Bats

We are in the middle of our unit of study about bats. So far, students have learned the life cycle and the body parts of a bat. They know what bats eat and where they live. Students also learned some interesting facts about bats.

I introduced the vocabulary words echolocation and nocturnal. Here are two fun music videos that we just can’t stop singing! (I promised the students that I would share these with you.)

 

In art class, students painted mega bats.

I love the uniqueness of each bat…and they are double sided!

We made shape bat sunset scenes last week during Friday Fun.

Also, students had a special visitor to science class…look at these specimens!

We will wrap up our bat unit soon, and then jet off to a special unit on holidays and traditions around the world.

November Morning Exploring Tubs

Though the month of November is quickly coming to a close, I wanted to share with you the November Morning Exploring tubs and the concepts they cover. The students could not get enough of these tubs…all of the little manipulatives were very exciting to them! The explanations for each tub are above the images.

Tub 1: Students choose a number from 0-20. The then link together the three different ways to show the value of that number. These ways include a ten or double-ten frame, tally marks, and pictures.

 

 

Tub 2: Using playdough, students fill in a ten frame to make a number. Then students must figure out how to complete the equation…who says kindergarteners can’t do algebra?!

 

Tub 3: Students use tweezers to choose a pumpkin. On the bottom of the pumpkin is a two digit number greater than 20. One student then spins the spinner, deciding on “greater than” or “less than.” Students must compare their numbers, and the student whose number matches the spinner gets to keep the pumpkins.

 

Tub 4: Students choose a High-frequency word and spell it using letter cards. They link the letters together to spell the words.

 

Tub 5: Students chose a number card and build the number using sunflower seeds.

 

Tub 6: Students follow the outline of the acorn with small stickers and then count up the total number of stickers used. The children LOVE using stickers and peeling and sticking is great for fine motor development!

 

Tub 7: Students choose a turkey container and count the number of glass beads inside. They record the two-digit number.

 

Tub 8: Students dig through a small sensory bin to find leaves. On the leaves are high-frequency words. Students read the word and match the leaves to their play mat.

I can not believe that in three short days, December will be here! It’s time to switch out the Morning Exploring Tubs!

50th Day HOORAY!

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We have been having a blast celebrating our 50th day of school! The kindergarteners came to school dressed up like people did in the 1950’s.

The classroom was transformed into a diner!

There was even a drive-in!

At our Sock Hop students read records and slid them into the jukebox.

They played with jacks, hula hooped, played with paddle balls…

and tried to do a bunch of things in 50 seconds. Here is the recording sheet the students used:

We ended our Sock Hop with a delicious banana split!

It’s hard to believe that in 50 more days we will celebrate our 100th day of school!

 

Thankfulness-The Gratitude Project

In Swooper Citizens today, we discussed Thankfulness , which means to appreciate what you have or what someone does for you. We asked students to share things for which they are thankful. We then asked how different their lives would be if they did not have those things. What if you didn’t have an iPad or a pet? What if you didn’t have a bed or food? How would your life be different without books or your family? What things can you live without?

We then read the book The Most Thankful Thing by Lisa McCourt. The students had fun guessing for what the mom is most thankful.

“When a little girl asks her mom what her “most thankful thing ever” is, Mom turns the question into a fun trip down memory lane. Turning the pages of Mom’s photo album, they discover many wonderful moments in Mom’s life, from summer camp to winning a trophy in a soccer tournament, from singing onstage to her wedding day. But one event in Mom’s whole life is the very best ever — the birth of her precious little girl.” (Amazon)

As a way to follow up on the theme of Thankfulness, we introduced The Gratitude Project to the students. Over the course of the next week and a half, we challenge the students to show gratitude to three different people. Here are some quick and easy ideas:

 

Once your child completes an act of gratitude, please comment on this blog post. Tell us what your child did and perhaps what the person’s response was. We can’t wait to hear and see the students showing gratitude!

Measurement

We have been exploring the concept of measurement. I began our lesson by reading the book The Best Bug Parade by Stuart J. Murphy.

“Which bug is the biggest? Which bug is the longest? It’s time to find out as all the bugs in Ladybug’s garden line up for the best bug parade!” (Amazon)

We practiced using the vocabulary words big, bigger, biggest, short, shorter, shortest, and long, longer, longest. Students demonstrated their knowledge through a sorting activity.

Students also went on a hunt around the classroom where different measurement stations were set up. Each station had a task card that read “Which is shorter?” or “Which is longer?” Students read the card and then set up the items to compare, making sure everything was carefully lined up.

Students then recorded their answer using a polka dot painter.

Fun!

 

Diligence

In exploring the Swooper Citizens character trait of diligence this week, students listened to the most amazing story called Dex, the Heart of a Hero, by Caralyn Buehner.

“Little Dex has big dreams: he wants to be a superhero. So he reads all the comic books he can, builds his muscles, and even orders a hero costume. Once he has all the makings of a hero, Dex’s first mission is to save a tomcat in need of help. However, the cat is a classic bully who teases Dex about his size.

Will Dex learn that a hero is not defined by the strength of his muscles but by the trueness of his heart?

Husband and wife Caralyn and Mark Buehner tag-team to create a fun and modern superhero tale with a real comic book feel, akin to Even Superheroes Have Bad Days by Shelly Becker and Ten Rules of Being a Superhero by Deb Pilutti.

Dexter has determination, spirit, and heart as he proves, above all, that no matter how little you are, you can still do very big things.” (Amazon)

Students recalled the different ways in which Dex used diligence to pursue his dream of being a superhero. We then set up an activity for students that helped them practice diligence.

Mrs. Vanetti shows students an origami bookmark.

Learn step by step how to make an origami bookmark. There was a lot of focusing, patience, and perseverance going on!

Look how cute these came out!

The students were thrilled with what their hard work and diligence accomplished!

 

 

 

Halloween Spooktacular!

We had one of the best Halloween school days in recent history! I kept the morning schedule the same, but made the activities Halloween-themed! For reading centers, students enjoyed making play dough faces.

 

Another station was this fun Whooooo are you? writing activity.

We also estimated how many seeds we thought were inside our class pumpkin. Our guesses ranged from 50 to 150 seeds.

Students then counted the seeds! Many said they had never touched the pumpkin goop before!! Students were encouraged to count seeds into groups of ten, placing ten seeds into a small portion cup.

Would you believe that there were 680 seeds!!! We were all surprised that there were so many.

The students then recorded their information on the back page of their pumpkin books. They ran of room when recording the number of seeds!

We finished the day with a costume parade, a Skeleton Square Dance, and a small carnival in the backyard.