Mittens Lesson Plans

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Stained Glass Mittens

Lesson Plan:

​Activity:

Stained Glass Mittens

Lesson plan developed by Ms. Erika Geelhoed, BA Ed

Age Group:

Toddlers

* Lesson plan objective and assessment can be adapted to use this activity with preschoolers or school-age children.

Objectives:  

Children will:

• practice the fine motor skill of pincer grasping.
• express themselves by creating a unique piece of artwork.

Stained Glass Mittens

CDA Competency Standard:   

II.7.4a

• Candidate promotes individual expression and creativity
  • ​​​a) Encourages creative self-expression in children’s activities

Materials: 

• contact paper
• scissors
• black paper
• tissue paper
• cut into squares

Procedure: 

• Create the mitten frame by cutting out the mitten boarder shape out of black construction paper.
• Place on top of contact paper.
• Place cut tissue paper squares for children to use and encourage them to create.
• When the children is done making their pattern, place another piece of contact paper on the opposite side, sealing the stained glass mitten inside. 
• Trim the excess contact paper off.
• Hang the mittens in a window for the light to come through.

**If adapting this lesson for preschoolers, have them cut out the tissue paper squares as well as the contact paper mitten to practice scissor skills. 

Assessment: 

• Observe and record the children’s fine motor skills. Were they able to use a pincer grip (the ability to pick up small items using the thumb and index finger)? 

Note: Please provide appropriate supervision to the children in your care when completing all activities. You will need to decide what types of activities are safe for the children in your care. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when providing art and sensory experiences for children. Toddlers require special caution, only use non-toxic materials, and do not allow toddlers to put things in their mouths that are a choking hazard. ​​​

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A Sensory Basket Idea that is Inexpensive and Fun

Budgets are tight. Whether it’s in the classroom or at home. Have you ever found that a young child is more excited about the box or wrappings of the gift than the toy itself? Or wondered why a child may have a large selection of toys, but instead wants to pull out the Tupperware and the measuring cups?

The point of these sensory activities is to allow children to explore different textures of items that may be found in the home or closet. These items are easily used with other materials in the room, scaffolding the sensory experience. Here are a few ideas for two sensory baskets that children really enjoy. Everything came from the discount store or were gifts that we received but never used. They are items we might not think of first when putting together a sensory container and are easy to store and pull out at a moment’s notice.

Basket One
Several nylon scarves ($3.00), basket (.50)

Basket Two
A hand made crocheted square (free), self-hold curlers (1.00) , a dog grooming mitten ($1.00), dish scrubbing pads ($1.00) , shower gloves (free), cotton gloves usually used to wear at night to soften hands (free), basket (.50).