Unit 9: Wonderful Water

Sing the song and have children with the same number of syllables in their name stand and say their names. Repeat until every child is included.

Introduce the concepts of float and sink, using rubber bands and pennies as examples.  

Provide an assortment of objects for children to test whether they will float or sink. Have them record the results on a chart.

Give each child an object to describe and predict if it will float or sink. Test the items and place them in bins labeled “Float” or “Sink.”

Discuss opposites and sing the song. Prompt children to provide the opposite words in the song.

Reread the story. Focus children on all the things that might make the toy boat sink.

Play the PEEP and the Big Wide World video “Fish Museum.” Focus children on the things that sink and float in the video.

Have children draw a picture of their favorite object from “Fish Museum.” Help them dictate or write a caption about if the object floats or sinks.

Recite the chant and have children listen for the words that start with the /b/.

Say words slowly and have children put their hands on different parts of their body each time they hear a sound.

Use the Sandpaper Writing Routine to help children being to “write” the letter “Bb.”

Send a Family Connection letter home with children.

Sing the song and signal children with the correct number of word parts to stand and clap the syllables in their names. Repeat until every child is included.

Display a collection of balls. Have children predict which balls will float or sink.

Test children’s predictions and have them record which balls float and which ones sink.

Play the PEEP and the Big Wide World video “Making Things Float and Sink.” Connect the video to children’s own explorations.

Read the story and have children think about why the boat sinks further into the water each time an animal gets in.

Recite the chant after reading Who Sank the Boat? and invite children to join in.

Say three words from Who Sank the Boat? and have children guess which word does not rhyme with the other two.

Give hints for children to guess the animals that begin with the /b/ sound.

Help children practice writing the letter “Bb.”

Sing the song in reverse order, starting with the child who has the highest number of syllables in his or her name.

Review floating and sinking and discuss how to sink a floating food tray.

Challenge children to make a boat that will hold the biggest load and still float on the water.

Have children place pennies on their boats and count how many pennies are on the boats before they sink.

Replay the PEEP and the Big Wide World video “Fish Museum.” First have children recall what they remember from the first viewing.

Stop the music and have children sit on a chair. Have them grab a ball from under their chair and test whether it will sink or float.

Play the video Between the Lions “Word Morph: bananas-berries-butter.” Have children offer other /b/ words.

Have children draw their favorite things that begin with the letter “Bb” for The B Collection in Our Letter Museum.

Have children trace a “B” stencil cutout and decorate the page.

Sing the song and signal children with the correct number of word parts to stand and clap their names. Repeat until every child is included.

Continue the conversation about floating and sinking. Discuss what will happen if they fill an empty container with pebbles or water.

Continue to explore how much weight their boats can hold and still float using various materials.   

Play the PEEP and the Big Wide World video “Making Boats.” Compare the video to children’s experiments with boats.

Reread the book. Focus children on how the animals balance the boat.

Sing the song and invite children to suggest other silly verses with rhyming words.

Have children draw a boat they built. Help them write or dictate a caption about something they learned while observing the boat.

Guide children to look around the room and name something that begins with the /b/ sound.

Provide a set of uppercase ABC squares. Have children put the letters in cups with the matching letter.

Sing the song in random number order until all children have been recognized.

Review with children their explorations they did this week about floating and sinking.

Have children make milk carton boats. Have them collect things outside to use as weights and see how many objects their boats can hold.

Replay the PEEP and the Big Wide World video “Fish Museum.” Discuss what children learned about things that float and things that sink.

Sing the song, naming objects and asking children to predict whether it will float or sink.

Read aloud a nonfiction or fiction book about floating and sinking.

Use the Target Letter and Word Routine to introduce children to the letter “Bb” and the word boat.   

Use the Letter in Our Names Routine to help children find the letter “Bb” in their names.

Provide a set of lowercase ABC squares. Have children put the letters in cups with the matching letter.

Revisit the charts, objects, and pictures from the week.  Review floating, sinking, balance, and boats, “Bb,” /b/, and boat.

Send a Family Connection letter home with children.