CW EDUCATION ● Copyright 2016 ● Creative World School © 1

Each month in the Exploratorium™, your child’s

learning journey takes them into our amazing world of

wonder! As we dive into learning, we are excited to

introduce this month’s Literacy Focus.

WHAT ARE NURSERY RHYMES?

A Nursery Rhyme is a simple, traditional song or poem

for children.

WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF NURSERY

RHYMES?

Nursery Rhymes are some of the earliest songs and

rhymes that young children experience. The sing-song

nature and rich vocabulary provide children with the

opportunity to play with language. They are a perfect

learning tool for young children as they encourage

rhyming and phonemic awareness that provides an

important foundation for early reading.

What songs do you remember from your childhood?

As you sing to or with your child, know that you are

building their phonemic awareness and developing

their early literacy skills!

THIS MONTH’S LITERACY FOCUS:

NURSERY RHYMES & SONGS

LINES ● FAMILY RESOURCE

OUR NURSERY RHYME BOOK

RECOMMENDATIONS:

Mother Goose:

One Hunred Best

-Loved Verses by

Mary Engelbreit

Nursery Rhymes:

Sing Along by

Roger Priddy

Beatrix Potter’s

Nursery Rhyme

Book by Beatrix

Potter

A Pocketful of

Posies by Salley

Mavor

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MORE ABOUT NURSERY RHYME BOOKS

LINES ● FAMILY RESOURCE ● LITERACY FOCUS CONT’D

RHYMERS ARE READERS:

NURSERY RHYMES HELP YOUR CHILD READ.

“Experts in literacy and child development have discovered

that if children know eight nursery rhymes by heart by the

time they’re four years old, they’re usually among the best

readers by the time they’re eight.”*

Scholars in Early Education in the School of Communication at Rutgers University have

gone so far as to devote entire funded studies to understanding the evolution of Mother

Goose! Because, as Principal Researcher Kay E. Vandergrift points out, Nursery

Rhymes as we know them were not originally written for children but served to preserve

historically important information through oral recitation. Pre-literate or minimally literate

cultures used song and rhyme as a way of passing down important information to their

children.

The value of rhymes and rhythmic recitation continues as we learn about early language

acquisition. As your very young child navigates a world full of new words, stories told in

song aid them immensely in understanding what words mean and how they are used.

So, pick up a fresh copy of Mother Goose to read together or include some Nursery

Rhymes into your daily routines to boost your child’s growing language skills!

*Fox, M. (2001). Reading Magic. San Diego, CA: Harcourt.

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THIS MONTH’S ART STYLE:

SCULPTURE

Art is an excellent and engaging way for young children to develop fine motor skills as well as

express their endless imaginations! As we dream and create together, we want to share this

month’s Art Focus with you.

WHAT IS SCULPTURE?

To sculpt is to create a form (representative or abstract) by carving or casting and molding

different materials.

HOW WILL WE EXPLORE?

Sculpture has been a prevalent art form throughout

history and so this month we will feature a variety of

styles and works. We like to think outside of the box

and are excited to utilize unconventional sculpture

materials like wire or foil for some inspiring group

projects. Everyone will be inspired as they get their

hands dirty as they flex their fine motor muscles and

dig into some inspiring art experiences!

“The artist sees what others only catch a glimpse of.”

Leonardo Da Vinci

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HOW CAN YOU BE A PART?

Host a family and friend sculpting

party! Make or purchase white clay

for the ultimate blank slate of endless

possibilities and encourage everyone

to mold and shape something wonderful. Work on

top of plastic placemats or wax paper for an easy-

to-clean group art experience. If you choose to use

salt-dough or a clay that hardens when dry, paint

your sculptures once they are set!

Homemade Clay

Mix 1 1/2 cups of water, 1 cup of flour, and 1 cup of

salt in a bowl for a clay that will harden once dry.

FUN WATERCOLOR RESOURCES

Watch Together

Sesame Street Sculpture (YouTube)

Read Together

Sandy’s Circus

by Tanya Lee Stone

Play Together

Magic of Clay by Clay Kids Mobile

LINES ● FAMILY RESOURCE ● ART STYLE CONT’D

WHAT KIND OF ART WILL WE SEE?

Moia from Easter Island

Pietá,

Michalengelo

Love,

Robert Indiana

UP,

Pixar Sculpture

The earliest man learned to chisel messages and images into rock. From these roughly

hewn works to the sophisticated etchings and sculptures of modern man, casting and

forming structures has been a powerful form of artistic expression. Children are innately

drawn to the realism and tactile experience offered by sculpting.

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Each month, our Exploratorium™ plays host to a

variety of iSTEAM activities. We have a blast

using Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, &

Math to fuel our Inquiry. As we explore Extreme

Sizes, we incorporate iSTEAM elements every

step of the way. Here are some of the exciting

stations your child will be exploring:

Lines appear in the world all around us. We are honing our observational skills as we

bend beams of light and collect and catalogue sticks. Where can we find straight, curvy,

pointed, and thick lines? As scientists... we’ll find out!

Even the most intricate tools require perfect, precise lines and angles to function well.

From rulers and yardsticks to levels, all manner of tools exist to make sure that

measurements are exact. We can’t wait to play with them all!

As we get our hands on all of the exciting tools—made possible by perfect lines—we

will use them to construct some fanciful and imaginative structures! What lines must be

accurate to construct a sturdy tower? Check back… we’re about to strike the perfect

balance.

From crosshatching to weaving, great art is full of lines. We will use our growing fine

motor skills to draw, manipulate, shape, sculpt, and reproduce our own linear

masterpieces!

The concepts of length and width, longer and shorter, parallel and perpendicular all

come into play in our lines inquiry. We will be measuring, comparing, and collecting our

data as we make sense of the mathematic nature of lines.

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