Learning about Organisms in Kindergarten

Three weeks ago we began our new science unit on organisms. First we brainstormed as many organisms as we could think of. This generated a list of many animals but very few plants. We talked about what organisms need to live. The classes had good ideas about food and water, but little knowledge of other essentials such as a safe place to live and the need for air to breath.

Our lessons then turned to the question of what is a seed? We used our senses of sight, smell, touch, and hearing to examine a variety of seeds, including kidney beans, peas, sunflowers, and pumpkin seeds. Next, the children were grouped into four teams. Each team was assigned a type of seed to plant. We have been observing the sprouting and growth of our seeds and have recorded their rate of development in our science journals.

Last Wednesday each team worked together to make their table's own terrarium. First a base layer of gravel was poured into the bottom of each terrarium. Then the team put a layer of leaf litter that they had collected from our schoolyard. On top of that they layered soil. Two plants, moss and a tree seeding, were first examined and compared, and then planted in the terrariums. Each child misted their new terrariums before the tops were put in place and then put in the middle of each table so they could be observed on a regular bases.

This week each team will also assemble an aquarium for their table to observe. The two different environments along with the vegetation in each will be compared and contrasted. How are they alike and how are they different? The excitement will be when we add animals to each one after spring break. Then we will compare the different animals, as well.

What a great way to learn about organisms with first hand activities and observations! Since the students have assembled and care for their own terrariums and aquariums, they have a sense of ownership and first hand knowledge of what each one need to thrive. What great lessons about life the class is experiencing!

Joanne Minke and Darla Kiernan

Kindergarten Keyboarding

Yes, kindergarten children can learn to type their own stories using their knowledge of letter sounds and words. This is great experience for them to express their ideas on paper without handwriting confusions interfering.

Typing facts about farm animal that we learned from our Internet research, is just one of the ways we are preparing to share our new information. The main question the children are challenged to answer is, "Why do farmers have these animals on their farms?" We are moving away from the common responses of, because they are cute or the farmer likes animals. The children enjoy using the child-friendly format on the Early Learning Toolkit four screen to type their facts. The children began this project by listing farm animals, choosing one they would like to learn more about, then reading non-fiction books, conferring with classmates, and finally looking them up on the online World Book encyclopedia.

Now all this knowledge is being recorded in sentence form including spaces, capital letters at the beginning of sentences, and ending with periods. The children are able to select the font, its size and the color they want to use. As they type, they have their notes for forming their ideas into sentences, as well as the Word Family Posters and Word Wall to look at for spelling high frequency words.
Although we have been capitalizing our names and using the space bar for some time, typing our own sentences is great way to share our information and to practice using the keyboard.

We will conclude our study with the children selecting to make one of three choices to highlight their animals. They may chosen to make a puppet, create a collage scene, or construct a mobile. Our research projects will be shared with Ms Deegan's second grade class, Ms Hawley's first grade class, and our parents in the next few weeks.

341 Marbles in the "Do the Right Thing" Jar?

How do we know there are 341 marbles in the jar? Why, we counted them. Did we count them by ones? No, we counted them by tens. Each child counted out ten marbles and placed the set on the table. Once we had ten sets on the table, we moved to a second table, then a third one, and finally to the fourth table.
What is a marble jar? It is a container that fills with marbles as children receive compliments for doing the right thing. Earning a marble for making great choices cannot be solicited for by that person, but teachers and students are always on the lookout to catch someone who is being kind, a roll model, or great citizen.
When will we start a new jar? Not until next year. The time has come to start our individual piggy banks. Rewarding our students will now be a penny earned, and savings will be spent at our kindergarten store at the end of the school year.
What should we do to celebrate such a momentous occasion? Crowns sporting the number 341 and cupcakes complete with mini M & M marbles, of course. This Wednesday the children will reflect on the ways we as a class have filled the marble jar by doing good deeds and making great choices.
Did our class do a good job earning marbles? No! We did a great job! Keep up the terrific work, behavior and attitude!

Mrs. Minke and Mrs. Kiernan

WOW! One Hundred Days of School!

Friday was such an exciting day as we celebrated Day 100 of kindergarten all day long. The day started off with a bang with everyone bringing in their terrific projects featuring 100 items. The children proudly showed their classmates their creative posters and models. Our projects were displayed in our K hallway along with projects from the other kindergartens to make Our 100th Day Museum. Our class had everything from a 3D marshmallow igloo, to a jellybean butterfly, and a shell dolphin. Mrs. Kiernan took photos of everyone with their projects. The photos were then mounted on paper so stories could be written about each project.

The class had fun writing Day 100 signs in chalk all over our nearby sidewalks. Next we marked our calendar folders for Day 100 and displayed our bundle of 100 straws, marking this special day. Using our class 100 chart as a model, the children wrote the numbers to 100 on their individual chart papers. Next came drawing and coloring 100 items. The class had fun filling their snack bags with 100 tiny treats to take home. The 100th Day cake was enjoyed by the whole kindergarten right after lunch.

The highlight of the day was the challenge for our class to read 100 books in one hour. No books were to be read twice. Well, the class all signed the pledge that everyone would do their best to complete this goal. So we all grabbed up a stack of books, ready to begin. Along came parents, teachers, and administrators to listen to us read books. Many thanks to Keira's and Kate D.'s moms and Johnathon's dad, to Spanish teacher Senora Bockman-Pedersen, first grade teacher Mrs. Densa, second grade teacher Ms Deegan, secretary Mrs. Becker, assistant head of lower division Mrs. Weinman, and head of lower division Dr. Bianco. But the most popular guest to our reading marathon was headmaster of all of Shorecrest, Mr. Murphy, who stayed almost the whole hour and commented that it was the most fun he had had all week! Then came the exciting task of counting the books we had read. We counted the books into piles of ten, and then counted the piles for a grand total of 216 books! What a feat! Great work, class!

This week we will continue with some follow-up activities about the number 100 to complete our individual books about Day 100. We will exercise 100 times, write about our favorite activity and why we liked it, as well as what we have learned in 100 days of kindergarten, what you can do 100 times, how having 100 of something can really be a problem, and what would you do if you had $100. A class book will be created that features 100 animals and counting by fives. In this week's book check out you will see titles that foster our first three digit number. Now, on to learning about numbers above 100!

Yes, we are 100 days smarter!