November 21: Preschool Storytime: Thanksgiving and Turkeys (Tt)

(Reminder note: When it is time to read a story, I read the titles of three books and then display them. The children pick which one we read. The three fictional ones listed below are the ones they picked. Additional picture book ideas are listed at the bottom.)

Opening song:                                  (Tune: "The Farmer in the Dell")

                         We tap hola like this

                         We tap hola like this

                          Hi-ho cherry

                          We tap hola like this

                          Continue with other verses:

                          We drop hola like this...

                          We circle hola like this...

                          We spin hola like this...

                          We toss hola like this...

                           We roll hola like this...

Letter Tt and its sound
Found it on the Alphabet chart
Talked about things that start with Tt
Made lowercase t in the air


I explained that Thanksgiving is next Thursday. I talked about how we celebrate Thanksgiving including some of the foods we typically eat on this day.
                     


Book: "The Very Stuffed Turkey" by Katharine Kenah

I passed out copies of the words to the two songs. I told the children to search for and show their parents a Tt on the page.

Song using clip art of 5 turkeys:

“5 Little Turkeys”

Five little turkeys/Cinco pequeños pavos sat in their pen. "Hide, turkeys/pavos, hide!", said the little red hen. One little turkey/pavo hopped out the door, And when he was gone, there were four.


Four little turkeys/Cuatro pequeños pavos sat in their pen. "Hide, turkeys/pavos, hide!", said the little red hen. One little turkey/pavo flew far away But the other three decided to stay.

Three little turkeys/Tres pequeños pavos sat in their pen. "Hide, turkeys/pavos, hide!", said the little red hen. One little turkey/pavo flapped her wings and flew. And when she was gone, there were two.

Two little turkeys/Dos pequeños pavos sat in their pen. "Hide, turkeys/pavos, hide!", said the little red hen. One little turkey/pavo flew far away. But the last one decided to stay.

One little turkey/Un pequeño pavo sat in his pen. "Hide, turkey/pavo, hide!", said the little red hen. The last little turkey/pavo ran away. For soon it will be Thanksgiving Day.

Book: "Sometimes It's Turkey, Sometimes It's Feathers" by Lorna and Lecia Balian

Action song:

“Six Little Turkeys”(Tune: "Six Little Ducks")

Six little turkeys/Seis pequeños pavos
that I once knew Fat ones, skinny ones Brown ones too.

But the little turkey/pequeño pavo with the Funny red wattle He led the others with his Gobble, gobble, gobble.

He led the other with his Gobble, gobble, gobble.
Over the rocks and through the trees Turkeys/pavos wobbling in the breeze,

But the little turkey/pequeño pavo with the Funny red wattle, He led the others with his Gobble, gobble, gobble.

Book: "Fancy Nancy: Our Thanksgiving Banquet" by Jane O' Connor

Goodbye song:                               (Tune: "The Farmer in the Dell") 

                         We tap adios like this

                         We tap adios like this

                          Hi-ho cherry

                          We tap adios like this

                          Continue with other verses:

                          We drop adios like this...

                          We circle adios like this...

                          We spin adios like this...

                          We toss adios like this...

                           We roll adios like this...

Craft Time:  

I modeled the Tt dot page, the rainbow writing page for letter Tt and the craft before the children starting working on them. Before starting the craft, the children write the given letter using 3 different colors of crayons. I have attached a link to the free rainbow writing letters I used. Completing the dot page is now optional.

You can find the free rainbow writing letters here. Since they are free, they lack a dot for where to start. I print one off, add the dots with a black marker, and then make copies of that one. You can find the dot pages here. 

Craft: Thankful cards with a turkey on the front

         Materials:

• Paint
• Markers
• Cardstock folded in half
• Word Wall with words such as mother, father, grandma, grandpa, I love you, and Happy Thanksgiving displayed for the children to copy
• Thumb for turkey body
• Index finger for feathers
• Sponge brushes for those that don't want to get paint on their fingers
• Googly eyes
• Glue

My examples 
(The top one is painted using thumb and index finger.
The bottom one is painted using sponge brushes for all the feathers.)

*All photos are with parent permission.

I always let the children pick which three books I read from the ones I bring with me. These are some additional suggested books that the children didn't pick:

1. "Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving" by Dav Pilkey
2. "One is a Feast for Mouse" by Judy Cox
3. "Gus, The Pilgrim Turkey" by Teresa Bateman