Week 8 Lesson Plan for Homeschooling Preschool

Literacy

Objectives:

• Identifies uppercase and lowercase H
  
  
• Tells the main sound of /h/

Parent instructions

Choose one activity a day with the exception of #1, which should be done a few times a week if possible.

This week’s letter is H. It makes an unvoiced sound, meaning you make the sound of H with your breath only and not with your voice. When you make the sound and place your hand on your throat, you should not feel your voicebox vibrate as you would with a voiced letter, for example, B.

Activities

• Say the ABCs using your chart from beginning to end once a day, pointing to each letter as you say it. After going through all the letters, ask your child to find this week’s letter—H. Look at and have them trace with their finger the upper and lowercase examples. Tell your child that F is a consonant, which is a name for all the letters that are not vowels. Say, “H says /h/ like hat.” Try to ask your child a few times a week (during bathtime, driving in the car, etc.) to tell you the sound of H. (Don’t forget to include some previously learned letters, especially those vowels!) If they need help or say it incorrectly, model the correct way by repeating, “H says /h/ like hat.” Always say it with its example word. (Estimated Time: 5 minutes)
  
  
• Give your child an old magazine, newspaper, flier, or piece of junk mail, and have them find all of the uppercase and lowercase Hs. They can mark them with a marker or highlighter, or stamp them with their finger and fingerpaint. (Estimated Time: 5-7 minutes)
  
  
• Make paper hats (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCJvzSuVT6Q )and mark them upper and lowercase Hs. (Estimated Time: 10 minutes)
  
  
• Complete a “Find the Letter” worksheet to locate all the upper and lowercase Hs. Use a marker, highlighter, or dauber to mark all the letters they find. (Estimated Time: 5 minutes)
  
  
• While out and about or while reading books, point out words that begin with H. (You could also use your H flashcards for this.):
  
  ham, hat, him, hog, hot, hug, hut, hit, hop, hay,
  hip, hem, hum, has, had, how, her, hen, hid, his (Estimated Time: 10 minutes)

Math

Objectives:

• Counts objects up to 60
  
  
• Extends simple repeating patterns
  
  
• Compares sets of objects and written numbers (1-20) using quantity words

Parent instructions

Choose one activity a day with the exception of #1, which should be done a few times a week if possible.

Activities

• Count to 60 on the 100s chart, pointing to each number as you count. (Estimated Time: 2 minutes)
  
  
• Begin developing time literacy by telling your child that there are 60 seconds in a minute and 60 minutes in an hour. Use the stopwatch on your phone to count 60 seconds together. Explain that that has been 1 minute. Use the timer on your phone to count down from 60 seconds. (Estimated Time: 3 minutes)
  
  
• Use your pattern blocks to set out a simple pattern and ask your child to continue it. Start with patterns that have two elements (yellow octagon, green triangle, yellow octagon . . .) and ask your child what piece comes next. Work up to three or more elements depending on your child’s interest and ability. (Estimated Time: 10-15 minutes)
  
  
• Building on the use of quantity words from last week, set out two sets of objects and ask your child which set has more (less, fewer, greater, etc.) Legos, pennies, etc. in it.
  
  To break down this task into steps, have your child count the objects in each set first and label them by placing a number flashcard by each set. Then, ask the comparison question.
  
  After a few rounds of sets with different amounts, incorporate some sets that are equal in amount and ask, “Are these sets of pennies equal or not equal?” or “Do these sets have the same amount of pennies or different amounts?” If this is too easy, try using entirely different objects in each set, for example, Legos and stuffed animals. (Estimated Time: 10-15 minutes)

Fine Motor

Activities:

• Practice 1 spherical grasp activity
  
  
• Practice 1 gross (cylindrical) grasp activity
  
  
• 1 bilateral hand coordination activity
  
  
• 1 In-hand manipulation activity

Parent instructions

Choose one fine motor objective each day and then select an activity that practices that objective from the list in Appendix A. Feel free to choose more than one activity or work on more than one objective a day if you like! Just remember that little hands tire easily and short, regular practice sessions are better than long, sustained ones. (Estimated Time: 5-10 minutes)

Download the Appendix A that lists all the fine-motor activities.

Social-Emotional

Objectives:

• (Responsible decision making) Shows willingness to take on responsibilities
  
  
• (Self-awareness) Demonstrates beginning understanding of the connection between feelings and behaviors

Activities

Choose one activity a day (Monday - Thursday)

• Engage your child in assisting with responsibilities for their own behaviors related to learning, helping, routine, eating habits, table manners, maintaining hygiene and cleanliness, etc. Have them help clear the table after their snack, pack their library books into a bag to return them, place their dirty clothes in the hamper, feed the family pet, etc. (Estimated Time: 5-10 minutes daily)
  
  
• Create a chart for simple responsibilities your child will do every day: bruising their teeth, picking up their toys, etc. (They will still need assistance remembering to do these things most of the time.) At the end of the day, have them reflect on what they’ve done and place a sticker on the chart for tasks accomplished. (Estimated Time: 2 minutes daily)
  
  
• Read The Color Monster, A Story About Emotions by Anna Llenas, or other books that connect feelings to behaviors. (Estimated Time: 10 minutes)

Additional resources

• Big Feelings Come and Go - Book and video series by Canadian Centre for Child Protection Inc.