AREA SETUP
(Open thematic poster-Green) Print, laminate, and decorate the walls of your daycare with all kinds of posters.
Poster-March
(Open banner March) (Open banner March-small) Print and laminate the banners. Use them to decorate your daycare.
Educa-decorate-Green
(Open educa-decorate-Green) Print, cut out, and laminate. Use the illustrations to decorate your daycare and set the mood for the theme.
Garland-Green
(Open garland-Green) Print. Let children decorate the garland. Cut it out and hang it within your daycare or near your daycare entrance.
Educ-poster-Green
(Open educ-poster-Green) Print and display.
SPECIAL TOOL
This special tool was created in response to a special request received. (Open task chart) Print and display in a specific location within your daycare or in your circle time area.
PICTURE GAME
The pictures may be used as a memory game or to spark a conversation with your group. Use them to decorate your daycare or a specific thematic corner. (Open picture game-Green) Print, laminate, and store the pictures in a Ziploc bag or in your thematic bin.
ACTIVITY SHEETS
(Open activity sheets-Green) Activity sheets are suggested for each theme. Print and follow instructions.
WRITING ACTIVITIES
(Open writing activities-G like green) Print for each child or laminate for use with a dry-erase marker.
Stationery-Green
(Open stationery-Green) Print. The stationery can be used to communicate with parents, in your writing area, or to identify your thematic bins.
Educa-nuudles-Pink
(Open educa-nuudles-Green) Print for each child. Have children color the sheet and use Magic Nuudles to give it a three-dimensional look. Variation: You don't have Magic Nuudles? Have children fill the spaces designed for Magic Nuudles with bingo markers or stickers. To order Magic Nuudles
VARIOUS WORKSHOPS-Green
Construction/Building blocks:
- Instead of dividing your blocks according to their type (wooden, LEGO, etc.), divide them according to their color.
- Different shades of green felt can be added to children's constructions.
- Sort cars, figurines, etc. according to their color.
Arts & crafts:
- Use paint to introduce children to color combinations.
- Construction paper, tissue paper, etc. in different shades of green for cutting, drawing, and creating.
- Finger paint for exploring color combinations.
- Green markers with different tips (narrow, broad, etc.).
- Color by number activity sheets requiring the use of green crayons.
- Coloring pages.
Role play:
- Transform your area to represent a paint store. Include paint sample cards, paintbrushes, rollers, painter hats, and wooden sticks used to stir paint. Ask parents to provide old decorating and design magazines. Add old shirts with paint stains on them.
- Create an artist studio complete with easels, paint palettes, etc. Add large sheets of paper and let children pretend they are famous artists.
Manipulation:
- Memory game related to colors.
- Modeling dough. Allow children to mix colors together. Homemade modeling dough helps reduce the cost of this activity.
- Association game involving colors (example: a green card can be associated to a frog).
- Sorting activities using items available in your daycare.
- Green cellophane paper can be cut and glued to the bottom of empty toilet paper rolls to make green binoculars.
- Lite-Brite or mosaic games.
Reading/relaxation:
- Books related to shapes and colors or books with pretty illustrations.
Music and motor skills:
- Homemade Twister game involving green-coloured items.
- Red light, green light game.
Sensory bins:
- Water table: add drops of food coloring to the water.
- Rock bin: fill a container with tiny green rocks (used in aquariums).
- Froot Loops bin.
Early science:
- All experiments which involve colors can be explored here.
o Color explosion in milk.
o The flower that changes color when food coloring is added
o Color combinations with paint.
o Bake a cake and add food coloring to the icing.
o etc.
LANGUAGE ACTIVITIES
Word flashcards
Use the cards to spark a conversation with your group or in your reading and writing area. They may also be used to identify your thematic bins. (Open word flashcards-Green) (Open giant word flashcards-Green) Print. spinach, grass, shamrock, broccoli, leaf, celery, lime, car, light, tablecloth, hat, pants
Green Day
(Open perpetual calendar-Green Day) Print and display near your daycare entrance to inform parents and children of this special day.
Area setup and greeting:
- As children arrive, draw a shamrock, a broccoli, or another green item on their cheek.
- Serve a special green cocktail. You can simply add green food coloring to apple juice or milk. Add a green cherry, a slice of lime, or a celery stalk to decorate.
- Replace your regular light bulbs with green light bulbs. Hang tiny green Christmas lights to set the mood.
- Encourage children to wear green clothing.
- Wear a green hat. Make your own by simply gluing green items on a baseball cap or strip of paper. You can also make green hats with your group or invite parents to make a special green hat with their child.
- Display pictures of green items on your walls and deposit some on the floor. Hang green decorations from the ceiling.
- Offer as many green toys as possible.
Food:
- For lunch, use green food coloring to transform food items. Serve shepherd's pie and add green food coloring to the potatoes. Add green food coloring to your pasta water. Add a drop of green food coloring to each child's glass of milk. Serve broccoli, cabbage, green beans, peas, etc.
- For dessert, prepare a platter of green fruit such as honeydew melon, kiwis and green apples. Offer various dips such as caramel, cream cheese, pudding, etc.
- At snack time, use shamrock-shaped cookie cutters to make cookies or let children cut the cookie dough themselves and decorate the baked cookies with green icing.
Activities:
- Hang a large banner on the wall. Invite children to make a collage by cutting green items out of catalogues or flyers, tearing pieces of green paper or cardboard, gluing leaves, etc.
- Play a modified version of musical chairs. Simply replace the chairs with green shapes secured on the floor (or stick them directly on the chairs).
ROUTINE AND TRANSITION ACTIVITIES
Game-This is my spot-Green
(Open game-This is my spot-Green) Print two copies. Laminate and cut out the cards. Glue one copy of each card on the table using adhesive paper. Drop the other copies in a bag. Children take turns picking a card to determine their spot at the table for the day. You may also use the cards to determine naptime spots or for your task train.
My green path
(Open my green path) Print, laminate, and secure the illustrations on the floor to create a path which leads to areas frequently visited by children such as the bathroom or cloakroom. If you prefer, the illustrations may also be used to delimit your various workshops.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES AND MOTOR SKILLS
Green balloons
Blow up four or five green balloons. Tell children the balloons must never touch the ground. If this is too easy for your group, provide more advanced challenges. For example, tell them they cannot touch the balloons with their hands or that they must blow on them to keep them in the air.
Lacing-Shamrock
(Open lacing-Shamrock) Print, cut out, and laminate. Punch holes where indicated all the way around the contour of the shape. Give children a shoelace or ribbon they can thread through the holes.
Shamrock hop
(Open models-Shamrock) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Cut out the shapes and secure them on the floor. Children must hop on the shamrocks. You can ask them to hop on one foot, backwards, sideways, etc.
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
Snowy shamrock
Use a rope to form a giant shamrock in the snow. Use spray bottles filled with water and a few drops of green food coloring to fill the shamrock shape with color. Children will be proud to show their parents their giant shamrock at the end of the day.
Green bubbles
Add green food coloring to your bubble solution. Blow bubbles with your group. Set pieces of white paper on the ground to catch the bubbles. The bubbles will leave green prints on the paper.
COGNITIVE ACTIVITIES
Educ-pairs-Green
(Open educ-pairs-Green) Print. Children must draw a line between matching items or color them using the same color. Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use.
Educ-trace-Green
(Open educ-trace-Green) Print for each child. Children must trace the lines using the correct color and then color each item using the corresponding color.
Educ-math-Green
(Open educ-math-Green) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must count the objects in each rectangle and circle the correct number.
Educa-duo-Green
(Open educa-duo-Green) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must draw a line between items that form a duo.
What is missing?
Deposit several green objects on a table. Have children observe them closely. After a few minutes, hide the items with a blanket. While the objects are hidden, remove an item. Remove the blanket and ask children to identify the missing item.
MUSICAL AND RHYTHMIC ACTIVITIES
Musically green
Cut a variety of shapes out of green construction paper and secure them on the floor throughout your daycare (or yard). Play calm music and invite children to move to the sound of the music. When the music stops, they must quickly find a green shape to stand on.
Green musical drawing
Divide your group into two teams. Have each group sit at a table. Deposit a single sheet of paper and green crayon on each table. Play music. The object of the game is for each child to draw for one song. At the end of each song, another child continues the drawing. Variation: You may also choose to give each team a green sheet of paper and a dark-coloured crayon.
EARLY SCIENCE/MANIPULATION/EXPLORATION
Yellow + Blue = Green
Using poster paint, show children how they can create green paint by mixing yellow and blue poster paint together. Give each child tiny containers filled with yellow and blue paint and let them mix the colors.
Colourful bottles
Fill clear bottles with lukewarm water until they are ¾ full. Add a tablespoon of corn syrup and 3-4 drops of food coloring. Secure the caps with hot glue and let children manipulate the bottles. Variation: You can also add green metallic confetti instead of food coloring.
Colourful ice cube tray
Add a few drops of food coloring to the water in each section of an ice cube tray. Freeze. You may also choose to insert a tiny green object in each section. Deposit a plastic container on a large towel, drop the ice cubes in the container, and let children manipulate them.
Color wheel
(Open color wheel) Print and cut out the different pieces. Glue the color wheel in a paper plate. Make a small hole in the centre of the paper plate and insert a fastener that will hold the two arrows in place. Use the two small arrows to point to two primary colors. Use the large arrow to point to the corresponding secondary color. Experiment with your group by combining the two paint colors.
Green rice or pasta bin
(To be prepared by an adult) *Not for consumption.
Recipe
Ingredients:
1 pint of rice or uncooked pasta pieces
2 tablespoons of green food coloring
3 tablespoons of rubbing alcohol
- Combine rubbing alcohol and food coloring in a container. Add rice or pasta pieces. Cover with a lid. Gently shake the container to completely cover the rice or pasta pieces with color.
- Spread the pasta pieces or rice out on a cookie sheet, in a single layer. Let dry for several hours.
- Pour the green pasta pieces or rice in a container. Let children play in it with figurines or containers they can use for pouring.
CULINARY ACTIVITIES
Green galore!
Add green food coloring to a variety of white food items such as: cake mix, milk, icing, soup, mashed potatoes, etc.
Leprechaun dust
Empty one or two boxes of lime-flavoured Jell-O powder into a bowl (the powder is white when dry). Sprinkle the powder on different food items such as apples, applesauce, vanilla pudding, etc. The leprechaun dust will turn green when it comes into contact with the moist food items, just like magic!
ARTS & CRAFTS
Puppets-Green
(Open puppets-Green) Print the models on heavy cardboard. Have children cut them out and decorate them. Glue a Popsicle stick behind each model to create puppets.
Green mobile
Print green items (see educa-decorate) or use pictures of green items found in catalogues or flyers. Decorate them with glitter, ribbon, cotton balls, confetti, etc. Glue the items on either side of ribbon or string to create a mobile. Hang your mobile from the ceiling or over your changing table.
I see green!
Use two tiny yogurt containers per child. Cut a shamrock shape out of the bottom of each container. Glue a piece of green cellophane paper over each shamrock shape. Cut holes on either side of the containers and insert pipe cleaners. Shape them so they fit over children's ears. Use another pipe cleaner to connect the yogurt containers and complete the glasses.
Green stained glass
Cut a piece of adhesive paper and encourage children to fill it with pieces of green paper (tissue paper, cardboard, etc.). When they are done, layer a second piece of adhesive paper on top and display their green stained glass in a window.
Monochromatic project
Give each child a single piece of white paper. Have them cut green items out of magazines, catalogues, and flyers and encourage them to glue them on their paper. Encourage them to draw on their paper using only green crayons too.
Q-tip painting
(Open models-Shamrocks) Print for each child. Deposit a small quantity of green paint in the centre of each shamrock and give children Q-tips they can use to paint the shamrocks. You can add glitter to the paint to make the activity even more fun.
COLORING PAGES
(Open coloring pages theme-Green) Print for each child.
I am learning to draw-A shamrock
(Open I am learning to draw-A shamrock) Print and laminate the model sheet. Encourage children to practice their drawing technique by tracing the shamrock step by step. When they are done, they can try to draw a shamrock independently.
SONGS & RHYMES
(Open songs & rhymes-Green)
By: Patricia Morrison
Green, green, green
Green like a shamrock
Green like mint ice cream
Green like a naughty leprechaun
Fleeing the scene
Green, green, green
Have fun!
The Educatall team