U is for Under my Umbrella

Who is that hiding Under my Umbrella?

Our favorite umbrella game . . . 

Child hides under an umbrella.

Ms Tamra Squirts them with water from a spray bottle 

(sometimes she sneaks some under the umbrella too!)

while the class sings . . .

"Rain is falling all around,

On the housetops, on the ground.

Rain is falling on my nose,

On my head and hands and toes!"

U is for Up!

A Letter U Science Experiment . . . 

The supplies (each child was also given a paper to record their observations) . . . 

Like the giant sized vinegar?
We use a lot of that stuff in preschool! :)

Step 1: Use funnel to fill balloon with Baking Soda 

Step 2: Observe how the U is sad and upside down

Step 3: Carefully put balloon on top of bottle (containing vinegar and food coloring) 

without spilling any of the baking soda into the bottle. 

Step 4: Slowly turn the balloon up while saying the u sound . . . /u/ /u/ /u/

 and watch as the chemical reaction creates CO2 gas that fills the balloon. 

The U is now Up and happy :)

Step 5: Blow up a balloon with the regular air you breathe.  

Hold the CO2 balloon and the regular balloon next to each other and drop them at the same time.  

The CO2 will fall much faster and not bounce as much because it is heavier then the air around us (and the air in the other balloon).  Show a helium balloon--because helium is lighter than air, it floats!

Step 6: Record your observations! 

Letter U is for Umbrella

Want to know what U says?  Scrunch down low by your feet, hold some balloons in your hand and say, "U says, uh-uh-uh-uh-uh-uh-uh-" (stand a little taller with each "uh" until your on your toes) "uh-uh-UP into the air!" (and let your balloons fly away).

Today we were visited by an indoor rainstorm . . . 

We took turns standing under the umbrella, being squirted with water, as we sang,

"Rain is falling all around,

On the housetops, on the ground.

Rain is falling on my nose,

On my head and hands and toes."

Watch out! Sometimes the rain slips under the umbrella and gets your nose!

And of course we had to top it off with a fun art project . . .

The supplies . . . 

(I poured the blue paint in a bowl and really watered it down)

The kids then traced the U handle and the little u and covered their umbrella's with U's of all colors and sizes. 

Then it was time to move away the chairs, turn pictures upside down and get messy! I just spooned a little paint across the top of the pictures (which was now the bottom) and the kids used straws to blow the rain all over! It as a huge hit!

For more entertainment, you can always use this method . . . 

Here's a sampling of our stormy letter U umbrella's . . . 

Hold on tight or they might just carry you "uh-uh-uh-uh-up into the air!"