Sep 27 2012
Save the Date for our Fall Carnival!
November 16th 6-8pm
crafts, food, face painting, games,silent auction
Please also let us know if you can volunteer for a 30 minute shift, donate a silent auction item, or connect us with vendors for pizza, plates, and small prizes.
We can’t wait to see you there!
Sep 25 2012
Last week, some of the students were wondering if our colored water from painting with watercolors would change the temperature of the water. Today I asked the students: Does color affect temperature? Many of our friends explored the water before we added food coloring. They recorded the temperature of the water in their science notebooks. The conversations between peers included showing each other the difference between Celsius and Fahrenheit and challenging each others’ thoughts on what temperature the water was. In morning meeting everyone used their science notebooks and we discussed theories about how the food coloring would affect the water’s temperature. Many students agreed that it depended on the temperature of the food coloring while some thought certain colors would change the temperature more than other colors. We explored the food dye and realized at the end that we need to come up with some agreements for our science explorations. Some ideas that the students have already include taking care of the science tools and taking turns with the materials and being careful with the exploration. For example, students realized putting our hands in the water may change the temperature. We will continue to explore the idea of science agreements this week!
Sep 24 2012
October 1- Picture Day- Uniforms not required. Make sure to turn in your picture order sheet this day or before.
October 3- Dow Work in the Garden Day- Please dress your child in washable work clothes. These do not need to be uniform clothes. We will be planting, weeding, tilling, and mulching outside with volunteers from DOW all day! Make sure to get lots of sleep the night before.
Sep 24 2012
Through our different science explorations I have been hearing things like “we need to be more scientific,” “we want to learn how to use science tools” and “we need notebooks, scientists have notebooks.” Last week I gave the students some science notebooks and today a few students began to record their thinking. We have been exploring the idea of temperature and there have been three tubs of water for the students to use the thermometers with. This morning one tub was warm, one had ice in it and was “freezing” and one was in between. I asked the students: “Will the water stay the same temperature all day long? Can you keep track in your science notebook?” Cameron and CJ immediately began taking the temperature of the water and writing it down. I asked them how we could tell if the water would change temperatures and Cameron decided we would have to check it again later in the day. During morning meeting Cameron and CJ shared how they recorded their thinking in their notebooks. This sparked more interest and discussion with the rest of our friends. At the end of the day we had a group of students who checked on the water again. We found out that two of the buckets were the same temperature and the one with the ice was a little colder. The students also asked me great questions about using the thermometer that led to a discussion about Celsius and Fahrenheit. We will continue using our notebooks and learning about science tools this week!
Sep 21 2012
This week we read two stories by Peter H. Reynolds: Ish and The Dot. After reading we talked about what gifts the different characters in the stories had. Many students responded with the gift of art, creating, or trying their best. We then moved into a discussion about our own gifts and what gifts we bring to our community. We have a very wide variety of gifts in our room! Here are some of the students’ gifts:
J’Nayla: “the gift of communicating”
David: “the gift of basketball”
Kaitlyn: “the gift of friendship”
Paiton: “the gift of giving”
Mekhi: “the gift of reading”
The students made watercolors of their gifts. When we are finished everyone’s painting will be displayed in the classroom!
