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Farm Misc. Ideas & Links

 

 

Milk Jug Containers

Recycle plastic milk jugs for a variety of classroom uses. 
Simply cut a wide circle around the spout of a clean milk jug, leaving the handle intact.
  These jugs are handy for carrying small manipulatives, craft supplies, or napkins and cups
 at snack time.  The handles make them easy for even the youngest toddlers to tote around.
 


In the Barnyard

Place a barn with animals into the block center and encourage the children to create a place
 for each animal in the barnyard, while naming the animals and making the sounds and appropriate actions.
 Model how a horse might run, a pig might roll around, a chicken might peck, a farmer might ride on the tractor, etc;

 

Water Table Farm

When we did the farm, I lined our water table with plastic (it being winter) and filled it with
 potting soil then planted grass seeds which grew quite quickly.  We placed a barn in the grass –
we used a plastic one, but you could make one from cardboard, then we added a variety of
plastic farm animals.  The children were fascinated with it - ours were mostly between 2 and 4
years old and there was always several around it most of the morning each time we put it out.
   They put the animals in the barn, round the pretend pond – ducks on the pond (the pond was felt)
 I would have liked to put a bowl in with real water but it was winter and we thought it better not to.

 You could use the idea to:
count animals
to match same animals
teach colors (pigs pink, ducks yellow etc)
differentiate between birds and animals

 

Farm Listening Center

Place farm books with accompanying tapes for children to listen to
 a story in the music center, and specific farm titles on the bookcase.

Make up a farm tape with the coordinating sounds of each animal,
and attach a switch to the tape player, so that the child may press the switch
 to hear the animal's sound, each time he/she flips the page to a new animal.


 

Farm Visit

My class visited a farm where one of my students lived. We were talking about pets.
 The student said we could see his horse. When momma came to pick him up from school,
the student asked his mom can the class come see his horse. I told her he said he had a horse.
 Mom said they just moved to live with her parents, on a farm and she would be more than happy if we came.
 I told her that the other pre-k class would be coming, as well. She said she had no problem with that.
 So, I talked to the other pre-k teachers and my principal.
We rode the bus and sang songs on the way. When we arrived, the student was SO happy.
 I thought he would have a panic attack. Mom and grandparents met us and gave a tour of the farm.
 It was a BIG farm, but it was big enough for the kids!
Gramps let the kids milk the cow, while Granny showed us how to gather eggs.
Mom let the kids feed the chickens. Even though the school's cafeteria supplied us with lunch,
 mom and Granny made some cookies and lemonade.
 It was made by squeezing "a whole lot of lemons", as the kids said!
 



Farm Feast

Plan a day to have youngsters dress in their favorite farm finery such as overalls,
 blue jeans, plaid shirts, and hats. Then have youngsters prepare a sampling of farm foods for
 a fresh farm feast! Include items such as corn-on-the-cob, biscuits, fresh berries, and lemonade.
 

 

Farm Animal Block Center

Add plastic animals and a toy barn to your block center.


 

Farm Facts

Good milk cows give about 10 to 11 gallons of milk each day.

Cows are usually milked twice daily.

Some of the cows have a favorite place to stand in line while they are

waiting their turn. Some like to go first, and some last.

During the summer months a dairy cow might drink up to 40 gallons of water each day.

Cows eat: hay, corn, corn silage, cotton seed and wet brewer's grain, mixed together like a salad.

Cows are female cattle.  Males are called bulls and babies are called calves.

Cows provide milk, which is the source of daily products, including cheese, butter, and yogurt.

The organ on a cow that holds her milk is called an udder or a bag.

There are many varieties of cattle.

In the United States, cows seem to say moo moo, ducks say quack quack,
 and pigs say oink oink.

Children in Japan describe animal sounds differently.
  There, ducks say ga ga, cows say mo mo, chickens say piyo piyo, and pigs say bu bu.

In Rwanda, dogs say wu, wu, wu and roosters say guglug, guglug, guglug.
  African cats say miyau, miyau and cows say baaah, baaah, baaah.

In Italy, ducks say qua, qua. 

German roosters don't say cock-a-doodle-doo; they say kikiriki.

Now here is a very tricky question: 
Do you think the animals make different sounds or do people
just describe them differently depending on where they grow up?

All cows are females. (The males are called bulls)

Cows have four stomachs. (You have just one!)

Cows often have their ears pierced - with I.D. tags.

A cow can't give milk until she's given birth to a calf.

The average cow produces 90 glasses of milk each day.
 That's enough for 30 children to have 3 glasses of milk a day.

Cows provide 90% of the world's milk. Water buffalo,
 camels, goats, sheep, horses, and reindeer are also milked.

A cow weighs about 1400 pounds. That's probably 10-25 times what you weigh!

A cow's udder can hold 25-50 pounds of milk. No wonder she's so eager to be milked!

A Holstein's spots are like a fingerprint or snowflake.
 No two cows have exactly the same pattern of spots.

A cow gives nearly 200,000 glasses of milk in her lifetime.

Good milk cows give about 10 to 11 gallons of milk each day. 

 During the summer months a dairy cow might drink up to 40 gallons of water each day.

Cows eat: hay, corn, corn silage, cotton seed and
 wet brewer's grain, mixed together like a salad.

 

Trip to a Duck Pond

If possible, arrange to take the children to a nearby pond where ducks are found.
Take bread or crackers for the children to feed the ducks.

 

Duck Facts

The male duck is called a drake.

The female is called a duck.

Babies ducks are called ducklings.

In the spring, the female duck lays and broods ten to fourteen eggs.
After 4 weeks, the yellow ducklings hatch.

Ducks have webbed feet, so they are good swimmers.

They eat tadpoles, snails, worms, and plants that they find in the water.

Duck body parts include: bill, wing, webbed feet, and feathers.

 

Farm Fun

They have a great Farm Park here that lets the kids see farm animals and they
even have a fake cow that lets the kids milk the cow (just water comes out but a great idea).
 They have this throughout the year and the kids when we are able to really love going.
 They also had a saddle area that the kids could get on to pretend they were riding a horse.
 They also have there a playground that looks just like a farm! Super cute! Also a place
 that is a play area that has nothing but hay for the kids to climb and they really loved that. 

 

 

~ FARM LINKS ~

 

Farm Theme at PreKinders

Everything Preschool's Farm Ideas

Farm Activities at Perpetual Preschool

Kids Farm

On The Farm Kid Activities

Old McDonald Had A Farm at the Virtual Vine

Farm Lesson Ideas at 123 Child

Farm Ideas at Step By Step Child Care

DLTK's Farmer In The Dell Fun

Farm Animals at First School

Farm Unit at Teaching Heart

Down On the Farm at KinderKorner

Old McDonald Had A Farm coloring pages

Old McDonalds Farm Coloring Book

Cyberspace Farm

Down On The Farm at Little Giraffe's

Food / Nutrition Ideas at Little Giraffe's

Down On the Farm @ Linda's Learning Links

On the Farm at the Teacher's Guide

Fun On the Farm at Teachers.net

From the Farm Matching from Bry-Back Manor

Farm Unit at The KCrew

Sheep In A Jeep Lesson at A To Z Teacher Stuff

On the Farm Poems at CanTeach

Animal Babies on the Farm at Eduplace

On The Farm Or At The Zoo at Eduplace

 NC Dept. of Agriculture Activity Pages

All About Farm Animals at Kiddyhouse.com

 

Pre-K Fun Theme Pages are for educational reference only! 
No copyright infringement is intended.
I do not claim any of these as my own ideas.  
They are shared from friends and fellow group members.  
Thanks for sharing all your great ideas!

   

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