What a Performance!

We have lots of new games coming soon at Littlesheep Learning, the first one featured here is What a Performance!

This Orchard Toys game won a Right Start Best Toys Award in 2006 and is great fun for all the family.

The game asks you to perform for example; pretend to be a monkey, make a noise like a firework or wiggle your ears? and if you can't then you, use the magic decoder and reveal your hidden forfeit! Be a star and rise to the challenge in this all-action game.

The game is great for children learning to follow instructions and beginning imaginative / role play, whilst practicing the skills of turn taking.

Listening, Attention and Comprehension (part 2 - Activity Ideas)

Good listening skills are important for language development and a child with good listening skills will be more aware of the sounds of speech and pick up new vocabulary. When working on communication / listening games it is good to encourage the child to make eye contact with you when you are talking and to be still, try and sit opposite the child while administering activities and work in a quiet environment. It is also important to keep the sessions short and frequently praise and reward. Here are some activituy ideas to help children develop their listening skills. Please comment on this post and let me know any others you may have!

Go game around room
Required Response: Children stand still and wait for go signal before moving along a line of chairs. Make the children wait a little longer each time.
Equipment: A line of chairs used as markers

Go game at table
Children put brick in a box (or build a tower) to 'go' signal. Make the signal quieter and then cover the lips and whisper.
Equipment: Bricks/box

Stop game around room
Children move around until they hear 'stop' signal. The signal can be the word 'stop', a clap, a drum or other instrument or noise.
Equipment: Instruments to make 'stop' signal noise

Stop game at table
One child gives the stop signal to a target word while the adult carries out a task, e.g. Stop me when you see a car (turn pictures over)
Equipment: Variety of picture cards (Orchard Toys Flash cards are good)

Wake up
The children all pretend to be asleep and when they hear the alarm clock they all jump up
Equipment: Alarm clock (or recording of an alarm clock ringing/beeping)

Giants Treasure
The giant sits on a chair in the middle of the room blindfolded, under his chair are a set of keys. The children take it in turns to try and get the keys and return to their seat without the giant hearing them.
Equipment: Blindfold, keys

Point to a sound
Blindfold the child and stand behind them. Shake keys or quiet noisemaker above, below and to the side of the child and get them to point where they hear the sound.
Equipment: Blindfold, keys, bells, rice/dried lentils/dried peas in a small container

Following a moving sound
Blindfold the child and then move away and shake the noisemaker, get the child to follow the noise and as child approaches change direction repeating the noise frequently. After a few goes allow child to catch you!
Equipment: Blindfold, choice of noisemakers as above

Changing Action
First teach different actions to two noises, e.g. drum - run, bell - jump. Children move around room changing action to each signal. Add more noises/instructions as the child learns the game.
Equipment: A variety of musical instruments

Rhythm 1
Adult beats a drum/claps and the child must copy back the rhythm.
Equipment: Drum (if used)

Rhythm 2
Adult says a word/sentence and the child claps/beats a drum for the syllables/rhythm
Equipment: Drum (if used)

Simon says
Child listens to various instructions - if not prefaced by Simon says they do not do the action.

Fetch me games
Place a variety of picture cards and ask the child to fetch a specific picture (gradually increase the number of items to choose from/the distance away/the complexity of the instruction etc).
Equipment: Variety of picture cards - cards from lotto games for example; picture word lotto or shopping list are a good alternative to flashcards, the cards from red dog blue dog are good for more complex instructions - e.g. give me the yellow rabbit (from a selection including other colour rabbits and other yellow items)

Listening Games
Child listens to the sound and matches it with a picture
Equipment: Sounds tapes / CDs for example: Crash Bang Wallop, Cock-a-doodle moo, Soundtracks games

Matching musical instruments
The adult shakes one of the instruments behind a screen and the child must find their corresponding musical instrument.
Equipment: Two sets of musical instruments, screen to make sound behind (a box turned on its side makes an easy screen!)

Posting games
Similar to fetch me, only posting specific pictures on request.
Equipment: Shoe box with slit for posting, variety of picture flashcards

General noise awareness
Get the child to shut their eyes and identify all of the surrounding environmental noises - repeat in different environments to notice different sounds.

Identifying quiet and loud noises
The adult uses a shaker and makes a quiet or a loud sound. The child must identify whether the sound was loud or quiet and put a brick in the corresponding box. Some children may find it easier if the boxes are labelled with the words or symbols.
Equipment: Shaker, bricks, boxes, labels

Identifying animals
Put 4 model animals or pictures on the table and imitates one of their sounds, e.g moo, and the child must find point to correct animal.
Equipment: Toy animals/animal pictures

Identifying objects by the sounds they make
Put 4 objects/pictures that make familiar sounds on the table and imitates one of the sounds and the child points to correct object.
Equipment: Objects such as telephone, toy fire engine, clock etc

Listening to a story and reacting to specific words.
Read a simple animal story and get the child must make the correct corresponding animal noise every time they hear an animal mentioned.
Equipment: Short and simple animal story books (e.g. Elmer's Friends)

Listening a simple story.
As above but child claps or raises their hand when they hear a specific word.
Equipment: Short and simple story books

Orchard Toys News

We are pleased to let you know that some of our Orchard Toys favourites are now back in stock at Littlesheep Learning, including:

Knickerbocker Glory, Bus Stop, Insey Winsey Spider, Pop to the Shops and Crash Bang Wallop!

We have also taken delivery of some NEW Orchard Toys products: Magic Cauldron, Tell the Time and Flashcards. More information on those coming soon!

Write a Review Competition

Don't forget to enter the 'Write a Review' Competition at Littlesheep Learning.

Simply choose a product, add your review and you could be in with a chance of winning a copy of The Usborne Book of Everyday Words - Each page in this first words book has a scene or category with labelled objects to discuss, an excellent resource to encourage the direct association of words with objects and reinforce known words.

You get one entry for each review you write - so get writing!

Here are some of the reviews we've received so far:

Dotty Dinosaurs

by Joanne Rivett

Date Added: Monday 18th February, 2008
An excellent game for little ones to learn there shapes and colours without even realising it, 2 different games in one so a great price!

Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

Going to the Hospital
by Stephanie Moore
Date Added: Thursday 14th February 2008
I have bought a few of these books because I do find they help my son before a new situation. He had to go into hospital for a little operation and this book helped him know what was going to happen and what to expect.
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

Cock-a-doodle moo!

by Stephanie Roberts
Date Added: Thursday 14 February, 2008
I have been playing this fantastic game with my 3.5yr old son. He loves it and will play it over and over again!! I bought it because I thought it would help him learn to listen a bit more and it worked!
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

Miss Face Cube

by Anne Ritchie
Date Added: Tuesday 12 February, 2008
Excellent item - really big cube in gorgeous bright colours all kept clean in a poppered see through bag. Great for using with small groups as a game or individually as a discussion point around emotions. Fantastic!
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

Jack and the Beanstalk Game

by Karen Frost
Date Added: Tuesday 12 February, 2008
My kids (age 2 and 4) love this game. Simple pictures and simple instructions, perfect for young children. It really has helped my younger one especially to differentiate between shapes.
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

Triangular Writing Grip
by Arianna Helm
Date Added: Tuesday 12 February, 2008
I purchased 2 of these items several months ago. As a bookkeeper I need to do a lot of writing and my fingers were starting to get very sore. The pencil grips made things a lot easier and I found that I was able to do more work at a time as my fingers were not getting sore. I will definitely be buying more.
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

Down on the Farm

Another post in our series based on the activities at the Stay and Play group we go to. This post is based on helping children learn about farm animals.

Activity Ideas

• Visit a farm
• Play listening games e.g. Cock-a-doodle Moo!
• Make a farm collage - cotton wool makes great sheep, stick on feathers for ducks, use real grass, leaves and twigs to creat the fields and foil to create a pond
• Play with farm animals or finger puppets

Books

• The Usborne Farmyard Tales collection by Heather Amery
• 1001 Things to Spot on the Farm by Gillian Doherty
• Muddle Farm by Axel Scheffler
• Noisy Farm by Rod Campbell
• Farm Animals (Usborne Beginner Series) by Katie Daynes

Songs and Rhymes
In addition to the many songs and rhymes about individual farm animals for example; Baa Baa Black Sheep, Five Little Ducks and This Little Piggy went to Market, there are lots of songs farm animals collectively.

Old MacDonald had a Farm
Old MacDonald had a Farm
E-i-e-i-o
And on that farm he had a [pick a farm animal]
E-i-e-i-o
With a [animal noise][animal noise] here and a [animal noise][animal noise] there
Here a [animal noise], there a [animal noise], everywhere a [animal noise][animal noise]
Old MacDonald had a Farm
E-i-e-i-o

I went to visit a Farm one Day
I went to visit a farm one day I saw a [farm animal] across the way
And what do you think I heard it say?
[Animal noise],[animal noise],[animal noise],
[Animal noise],[animal noise],[animal noise],[animal noise],
That's the way it goes
[Animal noise],[animal noise],[animal noise],[animal noise],
Everybody knows.

Repeat these songs as many times as you want using, cows, sheep, ducks, horses, pigs and any other farm animal you can think of.

Five Little Ducks

Everyone knows the rhyme 5 Little Ducks went swimming one day and this is an excellent rhyme to use to start teaching children about counting and about ducks. Here are some ideas!

Activity ideas:
Different activities will be suitable for children of different ages so you may be able to revisit this list over a number of years!

• Go and feed the ducks
• Play with bath ducks in water
• Share rhymes about ducks (see suggestions below)
• Share books about ducks (see suggestions below)
• Play with the 5 Little Ducks Teaching Song Mitt
• Draw and colour pictures of ducks
• Talk about the noise ducks make - you could play listening games and listen for the duck
• Talk about where ducks live
• Talk about the lifecycle of ducks from eggs, to ducklings to grown up ducks

Songs and Rhymes
The most popular duck rhyme has to be 5 Little Ducks went swimming one day (start with 3 for younger children!), this is a rhyme that varies everywhere it is sung but here is our version!

Five little ducks went swimming one day,
Over the pond and far away,
Mummy Duck said "quack, quack, quack, quack",
But only four little ducks came back.

Repeat with four little ducks, then three, then two, then one until 'no little ducks came swimming back'. Then we sing:

Daddy duck went swimming one day ,
Over the pond and far away,
Mummy Duck said "quack, quack, quack, quack",
And all the ducks came swimming back.

Another rhyme is:

Five little ducks that I once knew,
Three were fat and skinny were two,
But the one little duck,
With the feather on his back,
He led the others with a quack, quack, quack,
Quack, quack, quack,
Quack, quack, quack,
He led the others with a quack, quack, quack.

Down to the river they would go,
Wibble, wobble, wibble, wobble, to and fro,
But the one little duck,
With the feather on his back,
He led the others with a quack, quack, quack,
Quack, quack, quack,
Quack, quack, quack,
He led the others with a quack, quack, quack.

Back from the river they would come,
Wibble, wobble, wibble, wobble, ho, hum, hum,
But the one little duck,
With the feather on his back,
He led the others with a quack, quack, quack,
Quack, quack, quack,
Quack, quack, quack
He led the others with a quack, quack, quack.

Lastly,

Isn't it a bit of luck
That I was born a baby duck
With yellow socks and yellow shoes
I can go wherever I choose?
Quack, quack, quack quack

Books

There are many books based on the 5 Little Ducks song, my favourite is

• Five Little Ducks by Penny Ives

Other 'duck' books include:

• One Duck Stuck by Phyllis Root and Jane Chapman
• Nine Ducks Nine by Sarah Hayes
• Duck (Read & Learn: Life Cycles) by Richard Spilsbury
• From Egg to Duck (How Things Grow) by Sally Morgan
• I am a Duck by Linda Bygrave