Fall!

I know that Autumn technically began in September and now it is November, so I am late on teaching this season change, but at the same time, it does not feel like Fall!  It is cool in the mornings, which is a welcomed change, but otherwise we are still enjoying 90 degree plus weather, swimming, trees full of green leaves, etc.  I had been putting off Fall activities until there was a bit more crispness in the air, but at this rate, it may be winter before we experience that!  So this week we will be focusing on Autumn themes to include Fall colors, apples, pumpkins, leaves, acorns, etc.

We started today with Fall colors.  I gave Ella two sets of Fall colored paint swatches.  She matched the two sets together. 

She really enjoys matching games, so I made her another matching game, using paint swatches and clothespins.  Because some of the shades of the colors were so close, this game was a bit of a challenge to her and she quickly lost interest...

...which was fine, because Arin wanted a turn at the game, and she loved it!

Next, I used other paint swatches to make addition problems for Arin.  Arin loves math and she especially liked this game because it was something different.

After our paint swatch activities, I made play dough for the girls.  Here's the recipe:

1/2 c flour

1/2 c water

1/2 t oil

1/4 c salt
1 t cream of tarter
few drops of food coloring (I made red, yellow, orange (2 drops red plus 3 drops yellow, repeat until you get the desired shade), and brown(5 drops red plus 6 drops yellow plus 3 drops green, repeated until you get the desired shade) play dough.)

Mix ingredients together and cook over medium/medium low heat until a ball forms.  Cool slightly and knead for a few minutes before playing with the dough.

The girls used Autumn themed cookie cutters with the play dough while I read to them.  It looks like I am not the only one that was waiting for the Fall theme.  When, I tried to check out books from the library, most of our choices were already gone.  We ended up with the following season themed books:

Are You Ready for Fall? by Sheila Anderson
The Seasons by Ian Smith
Molly's Seasons by Ellen Kandoian

I also read The Little Scarecrow Boy by Margaret Wise Brown
While I was reading it, Arin made a play dough scarecrow.

Our last Fall themed activity for today was to take a nature walk.  The girls had fun collecting pieces of nature and putting them in their bucket/bag.  I was hoping for more variety, but it isn't too "fallish" yet.  Luckily, the girls didn't think they were missing out on anything.

Once we got home, the girls took their nature treasures, spread them out on the table, and created collages.  Ella grew tired of this activity very quickly (not surprising), but Arin loved it.  I wrote the word FALL on a piece of cardstock and Arin covered the word with sticks and then randomly glued her other treasures here and there on her paper.