This Week in Review - October 8 - 12

                                     

                                This information is also found in Walter's weekly email:

This was a rare week in the 1^st and 2^nd grade in that we stayed close to home! We kept busy working on our various projects and the routines we have established.

On Monday, for our Exploration Theme, our naturalists collected various colorful leaves from our playground. We pressed them under very heavy books to make them dry and flat. Then, on Thursday, with great anticipation we unveiled them and spread them all over the library floor. Children picked out 5 or 6 of their favorites and spread Mod Podge on both sides, put covered wire through them, and hung the wires up. Our “installation” is very reminiscent of the Rebecca Louise Law room in Toledo – she would be so proud! (Please check both art pieces up – ours is in our front porch area, while Grace’s students’ is on their metal structure in their room.)

Our weekly routines continue with our two Special Readers, Evan and Kalyan – their first turn to shine. 

We also worked on our skills in reciting a poem (all by myself, all together, and with a partner), illustrating the poem to reflect its meaning and mood, listening to our chapter book, solving mystery messages, and writing in our memory books. Our spelling is coming along nicely as well, with Spelling-Go-Round on Monday, and the spelling challenge on Friday. Shaving cream made for a fun addition this week!

In math, we continue working and playing with our broad theme of number sense/place value. We are up to the ten-millions place in our high-number game, and we also have started a book project using 1001 Things to Spot in the Sea (see previous blog post).

In Science Lab with Shan we reflected back on what we learned last week when Rebecca Murray visited. Children wrote and drew thank you notes in the form of a little “all about bees” book. 

Also on a science note, we are learning more about our wiggling worms by the day-to-day care of these wonderful little creatures. They seem to love apple cores and mushy bananas.

EBs continue this week – in my EB, children continued on the adventures in Fairy Tale land with Goldilocks and the Three Bears. We made and packed a picnic (potato salad, deviled eggs, bread, and fruit), and headed off with a blanket to grandma’s house.  

How can school be such fun?