Mini Preschool: Halloween: Games/Activities/Movement

We had another awesome preschool day today. Since it's still October, we're still doing Halloween. Misty was teaching today, and her sub-theme was games/activities/movement. First she had all the kids come and sit on a blanket. She showed the kids pictures of 4 different cats and asked them to pick out what was the same and what was different about the cats. She told them that today we were going to talk about Halloween cats. She explained the differences between a Halloween can and a normal cat.  And then she taught us all the song "Halloween Cat". I think Lincoln and Ivan's favorite part of the song was making the claws. :)

Halloween Cat! Halloween Cat!
Why do you meow and meow like that?

Neither I nor the moon,

like your tune.

So Scat! Halloween Cat!

Next, Misty had the kids play a game called Feed the Cat. She put out two bowl a little distance apart. One bowl had 4 ping pong balls in it that we pretended was food for the cat. Whoever's turn it was had to take kitchen tongs and carry the ping pong balls one at a time to the other bowl. The kids loved this game. And they were all really good at taking their turn and then cheering the other kids on.

After that we went over to the picnic table and talked about how Halloween cats like to wander the city at night. Misty gave each kid a piece of paper with a city mapped out on it, and a piece of tin foil with a blob of black paint. The kids got to make the foot prints of the cat by sticking two fingers in the paint and walking them around on the map.

Ivan actually did really well with this activity. He did two fingers just like Misty explained. Lincoln's still came out fine, but he had two whole hands in the paint and made a lot more mess.

After that the kids went to sit back on the blanket and learn another song. Misty made up this cute song all by herself to the tune of I'm a Little Tea Pot. I thought it was so creative. :)

I'm a Halloween cat in the night

My body is black, but my eyes are bright

If you cross my path I'll give you a fright!

So watch out for me on Halloween night.

Then she talked about how cats don't just walk places, they also jump over things, and climb on things, and go under things. Then she had the kids do an obstacle course.

I think the obstacle course was the kids favorite. :) After that, we did a cake walk. Misty put numbers down on the ground and had each kid stand on a number. Then the moms sang Halloween Cat while the kids walked around in a circle. When we stopped singing the kids had to stop on the number they were one. Each number corresponded with a different treat they collected in bags to use later to decorate cookies. I don't know that the kids fully grasped the concept, but they sure had fun anyway.

The kids did grasp the concept of decorating cookies though. And they loved it! Ivan got to decorate a graham cracker instead of a cookie, because the cookies had margarine in them. (He can have butter but not margarine, go figure.)