Jellies!

May’s theme of Under the Sea began with a week of shark fun, and then moved on to focus on Jellyfish! I chose Jellyfish because it’s a vocabulary word we always use when practicing alphabet sounds, as well as my own fascination in them.

(Photos I took from the Monterey Bay Aquarium)

Although jellyfish are one ocean creature you don’t want to encounter when swimming at the beach, you can’t deny their beauty in admiring them from a distance. The university I attended in California was a half hour away from one of the most famous aquariums in America, and I spent countless hours there watching jellyfish of all shapes and colors, from behind a wall of glass.

We also made a focus poster that included some of the facts we had learned about sharks and jellyfish and some images to accompany the vocabulary. Multiple times a day, we will read the poster and focus on learning the basic sight words. Since the children all know the different sounds of the alphabet, I've started to introduce phonics and the pairing of letters. We're beginning with "SH" since it's in, "fish, shark, jellyfish." 

They are so unlike any other living animal, that I thought it would be special to focus on them for a week and plan a lot of crafts around them.

The kids loved talking about them, watching videos of them, doing Jellyfish themed art, and one day, because they were on extra good behavior, we watched a few clips from a popular children’s show, Spongebob Square Pants, where the main character invited jellyfish into his home for a dance party. 

The following week was The World's animal themed party, so the kids in Shooting Star made more jellyfish that they could wear either on their heads or draped around their necks, hanging down their backs. They loved working with the different types of ribbon and sequins I bought for them to use as tentacles. For the next few days  all of the children were finding sequins around the classroom and taking them home as little treasures. Their fascination for tiny shiny things always amazes me. Whenever they find one little blue sequin that has been pushed to the corner of their room to be forgotten about, they are so excited to share it with me and to bring it home to show their moms. 

The best thing about small children is that they still look incredibly adorable, even with paper bowls on their heads!

Working with little kids reminds me to find joy in the simple things in life.