Merry Map Making

Social Studies Learning Targets - map key or legend, title (capitalized and underlined), symbols, compass rose (cardinal directions), visual planning and design... oh, ya, and so much imagination!

Stocking Symmetry

fine motor skills

locating the lines of symmetry

measurement - marking 2 centimeter increments with skip counting

more fine motor skills - paper punching and lacing

Ta-da!  The blending of cross-curricular skills!

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Ok, so these don't meet at least five standards and you can't find the grade level and strand listed on the back of their shoes, but they made us feel HOLLY JOLLY.  They built a sense of community.  They were the focal point of spontaneous singing and joyful conversation.  They were a springboard for compliments and giggles. You won't find those on the state standards.  

Composting At Its Best

And the third little pig built his house from bricks.....

First Graders finished up the Pebbles, Sand, and Silt unit with a culminating activity.  We took the bricks we made a month ago and placed them outside in our School Forest.  

We had in depth discussions about the materials and methods used.  What makes a solid brick?  Which bricks held up and which didn't?  Will they endure the winter?  

Separating Solids

The best learning feels like play

The purpose of this lesson was to compare the properties of solids based on their sizes.

The focus of this lesson was that solids can be separated.  An additional concept was discovered.  Like liquids, small solids can be poured.

Scientists use tools in science processes.

We Honor Our Veterans

When I asked our class if anyone knew or was related to someone who has served in the armed forces for our country, almost all of them raised their hands.   Most had proud stories of heroism.  Many has stories of relatives who were harmed or wounded while serving.   Having a son who has been to Iraq twice and Afghanistan once, the stories coming from the mouths of babes were moving and humbling. Again I was reminded that our freedom is not free.

Nature on the Trail - Busy Beavers

As you may have seen on earlier posts, our School Forest has also become the home for beavers.  They have flooded about half of the eight acres.  They have thwarted our attempts to drain their pond with clemson levelers.  Our School Forest Committee took some time Tuesday to break up part of the dam and let the pond begin to drain.  

After work on Friday Annette and I checked the trail to see if the beavers had repaired the damage done by our handiwork.  This is what we were met with.

Hands-On Science

We have been busy young scientists.  We read Dr. Seuss's Bartholomew of Oobleck and then second graders made Oobleck.  They pondered the properties of solids and liquids as they played with the odd mixture.  The next day they used the properties of solids (flexible or rigid) to construct the tallest tower possible.  

First graders made sand clay and sculptures. (Whoa, the mess!)  Yesterday they moved on to comparing sand from different beaches and generated ideas about why the sand would be so different.  

From Ducks to Turkeys

Kids never get enough time to paint.  We were lucky enough to have a parent help out on Thursday. My only directions to the kids were:
1.  Paint a turkey.
2.  Try to use the whole space.

The results were amazing.  

Move over, Picasso!

Duck Weather

Wow, the weather has changed.  Yup, it's November.  I planned a great outdoor activity and couldn't wait to get muddy, but then the wind switched, temps dropped, and the fog rolled in.  I thought, "Hmmm... let's just skip it."  Then I came to my senses.  Hello... it's not -20.  Just do it.  

We began our FOSS studies with containers and hand lenses while in the classroom. Once we had the basics, we headed outside.  We got to the trail and 8 ducks took off from the pond with a thunderous quacks and flaps.  We got right down to the nitty gritty of making bricks.  We used earth materials to squish and mush into foil pans to make our bricks.  We ran and laughed and splashed.  

Our units of study are Solids and Liquids (grade 2) and Pebbles, Sand, and Silt (grade 1).  Trust me when I say we could not have gained such insights indoors.

This duck didn't seem to mind us too much.