Bugs and Butterflies

Welcome to Blue Bird Day’s Weekly Lesson Plans. This week we’re working on the theme Bugs and Butterflies! Read below for more themed lesson plans and activities.

Table Time Activity: Bees and Flower Shape Match

Materials:

Copy of Bees and Flower Shape Match Page

Scissors.

Glue.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to learn and label the names and images of basic shapes through matching.

Growing My Skills

Have your child match the different shapes to the corresponding flower.

Spend time talking to your child about the shape’s characteristics.

You can go on a “shape hunt” after completing this activity.

Look around your home to find objects that match the shapes on the worksheet.

Floortime Play Activity: Fly Butterfly Fly

Materials:

Blanket

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to spending time together in a playful, imaginative way. There should be limited structure and a lot of pretending.

Growing My Skills

Look at pictures or draw a picture of your child’s favorite color butterfly.

Tell your child to “Fly like a butterfly” with you.

Fly together with large butterfly arms and spin round and round before crashing on a pillow.

Build on the pretending by wrapping your child into a cocoon with their favorite blanket, rocking the softly side by side and unwrapping them to reveal a beautiful butterfly.

Let your child wrap you up too!

Relaxation Time Activity: Mindful Breathing

Skill Check

The goal of this week is to practice bringing attention to breath in a fun and playful way.

Growing My Skills

Read “Be a Bumblebee.”

Look in a mirror together and practice making the “buzzzzz” sound, emphasizing the “b” and “zzzzz” sounds.

Pretend to be bumblebees together and buzz around with different speeds. Be sure to add slow rhythmic movements while buzzing around the room.

Creative Time Activity: Paper Towel Butterfly Craft

Materials:

Pipe Cleaner or Twist Tie from Grocery Store.

Markers.

Spray bottle.

H2O.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is for your child to use fine motor skills while being creative with art.

Growing My Skills

Have your child color a paper towel.

Use a spray bottle filled with water and spray the paper towel. This will give it a tie-dye effect.

Let dry.

Use a pipe cleaner or twist tie to finish your butterfly!

Movement Time Activity: Rolling

Materials:

Pillows.

Ball.

Blankets.

Yoga Mat.

Puzzle.

Skill Check

The goal of the week will focus on log rolling, using your stomach muscles to guide you through a straight path.

Growing My Skills

For added deep pressure, roll your child into a blanket or yoga mat.

Try to keep your body rolling over pillows or cushions.

Roll in both directions.

Grab a puzzle piece from one side of the room and roll to the puzzle board to complete the puzzle. You can choose the distance between the puzzle pieces and the board to make it harder or easier!

Roll while holding a ball, keeping both arms straight above your head.

Try rolling with your eyes closed!

Mealtime Activity: Lip Rounding

Materials:

Bubbles.

Dandelions.

Whistle.

Horn.

Kazoo.

Feather.

Pom Pom.

Tissue.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to target the skill of lip rounding, requiring for drinking form a cup. Lip rounding is the ability to make a circular opening with your lips. This is an early developing skill for feeding. You need to be able to round your lips when it comes time to use a spoon, straw, or cup. When developed, the amount of rounding of your lips can be changed. This makes sure that the lips stay sealed around a feeding utensil (spoon, straw, cup). It also helps get enough pressure for straw drinking.

Growing My Skills

Play with musical instruments

Ex. whistles, horns, kazoos, etc.

Your child’s lips will have to be rounded in order to make any noise

Blow lightweight objects or lightweight foods across the table.

Ex. feathers, pom poms, tissues.

Try using a straw or veggie straw to blow the item.

Set up a birthday party for a stuffed animal.

Pretend to blow out the candles on a birthday cake.

Use a pretend food set, real food, or play-doh.

Practice saying “ooo” with exaggerated lip movements.

Alternate saying “ooo” with round lips and “eee” with retracted lips.

Really focus on rounding the lips for “ooo.”

Practice these sounds during play with animals.

Ex. making the sound “mooo” like a cow.

Language Time Activity: The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Materials:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar book or YouTube link

Skill Check

The goal of this week is to provide opportunity for your child to increase use, expand, and improve understanding of language through play.

Growing My Skills

Read the Very Hungry Caterpillar book with your child. Depending on your child’s language skills, you can read the words from the page (Or, keep the volume up on the YouTube clip) or use your own words to provide simple description of the pages (Or, mute the YouTube clip and use simple description).

Go on a Very Hungry Caterpillar kitchen scavenger hunt and see if you can find the items he ate in your own house!

This activity targets comprehension and story recall.

You can take the book with you for visual support to help your child remember the food items.

You can also provide choice support to assist (e.g., Did he eat a red crunch apple or a big yellow banana?).