Kindergarten Gingerbread Hunt

On Thursday we rolled out, decorated and baked our gingerbread cookies to have for snack on Friday.  When we went to the kitchen to pick them up they had disappeared.  We found notes and clues that said they had run away.  We chased them throughout the school.  We asked all the grown ups if they had seen our cookies.  Finally Mr. Arthur, our music teacher, searched and found our cookies.  He delivered them to us.  Thank you Mr. Arthur for returning our gingerbread cookies to us. They were delicious!
                       

Week 3 in Kindergarten

We are busy at work in our kindergarten classroom.  Last week we began our Geology unit and our Gingerbread unit.  Our first lessons in Geology involve encouraging students to share what they already know about rocks and what they would like to learn about rocks.  Then we examine rocks closely and describe our observations.  In our Gingerbread unit students are listening to different versions of the Gingerbread Man story.  They are learning and retelling the patterned text in the stories and comparing the characters and events.  Scholars are also enjoying the many projects and activities surrounding our units.

 

 

Kindergarten Readers

It is hard to believe that we have had only 7 days of school!  Students are doing amazing things.  Kindergarten scholars have learned that there are 3 ways they can read a book.  They can read the pictures, read the words and retell the story.  Students have been busy working on increasing the amount of time they spend "reading to self" each day.  We are up to four minutes and on Monday, September 8 we will attempt 5 minutes.  Students are very proud of their accomplishments in reading.  I look forward to students' continued enthusiasm for reading.

First Day of School Class Photo

First Day of Kindergarten

First Day of School

What a great first day of school!  Students had fun playing at different centers (magnetic cars, drawing, playdough, building, etc.)  They also did a great job learning the expectations for the playground and cafeteria.  We practiced in both areas before having recess and lunch.  Yoga was one one of their favorite activities  today.  They enjoyed the poses and breathing.  Students even spent time reading the books in their book bins.  They learned that they can read in different ways, including reading the pictures or reading the words.       I can't wait for tomorrow. 

Audubon Field Trip

We love being outside!  We went to the Audubon on Wednesday to investigate insects and look for signs of spring.  We found lots of creatures under the leaf litter, rocks, and rotting logs in the forest.  The large black beetles, centipedes, and salamanders were favorites.  We did discover a lot of ants as well.  Their home was loaded with eggs and larvae.  We saw the ants carrying eggs and plant material.  At the pond we used nets to scoop out water creatures.  We caught dragonfly nymphs, tadpoles, leeches, snails, etc.  We could have scooped for hours!

Whitcomb Farm Field Trip

Our field trip to the Whitcomb Farm on Thursday was a huge success.  Mary Whitcomb, our farmer friend, did a terrific job showing us around the farm.  We have been corresponding with Mary for several months.  It was exciting to see many of the things she had been writing to us about.  A few of our favorites included the robotic milking machines, the newborn calves, the "red cow", the chicken who lays "Easter eggs" (eggs that are a variety of colors), the cow food, and the barn.  Mary was quite informative and we all learned a great deal about how to take of newborn calves and cows.  She was able to weave in our Five Senses and Organisms science units throughout the trip.  We want to thank NOFA (Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont) for funding our field trip to the farm and coordinating our connection to a local farmer.  We also want to thank Mary Whitcomb for her willingness to communicate with us and have us visit her farm.  Thank you parent chaperones for volunteering on our trip.  It was fun having you share this learning experience with us.