craft station.

crayons
markers
chalk
paper
construction paper
popsicle sticks
glue stick
tape
string
paint
watercolor
pipe cleaners
pencils
scissors

Pocket Chart
Sentence Strips
Calendar

possible weekly subjects for curriculum.

Spiders
Owls
Flowers
World/Planets/Space
Dinosaurs
Sharks
Dolphins
Whales
Snakes
Apples
Corn
Pumpkins
Bread
Turtles
Authors (Book-a-day)
Bats
Trees/Leaves
Fables
Safety
Puzzles
Polar Animals
Desert Animals
Ocean Animals
Health
Food Pyramid
Responsibilities
Transportation
Weather (snow/ice/rain/sun/clouds/thunderstorms)
Relationships (bullying/getting along/compromise/sharing/fighting)
Seasons (fall/winter/spring/summer)
Holidays (Inauguration/President's Day/Valentine's/Easter/Mother's Day/Father's Day/Fourth of July/School starting/Halloween/Thanksgiving/Christmas)
Traditions for kids in other cultures

dream play area.

Easel w/ big clips on top
Pocket chart w/ sentence strips
Calendar area--practicing patterns with the numbers of month (use gummy stuff to hold the numbers on the calendar to avoid putting holes through)
Word Wall-- A to Z/Names/Sight words (later on)
Flannel Board-- for retelling stories (use back of a cork board?) (check availability of characters)Magnetic Boards from IKEA ($12)--for letters and numbers or fridge phonics stuff
Table w/Chairs
Dry erase board
Posterboard Colors/Numbers/Shapes (like teachers attach to the walls in classrooms or hang from ceiling)
Dramatic Play Area--kitchen/dress up clothes/full length mirror/cash register/shopping cart/dolls
Possible Dramatic Play Scenes-- camping site/restaurant with menu/beauty salon/house/grocery store/video store/book store or library

sources for educational items

craft stores-- michael's, jo-ann, hobby lobby
office supply stores-- staples, officemax
tj maxx, marshall's (books and games)
target-- in the office supply area, crayola aisle, and the dollar spot occasionally
teacher supply stores-- holcomb's
science discovery stores, wviz store
goodwill, salvation army
consignment stores/sales (books and videos)
garage sales (especially ones from retired teachers!)
IKEA (easel, table and charis, containers, cheap art supplies)
scholastic sale or classroom flyers (ask your child's teacher, or a teacher friend of the grade level you're looking for)
book stores (check bargain area for games)
wal-mart, meijer (especially near the beginning of the school year)
grocery stores
toy catalogs (see previous note for some great toy catalogs...)
toy stores (especially mom and pop toy stores)
netflix (on demand movies)-- try word world and pocoyo
sporting goods stores
half-price books
paper supply store (there's a great one near medina, ohio)
college bookstores
gift shops at children's attractions (children's museum, cosi, zoo, etc.)
dollar stores

songs and chants for preschoolers

we've decided to learn one song or chant/poem per week. each morning when i go over the calendar, we'll be reviewing the song or chant and learning the motions for it, if there are any. here are the first ones that i've come up with (sure to keep us busy for a while to come). before bed, as part of our ritual, we sing two songs after we say our prayers, so we will automatically review our songs. i also bought an easel pad this weekend at staples, as well as a pointer, and i will be writing out the songs and poems so we can point out the words as we sing them. the poster will also be great to point out individual letters in words (our letter of the week... how many times does it appear?)

the mulberry bush
looby loo
pop! goes the weasel
head to toes
the wheels on the bus
twinkle twinkle little star (and it's other versions... the apple tree, and the sky so blue)
itsy bitsy spider
little bo peep
jack be nimble
humpty dumpty
little miss muffet
hickory dickory dock
old macdonald
frere jacques
ring around the rosy
the bear went over the mountain
row, row, row your boat
hey diddle diddle
this little piggy
patty cake
if you're happy and you know it

practical skills for preschoolers

(thanks, mara, for the idea on this!)

sure, there are academic benchmarks that our kids need to meet, but there are also practical things that our kids need to be able to do to function from day to day and gain their independence. i'm putting together this list as a guide of things that i can be working on with the kids without putting together a "formal" lesson. we can work on some of these thigns while getting dressed or just getting ready for dinner. easy little "mini-lessons" to incorporate into our days.
zipping
tying
lacing
buttoning
buckling
using a broom/dustpan
setting the table
going to bathroom by self
washing hands/drying off (after potty, before dinner)
brushing teeth
getting dressed/picking outfit/dressing for weather
caring for pet (food and water)
picking up toys/messes
putting on shoes
getting into car/car seat
loading dishwasher
phone manners
restaurant manners
sharing toys
pouring liquid
recycling vs. trash
putting on coat/hat
"please" and "thank you"
saving money/getting allowance
table manners (using napkin,set utensils down to talk, conversation, sitting for entire meal, no toys, ask to be excused)
greetings/salutations for adults and kids

preschooler-appropriate snacks

home made granola
muffins
peanut butter on celery (add raisins for "ants on a log")
apples/applesauce
jell-o
carrots w/ ranch dressing or italian dressing
no-bake cookies
smoothie
yogurt (we add sprinkles)
string cheese
crackers w/peanut butter or cheese
banana bread
dried fruit (can add to granola)


some great sources for kid-approved foods and snacks
sneaky chef cookbook by missy chase lapine companion website is http://www.thesneakychef.com/
deceptively delicious cookbook by jessica seinfeld companion website is http://www.deceptivelydelicious.com/site/
cooking with kids cookbook by sandra lee
yum-o! cookbook by rachael ray http://www.yumo.org/

http://www.yumo.orghttp//nutrition.preschoolrock.com/index.php/preschooler_foods_meals_snacks/healthy_snacks_for_preschoolers (check out the healthy snack list at bottom of page)http://www.nncc.org/Nutrition/cc42_snacks.presc.html
http://kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_fit/nutrition/preschool_snacks.html
http://mommysavers.com/Articles/healthy_snacks_for_kids.html
http://kids.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Preschool_Snacks