What color are your eyes? Page 3 of your child’s All About Me book (see the 2 previous blogs for page 1 and 2) says: My eyes are _____________. Have your child draw and color his or her eyes. Help print the correct color word. Ask your child to think of some other things that are the same color. For instance, blue eyes like the sky on a bright day, green like the leaves on the trees, or brown like the icing on a chocolate cake. Many stories contain comparisons and thinking of things that are the same color is one way to practice this kindergarten readiness skill. This also helps practice creating mind-pictures or visualization which is a reading readiness skill. We use our brains and minds as well as our eyes to see. Learning about others and oneself is one way to encourage early social and emotional development and skills.

To extend the learning, read a story about eyes or play the anywhere game I Spy. Q. What did 1 eye say to the other eye? A. Just between the 2 of us, something smells!   What does your eye like to spy?

Yesterday, being at the start of Know..vember, kids started their very own getting to know book called All About Me. The first page was your child’s drawing of him or herself. Today’s page starts with a look in the mirror and you can combine this activity with getting ready to go somewhere. Have your child look in the mirror and notice the color of his/her hair. Does it look like your hair? Does anyone else in the family or the childcare center have hair like that? Talk about some words for hair and hairstyles: long, short, curly, frizzy, ponytails, spikes. There are words for the color of hair, too, like blond, dark, brown, black or red. Think of some animals that have hair. If you go out, notice that there’s lots of different ways and colors of hair.

For this page, just print on a paper:   My hair is ___________. Your child can copy or print or you can print and, perhaps, help your little one trace the word. Read it together pointing at the words. Your child can draw a picture or you may want to take a photo or even tape in a lock of hair.

In case it’s a bad hair day, read the story of “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. (There were a couple short Youtubes of this book, too.) Helping children notice how we are alike and different at the same time is important for their social development. Noticing details about themselves and others helps their awareness and kindergarten readiness. Will this idea make your day less hairy?

November is a No month, (no sun, no picnics, no camping…see yesterday’s blog). But it is a good time for a “know” month.  Getting to know you, that is. For the month of November, we’ll explore some activities that help kids to learn about themselves and others, too. Social skills and knowledge are more than an area of  kindergarten readiness. They are a significant part of every single day for all of us.

Some of the activities this month have a picture component and can be collected together to make your child’s very own All About Me book. To start, have your child draw a picture of him/herself. You can print: My name is _________ . Your child may be able to write on the line. If not, you can print your child’s name and your child may be able to trace over the letters using a marker. With your help to guide a hand, even 3-year-olds may be interested in how to write out their name. For littler tots, you might choose to take a photo and have your child make a few colored scribbles on the page. This helps build the connection between meaning and writing. When done, read the words together, pointing at them as you read. Let your child point, too, and ‘read’ them to you. This activity covers all sorts of learning. It helps your child feel important and special. Save the page and check back tomorrow for page 2. (Add a comment, so I can get to know you, too.)