dispatch5.html
http://www.orcabay.com/Bears/teachers/dreams.html
http://homepage.interaccess.com/~alaska/bears.htm
http://www.nature-net.com/bears/black.html
Djinn - Mitten - the book and stick puppets from masks, tapes -all go into a center - It;s amazing how quickly they memorize sequence.
Kathleen - The Mitten Curriculum Web from the Teachers.Net Lesson Bank (posted by Sara Register): http://www.teachers.net/lessons/posts/694.html
Jane/K/Mo - all bears? or just some species?
Djinn - Jane - I also compare.
Djinn - Good for Sara!
Elizabeth - Djinn do you have The Trouble With Trolls?Jane/K/Mo - I intro student to the Venn Diagram and they compare and constrast the different stories
Kathleen - Not sure about all bears, I learned this at the Boston Museum of Science..I'll try to check the next time I go;-)
Djinn - Elizabeth - Don't have that one either - need more, more, more.
Kathleen - For Venn diagrams, I try to use as many graphics as possible at K level, rather than just the words
canuk - Polar bears don't hibernate when it's cold!
Addie k/mo - well, you learn something everyday....this is a little off the subject, but according to a childrens book i was looking at today...copperhead snakes give live birth....i thought snakes hatched from eggs since they are reptiles, but it even showed a pix
Djinn - Anyone using Comet's Nine Lives?Elizabeth - Kathleen, male polar bears don't hibernate at all, females den up to have their young
Jane/K/Mo - I have Trouble with trolls, The Wild Christmas Reindeer, and the Twelve Days of ChristmasJT - I read The Wild Christmas Reindeer today. We made paper reindeer - hands and feet - and I had a bag of reindeer food for each child.
Djinn - Kthleen- Venn's i use pictures of what we are comparing and then glue to graph
Jane/K/Mo - I order a new one from scholastic but can't remember which one
Djinn - Jt - I was just looking for an activity to go with that book.
Mountainette 4/WV - Anybody ever heard of the book, Randolph the Deer Horse?
Elizabeth - Jane Christmas Trolls makes a great follow up to The Trouble with Trolls...the same characters
Djinn - I read and reread Goldilocks and the Three Bears. my students love the book
Jane/K/Mo - I'm reading one tomorrow and the other one on thur
Djinn - Strange thing though - many heard it for the first time in my room.
Addie k/mo - what is in reindeer food?
canuk - Djinn, have you read Goldilocks & the three squares, a Hello Reader Math book
Kathleen - Go to the Teachers.Net Booklist page to order many of Jan Brett's books (using that link will help Teachers.Net a bit): http://www.teachers.net/bookshelf/shopping/lit_frame.html
Djinn - Canuk - yes! great book
Jane/K/Mo - I saw the recipe on the mailring but didn't save it because i was afraid my kids would put it in their mouth
Kathleen - reinder food comes in varieties: peanuts, raisins, oats, sometimes molasses :-)
Mountainette 4/WV - Randoph wants to be a Xmas deer so he goes to a department store and gets decked out in Xmas lights. The book was at a previous school I taught at - can't find it now. It was great!
Elizabeth - Djinn...my children all love the pattern version...When Goldilocks Went to the House of the Bears. They thought they were SOOO clever when they could all "read" it!
Kathleen - Reindeer food: children concoct it from a recipe and take it home to put out for the reindeer :-)
Addie k/mo - several people on the mail ring have discussed reindeer sandwiches where you use a triangle cut from bread, spread with pb, and add features made of raisins or candy, etc and pretzels for the antlers
Djinn - So far we have - math activities, sequencing, science, just plain fun.
Kathleen - Jane, the reindeer food we create is edible for kids, too :-p
Elizabeth - What a neat idea Kathleen
canuk - Elizabeth, is that the one that is a mini-operetta?
Jane/K/Mo - I heard a storyteller tell the modern version of Goldi and the Three Bears. It was so funny, I bought the tape for my kids and they loved it
Addie k/mo - i assumed the reindeer food was child edible!!!
JT - Djinn posted the recipe for reindeer food on the board the other day.
canuk - Djinn, and art
Djinn - there are a couple of versions and a poem for reindeer food on the ece chatboard.
Jane/K/Mo - one of the reindeer food had tinsel in it
Elizabeth - I don't think so canuk...at least not that I've seen...it's in When Bears Had Chairs...and I also have a big book of it
Djinn - Jane - you can sub. edible for tinsel
sarah - Any special activities for the twelve days of Christmas
Kathleen - The tinsel one has a beautiful poem and effect, but it is hazardous to small animals and children
Djinn - there are silver candies that can be used instead
canuk - The poem "today I wore my Snowsuit" would be a good fit
Djinn - Sarah- we make a book and sing, sing, sing! LOL They love to sequence the 12 days
JT - You can use glitter instead of tinsel.
JT - You are right Jane. Not good for small children.
Jane/K/Mo - I have a lot of Jan Brett's books, my students soon recognize her distinctive art work
JT - I love Comet. Her notes are good to use with the book.
Elizabeth - Thanks everyone I must leave...I'm looking forward to her site and the other urls's that have been mentioned. Thanks Djinn
JT - I print out her bookmarks and laminate them. The kids love them!
Djinn - I also use her color pages for rainy day choices
Djinn - Anyone have a really super activity to share before we leave tonight?
Djinn - I heard about an activity with a large knitted mitten - filling it with stuffed animals - I'm looking for a volunteer
Kathleen - You could have a mitten collection day and give the mittens to a charity
Djinn - Great Idea Kathleen
Kathleen - Oh. our public Library has the large knitted mitten and stuffed animals :-)
JT - Thanks for the ideas! I love the mitten collection.
Djinn - We used mittens in our Marshmallow Day - the lessons are posted on teachers.net.
Sandy/K/MO - We just do a mitten match. pattern and concentration games with them.
susan/2nd/ny - Well...for starters...a class from New Zealand did an activity on The Hat in Frosty Readers. ANd...we were so inspired that we decided to do the same activity! The class created hats for hedgehogs out of junk. Sooooo...I just completed a page and it is dedicated to the children from New Zealand!
susan/2nd/ny - Frosty Readers ...now mind you..it is just beginning...
susan/2nd/ny - New Zealand did their page first because they begin summer vacation on Dec. 15. You can see their UNBELIEVABLE page...full of links, activities, and everything you can possibly dream of at:..now write this down! http://www.kids-learn.org/frosty/
susan/2nd/ny - ANd MY kids' work can be seen at:. drum roll...holding your breath.....
http://www.kids-learn.org/class98/journal4.htm
Kathleen - Thaks, Susan!
Djinn - Thank you soo much everyone for a great session. Remember to check the archives and teachers.net to see when Jan Brett will be here.
Djinn - Good night everyone. have a wonderful week. Susan - you are welcome anytime!
Kathleen - I'm going to see the sites susan posted, bye!! and thanks all!!
