November Neighbors and Number Use

We estimated how tall the pumpkin was using just one unifix cube- and then stacked them for a closer count.

 Working with a partner to estimate and collect data:
After guessing "how many inches around" their pumpkins would turn out to be...each person measured about how many actual inches. Each table pumpkin was either 17 or 18 inches! We also estimated how many seeds were in each pumpkin- and then put the seeds into piles of ten so it would be easier to count them. For the end of the month we plan on studying turkeys a well as continuing our investigation into animal adaptations for winter. Later we will compare how native people of long ago adapted to their environments.

The Slowest Spring EVER !

March- April
 It was a very slow move into spring; we had every type of weather possible, so we spent time learning about adaptations as we tried to adapt to an ever changing climate. In art we created our own animal mask that had some "pretend" adaptations to help it stay safe and find food in its habitat.

Back in the classroom we had a "mini-play" where each student spoke about their animal. We also talked about the beaks and feet of birds and how they use them in their habitats with our 5th grade earning buddies; we created our own bird and plan on writing stories about these birds soon.

In the meantime we have been reading and researching about the desert. Because April was Poetry Month, we wrote a desert poem as a class and then each child wrote their own poem about their favorite desert animal.

Filling bird cascarones with bird seed

Next we read about our same animal- and wrote a few facts about our animal to share with the school. Check out our Mexican folks and their patterns/ shapes on their serape.

Now it is travel time!   Mexico fun...

Making and sending postcards

Making Spanish Mexican Flag Counting Books

Once we finished our study of Mexico 
we celebrated with a "trip to Mexico". 
Here are some busy students making flag counting books to practice Spanish 
numbers 1-10.

Sending postcards, making nachos, drinking hot chocolate as well as making our own yellow paper mache egg cascarones were among the activities we tackled while listening to sweet Mexican guitar music.

Visiting the Cactus cafe wouldn't be possible without our great volunteers!

"The Legend of Pointsettia" was read and we all made a poinsettia to take home to remind ourselves that " it is the gift of the heart that contains the most magic."

And speaking of magic- we could never accomplish any of this without the help of parent volunteers- both at home and those who could come in. Thank you! 

  Rainforests, ponds and seeds...as well as the various folktales of Jack and the Beanstalk, Jenny and the Cornstalk, Jim and the Beanstalk and... Katie and the Beanstalk are all coming soon.  The act of comparing and contrasting is a skill needed in every subject matter, so we spend a great deal of time honing that skill through literature experiences that require students to think and respond to various versions of a given folktale. 

So...stay tuned for more in May-June! 

Penguin Partners and Winter Wonders

As you know, January is full of tests- or "Test Fest" as I like to think of it. But in between our assessments to check on student progress, we have been very busy studying polar habitats as well as working with our 5th grade partners in Mr. Choate's class. Because the entire school is reading"Mr. Popper's Penguins," we got together with our big buddy learning partners to devote our 20 minute sessions to activities that celebrate penguin facts.

Working with partners requires practicing 
skills needed for communication, collaboration, problem solving and flexibility.

Students added tens to determine what color to cover the square on the graph. Example: 20 + 30

Student pairs had to research a fact and then create a penguin fact poster together that would allow others who see the poster to learn a new fact about penguins.