This book has been welcoming babies into the world for over a decade. it's companion book - A Brithday Cake is No Ordinary Cake also by Debra Frasier celebrates every year in the life of a child and of our great, green plant Earth.
Paper Collage: Set aside a day when students make special papers that can be used for bookmaking, card making or the special birthday envelopes described below. Finger paint, crayon resist, stamped paper, layered, scraped - think Colorful - think whimsical - think Eric Carle!
Birthday Cards: Bring out the box full of birthday stamps, stickers, special markers, etc. and put it in your Writing Center anytime someone has a birthday. Each student makes a fantastic, fun and fancy birthday card for the birthday boy/girl. While everyone is working feverishly to make the most fabulous birthday card of all the birthday boy/girl decorates a special envelope to collect all the cards. They can use the special collage papers to make a birthday cake or whatever they wish. When the students place their birthday cards in the special envelope, they also write What I Like About You all over the front and back of the envelope/folder. A great way to take home your cards AND have a place to store them!
What Time Were You Born? Talk with your students about the initials AM and PM and what these mean. Have parents fill out a card that tells exactly what time their child was born and if it was in the AM or PM. Use the cards to further discussion about time - especially AM and PM - and to make a classroom graph.
How Long is a Minute? Read the book, Just A Second by Steve Jenkins as a lead in to this easy to prepare activity. Place a clock or watch with a second hand in your Math Station. Make a menu of cards with different activities such as Write Your Name or Jumping Jacks. This is a partner activity. One student is the timer, the other student chooses an activity from the list and does what it says - for one minute. Timer says, "Go" and watches the second hand go around for one minute. At the end of the minute, "Time's up!" Students change places. As an extension, students can make up their own activity cards to add to the station.
Oxyegyn Needed: Use a birthday candle for this simple experiment to show students that fire needs oxegyn to "burn."
Individual Time Capsules: Have students bring a decorated shoe box (Time Capsule) from home. Specify that the top and bottom must be wrapped seperately so the boxes can be opened at school. Add a variety of items to the Time Capsule - How Tall I Was in Kindergarten, Handprints and Footprints, Writing samples, Art projects, Class pictures, the possibilites are endless. Students may even bring small items from home to put in their time capsules. Things like Hot Wheel cars, or baseball cards, or anything small that has meaning to them. Parents also write letters to their Kindergarten child that won't be opened until they day they graduate from high school. After all the things are collected, tie the box and label it:
To be opened on the day I graduate from high school in 20______ ! Now send it home to gather dust on a high shelf until Graduation Day.
New Birthday Song: Tired of the same old, same old birthday song? Beg, borrow, steal or . . . write a new one!
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