If you ask me what the best "easy reader" series to hit the scene since Frog and Toad is, I would answer you- Mo Willems' Elephant and Piggie Books! Through simple dialogue about real life situations, Gerald the elephant and Piggie the pig navigate ups and downs with humor and a loving friendship. We showed them our love by creating this display for the hallway.
(You can see our "bucket fillers" from the first month of school are still up reminding us of all the ways we can help one another.)
That's right, it Sugaring Season- one of the things that makes Vermont a special place, and perhaps the ONLY thing that makes mud season bearable. Since we're not able to take field trips this year, we had to find a way to take the sugaring experience to us. I borrowed the bucket, hook, spile (spout), and lid from a family member who sugars, and our School's Out friend, Dew, came to the woods with us to lend her expertise.
Of course our class was prepared for this process because we read several books and the children watched a video of me outside a "backyard boiler" explaining how sap is cooked down into syrup. You can imagine our Farm to School teacher's surprise when our class confidently answered all their questions during our Friday session! What can I say? They soaked it all in.
Here are some pictures of us exploring late spring in the woods, tapping a tree, and tasting maple syrup on carrot fritters.
Over the last week we've dedicated some of our Math time to showing what we know about how to "make and break" certain numbers. The first time we did this our focus number was 16 and I was able to take some pictures. I asked the children to write any equation they knew that either "added up" or "substracted down" to 16. If they wanted to go for more than one, they could write as many as they could think of! Then we went around our circle listening carefully to the equations that friends shared- if you had the one they said on your board you gave it a check. The children displayed their knowledge of doubles facts, doubles+ and - 1, teens as 10 and more, repeated addition and more!
This post offers a look at the fun we've "rediscovered" in the block area. The blocks were an early attraction when we first started the year, but recently I noticed that interest in them had waned and some of the play on the rug was feeling kind of "stuck". Maybe we can chock it up to winter, we all get into ruts, but I couldn't help but think that some new materials could really release some creativity. So, enter the Magna Tiles! The unit block "furniture" for house design! And the community buildings for city planning! A little spark was all that was needed.💙
Over the break our pretend area got a small make-over and become a grocery store! It's perfect for putting our new knowledge about coins to use AND it encourages sharing and turn taking. We use the area in small groups during Explore Time and practice stocking the shelves, shopping, paying, helping customers, bagging and then setting the area up for the next group. Have a look-
Early elementary kids (and teachers) are really good at finding things to get excited about. The 100th day of school is milestone that's definitely worth to celebrating! Why? Well, we've been tracking the days since we started, we've learned to count to 100, 100 is a really cool number, and...let's face it, we could all use something to brighten up the long winter! So, this Tuesday with headbands, 100 piece necklaces, and several dance party movement breaks we wooped it up and gave ourselves props for being 100 days smarter. Below you can see us...
Starting the day with a morning message about something we've learned in the last 100 days
This blog post contains a smattering of photos taken in the days right before the February break. It highlights the incredible variety of activities that happen with the children in Room 28. You can see the concentration that the children bring to journaling at Literacy time, the focus involved in a Math game with coins, the fun of playing Limbo with Mrs. Frostman at Music, the playfulness of our extra, earned recess and the cooperative spirit of completing a puzzle as a group. I can't wait to get back with the crew tomorrow!
