The Kissing Hand

We are participating in a homeschooling coop this year. In the kindergarten class, there will be 7 little girls. Yes! All girls! Izzie is very excited to meet all the little girls. She will be taking four different classes. To get her prepared to be in 3 classes all by herself, we've been reading, The Kissing Hand, over and over again!

The following is an Amazon.com review of the book...

Chester Raccoon doesn't want to go to school--he wants to stay home with his mother. She assures him that he'll love school--with its promise of new friends, new toys, and new books. Even better, she has a special secret that's been in the family for years--the Kissing Hand. This secret, she tells him, will make school seem as cozy as home. She takes her son's hand, spreads his tiny fingers into a fan and kisses his palm--smack dab in the middle: "Chester felt his mother's kiss rush from his hand, up his arm, and into his heart." Whenever he feels lonely at school, all he has to do is press his hand to his cheek to feel the warmth of his mother's kiss. Chester is so pleased with his Kissing Hand that he--in a genuinely touching moment--gives his mom a Kissing Hand, too, to comfort her when he is away. Audrey Penn's The Kissing Hand, published by the Child Welfare League of America, is just the right book for any child taking that fledgling plunge into preschool--or for any youngster who is temporarily separated from home or loved ones. The rough but endearing raccoon illustrations are as satisfying and soothing for anxious children as the simple story.

We purchased Izzie a 3-ring binder with a "kissing heart" on the front and on the inside, we made her very own "kissing hand".

Izzie's kissing hand on the inside cover...

We also attached a kissing hand to the outside of her bag...

I found some simple Kissing Hand activities on Kids Soup.

One to one correspondence with numbers 1-10.


Mama and baby matching.

Looking forward to a fabulous year at Coop!