March Mania!

Fun with Adjectives!

Picasso Lesson!

3/12/18

3/5/18

Science- Today's lesson was all about astronauts!  The class learned about the first lunar missions, and they talked about the International Space Station.  Everyone was all ears!  The thought of living in zero gravity, orbiting the earth, or blasting off through the atmosphere is just terribly exciting!  Plus.... three words.... "Astronaut Ice Cream!"

Today was pajama day!  Each student was asked to bring in their favorite book to share with the class.  They shared the reasons why they love the book and showed it off to their friends.  My goal was to help spark an interest in reading, and we had three students who were really excited to read their friend's recommendation!

After they shared their books, the kids read from their journals.  This week, they were asked to write a story about the cute little chicks that were in the classroom last week.  These stories were great!  The class has been working on sentence structure, capitalization, and punctuation all year.  The journal entries are a way for us to reinforce these skills!



We reviewed the parts of speech that have been learned so far, and then the class marched around the room in a Preposition Parade!  We sang the preposition list as we marched along.  They really learned the list quickly!

In art, the group continued the project that they began last week.  They added different colors of paint to each section in their glue/paint design.  This was an excellent exercise in listening to directions, planning ahead, and building fine motor skills.  We have been playing classical music during art time, and Ms. Gina and I have both been amazed at the increase in attention everyone has!  The atmosphere becomes calm and focused... I love it!


The class continued to paint while I read the next two chapters in A Mouse Called Wolf.  The vocabulary in this book is advanced, which is wonderful!  We are able to stop and discuss the meanings of words and talk about what has gone on in recent paragraphs  Sometimes, we underestimate what our children can handle, and I love finding books that expand their word banks.

In history, we have been learning about the beginning of the American Revolution.  Today, I gave each child (aka Colonists) a cup to collect their "wages" (aka Smarties).  Then, I acted as the King and Parliament, enacting taxes on the colonists.  They were taxed for having ponytails, for wearing long sleeves, for not wearing shoes.... for all sorts of crazy things!  The class started to get unruly!  This was the perfect time to explain the Colonists frustration, and how they cried, "No Taxation Without Representation!"  We talked about the Stamp Act, which they will be reading about at home.  Next week, we will discuss the Boston Tea Party!

 

2/26/18

Science – Last week, the class learned all about the sun.  Today, they began their planet study!  They focused on Mercury and Venus today, discussing the characteristics of the planets.  The class worked on the Mercury page for their Planet Notebook.  To create the rocky planet, they used beans!  Ms. Gina has been working with the class on writing skills, as well.  They added information about Mercury to the sheet, and they will compile the book at the end of the unit.

Grammar - Today we began with a little review.  The class broke up into pairs and quizzed each other over their grammar cards.  Next, we went over the preposition song... and it is going extremely well!  They'll have it down in no time!  To help review and understand prepositions, we played a little game.  First, each student drew a card.  On the card was a single preposition.  They had to come up with sentences using the word correctly.  This actually led to a great lesson!  Someone used the word "over" in the sentence "The game was over."  I explained that these prepositions can sometimes be used in other ways!  In order for "over" to be a preposition, it has to be used to show the relationship between a noun or pronoun and another word in the sentence. 

Next, we worked on some writing skills.  The card game continued, but this time the students wrote their sentences on the whiteboards.  We worked on capitalization, punctuation, handwriting, and spelling.  At home, parents are working on skills like these every day.  We only have one day per week, so I try to integrate and maximize learning!

The class read their journal entries, and they were excellent!  Last week's entry was all about prepositions.  For prepositions, there is no better topic to write about than baby goats and mischievous farm animals!  The kids shared stories about goats jumping on things, turkeys going under the schoolhouse, and all sorts of wonderful preposition examples.  Well done!

We continued to read in our book, "A Mouse Called Wolf" today. Each student followed along in their books... but I could tell that some were having a difficult time keeping up or focusing.  I recognized that some children simply see a large amount of words on a page and "shut down".  I stopped mid-chapter and gave each child a notecard.  I explained that it helps to flip the notecard so that the blank side (no lines) is facing up, and so that it covers the page except for the line that is being read.  (The lines can just add to the visual distraction and give the "feeling" of still being "busy" even when the words are covered.)  I could tell that this did help!  We will keep working on focus and reading skills throughout the remainder of the year.

In art, the class worked on the beginnings of a large project!  They used a combination of paint and glue to create random, 3D lines across a board.  Once they are dry, they will be working on the next step!

The class has been studying the beginning of the American Revolution.  I wanted them to spend the week with a preview of what is to come, as it sometimes helps kids retain and absorb!  Today, we discussed the French and Indian War.  They learned about the war, why it was fought, and who was involved.  After a little reading and a lot of discussion, we got up on our feet and acted it out!  I think they just might remember this one!   Afterward, I touched on the expense of the war and how the king of Great Britain was taxing the colonies.  Next week will kick off with a super exciting lesson on taxation without representation!

2/19/18

Today was absolutely packed with hands on learning fun!  The day began with some farm news.  The lamancha doe finally had her kids: two little bucklings.  They are healthy and hopping around today!  This doe is an excellent milker, and I foresee a little milking demonstration in the near future!

In science class, the group began the space unit.  Ms. Gina taught the class about the sun, planets, and the moon.  Kids absolutely love space lessons, and this one was a hit!  Today's lesson focused on the sun.  After their discussion, the group had fun doing some suran-wrap-finger-painting.  They created a sun of their own and write a description for their project.  Just writing sentences and practicing handwriting skills is a lesson in itself at this age!  They did a wonderful job.

In language arts, the class learned a new part of speech today: prepositions.  They learned how prepositions show the relationship between a noun or pronoun and another word in a sentence.  In order to demonstrate this, we used the new baby goats!  Goats love to jump, climb, duck, and move around objects.  We brought the babies in and used prepositions to describe the relationship between them and the desks, books, chairs, etc.  The kids loved it, and I think they will remember what prepositions do!  We added a new card to the preposition card stack, as well.  They will be working on learning the preposition song set to the tune of Yankee Doodle.  It seems very hard, but everything is so much easier when put to music!

To review the other parts of speech, the class learned how to fill in a crossword puzzle.  This is a tricky skill to learn, and we took it step by step!  At first, we answered them together.  Then, we broke up into groups and worked in teams, with my assistance as needed.  They did a wonderful job!  I know it seems monotonous to study these parts of speech, but it will lay an excellent foundation for years to come!

Ms. Gina integrated science into art class today, as well.  The students created rockets using paper, markers, tape, a pipette, and a straw!  This was super fun, and it was a great little physics lesson, as well!

The class read a few more chapters in the book, A Mouse Called Wolf.  We will most likely finish this next week.  They absolutely love it, and I do, as well!