This month Mother Goose Time is off to Discover the Desert! We’re looking forward to learning about the rodeo, desert nights, and the Sahara and Mojave Deserts. Click here to see all the monthly themes for January – August 2016.
Daily Child Projects
“Discover the Desert” is jam packed with wonderful craft projects. We’ll be making a cowboy hat, assembling a pyramid, building a desert tortoise, and crafting a cactus! A quick pictorial overview of the crafts included in this month is shown below. Follow us on Instagram to see the finished projects š
Skill Development
This month focuses a lot on building skills in the following areas:
- logic – solving problems
- fine motor – controlling small movements
- drama – using and creating props
- gross motor – building strength and balance
- social relationships – building positive relationships
- vocabulary – building vocabulary
- letter/word recognition – identifying letters and words
- number concepts – counting to determine quantity
Calendar and Daily Activities
Racing to the oasis, square dancing, and panning for gold are just a few of the fun activities we are looking forward to this month. The included story of the month is “Who Am I? Friendly and Not So Friendly Faces Of the Desert,” by Sue Hawkins. We also have a whole new list of suggested books and outdoor and free play ideas. We’ll be sure to share some of our favorites!
Manipulatives
Each month comes with thematic manipulatives. This month, colorful counting cubes and horse counters are included. These manipulatives are used in several of the Mother Goose Time activities and we are most looking forward to using them for pattern activities and pretend play.
Concepts
We will also be focusing on the following concepts:
- Color ā brown
- Shape ā square
- Friendly Bee ā wise
- Letters ā H, I, Y
- Numbers ā 13 and 14
Music
The month’s musical selections are inspired by Country and Western music. We’ll be listening and dancing to “Giddy-Up Cowboy” and “Rattlesnake Shake.”
Spanish
Mother Goose Time always includes at least one Spanish activity to encourage second language acquisition skills. There are also flash cards available in online member resources that encourage the incorporation of Spanish vocabulary while engaging in the varied daily activities. The coloring sheets, also available online, provide the Spanish word for several additional thematic objects. This month they include horse, camel, and cactus.
Global Friends
Three different global friends arrive each month that encourage the children to use and more fully understand the world map that Mother Goose Time provided when we first started using the curriculum. Our new global friends are from Yemen, Hungary, and Italy. Each friend will introduce the kids to a new cultural element through pictures, games, or storybooks.
Celebration Kit
This month also includes a celebration kit focusing on Easter. We’ll be creating an Easter themed hard boiled egg bunny snack and making egg shakers. There is also a pin the tail on the bunny game, Eater charades and an Easter rhyme with finger puppets.
We will also be learning about “Moses in the Desert” with Experience God (Christian curriculum add-on) and dancing to the music from our “Dancing in the Desert” program from Dance ‘n Beats (dance and fitness program). The toddler is always included thanks to the Little Goose Program (toddler supplement). We hope you’ll join us on our adventures as we “Discover the Desert!”
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As a blog ambassador for Mother Goose Time, I am happy to share preschool curriculum ideas, activities, and crafts with my readers. Mother Goose Time provides our family the opportunity to use their curriculum free of charge in exchange for honest and authentic stories based on our personal experience. 
