Worm Work

We had a special visitor today in SK.  Mrs. Kathy Boone, Environmental Special Assignment Teacher for KPDSB came to our class to teach us about worms and their life cycle.  I have had a worm vermicomposter in my classroom for the last 3 years and it was time to add some new worms to the mix.

We prepared for her visit by reading a book called Worm Work which told us all about the red wiggler worm.  We found out that worms like to eat leaf litter, fruit and vegetables, egg shells, tea bags and tea leaves.  Students found out that they shouldn't put citrus fruits, onions, dairy products and meat in the composter because it makes it smelly and the worms don't like that.  We found out a bit about how a worm eats, what worm castings are and how to harvest and separate the worms from the castings.

The first thing the students did today was to separate the castings and the worms. We added the castings to our classroom plants. They will love the added nutrients.


















The next thing we did was create a new comfortable 'bed' for the worms. We added some soil, eggshells, shredded paper, vegetable and fruit scraps and then more paper. Worms like a cool damp bed so each student misted 10 sprays into the vermicomposter.  Then we added 500 worms to their new home.

 

Students who were interested, got to hold and observe a worm up close before putting it gently into their new home.  Mrs. Boone gave each group a plate with castings and a large night crawler worm to have a look at with magnifying glasses.

 

 

Finally, students formed partners and had to talk about what they learned about worms today.  They were rewarded with a worm to eat.  A gummy worm, of course.

 

What we learned:

Connor and McKenna - worms are vegetarians, they eat plants

Dylan and Happy - poop turns into castings

Julian and Zach- worms don't have teeth but they have a gizzard

Gage and Dylan - paper comes from trees

Tatyana and Cooper - they like egg shells and they don't have any eyes

Lane and Evey - they need shelter, air, food and water to survive

Tye and Tyler - poop turns into soil

Ryder and Noah - they eat banana peels and they don't have any teeth

 



Patterning in JK

We have been working on patterning in math.  This week students have been showing what they have learned by copying and extending patterns and then creating patterns of their own.  They have used many different kinds of materials including the bugs, vehicles, dinosaurs and pattern blocks to name a few.  What is really exciting is when they talk about patterns they see elsewhere in the classroom. "My shirt has a pattern." "Look at the dishes - yellow, red, yellow, red."  Most of the students can talk about their patterns using colour words and some will describe the shapes too.

 

 

 

Marble Run continued...

Marble run building is still going strong in SK. Students are adding materials from the class such as plastic tubing from the water table, wood blocks and the ever popular pool noodles.  The collaboration and cooperation between different groups of students has been excellent as they share ideas and change and modify their designs.  We watched a marble run video this week that incorporated a funnel feature using part of a 2L plastic bottle. If you have any of those in your recycle bin, please consider sending them with your child to school.


Bears - Real and Fiction

We have been studying the difference between real bears and fiction bears this month in JK.  We have read a number of different versions of Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  The JK's have been acting out the story with puppets and story sequence cards and have been using the oatmeal playdough to create real bowls of porridge for the bears.

We created a bear habitat and they have been playing with the mother bear and her cubs in their 'natural habitat', searching for food and shelter.

Today we read another non-fiction book about black bears and watched a short video of a mother bear in her den with two cubs.  The students each made a bear den and were excited to take them home today even though some of them weren't completely dry.

Raz-Kids

The SK's have been enrolled in an online reading program called Raz-Kids.  Raz-Kids helps students improve their reading skills as they listen to a book read to them so they hear how reading should sound.  If the device they are working on has a built-in record function, they can record themselves reading the same book.  Or, students can read the book to themselves or aloud for practice.  There are interactive quizzes at the end of each book to check for understanding.

Here is how to access the website and your child's reading assignment from any device connected to the Internet:

1.  Go to www.raz-kids.com and click LOG IN.

2.  Type in the teacher's username kinggeorge and click GO.

3.  Find your child's name and/or symbol on the chart and click on that symbol.  From there your child can choose from a variety of fiction and non-fiction choices at their reading level.

If you have an iPad, you can download the free app "Learning A-Z" and access the materials from there.  The app looks like this:

 

 

Snakes Alive

Today we had Abbie and Krystal from Oak Hammock Marsh Interpretive Centre here to do a presentation on snakes.  They talked about the wetlands around Oak Hammock Marsh and the types of wildlife and plants found there.  Abbie talked about the different kinds of snakes that live there such as the red-sided garter snake and the hognose snake.  The students got to look at and touch a snake skin and an egg from a snake.  They played a game where the snake chased a frog and made their own snake out of beads and pipecleaners.  The highlight was when they pretended to be a hognose snake acting out some of the ways they avoid their predators - hiding, pretending to be a big scary cobra and playing dead.

Check out their website for more information and programs for kids.

 Oak Hammock Marsh

Home Reading Program

Our home reading program for SK has begun. Each student will bring home a practice reading book at their level and a sight word booklet.  I have included a reading log to fill out together as well as some suggestions for reading prompts for what to say when your child is reading to you.  These are the strategies that are our focus in small group instruction too.  We are currently working on making sense with what we are reading, looking at the picture and getting our mouth ready with the first sound.

The book and sight words are to be returned every school day in the Ziploc bag so that we can review the sight words and exchange the book when they are ready to do so.  Please help your child to remember to bring the book bag back on school mornings.  THANK YOU.

PRACTICE BOOK INSTRUCTIONS

1.  Read the title of the book to your child.

2.  Go through the book, discussing the pictures.

3.  Have your child try to read it using his/her finger to point to the words.  Don't worry if your child is not yet able to match their finger to each word.

4.  Read the book more than one time for mastery. 

SIGHT WORD LISTS:

1.  Review the current list with your child.

2.  The list is mastered when your child can read each word automatically.  The words are not to be sounded out.

3.  Practice the words on the list in different orders.

4.  Time permitting, review old lists as children will forget some words and need these reinforced.

Marble Discovery in JK

It started out innocently enough...one of the students found a marble on the floor of the classroom and wondered what it was for.  After some conversation and a little imagination it didn't take them long to figure out they could use those marbles anywhere.  The wooden train tracks, pool noodles, wood blocks and other things in the class were quickly modified into marble runs.  They experimented with slides, ramps and loop de loops.  It was a great discovery for them.  Just wait until they find the paper rolls, popsicle sticks and tape :)

Marble Run

We have decided to work on the ultimate marble run in SK.  Students have been using wood blocks, lego, pool noodles and other materials in the classroom to make those marbles go FAST!  We watched a couple of videos and have been inspired to make this the focus of our Inquiry for now. 

We are looking for donations of toilet and paper towel tubes, cardboard and cereal boxes to help us in pursuit.  Thank you for the materials that have already been sent in.  I promise they will be put to good use!

There are countless videos on youtube about marble runs, using all kinds of materials. Check out this video sample if you are interested in trying this at home.

Music Wall

I had a chance to go and visit my friend and fellow Kindergarten teacher, Shelley Penner a couple of weeks ago to see her program in action.  I went outside at recess with her class and watched the students at play with the music wall that she and Ashley Haines created for their playground.  I was inspired to try and create one here for our kindergarteners at King George.  Thank you to those who have donated to our Music Wall.  The students are really looking forward to using it once we set it up outside. 

We are still looking for more OLD, used materials... muffin tins, racks from ovens, loaf pans, pot lids, etc.  If they have a hole in the top, we can attach it to the fence.  Check out this link for ideas and inspiration.

Music Tree/Wall

I also included this video from Timothy Goes to School called "The Music Tree".  Thanks to Shannon Bailey for these links :)

Play and Fine Motor Development

For the last few weeks, I have been taking an online course on Visual Arts.  Teaching art has always been one of my favourite things to do and I am really enjoying the work involved with this course.

One of the things that has been discussed and presented in the course is the link between fine motor skills and future academic achievement.  We know that children learn through play and by manipulating the objects around them.  As they build towers with blocks, they are learning lessons about gravity and balance.  As they complete puzzles they are developing skills in matching.  Besides having a good time while they manipulate these blocks and puzzles they are also exercising and developing their fine motor skills.  Furthermore, while they move and develop those skills they are also improving cognitive areas of the brain too.

I have attached a PDF from the York Region Board of Education with some ideas of things that you may want to try at home with your child to help develop their fine motor skills.  The important thing to remember is it doesn't matter whether they are stringing beads, dressing dolls or building train tracks.  It's just important that they have plenty of opportunity to manipulate different objects in a variety of ways.

Fine Motor Activities

Teaching good pencil and crayon grip is important.  Grips become automatic or habitual with repetition and become harder to change the older the child is.  We are practicing proper grip and reinforcing it with songs and finger plays. Check out this video from MamaOT.com for ideas on helping your child hold a pencil or crayon correctly.

November Newsletter

November Newsletter