science tools

Early in September I introduced my students to what is a scientist and the tools a scientist uses. Here are some of the activities we did. All of the activities can be found in my science tools unit. One of our very first entries into our science journal was to illustrate what a scientist does.

Our science word wall

Some great books to read

We completed this bubble map after reading the book What is a scientist?

This science reader is in my unit. We used it to practice reading left to right and tracking words.

For this science journal entry the kids drew the science tool underneath the flap.

 

Leaf Man

For a science lesson we read Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. Earlier in the year we learned about what scientists do? We talked about how scientists observe. We used hand lenses to observe leaves and then recorded our findings. The recording sheet is from Kathryn Warner. Get it here.

needs and wants

We just wrapped up our unit on needs and wants. We discussed the types of homes that people live in all over the world. Then we discussed how people get what they want or need.

We read Houses and Homes by Ann Morris and completed the reader's response sheet.

 

Then we read A House Is a House for Me by Mary Ann Hoberman and completed the reader's response craftivity.

 All of the activities can be found here.

community helpers and apples

During the month of October we learned all about community helpers with a little help from Kim Adsit and Chalk Talk.

I found these adorable mini clipboards in the Target dollar spot. Perfect for write the room recording sheets.  Then we moved on to some apple fun. All of the fun ideas below came from April Larremore over at Chalk Talk.

Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy!

A peek into my room

We have celebrated three birthdays this school year. When it is your birthday, during morning work, everyone colors a page just for you. The child celebrating the birthday gets to color the front cover. Simply collect all the pages to make a class birthday book. I adapted this cute idea from Christina Bainbridge.

 

You also get to take home one of these cute birthday balloons from What the Teacher Wants.

This is how I display my birthdays. The frame is from Ikea.

This year our school district is implementing a new program called Literacy By 3. Look at our brand new leveled library! So excited about this. All of the colorful bins are from Big Lots.

Every year I love to include these three adorable crafts by Julie Lee!! So precious. (Chester the raccoon, No David, Miss Viola Swamp)

 This is my IB board to display the current unit of inquiry and central idea we are working on. You can get a set of the key concepts here. Learner Profiles here. Transdisciplinary themes here.

We have been learning all about what a scientist is. The pieces for this anchor chart are from Chalk Talk.

This is currently our bulletin board. I am loving the flamingo trend right now.

I love reading Lacy Walker Non Stop Talker at the beginning of the year to discuss the importance of being a good listener. Chart inspiration from Cara Carroll

 

I love making class books and try to make them regularly. It is always the first things my kids choose to read. Our kindergarten crew class book!

I found this idea on pinterest and started implementing it after our number talks.

While learning about circles we made pancakes!! We graphed blueberries or chocolate chips. Then we made chocolate chip pancakes.  

While cooking they completed this little how to.

We spent some time learning our names!

Here is peek into my classroom! (The charts below are for The Kissing Hand and Chrysanthemum)

 In my classroom we have individual desks, tables, and carpet squares for children to work at.

 

 These are the kiddos mailboxes where they keep their pencil box, binder, and their towel for rest time.