Saturday, September 26, 2015

Fall is in the air! Leaves!!

It really felt like fall this week...so what better theme than LEAVES!! We did a really cool leaf science experiment and had lots of fun with crafts. The letter of the week was L...and we continued to work on understanding the value and identifying numbers 0-5

Thursday:
Selfie Stick!
Be careful what you ask for! Last week I made a comment about needing a selfie stick...and low and behold I got one! I quickly learned, "You have to be smarter than the selfie stick!" We had a blast figuring this thing out! Thank you to this sweet boy for bringing it in to us! 

Cheese from Me, Mrs. Karen, and Mrs. Tracy...they had to investigate it too!

Craft Time
Making our Poplar Leaf Fox!



We made these after we read this sweet story about a little fox that was sad his favorite tree was losing its leaves. He tried everything to get those leaves to stay!

Not only is fall in the air...so is young love! I caught this picture and it made me smile! Love these sweet friends!

Science Time
After reading about why leaves change colors we did an experiment. We learned that leaves are naturally colored...but they are green because of chlorophyll. When they don't need chlorophyll (their sugar) they turn colors and then fall from the trees. Our experiment was to show how we can remove the pigment from the leaves. 

Thursday....
Our plan was to leave it overnight and revisit it the next morning.

Friday:
 we noticed that the coffee filters had changed color...to match the color of the leaves.

When I poured the rubbing alcohol out this is what we got!!! The leaves were now brown...but the rubbing alcohol was now the color the leaves had been. The left bowl is red...the middle bowl is yellow/orange...and the right bowl is green. I was even fascinated!
Independent Dot sheet for Letter Ll...
Number Sense
Our number sense sheet. They worked on adding leaves to each number...matching the value and working on counting up (1= 1 leaf...2= 2 leaves etc)

Picking up these tiny leaves can be hard work...but she's got it! 

His smile says it all...PERFECTION!

I then put the leaves into a baggie. This way you can work with them at home!! Let them show you how smart they are!

L is for Legos! They had fun creating an L with Legos!

Nicely done!

Friday:
Craft time...with a bit of science
I gave each kiddo another large leaf. Before we created art with it...we felt the texture of it and talked about its "veins" and what they are used for. We then compared their veins to ours! So cool!


Now...let's paint!

Using a roller!


Then we stamped it! Nature is so beautiful!

Letter Study
L is for lollipop! Well... if we make a lollipop it would be just wrong not to eat one! 

They Liked and  Licked their Lollipops!
We LOVE the letter L!!

Letter study and fine motor time...with a pinch of art!
Fine motor leaf decorating! They used tissue paper and had to "ball" it up and glue it on. 

Such tough work for these hands...but he sure rocked it out!


Math and science investigation
Time to close your eyes and grab a leaf! What color will you get!?


He got red!

Let's count each color and see who has the most! It was a tie with red and green. We then talked about what a tie was. My favorite response was, "I know...my dad sometimes wears them!"
Bible verse of the week: "God will bless you with everything you need." 2 Corinthians 9:8
We talked about the difference between a want and need...many already new! Great job parents!
http://www.preschoolpost.com/NovemberThanksgiving.html#.VgKqht9Viko

Next week...We will be reviewing before fall break...and plan to have a visit from the local fire department to teach us all about safety!

Sunday, September 20, 2015

Seasons & Weather

As always a fun week learning and discovering. We learned about seasons and weather...the letter Ww and the number 5. We created tornadoes and wind.

Thursday:
We began our day with my last 2 kiddos sharing their, "All About Me!" buckets! I have so enjoyed getting to know these kiddos and the things that make them special! Thank you parents for helping them find things to share!


Time to make some Watermelon Sun catchers! Who knew hair gel could be used for things other than hair!? 

Add gel...food coloring...and then count out 5 watermelon seeds.



Perfection! If you don't use them as sun catchers...they make great sensory toys!


W is for Weather!
Great Job friends! 
A future weather anchor? Looking good!


Pattern Blocks to make Ww


We were able to witness a monarch emerge! The wings were still wet...so she settled on my hand and the kiddos were able to see up close this amazing life cycle!

Their faces say it all! BEAUTIFUL!
Friday:
In my room when you drop kiddos off...you never know what you are going to get yourself into! I was able to hunt down 3 parents to do 4 handprints per kiddo for me...so we could make some wonderful seasons! Thank you parents for being so willing and flexible!
How about some, "ring around the rosies!?" 

"They all fall down!"


Painting with Watercolor...Whales! We love the letter Ww!



Decorating our trees...Tis the season!

So awesome!

Math time...adding seeds to our watermelons! Creating such a strong foundation of numbers...and peeling stickers is such a great fine motor skill!


Tornadoes in a jar!
http://www.kidzone.ws/science/tornado/index.htm

Such a great helper!



This tornado was right outside my house 3 years ago. I shared it with the kiddos. We talked about safety plans. They called them "Tomatoes" 

You can't tell...but these kiddos have their hands in front of their face and are blowing. They are feeling "wind"
I modeled wind with a straw and a feather. Then I gave them each a straw and a feather and they practiced making wind!
Our Bible verse for the week:
Ecclesiastes 3:1 "For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven."