Week of March 31-April 3, 2014

Week of March 31-April 3, 2014

Theme: Growing and Changing Plants

Letter of the Week: Y

Dear Families,

I hope everyone had a relaxing Spring Break. 

This week we will continue our theme of growing and changing by discussing how plants grow and change. We will explore what plants need to grow and compare that to what we need to live and grow. We will discuss living and non living things and how we can tell if something is living or non-living. 

We are going to be trying a variety of fruits and vegetables during snack this week since those are things that grow also. We will also be planting some seeds and comparing seeds by size and color. While we watch our seeds grow we will keep careful journals documenting our seeds growth and using non standard forms of measurement to measure their growth.  We will also be using non standard forms of measurement such as cubes, yard, paperclips to compare objects in the classroom.We will be sorting seed packets by flowers, fruits and vegetables. 

Just as a reminder please check your child's folder each day and remove anything that is in their folder. As the weather begins to warm up and hopefully dry up some we will begin to venture outside again so please make sure your child comes dressed appropriate for outdoor play. If it is too damp and chilly we won't be venturing out.

Upcoming dates:

No School April 21-Easter Break

Week of March 17-20, 201

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Week of March 17-20, 2014

Theme: Animals Change

Letter of the Week: H

Dear Family,

Last week the children enjoyed learning more about the solar system and it's planets. We did a size comparison activity that allowed the children to see in practical terms the difference in the size of the planets. The sun was a giant exercise ball, Mercury was a peppercorn, the Earth and Venus were cherry tomatoes, Mars was a blueberry, Jupiter was a watermelon, Saturn was a grapefruit, Uranus was an apple and Neptune was a lime. We followed that up by watching an episode of The Magic School Bus that discussed stars.

During this week, children will learn about how animals grow and change. They will compare baby and adult animals, such as chicks and chickens, and identify ways in which the  animals are alike and different. They will identify things that baby animals can and cannot do, and describe ways that adult animals care for their babies. In addition, they will explore the life cycles of animals such as frogs and insects such as butterflies. We will also be practicing counting and building number patterns up to 30. We will practice identifying and making rhyming words. 

Learning Together

• If you have a pet, talk with your child about what your pet was like as a baby and how your pet has grown and changed.
• Together, visit a zoo or animal shelter to observe baby and adult animals. Talk about how they are alike and different.
• Take your child to the library and get a book about how caterpillars grow into butterflies. Look at the illustrations with your child and help him or her describe the stages of growth.

Visiting the Library

Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French

The Mixed-up Chameleon by Eric Carle

Fabulous Fishes by Susan Stockdale

Baby Flamingo by Patricia A. Pingry

Count-a-Saurus by Nancy Blumenthal

We would like to welcome a new friend in the morning, Savannah. We are so happy to have her join our class.

This week your child will be receiving information about completing Blizzard Bag assignments. Hilton Elementary has missed an additional day of school due to a power outage so to avoid adding a day at the end of the school year or taking away the April 21st day off children are being asked to complete Blizzard Bag assignments. More information will be included in the bag which will be coming home this week. 

Some p.m. class snow day fun pictures:

Reminders:

No School-March 24-March 28 Spring Break, return to school March 31.

No School-April 21-Easter Break

Week of March 10-13, 2014

Week of March 10-13, 2014

Theme: Outer Space

Letter of the Week: J

Dear Parents,

This will be our last week of our Sky and Earth unit, we will be focusing on the sky and the solar system. We are going to be doing a craft that demonstrates the Earth's rotation around the sun. The children will be composing their own books about a new planet that they created and what someone would do if they went on vacation there. We are also continuing our study of 3 dimensional shapes so we are using gumdrops and toothpicks to construct cones, cubes and cylinders. During word work this week we will be using the magnetic letters to spell the planets in our solar system.  

We will also be constructing a solar system using some very identifiable things that can be found in the kitchen so make sure you ask about it at the end of the week. We will be culminating our unit by watching a Magic School Bus episode called Super Star Power, everyone is looking forward to that.

We will also be making a St. Patrick's day craft since St. Patrick's day will be next week. 

The afternoon class had great fun on their reward day in the snow. They worked very hard to fill the ticket jar and they played just as hard outside. Everyone participated and we made a whole class of snow angels, we had a small snow ball fight, we climbed the big snow covered hill and climbed or rolled down the hill. Even though it was cold by the time we came in I was hearing many of the children say how hot they had gotten when they were playing. I was also so proud to see how many of them were able to get themselves ready to go outside with just some small minor help. I will posting pictures soon.

Upcoming dates:

No School-March 24-28 Spring Break, return to school on March 31.