CONCEPTS TO BE TAUGHT:
Spiders have 8 legs
spiders spin webs
the word arachnid
the color black
the shape circle
rote counting to 8
number recogntion
small / large.
BOOKS
The Itsy Bitsy Spider by Trapani
The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
The Bear and the Fly by Paula Winter
Buzz Buzz Buzz by Byron Barton
ART PROJECTS
MARBLE PAINTING
Start with black construction paper, and white paint. Roll a marble or bead in the white paint and then put on the black paper, in a tray. Children move the tray to make the marble roll around. Even more fun, you can cut the paper into circcles and put the paper in a round pan and then let the children roll the white paint marble.
EGG CARTON SPIDERS
Use one section of an egg carton, as the body of the spider. Attach black pipecleaners, for the legs. Have the children paint them black. When dry, you can glue on eyes.
WATERCOLOR SPIDERWEBS
After reading "The itsy Bitsy Spider", show children the last page, where the spider lies in the sun and rests. Have children paint with pastel watercolors on white paper. When dry, let them drizzle glue over it to make a "web" -- put glitter (silver, white or clear) on the glue.
SPIDER PUPPETS
Use a large black circle(about 9" around), cut from construction paper. Attach a tongue depresser for the stick. Then take long thin strips of black construction paper. Have children fold the strips "accordian" and attach 8 to each circle, for the legs.
SPIDER FINGER PUPPETS
Take a 2" square piece of black paper. Fit it over and around the childs finger tip. Secure it with tape. Cut slits up the sides, until you have 8 "legs". You can add little eyes.
ART CENTER IDEAS
- Put black paint, tissue paper, pom-poms, felt, plastic, sand paper, etc in art area for black collages and/or texture collages.
- Use a black ink pad to let children make thumb prints and add 8 legs to make them into spiders.
- Use Black circles and white paint at the art easel
- Use white circles at the easel.
Egg Carton Caterpillar
Cut an egg carton into sections of three. Paint the egg carton sections green with tempera paint. After the sections are dry, glue a green cotton ball to the top of each section. (color them green by shaking in a bag with dry paint). Draw eyes with markers. Poke holes in the caterpillar's head and thread a chenille stem through for antennae.
Bug Glasses
Cut an egg carton into sections of two. Cut a hole in the bottom of each egg cup for eyeholes. Poke a small hole in each side of the attached egg cups. Push a chenille stem through the hole on each side and twist to hold. Curve the chenille stems so they will fit behind ears.
SCIENCE, MATH AND MANIPULTIVES
Ladybug Chart
Chart the number of dots each ladybug had that the children made. Who had the most, least....?
Use black plastic spiders - small and large and have children sort by size.
Make a graph, on a large sheet of paper. Title it "Do you like arachnids?". Have a YES and a NO column. Make black spiders, one for each child. Write each childs name on a spider. Have children put their spider in the yes or no column. Count how many were yes, and how many were no.
Use you small plastic spiders. make cups or cards with numbers on them (1-8, or whatever number you would like) have children count out appropriate number to match the numeral on the card or cup.
Make sequencing cards to match the animals in the story "The Very Busy Spider" - see if children can put the cards in the correct sequence.
Make little picture cards from the story "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" -- the water spout to go with the rain, the kitchen wall to go with fan, etc.
Find a real spider and put it in a container for the children to see. If your children are anything like mine, they will want to hold it, touch it, etc.
Have different types of black textures, for the children to see and touch -- and to even listen to --smooth, rough, etc -- like sandpaper, plastic, different types of paper for different types of sounds.
Little Miss Muffets' Curds and Whey
What are curds and whey anyway? Curds are the solids left when milk curdles, and whey is the liquid. You can explain Little Miss Muffet's snack by actually making some with your children:
- Warm 1 cup whole milk and add 1 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice. Stir as curds form
- Strain the curds from the whey. Blot the curds on a paper towel and gently press them with more towels to get out the liquid
- Sprinkle with a tiny bit of salt and refrigerate
- Eat as cottage cheese or with flavoring like cinnamon or vanilla. Spread on crackers. Curds mixed with peanut butter is good, also.
SAND AND WATER TABLE
Hide plastic spiders in the sand table.
Add plastic bugs to your sand or water table.
In the water table, add a tube to be "the water spout" and add small plastic spiders for the children to put inside the tube abd pour water in to "wash the spider out"
OTHER IDEAS AND ACTIVITIES
Let children make colorful paydough spiders by adding black pipe cleaners cut in half.
Play music and let children "dance" like spiders -- crawling and even hopping around. Encourage them to go in a circle as if spinning a web!
HAVE BLACK LICORICE AS A TREAT!
Bug Hunt
Go for a bug hunt outside. Provide a box to collect them, and magnifying glasses to allow the children a better view.
Bug Identification
Draw or cut from magazines pictures of various bugs--spiders, bees, flies, mosquitoes, ants, whatever you can find. Take the pictures out side with you and the children. Go on a bug "treasure hunt" to see if you can find creatures that match your pictures.
Bug Square
Find a sandy, muddy or moist part of the yard when you can secion off a square either by drawing it in the dirt with a stick or marking it off with sticks laid along it's edges. Take a magnifying glass and study the ground] in this section for several minutes to see what's alive in there. You will be amazed at how much you can see. If the spot you have chosen ins't very busy, move to another location. You might also like to do this with spider webs. Find one and observe it closely with a magnifying glass.
Butterfly Wing Match
Draw five butterflies and color them. Clip art works well. Have them laminated, then cut them in half, and have the children put them back together like a puzzle.
Bee Stripes
Make a number of bees with different number of stripes. Have the children count the number of black or yellow stripes on the bee.
Bee a Bee
Have the children pretend to be a bee or bug and buzz around the room.
Bug Farm
Collect bugs in a jar, and let the children examine them with a magnifying glass. Return the bugs to their homes so they do not die.
Spider Webbing
Provide children with a chair and some yarn or string. Ask them to create a spiders web by wrapping the string around the legs of the chair.
Spider Legs
Draw eight different spiders on index cards. The spiders should be drawn with 1 to 8 legs. Ask your child to arrange the spiders according to how many legs the spiders have.
Spider Walk
Have the children do a spider walk, by placing their hands and feet on the floor and lifting their bottom off the floor.
Spider Walk Race
Have the children race each other while walking like a spider. Or try a relay race.
Songs and Fingerplays
When the Bugs Come Out in Spring
(Tune: When the Saints Go Marching In) When the bugs come out in spring,
Oh, when the bugs come out in spring
I want to be outside watching,
When the bugs come out in Spring
I'll see some crawl, I'll see some fly
I'll see some so many passing by
I'll watch and see how many I know,
Of the bugs that come out in Spring
I'll see some ants and wasps and bees,
Butterflies and moths I'll see
Flies and spiders and mosquitoes,
When the bugs come out in Spring.
Itsy Bitsy Spider Spider song
(Tune: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star)
Spider, Spider
In the sky
Weaving your webs way up high
Catching bugs, and insects too
What a chore it is for you
Spider, Spider
In the sky
Weaving your webs way up high
The Spider Spins A Web
(Tune: The Farmer In The Dell)
The spider spins a web,
The spider spins a web,
Round, round, up and down
The spider spins a web.
Additional verses:
She spins it in and out....
She spins it back and forth...
She spins it good and strong..
Youngsters can create a web of their own while playing this cooperative singing game.
Seat your youngsters in a circle about one foot apart. Supply a large ball of loosely wound yarn. As they sing The Spider Spins A Web Have youngsters roll the yarn ball across the floor to one another. When the yarn ball comes to a student, he grasps the yarn strand, holds it against the floor, and rolls the yarn ball to someone who hasn't yet had it. (Stress that each child must continue holding his strand of yarn to the floor, or the web will break.) When each student is holding the yarn, a weblike tangle of yarn will have been created. Ask students to carefully let go of their yarn strands and stand up to view their web-making expertise!
Incey Wincey Spider...
Incey Wincey Spider
Climbed up the water spout.
Down came the rain,
and washed the spider out.
Out came the sun,
and dried up all the rain.
And the Inc y Wincey Spider,
Climbed up the spout again.
Spin Little Spider...
Spin Little Spider
(Tune: Farmer in the Dell)
Spin little spider, spin (spin around)
Soin little spider, spin
"Round and round and up and down
Spin little spider, spin
Crawl little spider, crawl (crawl around)
crawl little spider, crawl
round and round and up and down
Crawl little spider, crawl
Dance little spider, dance (dance around)
dance little spider, dance
round and round and up and down
dance little spider, dance
The Spider Poem...
Spiders are not insects
Spiders have eight legs.
Spiders have four pairs of eyes
Spiders hatch from eggs!
Spider webs are sticky
Spiders weave them tight
Spiders spin that silky string
Spiders weave webs right!
The Spider...
(Tune: Twinkle Little Star)
There's a spider on the wall
If he's careful he won't fall
He moves slowly down the wall
I can watch him crawl and crawl
I wonder if he minds my stare
Or does he know and just not care
Spider, Spider
Spider hurrying, (Run fingers back and forth)
Spider scurrying,
See her silken thread. (Stretch imaginary thread between forefingers and thumbs.)
Spider hurrying,( Run fingers back and forth.)
Spider scurrying,
See her little web. (Make spiral with forefingers.)
Spiders
Spiders are not insects
Spiders have eight legs.
Spiders have four pairs of eyes
Spiders hatch from eggs!
Spider webs are sticky
Spiders weave them tight
Spiders spin that silky string
Spiders weave webs right!
Bumble Bee, Bumble Bee Rhyme
Bumble Bee, Bumble Bee
by the barn,
Bumble bee get Johnny,
Under the Arm
Bumble Bee, Bumble Bee
by the boulder,
Bumble bee get Johnny,
On the Shoulder
Bumble Bee, Bumble Bee
by the tree,
Bumble bee get Johnny,
Under the Knee
Finger Friends
For each child use a kitchen knife to press a finger size hole into a 2 inch styrofoam ball. Have each child use tempera paint to paint the ball the color of his choice. When the paint is dry, have him press 8 pipe cleaner legs into the ball and glue on wiggle eyes. Press a small piece of masking tape labeled with the child's initials onto the bottom of the spider. Invite youngsters to use their puppets while singing this song (to the tune of "Clementine")
Oh Miss Muffet, Oh Miss Muffet,
Oh Hello, how do you do?
I'm a small and friendly spider
May I sit down here with you?
Little spider, little spider,
Oh hello, how do you do?
Your a small and friendly spider
Sit beside me, please won't you?
Repeat the song, substituting beside with above, below and behind.
Little Bitty Caterpillar
Little bitty caterpillar (wiggle finger)
Crawling all around (make finger "crawl along arm)
Eating sweet and juicy leaves (pretend to eat leaves)
You never make a sound (hold finger to lips, shake head)
One day when the time is right (look at wrist to check time)
You'll make a chrysalis, (wrap arms around self)
Where will you sleep (pretend to sleep)
And grow some wings (spread arms)
To fly away like this! (pretend to fly)
Art Fun
Playdoh Bugs
Have your children make bugs out of playdoh.
Butterfly Ink Blot
Cut out a butterfly shape on white paper, the shape should be symmetrical. Fold the paper in half, and ask the child to paint on half of the butterfly. When the child is finished, ask him/her to press the paper halves together, so that both sides will look the same. Have the child rub the folded paper. Open the paper, and you have a butterfly with matching wings.
Ladybugs
Provide each child with a red circle. Have them draw as many black dots as they would like on one side. Have the child count the dots on the paper and write the number on the other side.
Bee Strips
Cut out bee shapes. Have the children cut out black and yellow strips to add to their bee. Then have them glue the stripes on their bee.
Fingerprint Bugs
Supply each child with a piece of white paper and different colored non-toxic stamp pads. Show the child how to make fingerprints on the paper, using only one finger at a time. When finished, add legs and antennae with a black pen, or for older children, have them add the legs and antennae.
Sun Catcher Butterflies
Cut out a butterfly shape from black paper. This shape should be symmetrical. Fold the shape in half then open it again. Then help the child use a hole puncher to make holes in one wing. They make make as many as they wish. Then help the child fold the shape in half and punch the holes in the other half by using the first half as a guide. To complete this project have the child glue scrapes of tissue paper to the back of the butterfly. When dry, hang in a window.
Clothespin Butterflies
Obtain the old fashion style one piece clothespins (wooden) Allow the children to paint the clothespins with bright colors. When dry, ask the child to pick a piece of tissue paper for the wings. Fold the paper in half, and then scrunch the tissue into the opening in the clothespin. Then have the child pick out a pipe cleaner, and tie the pipe cleaner around the knob of the clothespin for antennae.
Caterpillars
Supply the children with many different circles to glue onto a piece of paper to make a caterpillar. Have the children draw on the legs and facial features or use yarn for the legs.
Feet Butterflies
Have children take off shoes and socks, paint the bottom of their feet with non-toxic tempera paint. Have the child step onto a piece of paper with their feet and heels together. When dry, add antenna with markers or crayons or yarn.
Caterpillars 2
Supply the children with many pom poms to glue on a piece of paper to make a caterpillar. Add legs and antennae with markers or yarn.
Busy Bugs Headbands
Have the children cut out two strips of paper that when connected will fit around their head. Connect the strips with glue or tape, (staples will catch the child's hair). Supply the children with two pipe cleaners... and have them shape them however they want to and tape them on the inside of the headband. On mine I wrote "Busy Bee Suzy" and "Beautiful Butterfly Max" or whatever they wanted to be:)
Ladybug Rocks
Obtain many round rocks. Show the children what ladybugs look like. Have the children paint the rocks with red paint. Then carefully add a line down the middle, and spots with black paint. If the rocks are smaller... you can glue a magnet on the bottom, and use it on a refrigerator .
Pipe Cleaner Spiders
Provide the children with pipe cleaners to make spiders. Have the children twist the pipe cleaners together to form a body and legs. Discuss how many legs a spider has.
Spider Paper Plates
Use a smaller and larger paper plate to make these spiders. Staple the smaller plate onto the larger plate, as if the smaller plate will be the spider's head. Have the child paint both sides black. Then add black streamers for legs and white construction paper for eyes. Hang them from the ceiling.
Paper Plate Ladybugs
Have each child paint a paper plate red. After the paint dries have the child add black spots of paint on the back of the lady bug. After that dries, have the child cut out wings for the ladybug and attach the wings with brads.
Make a Bug
Have the children make a bug with marshmallows, toothpicks and pipe cleaners. Use the toothpicks for legs and to connect the body parts, use the pipe cleaners for antennae or a tail.
Spider Web Art
Place a piece of black paper in a box, supply the children with a few marble covered in white paint. Place the marbles in the box and have the child shake the box to make a spider web. Please be careful when using marbles with small children, as they are a choking hazard.
Spider Puppet
Materials: Sturdy straw or craft stick, yarn, spider ring.
Tie the spider ring to the yarn and the yarn to the craft stick. You will need to tape the yarn around the straw to make sure it is firmly attached. This will make a spider puppet that is GREAT for using with "There's a Spider on the Floor" by Raffi. The children can have their spider travel around their bodies according to the directions in the song.
Handprint Spiders
Fold a half piece of black construction paper in half. (It will look like 1/4 size). Help the children trace their hand and four fingers--not the thumb- along the fold. When cut out and opened, you will see the four fingers have now made 8 legs. Add reinforcement sticker eyes and you are all set. These are cute. You may need to play around with them for a little bit if you haven't done them before. Make sure the fingers aren't too "skinny"--they need to be full to make a cute spider. Last year we made a bulletin board display of these by making a large web with yarn and taping the spiders onto the yarn.
Styrofoam Tray Spider Web
Take styrofoam fruit/meat trays and punch holes with a pencil into the tray (as many as you want.) Tape yarn to back of styrofoam tray. We use plastic needles tied to the other the end of the yarn. (if not available you can make "masking tape" needles - by wrapping the end of the yarn with masking tape...it's just more time consuming for YOU.) Children sew in, out, over, under, around their meat trays...any way that they want to. When done we tied a plastic spider ring onto a piece of yarn and attached to our "webs." At Halloween one year I used black meat trays with orange, black, and white yarn. The colors were "stunning" together..and very "Halloween." But still very developmentally appropriate.
Easel Spider Webs
We bent and cut coat hangers and attached wooden or plastic empty thread spools to the middle...(this is hard to explain but your coat hanger becomes the handle for a "spool roller.") When dipped in paint and rolled across easel paper the spool rolls and makes very thin lines. The kids love to roll these over and over their papers. White paint on black paper or Black paint on White paper produces a "spider web" effect. Then the children paint spiders onto their webs --remembering 2 body parts/8 legs.
Creepy Crawly Spider Bracelets
About this project -
This is a fun and easy Halloween project that I did with a small group of 2- 5 year-olds. They love tracing their hands and fingers whenever they are playing with crayons or markers, so this is simply a "twist" on an oldfavorite. We also talked about the number 8 that day, so on the backside of the spiders' legs, I wrote the numbers 1-8 in white crayon while each child counted with me.
Supplies:
-
- Black Construction Paper
- Wiggly Eyes
- White paper (for "fangs")
- Paper Fastener
- Stapler/staples
- Scissors
- White Crayon
- Glue
- Pencil
Project how to -
- Fold black construction paper in half.
- Along folded edge, lay child's hand palm down (midway through palm) and trace fingers with white crayon.
- Cut out the outline of the fingers.
- Unfold and you have a complete image of a spider with eight legs. Now turn the spider over and with the pencil, roll the legs around the pencil...this makes the legs curl under an gives a more creepy, crawly effect.
- Cut a 1" strip of black paper from the remaining scraps, and form it into a circle for the bracelet part. At the appropriate length, staple the ends together.
- Attach the bracelet to the underside center of the spider using the paper fastener.
- Glue on the wiggly eyes and the "fangs" that you design and cut from the white paper to the topside of the spider's head.
- The child puts his/her fingers or wrist through the bracelet...the kids can make their spiders creep and crawl with a back & forth rocking motion of their wrists. The paper fastener allows the spider to turn back and forth or 360 degrees, too!
Sensory Table Fun Water Spiders
Put out a tub of water with rubber/plastic spiders floating in the water. The children have fun trying to catch these water spiders. Use fish nets/ ice tongs/egg separators/tweezers/ scoops...use your imagination....great for fine motor and eye/hand coordination.
Spider Prints
Some spider rings or rubber spiders dipped in paint make great spider prints! A fun "free Art" activity!
Snack Time Treats
Oreo Cookie Spiders
Use Oreo cookie for a body and licorice legs to the cream filling part of thecookie.
Ritz Cracker Spiders
Spread a Ritz cracker with peanut butter or cheese spread. Add pretzels for legs.
Spider Cookies
Place a 1/4 inch thick slice of refrigerated cookie dough on a square of foil for each child. Direct each child to break 4 pretzel sticks in half and press into cookie (4 on each side) Have each child then press 2 M&M mini baking bits into his slice to resemble eyes. Place foil squares onto cookie sheet and bake according to package directions.
Books
Spiders by Gail Gibbons
Spider On The Floor A Raffi "Based On A Song"..Book
Be Nice To Spiders Margaret Graham
Spiders in the Fruit Cellar Barbara Joose
The Very Busy Spider Eric Carle
The Itsy Bitsy Spider Iza Trapani
I Love Spiders John Parker
Miss Spider's Tea Party David
Bulletin Board Idea
Itsy-Bitsy's Web of Friends
This spidery bulletin board web will provide a colorful and cheerful backdrop. To prepare a bulletin board, first cover it with dark blue bulletin board paper. Use a pencil or chalk to lightly sketch a web shape to cover the entire board. Trace over the web with white crayon or paint. Add the title “Spectacular Spiders” to the board.
Have each youngster prepare a spider to add to this giant web.
To make spiders, glue together one large and one small black paper circle (Body and head) Add wiggle eyes and glue on 8 accordion folded paper legs in the color of the child's choice.
