Shoes, Letters in Names, Counting

Gathering: sorting shoes
(take pictures of children's shoes as they arrive)
Day 2: Begin with shoe store

Song:
(To the tune of Skip to My Lou)
I have two shoes, how about you,
I have two shoes, how about you,
I have two shoes, how about you,
Stomp with your shoes like I do.
(Change what kind of shoes and sing again - brown shoes, blue shoes, running shoes, etc. Also change the action each time.)
Calendar:
Read Aloud: Pete the Cat, Rocking in My School Shoes by James Dean and Eric Litwin
Day 2: Pete the Cat, I Love My New White Shoes by James Dean and Eric Litwin

Literacy:
Day 1
Stretch out names with slinky

Give kids name puzzle, help them to complete it. If they finish, have them mix up the letters and try again. (Keep in snack bags so they can take them home to practice.)

While kids are doing puzzle, sing “Name Game”
Day 2
Repeat name stretch with slinky
Give kids papers with their names and letter stickers. Have them match letters to put the stickers in order.
Sing Willaby Wallaby Woo

Math:
Day 1
Everybody take off one shoe, line them up, count them.
Take off a second shoe, line them up, and count
Put the shoes in various patterns, count again and see if there is still the same amount
(To keep it simple, we kept our shoes on, sat in a circle, and put our feet in the middle. Kids took turns getting a chance to walk around and count them. This was perfect for our group.)
Day 2
Give each child a sack of shoes, and have them count the number of shoes in it. If they count theirs correctly, they get a new bag to try.

Snack: Goldfish - Count 10 to get them

Science/social studies:
Day 1
Look at bottoms of shoes with magnifying glasses, talk about them differences and similarities
Step in playdough, then put imprints in oven (we didn't put them in the oven because they loved this activity so much, they wanted to do it over and over)
Experiment with walking/sliding on kitchen floor with different shoe bottoms - flip flops, cleats, regular shoes (This may work great with preschool year 2 or kindergartners, but for this group, a quick slide across the floor then sitting down to look at the bumps on the bottom of their shoes is plenty. Maybe slide on wax paper to see how the shoes have more friction? Whatever you do, with kids this little, just experience, don't worry about talking too much.)

Day 2:
Literacy extension:
Decorate a cardboard cut-out of a shoe with markers. Paint/dye shoe lace. When lace dries, have kids lace through the holes in the cardboard.

Choosing time:

1. art - shoe print painting
2. dramatic play - shoe store - shoes, shoe boxes, rulers, calculator, bags, (add mirror and shoe-wrap second day)
3. literacy - paint over name mats with paint/soap combo or dry erase markers
4. fine motor/social studies - Have your kids cut out pictures of all different kinds of shoes. Glue them to construction paper. Ask the children to tell you about the person that wears the shoe. (Remember this for another time, there is too much going on to do it this time)
5. play with magnetic letters and numbers on dishwasher

Walk around during choosing time asking kids what they are doing in their "school shoes" for the Pete the Cat-inspired class book.