Preschool Programs Chapter

By Teresa Chiv

The Seventies: Coming to America - Celebrate Diversity

Books to Share
Books to Show or Booktalk
Costumes and Props
Bulletin Boards
Nametags
Displays
Decorations
Refreshments
Fingerplays
Flannel Boards
Songs
Audio Recordings
Stories
Crafts
Games and Activities
Web Sites
Professional Resources
Craft Materials

Books to Share

Apple Pie 4^th of July by Janet Wong.
The Hello Goodbye Window byNorton Juster.
How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman.
Let’s Eat! by Ana Zamorano.
New Cat by Yangsook Choi.
Two Mrs. Gibsons by Toyomi Igus.

Books to Show or Booktalk

Circle Unbroken: The Story of a Basket and its People by Margot Theis Raven.
For My Family, Love Allie by Ellen B Senisi.
Halmoni’s Day Edna Coe Bercaw.
Peppe The Lamplighter by Elisa Bartone.
Uncle Peter’s Amazing Chinese Wedding by Lenore Look.
What is Your Language? by Debra Leventhal.

The storytime presenter can wear clothes or a hat representing a different culture. Some examples are leggings and a leather tunic for Native American attire, a Sari for Indian attire, a western vest and outback hat for Australian attire, a robe of Kente cloth for South African attire, a Kimono, Cheongsam or Pien-fu for Asian attire. Borrow some of these items from staff or members of the community. For ideas of hats to wear, look at the decorations section below.

Bulletin Boards

Coming to America

Copy the globe pattern provided in this chapter, and highlight the United States. Secure it to the center of the bulletin board and surround the globe with pictures of children wearing clothing that is representative of each of the seven different continents, with a dotted line connecting each child to the United States. Look at the illustration provided in this program for inspiration.

Nametags

Use the pattern provided in this program to create global nametags.

Displays

We Are All From Here

Use a globe as a centerpiece for a display of easy non-fiction books about children from different cultures. Include a few dolls dressed in ethnic costumes, if available.

Decorations

Hats Off to U.S.

Hang hats representing different countries from the ceiling, e.g. sombrero, coolie hat, Australian outback hat, turban, French beret, Chinese skull cap, Matador hat, Spanish Gaucho, Viking helmet, etc. Display either real hats or hats make hats from construction paper. The book Paper Hat Tricks Vol. IV by Pat Newbold has several patterns for hats from foreign lands. Also at U.S. Toy, www.ustoy.com, you can purchase inexpensive ethnic-design costume hats. More durable hats can be purchased on-line from Costumes of Nashua, www.costumesofnashua.com.

Refreshments

Multicultural Meal

Serve finger foods from around the world, such as egg rolls, baklava, and pita bread. Alternatively, serve slices of fruits from around the world, such as mango, lychee fruit, apples, and kiwi.

Fingerplays

Around the World

(By Teresa Chiv.)

If I’m the world, my head’s the north, (Put your hand on top of your head)

And now let’s learn the rest. (Tap your index finger to the side of your head)

My feet below would be the south (Point to your feet)

My left hand would be the west. (Hold your left hand out straight to the side, and wave it)

My other hand is on the right (Hold your right hand out straight to the side, and wave it)

And that’s the east you see.

And people came from all over the world (Make a big circle in the air with one hand)

To live in the land of the free. (Point to the ground next to you)

Flannel Boards

We Just Arrived

(By Teresa Chiv. Sing to the tune of “My Aunt Came Back.” Instruct children to repeat each line after you. Set the flannel board up with a globe made from the Coming to America Bulletin Board pattern provided above. Point to each continent as you mention it. Patterns for the pieces needed for this flannel board are provided in this program.)

We just arrived,

From Africa,

And brought with us,

A djembe drum. (Place the djembe drum on the outline of Africa)

We just arrived,

From Antarctica,

And brought with us,

A penguin pup. (Place the penguin pup on the outline of Antarctica)

We just arrived,

From Asia,

And brought with us,

A lotus flower. (Place the lotus flower on the outline of Asia)

We just arrived,

From Australia,

And brought with us

A koala bear. (Place the koala bear on the outline of Australia)

We just arrived,

From Europe,

And brought with us,

A royal robe. (Place the robe on the outline of Europe)

We just arrived,

From South America,

And brought with us,

A llama. (Place the llama on the outline of South America)

We just arrived.

In America,

Where we can share,

With everyone. (Spread out your hands in a welcoming gesture)

Songs

Sing “What is Your Language?”inWhat is Your Language? by Debra Leventhal. The book includes the melody and lyrics.

We’ll All Go Out To Greet Them

(By Teresa Chiv. Sing to the tune of “She’ll Be Coming Round the Mountain.” Before beginning the song, review the greetings from the following countries with the children. After singing the song, ask the children if they know how to say “hello” in any other country’s language, and include a verse about that country in the sing-along. Before singing the last verse, explain to the children that it is nice to welcome newcomers to make them feel at home.)

They’ll be coming from Australia when they come.

G’day Mate.

They’ll be coming from Australia when they come.

G’day Mate.

They’ll be coming from Australia, they’ll be coming from Australia, they’ll be coming from Australia when they come.

G’day Mate.

They’ll be coming from Spain when they come.

Hola

They’ll be coming from Spain when they come.

Hola

They’ll be coming from Spain, they’ll be coming from Spain, they’ll be coming from Spain when they come.

Hola.

They’ll be coming from Africa when they come.

Jambo.

They’ll be coming from Africa when they come.

Jambo.

They’ll be coming from Africa, they’ll be coming from Africa, they’ll be coming from Africa when they come.

Jambo.

They’ll be coming from Japan when they come.

Konnichi-wa.

They’ll be coming from Japan when they come.

Konnichi-wa.

They’ll be coming from Japan, they’ll be coming from Japan, they’ll be coming from Japan when they come.

Konnichi-wa.

Ohhh. We’ll all go out to meet them when they come!

Welcome!

Oh, We’ll all out to meet them when they come!

Welcome!

Oh, we’ll all go out to meet them, we’ll all go out to meet them, we’ll all go out to meet them when they come!

Welcome!

We’re Just Like Crayons

Sing “We’re Just Like Crayons” on We’re Just Like Crayons by Stephen Fite. The lyrics and a sound file are available at Songs for Teaching¸ www.songsforteaching.com/fitecrayons.htm.

We Circle Around

(Traditional. The melody for this traditional Arapahoe song is available on Songs for Teaching, www.songsforteaching.com/folk/clips/wecirclearound.mp3.)

We circle around, we circle around

The boundaries of the earth

We circle around, we circle around

The boundaries of the earth

Wearing our long wing feathers as we fly

We circle around, we circle around

The boundaries of the sky.

Audio Recordings

“You Sing a Song and I’ll Sing a Song” on You Sing a Song and I’ll Sing a Song by Ella Jenkins.

Stories

Tell the story Anansi and the Moss Covered Rock by Eric Kimmel.

Crafts

People From Around the World Finger Puppets

Materials

One-inch circles of white, tan, brown, beige, peach, and ecru card stock
Fabric, various patterns and colors representing cultures of the world
Glue
Tape
Yarn
Buttons
Craft pom poms
Markers or crayons
Squiggly eyes (optional)

Directions

Before storytime prepare five 4-inch circles of fabric for each child. The fabric should represent different cultures or countries, e.g. red, white, and blue patterned fabric for the U.S., Asian print fabric for Asia, sari fabric for India, Native American design or Southwestern print fabric for Native Americans, etc. Also prepare twenty-five 5-inch strips of yarn for each child in a variety of hair colors such as tan, brown, black, yellow, white, or red. Tie the yarn together in the middle in bundles of five strips, or let children and parents tie it together as part of the craft activity. Parents or caregivers will need to help the children with glue, tape, and other preparation for this craft. The children fold one edge of a 4-inch fabric circle over the other edge to create a 2-inch tall cone shape. The children can glue or tape the fabric edges together. The point of the cone will be the top of the puppet. The children can glue a button or pom pom on the edge of the cone, about half way down. This is the front of the puppet. Children can tape or glue a 1-inch circle of card stock in a color of their choice to the top front of the puppet. They can make the face by gluing wiggly eyes or drawing eyes on the card stock circle, drawing a dot for a nose, and a half circle for the mouth. The children can tape or glue a bundle of yarn to the top of the face, for hair. Each will make five finger puppets and place one on each of their five fingers.

Games and Activities

We’ll Sing a Song Together

Perform the call and response song, “You Sing a Song and I’ll Sing a Song” on You Sing a Song and I’ll Sing a Song by Ella Jenkins.

Hopscotch Around the World

Play hopscotch from various world cultures. You may think that this activity is too challenging for preschoolers, but they will surprise you – and they’ll have a great time! Use masking tape on the floor to make hopscotch patterns. Follow the directions for the patterns found in the book Hopscotch Around the World by Mary D. Lankford and Karen Dugan, or use the directions below that have been adapted from the book. Give the children beanbags to use as markers. Divide the children into one less group than the number of hopscotch patterns to prevent bottlenecking. For example, if you created five hopscotch patterns, divide the children into four groups. Let the children take turns hopping through each pattern, according to the rules provided in the book or below. When a complete group is finished, let them move to another pattern. Sketches for four of the patterns are provided in this chapter. Use them with the following directions.

Escargot (France): The first player chooses one foot to hop on. The player hops to the center of the pattern provided in this program, rests on one foot, hops back to the beginning, and rests. The player hops in and out the pattern again. If the player successfully hops in and out of the pattern two times then he or she can choose one square to put his or her initials in, and that player’s turn is over and it is the next player’s turn. The game continues until there all squares have initials in them. The winner is the player with the most squares.

Ta Galagala (Nigeria): The first player throws a puck into circle 1, then hops over circle 1 into circle 2, then 3. The player jumps into circles 4 and 5, with one foot in each, then hops into circle 6, and then jumps into circles 7 and 8. The player then claps his or her hands, turns around and jumps and hops back to the beginning, hopping over circle 1, and then turning around to pick up the puck. Then the player tosses the puck to circle 2, and proceeds through the pattern provided in this program and back again, hopping over circle 2 and turning to retrieve the puck before hopping out of the pattern. The player continues throwing the puck to each circle and hopping through the pattern. After throwing the puck into circle 8, the player throws the puck to a spot just above the pattern, then hops and jumps down to circles 7 and 8, turns around and picks up the puck through his or her legs, and then hops back to circle 1 and out of the pattern. If the player hops outside a circle or steps on a line, his or her turn is over.

Chilly (India): The player throws the puck into the first left-hand box, then hops into the box. The player then kicks the puck into the next left-hand box, hops into that box and kicks the puck into the top right-hand box, hops into that box, and then kicks the puck into the next right-hand box, then kicks the puck out of the pattern and returns to the start outside of the pattern provided in this program. Then the player tosses the puck into the top left-hand box, and proceeds through the pattern again. If the puck lands on a line, the player’s turn is over.

La Rayuela (Honduras): The player tosses the puck into the primera square, and hops through the pattern provided in this program in this order, primera, sequnda, tercera, brazo (on the left), casa, brazo (on the right) and cabeza, and then back to the beginning in the reverse order, picking up the puck on the way out. The player then tosses the puck into sequnda, and tercera and casa and hops through the pattern each time, picking up the puck on the way out. The puck is not tossed into brazo or cabeza. The player is out if the puck is not tossed into the right square. The first player to complete the pattern without mistakes wins.

Web Sites

Fisher Price On-line Games
www.fisher-price.com

This site provides games and activities for children from infancy through preschool. The characters in the games are from the Fisher Price play sets and represent people from many different cultures.

Professional Resources

Anansi and the Moss Covered Rock by Eric Kimmel.

The Flannel Board Storytelling Book by Judy Sierra.

Hopscotch Around the World by Mary D. Lankford and Karen Dugan.

Paper Hat Tricks Vol. IV by Pat Newbold.

We’re Just Like Crayons by Stephen Fite.

What is Your Language? by Debra Leventhal.

Costumes of Nashua www.costumesofnashua.com: This sight sells period costumes for children and adults.
NIEHS Kids’ Pages www.niehs.nih.gov/kids/music.htm: This site provides lyrics for an exhaustive list of children’s traditional and modern songs.
Songs for Teaching www.songsforteaching.com: This site provides lyrics and music downloads for songs that are suitable for teaching preschool and grade school concepts, and language arts.
U.S. Toy www.ustoy.com: This is an on-line source for children’s educational toys and character costumes.