Forgot two.....

Here are two other pieces of the December curriculum I forgot....

This is a fishing tackle box (large size--about 7X10 inches?) and I snapped off the two latches for now. Inside are several different animals that fit into the compartments. Q has been feeding the animals to the dog, who is only too happy to oblige and chew them up, so they are steadily disappearing....argh. This work teaches opening and closing skills as well as one-to-one correspondance as the child can only fit one object into each compartment. Also teaches size, as some animals only fit in the larger slots. Additionally this introduces the concept of "zero" as some compartments don't have an animal in them. Could also be done with the ice cube tray, but I changed it up for some variety.

On our display shelf the tree photo changed to a winter tree. Although Q doesn't really understand this yet and may not even pay much attention, I am beginning to introduce her to the concept of cycles in nature (and science!) and seasons are one of the best ways for young children to understand this. For now the changes on her branch for each season and the tree photo serve to introduce her to the changing seasons (and of course observing changes on our daily walks!)