Safety Patrol Celebration -Thanks So Much!!

It was a happy and sad day on Friday when we had to say good bye to our wonderful patrols, Miss V. and Miss M. These two girls were dependable, pleasant, and hard working. Every day they would come in and check to see what they would be doing with the children that morning. They brought the students in 15 minutes before school officially started. They would read books, work on projects, and listen to the Kindergarten students tell their stories each day. Having the patrols all year brought a special closeness and bond with the teachers and students. On Friday, we celebrated with a breakfast, cards, and a gift for them to remember us as they make the big leap into middle school. I have a feeling we will be seeing these two again someday - maybe teaching a few doors down from us!! Thank you so much Mrs. Cothern and Mrs. Ellis for your hard work as patrol sponsors and giving us this opportunity to know these two very special girls this year!!

Our Day at the Beach

A Beach Day and BBQ Fun!!

As we are approaching the end of our Kindergarten year, our very own Mr. & Mrs. Dickinson thought it would be a great idea to have a fun beach day and BBQ with the class. So this past Sunday, we met at the beach house and enjoyed a beautiful day of fun in the sun. The kids had a blast playing in the water, building sand castles, and finding shells together. The parents had a chance to sit back and enjoy watching their kids have a good time. Soon it was lunchtime and our hot dogs and hamburgers were delicious. After lunch, we went back out to the surf. In a matter of minutes a shark (not too big) was spotted and parents scrambled to get their kids out of the water!! One of the children said, "I don't know why everyone's excited about seeing a shark...that's where they live." Well, I guess that was right but it's still scary!! After a few moments, kids were back in the water (not too deep) and having a great time. So, you can see, it's not all work and no play in Room 104 -- it's a beautiful balance. Thanks to the Dickinson's for the great day at the beach and to Kelly for some great pictures of our day!!

Our Butterfly Experience

Out Popped A Beautiful Butterfly!

"Wow," said Sophia, "it is beautiful." Our class was very fortunate to be able to witness the emergence of a Monarch butterfly from its chrysalis today. We have had a mini caterpillar garden in our classroom for several weeks. Our Science teacher brought in some milkweed plants with butterfly eggs on them. The children have seen the eggs turn into tiny caterpillars and then bigger and bigger caterpillars -- and eat up all of the milkweed plants. They have seen the daily growth of these insects and have been able to talk about all the changes they have seen in them everyday. They noticed that when the caterpillar slowed down its eating, it started to look for a place to spin its silk button. It then formed into a J-shape. Mrs. Stevens (the Science teacher) put a net around the plant and hung it from the ceiling. Then the caterpillar found its way up the net and hung from the top. In about a day or two, it formed a beautiful green chrysalis and stayed like that for a week or so. Today, we noticed that the green chrysalis was brown. This meant that the butterfly would soon come out...and it did!! We have three more chrysalis hanging in our net and by early next week we should be releasing the rest of the butterflies into our butterfly garden in front of the school. Eric Carle would be so proud!!!

A Snapshot of our Mother's Day Breakfast

Mother's Day Celebration - May, 2008

Today we celebrated Mother's Day with mothers, grandmothers, and some fathers joining us for our special morning of entertainment, poetry, and songs. Each mother was greeted by her child and shown to his/her chair. After all the parents were in the room, we started with our first song, "Slippery Fish" (Charlotte Diamond). Students wore head pieces, made by our very own Mrs. Ellis , of different animals from the sea to go with the song. Then students (two by two) recited the Mother's Day Poem (Before I Was a Mom). We sung a class favorite (Alphabet Soup) and finished with "This Little Light of Mine" done in sign language. Soon it was time for the tissues to come out because the video segment of the event was about to begin. This was a slideshow which included a baby picture, a five-year old picture, and a picture of the child with his/her mom. It was beautiful. The video concluded with random photos throughout the year. Our breakfast included all kinds of pastries, bagels, cakes, and coffee/ice cream punch. It was wonderful. Mother's stayed to enjoy breakfast and left with a special gifts made by the children and a special placemat (see above picture) for them to use on Sunday.
Mother's Day is one of the biggest events of our Kindergarten year. We prepared for weeks to get the songs, poem, and movements just right. The children were as excited as a field trip day. We hope that through our efforts, Ms. Johnson, Mrs. Ellis and I, the children learned the importance of this special day and learned to always make this day, "Mother's Day" as grand as it should be! Our mothers deserve it and we love them!!!

Field Trip - Publix and Kilwin's

Publix and Kilwin's - What a Great Field Trip!!

Today was the last field trip of the year and what a great one it was. We went to Publix Supermarket and Kilwin's. This trip complimented our Science unit on food. First, we boarded the bus and headed to Publix. The manager greeted us and guided us on our first stop - the bakery. The students were quizzed about what food items they would find in the bakery and what ingredients it takes to make those items. A cake decorator came out from behind the counter and showed the students how she makes icing roses. Our next stop was Fruit and Produce. Here the students were shown some various tropical fruits and vegetables such as coconuts and mangoes. The mangoes were sliced up and children were given samples to eat. We stopped by the fish counter and the manager pulled out a live lobster - WOW!! The meat counter was next and different kinds of meats were shown - even buffalo! We went through the double steel doors into the back of the store and we were shown the big freezer, the stacks of crated fruits and cans, and where the trucks unload their goods on the hydraulic lift. Then we were shown the recycling machine where big boxes were put in for demonstration and they were crushed before our eyes. (Publix is the number one company in Florida for recycling!!) Our last stop was the dairy section and different cheeses were shown and explained. As we left, we were given cookies, popcorn, and gift bags from the store. What a wonderful treat that was!! Next, we boarded the bus and it was off to Kilwin's at St. Johns Towne Center. The sweet smell of chocolate hit us as we entered the store. Kilwin's is known for its Homemade Ice Cream and Fudge, Homemade Chocolates, Brittles, and Caramel Corn. We were shown how to make waffle cones (and Ms. Johnson and I got to make one). Students had the chance to sample any ice cream flavor they wished. They were shown how the chocolate comes to the store (in a big ten pound brick) and how they use a hammer to chop it up. The children were gifted with chocolate covered marshmallows as they left.
This was such a great field trip for the kids. They learned about community businesses and how stores operate in their neighborhood. We are very fortunate to have such wonderful companies such as Publix and Kilwin's in our area and appreciate how they welcomed us on our visit. I heard a few children say, "This is the best field trip ever!" Who would think that going to the supermarket and getting some ice cream would make such a memorable event?

Bingo: The Fun Way to Learn Sight Words

On Fridays, we break from the routine of Skills Block (charts, morning message, word families, etc.) and play a few games of Sight Word Bingo. The ritual of giving out the cards and chips are second nature for the children. I write " B I N G O" on the board and we are off and running. A slight humming is going on in the room until I pull the first card: "N" "little" and they repeat "N" "little". Then I write the word "little" on the board under "N". This gives the students visual reinforcement of the word while they look for it on their card. This goes on until the first 20 or so cards are read and we get our first "BINGO." The child then has to reread the words back to me for him/her to have a "confirmed" BINGO. When the bell is rung - that means it is a "confirmed" win and then we play two more BINGOs on that card. After that, the cards are cleared off and we play another game. I find this to be a fun and entertaining way for the reinforcement of sight words on a weekly basis. We also play "Word Family" bingo and in First Grade we'll play advanced sight word Bingo. Friday's are a great day to break from the routine and have fun with the words we learned all week - "B" "bye" - "B" "bye"!!

Our Eric Carle Author Study - Revisit it in Pictures

Eric Carle -- Author Study - Celebration Day

Today all kindergarten classes celebrated the end of our author study of Eric Carle by having a big celebration this morning. Students visited stations which included: making ladybug hats (The Grouchy Ladybug), caterpillar necklaces (The Very Hungry Caterpillar), and eating pancakes (Pancakes, Pancakes). They played games such as Eric Carle Bingo; we had a book scavenger hunt (using copies of the front cover of the books); and E.C. jeopardy (with questions about characters, etc. from his books). In the afternoon, the children were delighted when I read two books that they haven't heard yet from the author study: "Papa Please Get Me the Moon" and "The Honeybee and the Robber." The level at which we now discuss books is at a new height from a few weeks ago when we just started our author study. Now text-to-self connections and text-to-text connections abound!! The children were relating how some characters were the same, how pictures were similar, and how the patterns in some books imitated other books. Students discussed the author and what he must have experienced in order for him to write these books. For instance, they wondered if he had a cat because cats are in so many of his books and if he lived near a zoo because of all the animals in his books. They also asked if he was coming to our celebration! One child answered, "He's too busy writing - don't you know?" This author study was the springboard for many author studies to come in the next five years. In First Grade, there will be a Kevin Henkes and Mem Fox author study. However, students always remember this first one, Eric Carle, with great fondness and affection. Eric Carle will be their favorite author for a very long time!

The Grouchy Ladybug Helps Us With Time

One of my favorite Eric Carle books is The Grouchy Ladybug. The students have heard this story several times in the last few weeks and now can retell it with confidence and intonation. This story is classic Eric Carle in that he not only teaches life skills such as manners and sharing but also teaches children about the passage of time. As each hour of the ladybug's journey from insect to animal passes, a clock is in the upper right hand corner of the page shows the time. This gives children a visual image of what the time looks like on an analog clock. This is something that we don't think a lot about, but many clocks in children's homes are digital. Cell phones have digital time and so do computers (at the bottom right hand corner of the screen.) Telling time is fun for a child and once they have mastered the "o'clock", it's off to "__:30" and so on. During this retelling, children had the chance to move the hands of their own Grouchy Ladybug clock that they made earlier: http://www.vickiblackwell.com/lit/ladybug.html This added an interactive element to the story and made it a lot of fun to hear again. Now, when they take their clocks home, they can discuss the story and tell time too!!

Spring Celebration Activities

Spring has Sprung in Room 104

This was a very busy week in Room 104. On Monday, the leprechaun visited us (even though we never did trap him) and today we celebrated the coming of Spring. In preparation for today's activities we read books including "The Bunny Book," and "The Little Rabbit Who Wanted Red Wings." Our centers included making bunny hats, hand print rabbits, chicks in a nest, and water-coloring hard boiled eggs. Our morning was complete after our egg hunt on the playground. In the afternoon, students had fun counting and graphing a bag of jelly beans. It was a another great day of learning fun in Room 104!!

Leprachaun Traps - Will He Be Trapped?

Leprechaun Traps Abound In Our Classroom

For homework last week, children were tasked with a family project of building a leprechaun trap that would surely catch that rascal so that they would get that pot of gold. As you can see there were many clever traps made but much to our dismay, the little man was not fooled this time. I heard that he visited while the children were at lunch. The room was upside down with chairs, crayons, books, and papers tossed about. He left his green footprints on the tables and he escaped through the window - leaving it wide open. Undoubtedly, the children had a day to remember and will probably try next year to catch that little man in green!!

We're goin' to the zoo, zoo, zoo...

We're goin' to the zoo, zoo, zoo - How about you, you, you? - You can come too, too, too! - We're goin' to the zoo, zoo, zoo! Before we went to the zoo, our days were filled with singing that song!!
The children were so excited and today was our long-awaited trip to the zoo. We have been preparing for weeks. Students have been learning about giraffes, monkeys, elephants, snakes, etc.. They have been learning about their habitats, foods, and the names of the mothers, fathers and babies (with some help from Eric Carle - "Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too?") Did you know that a father kangaroo is a boomer, a mother is a flyer, and a joey is the baby? Well, our students do!! In preparing for the trip, an animal that is at the Jacksonville Zoo was our focus each day. A chart was created with lots of fun facts about each animal. As a culminating activity on each animal, the children were invited to make an animal (with construction paper and glue) and it was placed on our zoo mural outside the classroom. As a bonus, we adopted a baby giraffe (student's choice) with money children made on their own by doing chores around the house. After touring the zoo, we were invited to the Educational Center where we saw (up close) a bearded dragon, toad, snake, chinchilla, and baby alligator. Some children were even brave enough to pet these animals!! Our field trip to the zoo was perfect - the weather, the bus ride, the chaperones, the lunch, and of course, the animals!! And as we pulled away from the zoo, I heard some students singing the last lines from the zoo song... "We went to the zoo, zoo, zoo. - How about you, you, you? - You came too, too, too. - We went to the zoo, zoo, zoo!!!"

A Few Pictures From Our Zoo Trip

The Very Busy Spider Meets Kindergarteners

These "Very Busy Kindergarteners" were weaving an elaborate web as the story of "The Very Busy Spider" was read to them a second time. Students had the chance to partake in this very busy spider weaving his web to capture that pesky fly! This simple yarn activity was a wonderful way to bring the story to life as a retelling. By doing this, the children had the chance to hear the story again, work on the web, and most of all - have a lot of fun!
We are staying very busy learning about Eric Carle and his books. We are looking for writing patterns, text-to-self and text-to-text connections, and finding similarities with his other books. Today students noticed that Eric Carle paints the sun and moon in most of his books. They noticed certain animals repeated in some of his books. And they wondered why Eric Carle loves animals and insects so much. All of these wonderings and noticings lead to a deeper level of conversation and a deeper understanding of our author's works. We plan on staying busy for a few more weeks and find out a lot more about Eric Carle and his wonderful cast of characters!!