As part of our dinosaur unit, students learned that different dinosaurs had different types of teeth. Carnivores had teeth that were sharp or serrated. Herbivores, on the other hand, had teeth that were flat or peg-like. Students engaged in a Smart Board activity where they sorted specific dinosaurs according to the type of teeth they had.

This lesson was extended through a field trip to the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum, where students participated in a lab called Meet the Teeth. The lab not only compared dinosaurs’ teeth, but the teeth of other animals. The students said their favorite part of the trip was when they went into the museum and had to match a tooth to an actual animal on display.  Don’t  you just love hands on learning and practical applications of concepts?!

We are right in the middle of admissions season here at Laguna Blanca. For this year’s play group, we decided to switch up the theme from bears to dinosaurs! I found some great activities that use the Smart Board that were sure to engage the visiting pre-schoolers. We also decided to give the visitors a little take-away gift.  My class made a dinosaur egg from Ivory soap for each of the littles to take home! We first shaved the soap with a cheese grater. Then the students chose a small dinosaur figurine and molded the soap shavings around it. Water helped keep the shavings together, and after squeezing and rolling the shavings around the dinosaur, an egg was created! What a fun and messy, yet clean, project!

(I missed the photo-op at school, so my Kindergartener made one at home for me to share.)

So far I have heard nothing but rave reviews.  One mom contacted me and said her daughter had never washed her hands so frequently in a day….must have been a dozen times. Hand washing for this little girl was usually an unnecessary and laborious task! Another mom said her son came home and immediately got into the bathtub to start making the soap egg dissolve with the hopes of finding the baby dinosaur.  Sounds like good, clean fun! (Makes me think of Mrs. Pigglewiggle.…anyone out there remember the won’t take a bath cure? These dinosaur eggs would surely solve that!)

 

It is hard to believe that 100 days of school have passed so far this year! When I think back to September, I am amazed with all the children have learned.  Many entered our classroom know how to write just their names and being able to identify half the letter sounds. They could count to ten and write the numbers 1-5, with 5 being quite challenging to form. Students needed help in unpacking and packing their backpacks and Choice Time required that Miss Creel and I join in on every activity! Now, I have a classroom of readers, writers, self-sufficient students, and friends! Congratulations Kindergarteners on all you have learned!

To celebrate this landmark day, Kindergartners spend the day participating in activities that revolved around the number 100. They made trail mix, consisting of ten pieces of ten snack items. They wrote about what they wished they had 100 of, and students made a self portrait of what they will look like when they are 100 years old!

 

We had a school-wide celebration this afternoon, where students presented collections of 100 items. From 100 take-apart erasers, to 100 dog names, the collections were varied and interesting. Here are the kindergartener’s unique collections:

 

100 seashells from Florida!

100 gems.

100 Hot Wheels Cars

               100 Take-Apart Erasers                                100 Monkeys

100 Beads

100 Google-y Eyes

The celebration culminated with a display of 100 cupcakes, which the children had a chance to enjoy.

Hooray for the 100th Day!

 

I love Valentine’s Day. In fact, I have been waiting for a year to make my Valentines cards! I was hoping the children (and teachers) would get a kick out of them….and they did!

So adorable!

The students spent the day enjoying language arts and math activities that were themed around Valentine’s Day. They wrote about what they love the most and made a math story problem using Valentine cookies. Students also participated in an estimation activity using candy conversation hearts,

Happy Valentine’s Day to all!

Tuesday after school, our incredible science instructor, Clara Svedlund, hosted Science Discovery. She invited dozens of community members, who work in different fields in science, to come together at Laguna to showcase their jobs and interests. The groups represented included the SBCC Paleontology Lab, UCSB REEF Mobile Touch Tanks, K-9 Pals, Cottage Hospital Pathology, UCSB Physics Circus, and the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit, just to name a few. What ensued was an afternoon filled with exploration and excitement!

A student explores nautical knots, presented by the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum.

 

 

Students have the opportunity to see and touch real organs and learn the importance of taking care of our bodies.

A big thank you to Ms. Svedlund for all her hard work!