Toddler Fun, Week 18: Letter P, Number 8, Penguins, Polar Bears and White

I found a terrific book at a book fair back when I taught Kindergarten, where if you read it from one end it was about polar bears, and from the other end it was about penguins.  I loved how it represented the two poles, and that they both start with "P"!

It felt like the perfect way to learn about the letter "P".

Week 18

Letter: P

Number: 8

Animal: Penguins (and Polar Bears)

Color: White

Activities

1. Jacksonville Zoo

 Sadly, our annual zoo membership is up as of today, so we wanted to make sure we went one last time.  Our zoo happened to have a really cool Lego exhibit!  Right when we walked in, we saw this amazing polar bear mama and cub!  It was perfect!

 I love this life-sized poster by the penguin exhibit!  It has all the penguin species on it! 

 I love his sweet face!  

 We were there a couple weeks ago, and actually got to see the penguin feeding!  (We saw it this time too, but the glass had too much condensation for good pictures.)

And this happened last time, too!  There's the handsome sire in his tuxedo!








2. Animal Matching Game

I made this animal matching game a few weeks ago, and thankfully it had many of the animals we've learned about since in the packet.  I usually start with 6 pairs, to help him get how the game goes, and then add a pair each time.  It's a great way to practice taking turns and patience. :)







3. Camouflage

A lot of animals use camouflage, and it's a word Aidan has heard plenty, but when he got these pajamas that look so much like his play tent, I couldn't pass it up!  I've never really thought about penguins having camouflage, but this week we learned that they do!  They have dark backs, so they're harder to see from above, when they're swimming, and white bellies so they're harder to see from bellow!  Pretty amazing, huh?


4. Spot the Penguin 

We got this adorable ball that is a globe, complete with animals from each area.  We found Antarctica, and lo and behold - there was a penguin!!!  So we practiced waddling like a penguin, pecking and "building a nest".  He is precious!








5. Penguin Chart

 I found this chart, and although the illustrations are very cute, it deals with a more serious issue, of endangered species.  I printed it out, and glued it to black paper for him to look at.  I also glued the picture of him with the penguin chart from the zoo on the back.  

We talked about how we need to take care of our earth, so that penguins can have long and happy lives.

Snacks

1. Banana Penguin

This snack ended up looking way more inappropriate than I meant it to, so I cropped it a little, haha!  For this snack, I used half a banana, dipped in chocolate (which did NOT melt well), added candy eyes and M&Ms, had him stand on an apple slice ice berg, and surrounded by his favorite snack, fish!

2. Penguin Sandwich

 This little guy looks more like an owl, but oh well.  I printed out a penguin clipart, and then cut the sandwich to the same shape.  I used cheese for the belly and eyes, blueberries for the pupils, carrots for the fish, beak and feet, and a banana for the ice berg. :)






3. Igloo and Penguins

I know igloos are from the Arctic, and penguins would never be near them.  BUT I couldn't help it.  It was so cute!  I cut an apple in half, then sliced it up, covered it in peanut butter, and put marshmallows all over it.  It ended up being more marshmallows than I'd planned, but he didn't eat them all, so that's good, haha!  I used two blueberries and a little slice of carrot for each of the penguins.

Crafts

1. P is for Penguin

Aidan already knew the letter "P", so that was exciting!  For this craft, I cut out a black letter "P" and flippers, a white belly, and orange feet and beak.  Aidan put it all together, and of course used the biggest googley eye he could find!

Books and Media

We Read:

1. Penguins Close Up by Andrew Kelly

I got this book back when I taught kindergarten, and I love it!  I love it, because from one end of the book it's about penguins, from the other end it's about polar bears!  Like the opposite poles!  It's fun for visual learners like me, haha!

2. Three Cheers for Tacky by Helen Lester

This is a cute story about including others, even if (especially if) they're not like you!

3. Without You by Sarah Weeks

The illustrations in this book are beautiful!  It has sweet, simple text, with engrossing pictures!  Love it!  It talks about how the mommy and daddy penguin take care of the chick.  This gave a great opportunity for us to talk about how Aidan's mommy and daddy are a team too, and how it's great to work together!

We Watched:

1. Octonauts, Season 2 Episode 2 - The Adelie Penguins

This episode is one Netflix. It's about the Octonauts helping out some Adelie penguin parents, by babysitting their chicks.

2. Penguins - Spy in the Huddle, by BBC

This is a 3-part documentary on Netflix about penguins.  Be forewarned, this is just a regular documentary, not specifically for kids.  There is talk of mating (although nothing is really shown, the male lays on top of the female), and birds of prey do get one egg, and there's a baby penguin that freezes to death.  So, it's up to your discretion whether or not your child can handle it.  In our case, it kinda went over Aidan's head.

3. Storybots app - Letter P video

If you haven't downloaded the FREE Storybots app, I highly recommend it!  It has all kinds of learning videos, ranging from letters, to dinosaurs, to gravity, and days of the week.  It's a perfect distractor when needed, and I don't feel guilty about it, because it's all educational.  The letter "P" video actually starts with penguins, so that's pretty great!

Toddler Fun, Week 13: Letter K, Number 3, Red and Kangaroos

Ah, kangaroos from Down Under.  The trademark pouch, crazy strong legs, and the very cool fact that they're from Australia.  On top of it all, they're one of the few animals who start with the letter "K".  So, here's our Kangaroo week.

Week 13

Letter: K

Number: 3

Color: Red

Animal: Kangaroo

Activities

1. Visiting the Jacksonville Zoo

If you've visited my blog before, you'll know we have memberships to the zoo.  It has been the best investment!  Cost-wise, after the first two visits we've been been going for free.  So, considering we visit at least once a month, it's been well worth it.  In addition, we've gotten discounted tickets for multiple other zoos and aquariums because of our membership.  (Like seeing these wallabies in Tampa.)  If there's a zoo near you that is part of the AZA, I don't think there's a better use for your money!

First of all, I think zoo maps are a terrific and FREE learning tool.  Aidan had fun finding whichever animal we were looking at, and then I'd help him figure out which way to go to the next.  Map reading is an important life-skill, you can't ever start too early.

I was a little disappointed, the zoo's website says they have kangaroos (the Australia loop is a little hidden, and we hadn't spent much time there), but when we got there, and asked where they were, they said their last kangaroo passed away a couple years ago of old age.

They did, however have wallabies, and as the zoo keeper said, they're basically little kangaroos.  So, we fudged a little, and told Aidan they were kangaroos, I don't think it'll hurt him in the long-run, haha!  It was a terrific day!

2. Bay & Bee

Another thing we like to do, is go to Bay & Bee.  It's a locally owned indoor play space, where we have a membership.  They have TONS of fun toys, one of the things they had out this week were these beautifully illustrated flashcards.  Of course, we were thrilled (as you can see) to find K is for kangaroo!






3. Counting Kangaroos

Aidan is really into everything being "mommy", "daddy" and "Aidan".  So, I figured kangaroos found a picture of a kangaroo family for us to count, and practice numbers. 









4. Coloring pages!

I found some cute kangaroo coloring pages here and here.  We "traced" kangaroo, and I tried to get Aidan to color the kangaroo red (like a red kangaroo), but my sweet, determined boy wanted it to be blue.  And the females are blue sometimes... so it works. :)


5. Australian Animal Movement Dice

I found this great Animal Movement Dice from Mothernatured.  It features 6 Australian animals.  I printed it out, put clear packing tape on it, to make it more durable, and then taped it together.  Then, he tossed it, and had to act how that animal would.  Hopping like a kangaroo, chomping like a crocodile, and climbing like a koala.


6. "Don't Lose The Baby" Letter Recognition

 I made Aidan a pouch out of a Tide pod container.  I painted it brown, drilled 4 holes in it, and put a "baby" in it.  I then wrote out some letters on the pavement.  Whenever I said the letter, he had to find it, and hop to it, without "losing the baby".  It was tons of fun!

It was great fun!  It combined the grow motor skills of jumping, while paying attention to the monkey in the pouch, and recognizing letters!

7. Arky, Arky Song

Remember that kids' song, "The Lord told Noah, there's gonna be a floody floody...?"  There's this 90's (?) video floating around the internet, which I was hoping would inspire Aidan to dance and sing, but he just watched in awe. :)

Snacks

1. Kangaroo Mango Snack

For this tasty treat, I used mango, candy eyes, fruit leather, and chocolate chips.  All yumminess!

Crafts

1. K is for Kangaroo

I cut out a K, then a tail, head, pocket and baby kangaroo.  He assembled it all, and voila!

Books and Media

We Read:

1. Dr. Seuss's ABC 

I love this alphabet book!  It's silly and goofy, and rhymes, and all the things a kids' alphabet book should do.

2. Yes We Can by Sam McBratney

This is a sweet book about 3 friends who learn that no one likes to be made fun of.  I think it's a great lesson for kids to learn, especially as they start navigating friendships.

3. It's Lovely When You Smile by Sam McBratney

Although Aidan is usually a sweet and happy go lucky little boy, of course he does get grumpy, and this is a great book to help kids deal with those feelings.

We Watched:

1. Wild Kratts, Season 1 Episode 19: Kickin' It With The Roos - Of course, as you know, we're Wild Kratts fans around here, and I was thrilled that there was a kangaroo episode.

2. Blinky Bill - This 90's Australian cartoon was one of the only English cartoons we could get growing up, and I was so glad I remembered it!  The main character is a koala, but one of his friends/sidekicks is a kangaroo, so it works. :)  He and his Down Under forest friends have adventures, and help each other out.

3. The Cat In The Hat Knows A Lot About That, Season 1 Episode 15: Jump - This episode is about animals that jump, one which is kangaroos, of course.

So, that wraps up our kangaroo week!  Next week of course we'll talk about turkeys!!!  Happy Thanksgiving, all!

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