Books:
The Busy Little Squirrel by Nancy Tafuri
Old Bear by Kevin Henkes
Fall Leaves Fall by Zoe Hall
Plumply Dumply Pumpkin by Mary Serfozo
Songs:
The Leaves are Falling Down (to The Farmer in the Dell)
The Little Squirrel
Activity:
I got the idea for a pretend walk through the forest from Children & Libraries in an article called “Let’s Pretend.” We put on our coats and zipped them up, and everyone got a pair of binoculars (paper towel rolls stapled together with a piece of yarn at one end). We ran through the meadow, hopped around bushes, skipped on the path, balanced on a log over a stream, tiptoed around a sleeping porcupine, and twirled with the falling leaves (adapted from Wee Sing Let’s Pretend). Then we looked at pictures of animals (labeled with their names) that were posted on the wall through the binoculars. After the walk the children decorated their binoculars with stickers.
Assessment:
Next time I might lead the children through each picture so they can talk to me and each other about the animals. Also, the stickers didn’t stick well to the paper towel rolls.
