Crafts

My House
Use a milk carton and cover with construction paper. Cut as many windows as there are family members in the family. Glue photos of each family member in a window.  Cut out a door.  Let children decorate the outside of house with sparkles, markers ect.

Friendly Rainbow
Make a rainbow of our hand prints when studying friends. Just lightly draw on the arches of the rainbow on a large piece of butcher paper or cardboard. Use different colors of paint to paint the children's hand prints and make a beautiful rainbow.
Hand Mural
Make a mural with their hand prints becoming flowers. Paint on stems and some grass with their hand prints for the flowers. Title it "Friendships bloom in our classroom."
Family Puppets
Give each child a cut out of a person (kind of like a gingerbread man pattern). Then the kids can decorate and make any family members they wish to. Then attach them to popsicle sticks and there you go.

Friends Mobile
Glue a picture of each child on construction paper. Print the name of the child on the back of their picture and hang it on the hanger using yarn. Hang your mobile in the classroom.
Family Tree
Encourage your children to talk about all the people that belong in their family; Mother, father, sister, brother. To make a family tree you will need: a toilet paper roll for each child, a small branch from a tree for each child, tissue paper, play dough and construction paper. Cover the toilet paper roll with tissue paper. Tape a piece of cardboard on one end to close the hole. Go for a walk and have each child pick a branch to put in the toilet paper roll filled with play dough. Allow to dry overnight.  Cut out as many circles as there are family members in the family.  Cut out eyes, nose and mouth from construction paper and glue on.  Write the name of the family member on the other side. Punch hole and thread - hang on tree.

Stick Masks

You will need a paper plate, yarn, construction paper and a straw or popsicle stick.  Make a mask of yourself.  Use yarn as the hair and cut out eyes, nose and mouth from construction paper. Add a straw or popsicle stick to the back to hold onto.

Friendship Wreath

Cut a wreath out of cardboard. Trace each child’s foot out of construction paper.  Use a different color for each child.  Alternate each child’s foot to go around the wreath.

 

Circle Activities

 

Charting Families
Cut out people pattern (like a gingerbread man shape) as to how many are in your family. Glue all of them on a piece of construction paper.  Label each family member under each cut out person.  Add eyes, nose and mouth if you wish.  Count and compare with other families.

How Many?

Counting how many are in your family.

Who wants to play house?

Set out a house and people.  Have each child pick a person and role-play that family member.  Talk to them about how families are different. Some are mom, dad, bother, sister; Mom and child; Mom , dad and child, ect.

Let's Find A Friend
(Tune: The farmer in the Dell)

(I begin by walking around the room while the kids are sitting
and we all sing.)

Let's find a friend,
Oh let's find a friend
Heigh Ho the Derry-O!
Let's find a friend!

(At this point, call a child, they hold your hand and continue walking around the room and singing:)

(Cameron) find a friend,
(Cameron) find a friend,
Heigh Ho The derry-o!
(Cameron) find a friend.

(Now Cameron chooses a friend and we sing that child's name. The game continues until the entire class is walking around the room. When the last child is called we all sing:)

We all found a friend,
We all found a friend,
Heigh Ho! The derry-o!
We all found a friend.

Family Members

Naming family members who are in your family.

Who is it?

I used knitted dolls.  There were two families. One family was a mom, dad, sister and brother and baby.  The other family was mom, dad and baby.  I asked the children to identify who each family member was and to put the families together.

Can you find me?

In this activity I used the same knitted dolls but this time I would ask the children to find each family member.  For instance I would say where is the mother?  Then the child would find the mother and so on.

Friendly Roll

Sit in a circle. Roll ball to a child.  Say the child’s name as your rolling it to them.  As the balls rolling to them sing:

I have a good friend, a good friend, a good friend.  I have a good friend and their name is (Savannah).  Continue until each child has had a turn.

Friendship mobile

Ask parents to bring in a picture of their child.  At circle identify who each child is.  Glue each picture to a piece of construction paper.  Make a hole at the top and attach a string.  Attach each picture to the hanger and you have a friendship mobile. Hang in your classroom.

 

 

Songs

 

Families
Some families are large. (spread arms out wide)
Some families are small (bring arms close together)
But I love my family (cross arms over chest) best of all!

My Family
Here is Daddy. (thumb)
Here is Mommy. (index)
Here I am for three. (pinky)
Together we're a family,
As happy as can be! (clap!)

The more we get together

The more we are together, together, together,
The more we are together, the happier we'll be.
For your friends are my friends
and my friends are your friends.
The more we are together, the happier we'll be.

Two little friends

2 little friends are better than 1

And 3 is better than 2

And 4 are much better still

Just think!

What 4 little friends can do.

My Family Story

If you Peek into my room at night (stand on toes as if peeking).

My family will see you (nodding your head).

They kiss my face and tuck me in tight (blow kisses out to everyone).

Why? Because they love me! (Hug yourself as you tell this!)

Stories

1. Mimi Lullabies

Mimi sings lullabies and all her friends come to listen.

2.Pony at Play

 Pony meets up with his friends the cow, the pig and the big red bull.

3. Love you Forever

A mother sings a lullaby to her baby.  The baby grows until he’s an adult.  The mother gets ill and then the son sings the lullaby to his mother and his new born daughter.

4. To Grandma’s House

A little girl takes a walk with her dog to go and visit her grandmother and grandfather.

5. The Evening Walk

A skunk mother takes her two little ones out for an evening walk.  The skunks encounter many things on their journey and then return home to sleep.

6. The Eensy Weensy spider

The eensy weensy spider goes on different adventures.  She meets up with some friends and the spider’s mother helps out too.

7. Something Good

A father takes his son and daughter grocery shopping.  The daughter wants to buy junk food but the father insists on healthy food.  The daughter takes her own cart and fills it up with ice cream.  The father puts it all back. Then she fills up with chocolate bars.  The father puts it all back.  The father tells her to stay put and not to move.  Some friends come by and say hello but she doesn’t respond.  Then a sales lady comes by and says what a beautiful doll and puts her on the shelf.  She puts a price tag on her $29.95.

Many people try to buy the little girl but when they pick her up she screams and then they leave screaming “It’s Alive”.   She starts to cry and her father finds her and asks what’s wrong.  You told me to stay put and then people wanted to buy me.  I’m sorry said the father and gave her a hug.  So off they went to the check out line.  The cashier insisted that the father pay for the little girl as it had a price tag on it.  The father kept refusing until his little girl said aren’t I worth $29.95 daddy.  You sure are and paid the man. 

8. The Family Feud

Two little foxes couldn’t get along so they were separated into their own rooms. Once in their rooms they got bored so they started to play with each other outside their rooms in the hallway.  The mother recognized how they were playing so nicely and told them what a good job they were doing.  That lasted until dinner time where they began to quarrel again.  They got send to their rooms again when they started a pillow fight and role playing.  That ended the bickering for now.

9. Rickey Racoon and his Friends

Rickey went to visit his cousin that lived in the forest. Rickey lived in the city. His cousin and friends showed Rickey what do for fun.  But Rickey thought that was boring until he saw a blueberry bush.  He started to eat the blueberries and thought they were yummy.  The next day they collected blueberries and Rickey’s aunt cooked them blueberry pancakes.  Rickey asked if he could stay longer and thought living in the forest was fun.