Week 5: Pumpkin Crazy

I really need to do a better job taking a variety of pictures for our blog.  Sometimes I get so caught up in a lesson that I forget about snapping pictures. 

One of our favorite parts of the day is our morning stations.  We sometimes call these "Play Stations" because the students think all they are doing at these stations is playing.  However, this is such an important time of the day.  When they are playing, kindergarteners are learning to interact and problem-solve with their peers, they are learning new skills and getting a chance to practice them without the pressure of being graded or judged, they are learning to communicate and practice their communication abilities and they are learning about the world around them.  Here are some students "playing" in some of their favorite morning stations:

IPADS

RICE TABLE

COMPUTERS

PUZZLES

BLOCKS

 

 

 

 

 This week in unit study, we began to talk about the change in seasons, mainly Fall.  This coincided perfectly with our pumpkin patch trip!  Here are a few highlights from that day:

Riding the school bus was fun!  For some students it was their first time on the big yellow school bus! 

At the farm, Farmer DeeDee talked to us about the things they grow and what they are used for:

 We got to play on the hay slide, in the loose corn, and lots more fun things!

 One of our favorite parts about the day was the hayride!

 We got to visit with the cows:

 And pick a "perfect pumpkin:"

 What a fun day!

Our pumpkins spent the night at school so that we could investigate them the next day.  Here are some students measuring their pumpkin with cubes:

In language arts this week, we read books about opposites and about Fall.  We continued introducing the letters of the alphabet, practicing rhyming words and our student of the day routine.  We are adding many names to our word wall as students share their timelines. 

In math this week, we learned all about the numbers 1-5.  We practiced writing them, creating sets of them and learned songs about them.  Here is one of our favorite songs that also teaches us the correct way to write the numbers:

Next week....

In unit study we will continue to talk about Fall, particularly the changes in leaves and investigating apples in the Fall.

In language arts, we will be reading books that focus on children becoming more self-aware (such as All I Am).  We will discuss how we all have many different roles.  We will complete our introduction of the letters.  After this, we will go into a more in-depth letter of the week routine. 

In math, we will focus on the numbers 6-10.  We will make sure we are forming the numbers correctly and can make accurate sets of the numbers. 

Have a great week!