Letter "R" Week

Our rabbit =) "Fur"...don't ask who named him!

This week, we've been learning about letter "R" and all I have to say is that it's just been one of those weeks. Busy and distracting, but good. =) Letter "R" has taken a backseat, but I'm hoping to get back on track today and tomorrow so we don't have to repeat it next week. I've only had to do that once so far. The nice thing about homeschooling is that it does provide you with the freedom to go places and do things during the day together, but you really have to watch how busy you do become because it can really take away from learning and its consistency. Again, Avonlea is only in preschool, but even just a few days of errand running or "fun outings" can become a distraction and a set back to what you've accomplished so far school-wise.

So here's the "good stuff" for those of you following along in our preschooling homeschool journey:

1. Use your letter of the week box to go on a "R" hunt. We found a raincoat, record and rabbit.

2. Cut "R" pictures for your Alphabet Book.

3. Practice writing upper and lowercase "R"s in workbook.

4. ACTIVITIES:

Talk about rabbits and how they're mammals (characteristics of a mammal), what rabbits eat (gardening and can tie into Peter Rabbit). Provide lots of manipulatives to create rainbow patterns and talk about the order of the colors, make a BIG rainbow on your wall using chart paper and glue or paint the colors on it also adding the names of the colors when it's dry, do rainbow experiments with crystals or prisms, talk about the rain forrest, read Ranger Rick magazines, reading traffic signs, labels on foods (use chart paper to display labels from cans and other foods), talk about recycling and if you don't already recycle, START! Make pictures/creations from recyclable materials (bottle tops, cardboard cereal boxes, milk jugs, etc.), talk about the color red by finding pictures in magazines that are red and gluing them to a large red apple with the title "Things That are RED" at the top, talk and learn about reptiles and their characteristic, rhyming games, start a rock collection and paint them OR get a pet rock and write a story about him/her, learn about robots.

5. BOOKS:

The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter

The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

A Rainbow of My Own by Don Freeman

The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown

Everybody Needs a Rock by Byrd Baylor

Stone Soup by Marcia Brown

Real Robots by Maccaroni, Krulik and Epstein

6. FOODS:

radish, raisin, raspberry, rice, rolls

*See previous posts under the "homeschooling" label to see what the Alphabet Book is, the Letter of the Week Box is and what workbook we use.

Have fun learning!