Gone Fishing…For Vowels

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gone fishing for vowelsSome wild and crazy vowels are on the loose, and you must grab your magnetic fishing rod and catch AEIOU…and sometimes…that mysteriously elusive Y.

We read Sue MacDonald Had a Book, written by Jim Tobin, and illustrated by Dave Coverly (Henry Holt, 2009). Sue MacDonald had a book, but AEIOU made a break for it. So Sue must hop a train, ride a hot air balloon, delve into a sewer system, wield a fishing rod, and more to catch those rascally vowels. Honestly, this book should be in every early education classroom. Fantastic writing, great illustrations, and best of all…you SING the book to the tune of Old MacDonald!

You’ll need:

  • 1 vowel template, printed on 8.5″ x 11″ white card stock
  • A long piece of (ours was 32″)
  • A selection of color masking tape
  • 7 jumbo paper clips (mine were 1.75″ long)
  • 1 magnet
  • A piece of string (approximately 55″ long)
  • Scissors and tape for construction
  • Markers for decorating

The fishing poles are just about identical to the ones we constructed at our ice fishing story time. First, tie a jumbo paper clip to a piece string, then lower the paper clip into a piece of PVC pipe. Keep lowering the paperclip until it’s hanging well below the pole and there’s just a few inches of string sticking out of the top. Next, turn your pole so it looks like this:

polePush the unattached end of the string against the pole, and cover it with color masking tape. Continue wrapping the pole until you’ve created a 3″ handle. If you’d like, use the color masking tape to decorate the rest of the pole.

wrapped handleFinally, tape a magnet to the paper clip. We used little ceramic block magnets. Since these were potential choking hazards for younger siblings, we checked, double checked, and triple checked to make sure everyone’s magnet was firmly taped in place.

vowel magnet hookNext up, the VOWELS! Cut the vowels out of the 2-page template. You can use just markers to decorate them, or you can do what we did and bring out the Bling Bin and eye stickers.

wild and crazy vowels When you’re done decorating, tape a jumbo paperclip to the back of each letter. Spread the vowels on the floor, take a few steps back, and try “hooking” them with your rod.

catching the letter ACheck out Mr. Expert Fisherman…3 on 1 hook! Nice!

3 in 1The letter Y is on the template, but at our story time, we decided to do something a little special with it. We traced the Ys onto gold mirror board:

golden letter Y Then, as kids were fishing, we quietly dropped the golden Ys into their pile of vowels. If they caught the Y, they got to take it home (and of course, everyone caught the Y)!

Did you notice that some our our fishermen and women in the photos are wearing backpacks fashioned from manilla office folders? If you’d like to make one for your vowels to ride home in, the instructions are right here in this camping post.

It’s Tambourine Time

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it's tambourine timeThe credit for today’s simple project goes to my 6-year old daughter! She told me she wanted to make a tambourine, scrounged through art supply central at home, and came up with this a few minutes later.

4 things I like about this project: 1) Unlike the paper plate versions, this tambourine uses a plastic oatmeal container lid that won’t buckle or tear; 2) The surface of the oatmeal container lid makes the instrument sound more drum-like (and thus more like a real tambourine); 3) The bells are threaded through pipe cleaner pieces and attached with tape. This made it possible for her to make the project with zero adult assistance; Finally, 4) My kid’s a crafter! SUCH a proud mom right now.

Inspired by her project, I developed a slightly fancier version. It is a little more work, but the threading part of the project really helps build those fine motor skills.

finished tambourineYou’ll need:

  • 1 large oatmeal or yogurt container lid
  • 3 jingle bells
  • 3 pieces of pipe cleaner
  • 2 ribbons
  • Hole punch
  • Tape

First, punch 7 holes around the perimeter of an oatmeal or yogurt lid. Thread the ribbon through the holes, ending with all the ribbons meeting in the bottom-most hole.

tambourine ribbonsQuick hint for threading floppy ribbon through holes…create a “needle” using masking tape. When you’re finished, just unwrap the making tape, or cut it off the ribbon entirely.

masking tape needleThread a jingle bell onto a piece of pipe cleaner, fold it into a U, and and insert both ends into a pair of holes. Unfold the ends of the pipe cleaner and secure them to the back of the lid with tape. Repeat these steps with the remaining 2 bells.

threading the bellYour tambourine is finished!

finished tambourine

Looking for some musical accompaniment? How about this rockin’ Medieval lute project?

The Hummingbird of Happiness

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the hummingbird of happiness

Help your oatmeal container bear reunite with his friend hummingbird in this gentle (and super silent) game of hide and seek!

We read Hector and Hummingbird by Nicholas John Frith (Arthur Levine Books, 2015). Hector is a bear who lives in Peru, and Hummingbird is his best friend. The problem is, Hummingbird likes to talk, and talk, and talk, and talk and doesn’t realize Bear is becoming increasingly annoyed with his chattiness. Finally, Hector blows his top and yells at Hummingbird that he wants to be left alone. But silence and solitude aren’t all they’re cracked up to be, and Hector soon wishes for his friend to return. Zip! Hummingbird returns in a flash (he’s been hiding close by on every page) and all is well. These days, the two friends still talk, but they also spend time enjoying a little companionable silence…sometimes.

You’ll need:

  • 1 large oatmeal container
  • Brown and black construction paper
  • 1 pair of large wiggle eyes
  • 1 pair of small wiggle eyes
  • 1 jumbo pom-pom
  • 1 medium pom-pom
  • A selection of small feathers
  • Scissors, tape, and glue for construction
  • Markers for decorating
  • Hot glue

just the bear

The bear is very simple to construct. Wrap an oatmeal container with brown paper, then use the extra bits to make the feet, tail, and ears. Attach a pair of wiggle eyes and a self-adhesive foam nose (or just use markers to draw these on). Draw a smile on with a marker. Last come the construction paper arms, which are extra long and attach at the hands. This is so the bear can carry its hummingbird friend.

bear with hummingbirdThe hummingbirds were created by Katie. Aren’t they cute? She made a green version modeled after the ruby-throated hummingbird, and a purple version modeled after the violet sabrewing hummingbird.

a pair of hummingbirdsTo make a hummingbird, glue a thin black construction paper beak onto a large (1.5″ diameter) pom-pom. Glue a smaller (.75″) pom-pom underneath the beak. Add a pair of small wiggle eyes and 2 feathery wings and you’re set!

We loved how the book’s creator hid the hummingbird on various pages, so Katie made 2 hummingbirds for each story time kid and placed them in different locations in the gallery.

hide and seek hummingbirdsThen, slowly, and oh-so-quietly, kids and their bears went in search of their hummingbirds.

searching for hummingbirdsLooking for more feathered friends? Check out this reading canary, this chick magnet, this photo-ready penguin, and this avian obstacle course. Need something simpler? Give this craft stick bird a try, or this wrist parakeet. We have featured one celebrity bird on the blog…you’ll find him here, along with his famous literary connections.