9/25/17

Science- In science today, Ms. Gina continued her lesson on weather.  The students learned about thermometers, rain gauges, and anemometers.  They used a little bit of math knowledge, as they used the lines on between the numbers on the thermometer to determine the temperature in the room.  (“What line would come between the 60 line and the 80 line?”)  After their lesson, the class made their own anemometers!

The students really remembered their noun lesson from last week!  We reviewed common and proper nouns, and then talked about capitalization rules.  This week, we began writing letters.  We are taking our time to learn the correct formal for writing a letter.  Next week, the class will bring in the addresses they will need for their envelopes.  We will work on neatly writing the addresses in the correct place on the envelopes… and actually send them in the mail!

We also reviewed the poem, The Caterpillar.  The kids will be working on a video activity for this poem, so be sure to memorize it at home!  In handwriting class, we reviewed Frog Jump capital letters.  I am trying to help each child focus on “bumping the lines” in the correct place.  Sometimes, words can start to float or sink across the page.  I’m trying to help them recognize this and take the time to write on the lines.   We worked on this in our letter writing activity today, and we will continue to build on these skills each week.

Our social studies class continued to learn all about the globe.  This week, the class learned about the two hemispheres, the equator, and the continents and oceans.  After our super silly continent story, I think they will remember them! 

Our math enrichment lesson was all about “making 10”.  I feel very strongly that all children should memorize the ways to make 10 (without having to count up or use their fingers!)  As the kids grow and learn advanced math skills, they will need to be able to make 10 quickly as to not get bogged down in the mechanics of it all.  In later years, they will need to be able to focus on complex concepts… not arithmetic.  I will be using our in-class time to help strengthen their core math skills!  Today, we used the egg-carton-technique to visualizing ways to make 10.  I cut two of the cups out of the cartons, and used brightly colored cubes to make the numbers easy to see.  After going over the different number sentences for 10, we used some higher order thinking skills!  The kids were given a list of colors, each with a corresponding number.  They used Legos to make tens using the color-code! 

Ms. Gina tied our story time today to the science lesson.  The students listened as Ms. Grizzle took her students on a magical fieldtrip inside a hurricane!  At home, the kids will be watching a Magic Schoolbus episode that correlates with their weather unit.

In art, the kids made their own kites!  They worked on decorating their sheets, and then they formed kites that can catch the air and fly!

1st Day of Class!

We began our very first class today with some quick rules.  I explained that in such a small group, you don’t need a whole lot of rules.  Mostly, if you are kind and respectful, you’re covered!  However, we did have to talk about boundaries for playtime, not opening up the animal pens without asking, and avoiding rough-play.  I have no doubt that this sweet little group will have a fantastic year together! 

We will start each class day with the Pledge of Allegiance and Farm News.  Each student will get a chance to hold the flag, and we will switch off each class day.  Farm News is the time that I have set aside to fill the kids in on all the farm related happenings since our last class.  This week, I explained how we brought in a new steer yesterday.  He has only been here for a day, so he is still LOUD!  As the students learned today, the “moooo” from the new steer was in the background.

In science class, the kids started their weather unit with Ms. Gina.  They worked on a weather booklet as they discussed different weather conditions.  After learning about different aspects of weather, they created their own fan “wind-makers”.  I love this age!  The students are not only learning the subject content, but they are learning how to learn in a group, follow directions, and interact with their peers.

In grammar, the kids learned about nouns.  Most of them knew that nouns are people, places, or things... but nouns can also be ideas!  We talked about many examples of each type of noun.  As we discussed different examples, we talked about the difference between common nouns and proper nouns.  Then, the students wrote down their own nouns on slips of paper.  Taking turns (and with my help), they decided if the nouns that they wrote were common or proper.  Then, they ran them to the correct box!

Our story for the day was Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs!  Kids of ALL ages love a good story!  We will continue to do read-alouds to the class each week.  Not only will we be reading to the class, but we also will have library time, so students can check out books from our little lending library.  The love for reading starts young!  The kids will also be doing a little bit of writing for us each week.  They each were given a journal, and I impressed upon them that writing for me should not be stressful at all!  I let them know that I love to read, and that I absolutely love to read what kids write.  It is my hope that this journal will be a way for them to get comfortable with writing.

Our history/social studies class is learning about maps and the globe.  The class discussed how the earth has two poles and rotates on an axis.  We talked about cardinal directions.  They should know north, east, south, and west!  We talked about how a compass works, and they made their own pretend compass.  This will hopefully help them to remember the directions!  At home, the students will be working on some map activities using the information that we covered in class.

  

In art, the class learned about primary and secondary colors today.  They used water color paints to work through the lesson.  Afterward, they used warm and cool colors to create a patterned hand project.  Some did not finish these, but we will continue to work on them next week!