Wrapped Newspaper Tubes

This is a great activity for building handwork capacity.  It requires holding the newspaper tube and wrapping it.  The children love the challenge and the end result.  We made hearts but you could make any shape.   I am such a firm believer in the arts as a powerful way to prepare kindergarteners. This simple newspaper tube builds fine motor skills, eye/hand coordination, decision making, tying - to name a few. 

 This is the inspiration piece.  It is newspaper tubes wrapped in gold wrappings, ribbons, and more!

Step One:  At a diagonal, roll a tube.  Connect 2 to 3 tubes to make a medium sized shape.

Step Two:  Wrap tube with strips of tissue paper, wrapping paper, ribbons, and anything that you think would add to the sparkle.

I put out a basket of choices.

Step Three:  Beginning at one end, gently roll the tube into a circle, taping across the tube to hold it together.  Pinch the bottom into a point for heart.  Tape.  Next, tie a ribbon at the top to make an indention.  Add extra ribbon if desired.  Hang!

How to Draw a King and Queen

Here are very simple instructions for children to draw a King and a Queen.

Step One:  We begin with the Queen.  Begin with a horizon line at bottom of page.  Draw a "U" shape for the face.

 

Step Two:  Draw a straight line across the top of the U.  Draw a zigzag line to make crown.  Add details like circles on top of crown tips.  

FACE:  Draw two curved lines for eyebrows, dots for eyes, and long curved line for mouth.

Step Three:  To draw cape, bring curving lines from face to horizon line on both sides.  Add second curving line to make inside line of cape.

Step Three:  Add hair to Queen. You can make a collar by drawing a lower case w shape.

Step Four: Add lower edge of dress with curvy line.  Add details like pattern on cape edge.

Step Five:  Draw shoes using U shape.  Add fold lines of dress if you like.  Queens love beautiful necklaces.  We drew a sun necklace.

Step Six: Draw a King in the same way - U-shape for face, add crown, and draw ears instead of hair.

Step Seven:  Add cape details to King.  We drew a rectangle shape for his shirt and another rectangle shape for pants with line down the middle.  Draw u shape shoes.

Step Eight: Draw a medal for the King (necklace).  We did a circle shape.  

Make A Shield

One of the projects I like to do during the Kings and Queens of Hearts unit is a family shield.  I send home a tag board shield and the families decorate it according to my instructions.  This year, my intern, Amanda Mitchell, wanted the children to make the shields as one of our work stations.  So I rolled with it.  And boy howdy, I am so glad I did!  The children have had so much more excitement about it!  I will continue to do the shields this way!  Thank you Amanda!

I asked the children to write their name on the shield in big letters.  Next, they were to decorate their shield with the things that they really liked to do - things that would tell us about who they were.

Step One:  Cut out a shield from tag board or poster board.  Write your name large on the shield.

Step Two:  Decorate the shield with markers.  Have the shield tell us about you.  

 Step Three:  We added a grip with leftover tag board.  We did it one of two ways - sideways (the favorite choice).

Or horizontal. 

Here is a very blurry picture of kindergarten knights in action!  Hard to catch a slow moving knight. . . 

How to Draw a Castle

There is something about drawing a castle that really touches a deep place in the hearts of children.  When I taught four year olds - they loved it as much as the kindergarteners.  Something about it.    Another important point is it is super easy.  Here are the simple steps to drawing a castle:

I loved how this student added the knights.  So adorable!

Step One: Place the paper in the landscape position.  Draw an horizon line near the bottom of the paper.

Step Two:  Draw a square in the middle of the horizon line (and on top of it!).

Step Three:  Draw a tall, thin rectangle on one side of the square.

Step Four:  Draw another tall, thin rectangle on the other side of the square.

Step Five:  Draw a triangle on top of the two tall rectangles.

Step Six:  Draw small squares across the top of the square.  Add flags on top of the triangles on the tall rectangles (triangles on their sides). Draw a curved line (upside down U) to make the door.

Step Seven:  Add a door knob (circle).  And a draw bridge if you wish (a U shape).

Step Eight:  Add any details you might like - such as wood grain, windows, texture on the castle, water around the castle and so forth. 

Step Nine:  Color with crayons!

I love how the draw bridge reaches out and the textures on the castle!

The princess and her cascading hair! It goes right into the water!

Make Your Own Math Games - Fit for Royality!

The following math games are wonderful for number recognition, one to one correspondence, counting, taking turns, and beginning addition.

Addition - the game of friendship!  This is a fun little game to play and easy to make. It has three objectives - to practice identifying less than and more than; to add two numbers together and to correctly identify number symbols.

To play:

• Roll a dice twice to get two different numbers that you will count out markers into the circles on the game board using the "jewels."  The number that is less goes into Princess Less's yellow circle and the number that is more goes into the Princess More's bigger circle. 
• Princess Less becomes good friends with Princess More.  How many are there when they share and join their jewels together?  Have child touch each jewel to determine how many.
• Next, the child must find that number in the number cards and put it on the green heart - I put the two wooden Princesses next to the number card and heart to show the joining.

This game is wonderful for helping children have an imagination of what addition does as an action.  It is a bringing together, a joining, and sharing.  Do not be concerned with the equal sign yet.  At this stage we are just practicing the two functions identifying sets by size and the joining of two sets.

Once upon a time there lived a wee little princess named Princess Less and a princess named Princess More.  Princess Less always seemed to have less than Princess More.  AND - Princess More always seemed to have more than Princess Less.  One day Princess Less decided to go to the Queen to find out how she could be have more and live happily ever after.  The Queen told her, "Dear wee Princess Less if you become friends with Princess More - you both will have more!  Life is sweeter when you join together with friends. There is always more when friends share."  Princess Less was so happy!  That day she went to see Princess More and became friends!  And in their friendship they found they had more than ever! 
 Make game board by cutting a 12 x 12 scrapbook paper into a crown shape.  Cut out a heart shape and put it at the middle the crown at the top.  Glue down the circles found in the link I have provided.  I used two wooden characters found at Micheal's.  I modge podged heart tissue paper on to the wooden figures.


Click here for Addition Board and Cards


War of The Kingdoms

You need as many game boards as players.  Minimum of two boards/players.  Each game board is a kingdom.  The player is the King or Queen of that Kingdom.  You can cut the scrapbook paper or construction paper as a crown or in a castle shape.

Click here for Twenty's Board

This is a game where the players roll the dice and then put that number of markers down on the board.  The first player to fill their 20's board, is the Kingdom that wins!

The Counting House
This is a perfect game to use pennies as the counters.  The child simply rolls the dice and puts that many pennies to the 30's grid until it is filled.  But not before they hear the story of Mr. Thirty:

Once there was a man named Thirty.  He loved to wander the wood and spend his days walking .  He loved the sun and the sweet smell of the morning dew.  One day the King stopped him on the road.  "How many are you?!"  Demanded the King.  "Why I am not sure because no one has asked before!" answered Thirty.   The king looked at Thirty and saw that he had three rows of ten but he wanted to be sure.  He sent Thirty to his huge Counting House and demanded he be counted for!  Please check for the King - roll the King's royal dice and fill Thirty.  How many coins did it take?

To make game board cut out a crown shape from a 12 x 12 sheet of scrapbook paper.  Print the 30's grid on to crown.  Put 30 pennies into a little bag or basket.  Find a little character to be Mr. or Mrs. Thirty.  


Click here for Thirty's Board
 

Laminate boards for durability.  These games should be played with adult supervision and are intended for children 5 years old or older as they use small pieces on the game boards.  Please adjust for safety if you are making these for younger children.