The Earth and Sky

Week of April 13-16, 2015

Theme: My World

Focus question: What can I learn about the earth and the sky?

Letter of the Week: W

Dear Families, 

This week our class begins a new unit about the earth and sky, focusing first on our world and the sun. Children will discuss and learn about natural items that are found on the earth, such as sand, rocks, soil and water. Next week the children will also learn more about the sun and the moon and how they are similar to and different from one another as they consider differences between light and darkness, and day and night. Our lessons about the sun will also lead children to a basic understanding of sources of light and heat. 

Learning Together:

• Conduct a simple science experiment with your child. Mix sand or soil, pebbles and water in a clear plastic bottle. Shake it vigorously. Ask your child to observe and describe how the pebbles and sand or soil travel through the water. Have your child also describe what he or she observes after the materials have settled. 

We will be participating in some exploration and experimentation with the earth materials of: sand, water, soil and water. We will be observing them using hand lenses and comparing their weight using a balance scale. We will be doing this activity in two groups and at the conclusion will compare the findings of the two groups looking for similarities and differences.

Visiting the Library

The Earth and I by Frank Asch

Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky by Elphinstone Dayrell

Into the Sky by Ryan Ann Hunter

Geography from A to Z: A Picture Glossary by Jack Knowlton

Earth Day-Hooray! by Stuart J. Murphy

Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin

Activities

• Two of the things we will be exploring about the Earth this week is soil and water.
• We are going to investigate worms!
• We are going to use worms (rubber ones) to measure and compare. 
• We will also have worms in the sensory table in dirt (just rubber worms for this)
• We are going to make a worm observatory to watch how worms move under the earth.
• One of our stories this week is Diary of a Worm. We will work on recalling facts from the story and then illustrating our own book.
• We will also make a fun worm snack this week, the children will make their own snack and will have to follow direction to make it.
• We will investigate water and what objects sink in water and what objects float. We will explore reasons why certain objects sink and other float.
• We will compare and contrast items that are found on the Earth and those are that found in the sky.

Reminders:

• Show and Share is every Thursday, this week the letter is W.
• As the weather continues to warm up we will try to get outside for some gross motor activities. Please make sure your child has appropriate clothing such as tennis shoes and a jacket or sweatshirt.  We have rubber mulch on the playground and if your child wears Crocs, sandals or flip-flops it tends to get stuck in their shoes and they spend more time getting it out then actually playing that is why I recommend tennis shoes. Please also remember if your child is sensitive to the sun you may want to put on sunscreen before school.
• Last day of school June 4th.

I hope everyone had a great Spring Break and I look forward to seeing everyone at school tomorrow.