Distance learning 2

Dear Students and Parents,

Welcome to week two of our home learning. This week we are focusing on 'The Farm'. We have moved all the information from last week over to the 'News' so that you can still access it. There are some activities that you can use from last week’s notice everyday so we wanted to keep it for you. Please remember that the most important thing for you all to do is to just do the best that you can. We are updating this weekly so that you have some guidelines as to the activities you can do, but do not feel as if you have to do everything.

We hope that you are all doing well and are enjoying the activities and links that we have on our web page for you.

Take care,

Ms. O'Sullivan, Ms. Martin, Mr. Kelly and Ms. Deery

English

Story; This week we will focus on the story ‘Pig in the Pond’ by Martin Waddell, illustrated by Jill Barton.  Read/watch the story a few times over the week and do a different activity at each reading. Access the story here; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQOaQ3xVuyQ

1. Tell the children the name of the author and illustrator. Look at the cover and talk about what you can see. What do you think this will be about? Listen to the story and then talk to the children about the different characters in the story. Sample questions: Who is the main character? Who are the other characters? What time of year is it? Where is the pig? Why did the pig not go into the pond?  Why did the pig change his mind?
2. Draw pictures of what happens in the story. Divide a piece of paper in three and label each section like this

1. Talk about things you would do to keep cool on a very hot day. Draw pictures of them.

Phonics; Practice one or two sounds each day.  For example, s & a on Monday, t & i on Tuesday and so on. The children can sing the song that goes with the sound and do the action. See how many words they can think of that begin with the sound. Can they think of any words that have the sound at the end or in the middle?

(Jolly Phonics order of sounds:  s,a,t,i,p,n,c,k,e,h,r,m,d,g,o,u,l,f,b,j,z,w,v,y,x).

Word work; This week the children can practice blending 3 letter words ending in ‘ig’, for example pig, dig, fig, jig, big, rig, wig. Write out one of the words. The children should blend the sounds, with no gaps, to make the word. The children can try writing out some of the words as they stretch out the sounds aloud.

Writing; Continue to practise the ‘curly caterpillar’ letters c,o,a,g,d,q,s. Last week we practiced writing c, o and a.  This week let’s try g and d. All of these letters start with the c shape.  Check out this YouTube clip for the right way to form the letters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpu8W15h41M

This video shows the correct way to hold the pencil. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DP5htYZ5jjQ

Nursery Rhyme; Farmers in the Dell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-krsNziXEw             

Other activities; The children can draw pictures of something beginning with the sound they have been practicing. The children can talk about their news for the week and draw a picture of it.  Have a go at labeling parts of the picture e.g. mam, dad etc. Mam or Dad can write down what is happening in the picture.

Maths

Days of the Week/ Months of the Year; Its a great idea to go over the days of the week and the months of the year everyday. Try using the language ‘before/after’. Questions to ask: What day comes before Monday? After Tuesday? What month comes before March? After October? Here are some songs you can sing; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNJRGHk7sN8 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fe9bnYRzFvk

Counting; Practise counting forwards 1-20 and backwards 15-0. It is a great idea to use the words ‘before and after’ when you are working on counting. What number comes before 7? After 4?

Number 5; This week we are still focusing on the number 5. Here are some video links for you to practice counting; 5 Little Monkeys (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfFwo7iQsDw), 5 Little Ducks (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZw9veQ76fo) and 1,2,3,4,5 Once I Caught a Fish Alive (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ir_l7qTiZ4)

The Story of 5; Can you tell me any stories about the number 5 (0+5=5, 1+4=5, 2+3=5, 3+2=5, 4+1=5, 5+0=5)? Can you use your fingers to show me the number 5? How many different ways can you make five with your fingers? Can you write them down? Can you find other objects around your house that you could make the story of 5 with? Can you write the story down? Remember to use your signs : + (plus, add, and) = (equals, the same as).

Numeral Formation; Practice writing all of your numbers 1-5 and remember all numbers start at the top of the line.

Around to my left to find my hero,

back to the top, now I have made zero.

A downward stroke, that was fun,

Now I have made the number 1.

Half a heart says “I love you”.

Draw a line, now I have made the number 2.

Around the tree and around the tree,

Now I have made the number three.

Down and across and down one more,

Now I have made the number four.

Draw his back, his belly and his hat.

My number five might come alive.

Weight; Here is the language you should use: heavy / light, lighter than/ heavier than. Questions to ask: Is it heavy or light? Can you find things in your house that are heavier than your pencil/ Lighter than your chair?

Gaeilge

• This week we are looking at the farm, both in English and as Gaeilge. Log on to YouTube and watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NboDH8uZXzQ . This is one of my favourite songs (and videos) as Gaeilge and I think you’ll love it too. Can you work out what the Irish word for cow is?
• Books aren’t just written in English. Why not listen to ‘Cití Cearc’ on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjxDqpe4WBo. Can you find the Irish word for any more farm animals in this story? What is the story about?
• Why not choose a show that you haven’t watched yet over on Cula4; https://www.cula4.com/en/
• Keep going with your 10@10 as Gaeilge this week, you’ll be surprised what you might learn as Gaeilge while staying active indoors.

 S.E.S.E

This month we are learning about the people who live and work on the Farm.

• Learn about how the farmer used to make butter years ago; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaXjq9Qf4z8. Why is the video in black and white? Do our clothes look like the clothes that were worn in the video? How are they different? Do you think we still make butter like this now?
• Try making your own homemade butter!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1LYWF8T8g0
• Recall how you made your butter and draw 3 pictures of how you made it. You can also try to write about how you made it!
• Do you have any Lego, blocks or cardboard boxes at home? If you do, why not make your own farm and choose the right animals to go in it! You can also pretend wheeled toys are farm vehicles and make a farmyard route for tractors to drive around.
• Here are some links with even more farm activities for you to try; http://www.agrikids.ie/learn-more.php, https://www.pre-kpages.com/farm-activities-for-preschoolers/, https://www.kidzone.ws/thematic/farm/index.htm and of course https://www.twinkl.ie/search . Twinkl has lots of Farm games that you can download, print off and play such as a game of 'snap'  using animal pictures and “Who am I?” (E.g. 'I am pink, have a curly tail and make this sound. Who am I?')

Music

• This is another piece from Carnival of the Animals by Saint Saens https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEd7Ovt4cWE . This one is about Hens and Cockerels. Hens are the female birds or mammy birds and cockerels are the male bird or daddy bird.
• Have you ever seen hens in the farm? Have a listen to a little bit of this YouTube clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhU9GLQkSHs. Do you think it sounds like the music? Do you like this music? Does it make you feel calm or restless? Do you know what instruments are playing the hen sounds? Can you pretend to be a hen and make up your own song?
• Here is the song Old MacDonald had a farm; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6HzoUcx3eo Can you sing along? How many animals are in this song?  Can you think of any more you can sing about?

Art

• There are lots of amazing farmyard art ideas that might inspire you this week. Feel free to try your own farm artwork, or else give this one a go. Follow our instructions carefully and see what animal appears at the end. All you need is a pencil and some crayons.
  1. Draw a large circle in the middle of your page.
  2. Draw a smaller circle in the middle of your big circle.
  3. Above the small circle, draw two circles. These are going to be the eyes.
  4. Inside the small circle, draw two even smaller circles side by side. These are the nostrils.
  5. Under the small circle, draw a big smiley mouth.
  6. Draw four rectangle legs coming out of the big circle towards the bottom of your page.
  7. Now you need two ears coming out of the top of the big circle, why not make them rectangles.
  8. Last but not least, you need to draw a curly tail coming out of the right side of the big circle.
  9. Now all that’s left is to colour him pink.
  10. Can you guess what animal it is?