Insects are active this time of year, because the growing season is ending. We observed that insects have six legs, and three body parts. Students tried to construct these aspects when they created their insects. Our insects looked much more cuddly than the ones we discovered in the garden. :)
We used blue Tempra paint and lined paper for this project. I offer "process" activities and "product" activities. This activity is a process activity. I am not assessing the final product, but observing the process of how students are sounding out and writing the words. The students enjoyed painting to spell!
We explored these questions and more during our STREAM experience today! The students discovered that Oak leaves and twigs work quite well for hammock construction. Students also tested their designs for durability by adding rocks with their dinosaurs. We learned that nature items can be used to create unexpected things!
Our school garden has many tomatoes and some peppers. The students discovered jalapeños and banana peppers, in addition to the tomatoes. We will continue to visit our garden at least once per week. We were a veggie gathering team!
We celebrated with the class singing "Happy Birthday" to our special student. A Spanish serenade was also shared by one of our classmates. Our birthday kiddo showed a purple geode as her show and tell. The class asked her many questions: Why is it purple? How did it get to be purple? Where did you find this? What can it do? We had some wonderful conversations about this treasure!
For STREAM today, we collected things from our school habitat. Students discovered acorns, leaves, sticks, rocks, grass and other plant material. They were invited to create "found art" from the nature items. This means that the art was arranged and left in an area for others to find. Students were able to partner up or work individually to achieve their found art display.
We talked about how food is an item that we need to survive. "Needs" is also one of our vocabulary words for this week, and today's service project was a perfect example of "needs."
Weather is what happens day to day with temperatures and precipitation. Climate is what occurs over a period of time. Data collected from daily weather tells us about how our climate is changing. We learned that we set a record low on Wednesday. It has never been as cold as 53 degrees on September 9! Students enjoyed tracking our temperatures this past week. We subtracted to discover the difference in temperatures from day to day.
We have experienced a couple of rainy days. One of the students brought an umbrella, and I couldn't resist taking this photo. The playground takes on a different perspective in the rain. We noticed that the colors are brighter, and the rocks are shiny. We hope you were also able to take some time to notice how your outdoor world looks different in the rain.
To practice spelling our words today, we used washable Tempera paint, paintbrushes, and writing paper to practice each word. Students said the word as they painted the letters. This is a super way to reinforce the short vowel sound, and helps students visualize the sound with the letter. Some students said it was more difficult to paint their words, than it was to write their words, but all expanded their fine motor skills with this activity!
Earlier in the week we read about a character, Bella, who worries about almost everything. She shared that drawing pictures and writing about her favorite things helps her feel better. Students were invited to write about things that make them happy, or their very favorite things. Students shared about their pets, favorite foods, sports, activities, places to visit, and people in their lives. Cheers to our favorite things!
Slanting our paper is the most important first step. Slant is necessary for cursive to look beautiful. We learned that the paper can do the work to help us achieve a wonderful slant. We have three left-handed writers creating beautiful cursive work. Watch out world -- we will begin letters soon!!