We Made Great Predictions On Monday!

Monday was a very exciting day! The children were extremely curious when we placed 8 cups out for them to investigate (without taking the lids off!).We talked about what could be in the cups. Right away, the children noticed the air holes at the top.  Some children noticed that something was moving. They made incredible predictions. The following day we opened the lids and found caterpillars! Stay tuned for more posts on this exciting classroom experience!

The Estimation Jar

The Estimation Jar is the take-home activity for our current Happy Helper round. The children fill the jar with no more than 30 similar items at home. On the special day, the Happy Helper shows the jar to the class and the children print guesses on whiteboards. This activity offers a great opportunity to work on number formation and quantity concepts. There is always lots of excitement when the items are counted on our big number line. 

We often place the items on our 10 frames as well.

Dandelions Are Delightful! The Rabbits Were Amazing Too!

The children thoroughly enjoyed spending time in our far schoolyard, looking for dandelions (especially the "wish flowers"). 

The children want to try growing dandelions in our classroom by planting dandelion seeds.

As we strolled through the dandelions we were lucky enough to spot a family of rabbits. What a thrill it was to watch them! We tried to stay quiet and still.  As you see in the picture below, the children were interested in every move the rabbits made.  We can't wait to go back and look for them again (we are taking carrots with us!). 

Dental Health Fun With Dr. Morand

We had another wonderful guest speaker in our classroom! Rowan's Dad, Dr. Morand came to talk to us about his profession of dentistry. Many children in our class have been losing teeth recently and it was very interesting for the children to hear why this is happening. We learned all about caring for our teeth and we saw dental equipment. The children loved trying on the special glasses! Thanks for the gift bags and the awesome presentation, Dr. Morand!

Maps, Maps, and More Maps!

The students really enjoyed finding their way around the school during the following recent activities:

1) our recent passport activity with our gr. 7/8 Big Buddies (visiting different countries and learning about this destinations through QR codes)

2) the hunt with our gr. 7/8 Big Buddies for the Seven Natural Wonders Of The World (using a school map)

3) the hunt for animals from Guatemala.

These activities lead into the idea of following directions and mapping.  Recently the JK/SK students have really enjoyed sending their peers on hunts within our school. They came up with the idea of designing a path for their classmates to follow and taping large Xs up in the school at the final destination.

Making treasure maps was also a popular activity

Pussy Willows

Harper and her family brought in a beautiful collection of pussy willow branches. The children enjoyed using their senses as they investigated the branches (it was especially nice to touch them!). We learned a fun song and made beautiful artwork. Thanks Harper! We always welcome items from nature into our classroom! Please keep them coming!

We Made Blossoms On Our Paintings With The Bottom Of A 2 L Pop Bottle!

A Hiking We Will Go!

The children had a ball heading out for hikes (in the hallway!). They packed up their backpacks at the "campsite by the volcano", grabbed their binoculars and went looking for 4 animals that are unique to Guatemala. 

Talented Artists

The children show great care and attention to detail as they sketch and paint "still-life" pieces. This has become a favourite activity in our classroom! They students are always so proud to show us their artwork!

We Made Our Own Islands

Our inquiry on volcanoes evolved into an interest in different landforms. The children designed islands that had landforms on them. They made maps with legends. Next, they made their own personal batches of salt dough. With their Big Buddies, they followed their island maps and created islands showing the landforms they had included in their plans/maps.  It was great fun painting the islands when the dough had hardened and dried.  Thanks to Pizza Hut for donating the boxes we used for displaying these incredible projects! 

Batches Of Salt Dough

Heart And Stroke Fundraiser

On Tuesday we enjoyed fantastic weather and exciting outdoor games in the FDK playground for our "Jump Rope For Heart" event. 

Our Campsite

The children are getting a kick out of our campsite. This centre was inspired by the trip Mrs. De Santis took to Guatemala. During that trip she experienced a volcano hike and camped overnight. We made binoculars this week and plan to go "hiking" looking for unique animals from Guatemala. 

Counting Money

Thanks for sending in the money for our new session of dance classes. We sorted and counted all of the coins today. It was a great opportunity to talk about coin names and values. Please consider doing this at home! Children love playing with money!

Lola's Baby Brother Came For A Visit!

Little Romen is only 2 weeks old! We really enjoyed meeting him. He is the third baby sibling to visit our classroom this month! Congratulations to Lola and family!

Congratulations Devan And Family!

We Went On A Spring Walk (Before Winter Came Back!)

Last Friday we enjoyed the sights and the warm air as we strolled around the school. 

Ice-Cream!

The children choose ice-cream as their reward for the jewel-jar so we incorporated some ice-cream activities into our program!

Math - Learning About Capacity

LetThe Crayon Experiments Begin!

We brainstormed different ways to make the crayons melt and one of the students thought that we needed to "get the crayons hot". The crock pot experiment was our first attempt!

Our New Inquiry On Crayons

This new interest in crayons began with the following question: "What can we do with all of these broken crayons?" One student suggested we could try to make the red crayons into hot lava. Another student said this could be done as it is possible to heat up crayons.

From there, we decided to find out if crayons can be melted down. The clipboards came out, the surveys were set up, and the sorting of old crayons began!  Stay tuned for future posts on this exciting topic!

We Had A Newborn Baby Visit Us!

In a short amount of time, 4 families from our classroom have had new additions! We are thrilled for all of these families!  Lucas's parents were kind enough to make a special visit to Room 106 so we could meet Cruz! We hope all of the new babies will visit our classroom!

With all of the excitement and interest in babies in our classroom recently, we have created a new baby play area.  It was great to learn about all of the items in Cruz's diaper bag and hear why all of these baby care items are so important!