All About Me

All About Me is a mini-unit that I integrate with other Back to School activities at the beginning of the school year.  My unit covers body parts, feelings, manners and behavior, alike and different, and self-esteem.  Many of the books, songs and poems, and activities on this page are used at different times of the year, when they seem most appropriate.  I like to pick and choose from my materials, using what is best suited to the children at any given time.

 Books are linked directly to Amazon.com -- click on the cover or title to get more information, then use the back button on your browser to return to where you left off.  I hope you'll find lots of ideas to use on this page.  If you have any song or poems to share, please send them to me at kndrcorner@aol.com.

I begin this unit during the first week of school,
when my students make a simple fill-in-the-blanks book about
their first day at school.  Pages include:

My name is ______.
I am ______ years old.
I go to _______ school.
My teacher's name is _______.
I am in ________ grade.
I like to _____________ at school.
They illustrate each page.
 

I'm Glad I'm Me

No one looks
The way I do.
I have noticed
That it's true.
No one walks the way I walk.
No one talks the way I talk.
No one plays the way I play.
No one says the things I say.
I am special.
I am me.
There's no one else
I'd rather be!
 

I use the following story by my friend Vicki Witcher.  I have it as a blackline book, and I've made sentence strips for the pocket chart, using the illustrations from the book.  I also have a cute child (about 3 feet tall) on my bulletin board, with the text written on sentence strips and placed adjacent to the correct part of the body.  This is one of our first stories for tracking print and learning one-to-one correspondance:

I See Me
By Vicki Witcher

I see my head.
I see my shoulder.
I see my arm.
I see my elbow.
I see my wrist.
I see my knee.
I see my ankle.
I see all of me!

Part of our end-of-year assessment in kindergarten requires the children to name body parts as the teacher points to them.  I discovered many of my students didn't know the words wrist and ankle, so we now learn them at the beginning of the year.
 

This is me, from my head to my toes.
I have two eyes and one little nose.
I can wiggle my ears and stamp my feet.
From my head, to my toes, I'm really neat!
 

Learning About Our Hands

There are two little eyes to open and close.
There are two little lips and one little nose.
There are two little cheeks and a tongue shut in.
There are two little ears and one little chin.
There are two little arms and elbows neat.
There are two little shoes on two little feet.
There are two little shoulders stout and strong.
There are two little hands busy all day long.

~~~

 This is my hand,
My hand will do
A 1000 loving things for you.
And you will remember
When I am tall
    That once my hand
    Was just this small.

~~~

Our hands are our learning tools,
and I like to explore the many ways we can use them.
 

Hands, Hands, Hands
by Marcia Vaughan
A rhyming story about the many things hands can do,
including hugging and helping.
 

Follow Up Activities

Make a chart of all the good things and bad things that hands can do.
This fits in nicely with teaching school rules.

~~~

Make a Language Experience Big Book of children's drawings of their hands (or of handprints made with paint), adding a sentence from each child about something special they do with their hands.

~~~

Make a book based on The Wright Group's I Can Jump,
using the following writing frame:
Hands can ______ and ______, but hands shouldn't ______.

~~~

Make fingerprints and examine them with a magnifying glass.
You can also make finger-and-thumb-print flowers and bugs,
and have the children make a picture of their family
using fingerprints for heads.

~~~

Make a  strip with each child's handprints in a single row, made in an A-B-C pattern of 3 colors of light paint.  When the handprints are dry, number the fingers from 1 to 100 (for a class of 20 students) and number the palms with multiples of 5.  Post this numberline where they can use it all year long.  Mine is attached to the calendar wall.
 

My hands upon my head I place,
On my shoulders, on my face.
On my hips I place them so,
Now behind my back they go.
Now I raise them up so high,
Let my fingers fairy fly.
Now I clap them, one - two - three!
Then I fold them silently.

Handprint Quilt Blocks

We make a class quilt each month, and each child makes two squares.  One is a cut-and-paste patchwork design, and the other is a painted handprint project.  Here are some of the monthly handprints:

September
Apple print - paint palm red and use a green thumbprint leaf and stem.

October
Spider print - two black handprints with the palms on top of each other and four fingers (no thumbs) facing outwards.

November
Turkey - paint palm brown for the body, thumb red for the head, and fingers different colors for feathers.

December
Santa - with fingers pointing downwards, paint top of palm and entire thumb red (Santa's cap), paint middle of palm pink (face - add features with a marker), and paint fingers white (Santa's beard).  Make a white thumbprint at the end of Santa's cap, or glue on a cotton ball.
 
 

Handprint Poems

Parents enjoy receiving their child's handprints as a gift.
Here are some poems to go with them.

 Sometimes you get discouraged
    Because I am so small,
    And always leave my fingerprints
    On furniture and walls.
    But everyday I'm growing,
    I'll be all grown up someday,
    And all these tiny handprints
    Will simply fade away.
    So here's a final handprint
    Just so you can recall,
    Exactly how my fingers looked
    When I was very small.

~~~

This is to remind you
    When I have grown so tall,
    That once I was quite little
    And my hands were very small.

~~~

My dirty little fingerprints
I've left on every wall,
And on the drawers and table tops,
I've really marked them all.
But here is one that won't rub off,
I'm giving it to you,
Because I'm thankful for a loving
Mom and Dad just like you!

~~~

This is the hand
You used to hold
When I was only
Six years old.

~~~

Tiny Handprints
by Meredith Harris

Tiny handprints grow so fast
Their awkward groping soon will clasp
A ball, a book, a sweetheart's hand
A diploma, briefcase, wedding band.

Tiny handprints grow so strong
It doesn't take them very long
To snap a shirt, to paint, to draw
To labor hard, to drive a car.

Tiny handprints grow to be
A person that is quite unique
A wonderful mix of so many things
With his own feelings, thoughts and dreams.

~~~

If you're feeling especially brave, have the kids take off their
shoes and socks and paint the bottoms of their feet
to make colored footprints.  Brainstorm endings to the sentence
"My feet can _____" and make the footprints into a Big Book.

White footprints on black paper make very cute ghosts
for Halloween.
 

Other Parts of Our Bodies

In my mirror
I can see
Two little eyes
That look at me.

Two little ears,
One little nose
Ten little fingers
Ten little toes.

One little mouth
I open wide
Two little rows
of teeth, inside.

A tongue that pops
both in and out,
Lots of joints
That bend about.

Muscles and bones
That do most things.
All held together
With my skin.

~~~

Here are my fingers and here is my nose.
Here are my ears, and here are my toes.
Here are my eyes that open wide.
Here is my mouth with my white teeth inside.
Here is my pink tongue that helps me speak.
Here are my shoulders and here is my cheek.
Here are my hands that help me play.
Here are my feet that go walking each day.

~~~

To help your students learn the names of their body parts,
do the Hokey Pokey and sing
Head and Shoulders, Knees & Toes

~~~

Crackers and crumbs.
Crackers and crumbs.
These are my fingers.
These are my thumbs.
These are my eyes.
These are my ears.
They'll all grow big.
In the next few years.

~~~
 

The Listening Walk
Help your students learn to use their ears
with this delightful story.
Under $5.

The Important Book
by Margaret Wise Brown
Children love the patterned language in this classic book, which leads
naturally into a discussion of what's important about each child.
Under $5
 

Follow Up Activities

Discuss how everyone is unique and has their own skills and talents.
Make a Language Experience chart of ways people are important
because of who they are.

~~~

Make individual books telling 3 or 4 important things about each child.
Students illustrate the cover and first pages,
and the final page has a photo of the child.

~~~

Discuss why our body parts are important,
using the following writing frame:
Hands can _____, _____, and _____.
But the most important thing about hands is _____.
Substitute different body parts, using hands, feet, mouths, ears, eyes, etc.  Make an interactive pocket chart using the sentences the kids generate.
 

Leo the Late Bloomer
Leo couldn't do anything right.
He couldn't read. He couldn't write. He couldn't draw.
When Leo's father asks what's the matter with Leo,
Leo's mother explains that he's simply a late bloomer.
 

Follow Up Activities

Many children worry about not being able to do what other children
can do, especially at the beginning of a new school year.  Leo reminds them that everyone is different and unique.  Children need to understand and respect differences in readiness and abilities, to build a strong and supportive learning community.  Discuss ways your students can recognize and celebrate each other's abilities and achievements on a daily basis.

~~~

Art & Writing - Blooming Self Confidence

Cut a 4" circle from construction paper on the Elison machine, one per student.  Have  each student trim five 3x5 inch rectangles into the shape of a flower petal, and glue them to the back of their circle to make a flower.  Students write their names in the center of their circles -- be sure to make one for Leo, too.

Discuss the ways that Leo "bloomed" in the story, and the things he could do after he bloomed.  Make a list of these things, then choose five to write on the flower petals.  Help students brainstorm a list of things they can do, and write them on a chart or on the overhead.  Include academic things as well as fun things like play Nintendo and ride a bike.  Children (or the teacher) will write 5 things each child can do on their flower petal.  Attach a 1x18 inch stem to each flower, then display them on a bulletin board,
with Leo's flower in the middle.
 

I Like Me!

Sometimes I wish I was someone else,
but mostly I’m glad I’m ME!
We all have our likes and differences as everyone can see.
Some of us like to hurry.
Some like to take our time.
Some spend all their money.
Some save every dime.
Some are good at English.
Some are good at math.
Some of us like showers.
Some prefer the bath.
Some of us are quiet.
Some of us are loud.
Some of us like to be alone.
Some of us like a crowd.
Some of us are tall.
Some of us are short.
Some like to play an instrument.
Some like to play a sport.
Some of us are black or brown,
And some of us are white.
Some of us leave the light on
when we go to bed at night.
All of us are special
As everyone can see.
You like you, and I like you,
but also I like ME!

When I Get Bigger
Little Critter is anxious to get bigger
so he can do things like go to First Grade.
Under $3

Follow Up Activities

Make a Language Experience chart of the things Little Critter
wants to do when he gets bigger.  Ask your students how old
you have to be to get bigger.

~~~

Compare and contrast When I Get Bigger with Leo the Late Bloomer.
What things do the main characters have in common?  How are they different?  Make a Venn diagram to organize and display your findings.

~~~

Make individual or class books on any of the following topics:

What I want to do when I get bigger.
What I can do now that I couldn't do before.
I can ______ and ______, but I can't ______.
I still can't _____ or ______, but I can ______.
I wish I was ____, because then I could _____.
I am big enough to _____, but not big enough to _____.
 

Sometimes I Feel Like a Mouse
A Book About Feelings
A child imagines becoming a variety of animals while experiencing twelve different feelings, including a howling wolf for sad, a soaring eagle for proud, and a stomping elephant for bold.  A great book for discussing feelings, and that it's ok to feel them all.
 

Follow Up Activities

Let children act out the animal parts.  You cold make simple masks or paper bag puppets to help them dramatize the different animals and their feelings.

~~~

During your opening time each morning, ask the children how they feel and acknowledge their feelings.  Set aside a special Quiet Area for when children feel the need to sit quietly or be alone.

~~~

Sing "If You're Happy and You Know It"
Vary the verses by substituting "touch your nose, touch your knees,"
etc., for "clap your hands."

~~~

Make a chart contrasting things that make you happy
with things that make you sad.

~~~

Talk about things that make you angry, and what you can do to deal with anger in an appropriate fashion.
 

Read Audrey Woods' Quick As a Cricket.
Make a Venn Diagram contrasting it with Sometimes I feel Like a Mouse.
Do they have any animals in common?  Any shared feelings?  What animal does each of your students like best, feel like right now, or want to be?  Do they think the characters in the books had a favorite animal?  If so, which one?
 

Quick as a Cricket
An old favorite story that we read all year long,
with beautiful, evocative language and illustrations.
Under $6
 

More All About Me Activities

Read Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes.
Graph your students names by number of letters.

~~~

Measure and weigh the children, then graph the results.

~~~

Graph eye color, hair color, number of boys and girls.

~~~

Make a real objects graph on the floor with the children's shoes, seeing how many ways they can be sorted.

~~~

Trace around their bodies on bulletin board paper, and let them paint themselves.  Cut them out and decorate your room with these paintings, or make a Super Large classbook by laminating the people shapes to poster board and attaching them together with "O" rings.

~~~

Put all the students names on sentence strips, so they can sort them by
initial consonant, number of letters, boys names and girls names, alphabetical order.  This works well on a table top, the floor,
or in a pocket chart.
 

Visit the Kinder Korner Bookstore
for terrific teaching resources!

My bookstore pages have lots of information on how I use various materials in my classroom, and on activities you can do with your students.  The thematic pages are complete unit resources, with lots of poems, songs, and links on each page.  Make yourself comfortable and take a look around!

Choose from the categories below.
Underlined subjects are links, the other ones are coming soon!

These pages are updated often,
so please come back soon to see what's new at KinderKorner!
 

Click below to go directly to
Amazon.com to browse for books.

This page went online on July 24, 1999

Kinder Korner and all non-credited text materials on this page
are copyright by Victoria Smith, 1998 & 1999.
All rights reserved.
 

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