Plant Tasting Party

Yesterday we had our plant tasting partyin the cafeteria with Mrs. LaTarte's class. All of the foods were separated out by parts of the plant. Sees, roots, stems, flowers, leaves and fruit. our Boulan buddies were there to help us too!The kids selected food from each area and then colored and labeled their pictures in their plant book.  Many children were surprised to learn that cucumbers are actually fruit! The kids have been working very hard all week on learning the plant parts and all of their functions. Below are a few pictures from our party!

 

St. Patty's Day and Leprechaun Traps

It has been a very exciting couple of days here in Kindergarten B. It started on Friday with making leprechaun traps. They were so excited to map out and blue prints of their traps.  Children worked in groups to create and build their traps. Thank you to everyone who helped donated creative supplies to make our traps that much better! This morning we enjoyed many green themed snacks and we will even get to enjoy some of the leftovers this afternoon! Before library there were many St. Patrick's day themed activities including making our own leprechaun hats and going on a scavenger hunt around the room.  During music a visitor showed up while we were out of the room and moved stuff out of place and even left us some treats! Our leprechauns name is Lucky and he left us green necklaces, bracelets and gold candy treats! Wow we were sooooooo excited!  "Top of the morning to ya!" Lastly, above are only a few pictures from today. I am having difficulty accessing my pictures from Friday off my Iphone, I am unable to text or email those specific pictures. I apologize and will keep working on it.

Teen Number Chalk Talk

In math we have been focusing on the "teen" numbers 11-19.  The thinking routine I used with Teen Numbers was a Chalk Talk. During a Chalk Talk students are asked to think about ideas presented to them, make connections to others’ responses and then question the ideas and responses of their peers. It is very easy to implement and is an excellent way to stimulate some great “silent discussion” in your classroom!With our Chalk Talk each child was given a marker as a writing tool. How exciting! :) Each table had 2 large pieces of construction paper that were put together and then written in the middle was a different teen number.  Each group spent allotted time at each table and wrote down anything that represented that number. They had to do this silently.

For example they coudl write:

15
10+5=15
drew picture representation of that number
drew number of fingers to represent the number
fifteen
Hansini-this is her magic number
16 comes after 15
15 comes after 14
14 is before 15
drew it in 5's groups

Below are some pictures of our Teen Number Chalk Talk.  After we were finished we talked about the posters we created and cleared up any misconceptions student's may have had. EX: Incorrect math equations.  After the Chalk Talk students built the teen numbers with objects at their table.  In order to exit the math lesson students were required to fill out an exit ticket on a sticky note.  They could choose any teen number.  They had to list the number, draw it and then record the math equation.  See our exit board and an example ticket below. Way to go mathematicians!

5th Grade Buddies

Yesterday we met up with our 5th grade buddies from Mr. Cottone's class.  We used the Ipad's to reinforce a concept we have been covering in math.  In our math curriculum students have been working on figuring out how to use different shapes to create new ones.  For example: You can use 6 triangles to make a hexagon.  Different shapes can be joined in different ways to fill the same space.  This concept has been a little tricky for the K kiddos.  When we met up with our buddies we played a game called "Slice It," where students had to draw different lines to break up the larger shape into smaller shapes.  Below are a few kids working with their buddies and then also an excerpt from our math workbook to show what the app was reinforcing.  Thanks Buddies!

Introduction to Our Science Unit

Our new science unit is Wood and Paper. We are going to be focusing on wood for the first part and then paper later in other investigations. We are also going to be using a visible thinking routine called, "Peel the Fruit" to track our learning. Think of an orange and all of its layers.  The outer peel is what you can only see when you are handed an orange. On the largest circle we recorded what we observed from looking at the wood.   When you peel the orange you come to the next layer which is white in color.  On the next paper, that is white in color we wrote down any questions we had thus far about wood.  We will also be adding to these questions as we go through each investigation.  Next when you open up the orange you get to that orange juicy layer.  On this orange paper that represents this layer we will be recording any answers our questions that we discover as we do our investigations.  The last part of the orange that you come to are the seeds.  The seeds are the core of the matter and represents the overall arching idea or concept children should take away from the unit and the investigations.    In the pictures below it shows children observing different types of wood closely. Students were asked to describe what they see/feel and notice about the wood the first day. One of our questions was, "why is wood for building things?  After some reading came to the conclusion that wood is stable, sturdy and strong and many things can be made out of wood.  We later were discussing that people can change wood and also machines can be used to change wood.  Wood can be painted, cut/sawed, carved, etc.... Today we later proved that theory when we sanded wood on our own.  Students will be bringing home the wood that they sanded and changed today. 

Halloween

 

 

A good time was had by all at our Halloween Party last Thursday.  Thank you to everyone who helped make our kindergarten party a success whether it was by donating something or your time. We couldn't have done it without you!The kids enjoyed parading around the school and seeing all of thier friends and buddies and costumes. Today they shared with me that they enjoyed making the crafts and all of the yummy snacks. They are very excited for the upcoming holiday party in December! Please remember Bemis Round Table is collecting any Halloween candy that your children either don't want or need. :) The last day to send it in is on Wednesday.  The candy will be donated to the Ronald McDonald  house and area children's hospital.  Our class already sent a grocery sack size down! Way to go!

Boulan Buddies

On Thursday we met with our Boulan Buddies for the second time.  Our buddies are in the "Effective Teens" class offered as an elective at Boulan Middle School.  The middle school students train and debrief weekly on how to be good mentors to the kindergarten kiddos.  Both Mrs. LaTarte and I have participated in this program the past 4 years and have found it to be very beneficial for both the kindergartners and middle school students. It is also fun to see some of our former students!  This week the buddies helped us with a Pete the Cat art/math project.  Pete was constructed completely out of the shapes we have been working on.  Students were able to make Pete's shoes any color.  The Pete the Cat stories has been a favorite in Kindergarten this year!