Surprise!

We used old..decade old...seeds for a fraction activity. The students wanted to know if the seeds would grow...so we planted them in some soil from the vermicomposter. The seeds didn't grow. After 2 weeks, it was time to add them to the vermicomposter. I dumped the contents of the cup and found a baby worm in the bottom of the cup. I must have scooped up an egg in the soil when we started the experiment. A pleasant surprise indeed.

Reflecting on our Science Inquiry

So the egg shell on both the control egg and the fluoride egg were completely dissolved in the vinegar after a couple weeks. The membrane was still intact so the eggs still maintained their egg shape. First graders being first graders wanted to poke the egg to see what it was like inside after they had a chance to feel how soft and springy it was to the touch. So of course we did! We found that the egg inside looked just like a normal egg when you crack it open. The yolk was intact too. Sooo cool! The delicate membrane was more protective than the hard shell. BUT that wasn't all. Then we looked at the cup that had water and table salt in it. The water had evaporated sitting in the window. The salt remained, but...it was above the line where the water had been. How did it happen? We decided the salt must have been deposited there as the water slowly evaporated. But the best observation we made (I have never seen this myself)was that in the bottom of the cup, there were cube-shaped chunks of salt. How did it happen? There were literally cubes and we only used table salt. Did you notice that every time we get an answer, we get more questions? Scientific investigation is sooo much fun, and an amazing avenue for learning. I LOVE it and so do the students.

Worms, Worms, Worms

So Thursday we filled in a KWL chart for "worms". We KNOW a lot about worms. Everything we knew was in one of he books we read. We had some great WONDERING questions, but we could only answer a few with the books we had in class. We need to use more resources. We LEARNED some very interesting things, too. Did you know their are over 1200 kinds of worms, an average yard has about 1800 worms in it, and a worm eats 1/3 of its weight in a day? Also, worms can live to be 10 years old, but on average only live a year. Well, I decided it was time to add a new tray to our vermicomposter Friday morning with so much interest in our worms. The students decided that the worms are like our pets since we take care of them. While showing the students what the previous two trays looked like,we discovered young worms which I think is exciting. That means we are taking GOOD care of them. It made me curious about the worms life cycle, so I did some research. Now I just want to take a second look to see if I can find worm eggs to show the students. I guess I'll just have to wait till Monday.

Thinking Like A Mathematician

To finish our spectacular day, we did some pumpkin exemplars. Since we are working hard on our knowledge of fractions this year, we added a fraction question to each exemplar. These students sent me to the moon and back. They were up to the challenge and worked together to solve each question they were given. "The farmer has 12 pumpkin seeds and he is going to plant them in rows, but the rows have to be equal in number. Find all the ways the farmer could plant the seeds. Then identify the the planting pattern that splits the seeds in third." Ask my students, they can tell you...and it isn't just because they are rural children.

Visit to the Frog Bog

It was a beautiful day to visit the Frog Bog. We took a class picture at the outdoor classroom, toured the trail, gazed upon the bog and cattails. So many interesting questions. Curious minds want to KNOW. The students were amazed that the trail looped around to where we started and wanted to know if we could go back the other way. What's a person to say? YES, we can! and we did. Then the most amazing thing happened. My bucket overflowed as they started saying..."Thank you." On top of that, when I asked them if they could think of any experiments/explorations we could do at the bog, they suggested awesome ideas. We could test the worm tea. We could make a home for the animals and watch them to see if they like it. We could make crafts from the nature things we find...leaves, twigs, seeds...to share with others. Aren't they sweet?

Pumpkin Exploration

Hooray! Another chance to think like a scientist. Today we started by looking at the KWL chart we started yesterday. We Know a lot about pumpkins already. We Wondered some interested inquiries. We worked together to answer the questions from what we Learned. Did you know some pumpkins grow big enough for an adult to sit in them and float like a boat. We found that pumpkins do float, but then we wondered why? It isn't just the air inside because the seeds and pulp floated when we put them in water, too. We sorted, ordered, predicted, measured, counted, tasted (toasted seeds), and voted on the face to be carved. We even voted on which pumpkin would last the longest and how long the pumpkins would last. Lots to do and lots of fun.

Force & Motion STEM

We participated in our first STEM activity today. We started by discussing what STEM stands for. The E was hard, but we had some good ideas...experiment, explore, education. For those that don't know, E stands for Engineer. Yes, the 1st Graders became engineers today. Their challenge was to design and construct a ramp by collaborating with a partner. When the ramp was built the students made a clay person to ride in the truck and tested their ramp. They wanted to try to make the toy truck go further than others, but the person couldn't fall out. The students worked well together and made modification to their ramps after testing. Then, we went to the gym to compete. The winning truck traveled the length of 25 pieces of paper. We can't wait for our next STEM challenge. WE CAN DO ANYTHING WE SET OUR MINDS TO DO!

Experiment in Working Without a Target

Sooo...I told the students we were going to do something different. I told them to hold a paper plate on their head so they couldn't see it. I told them shapes to draw with specific color crayons, but I didn't tell them what the outcome should be when we finished. When they finished I asked them if it looked like a jack-o-lantern. Of course, it didn't look anything like a jack-o-lantern. Then we discussed why. 1. They didn't know what we were working toward. 2. Without knowing the goal, they couldn't make a plan. and 3. I took their tools (sight) away from them. THEN we did it a second time: 1. They knew our target was to make a jack-o-lantern with geometric shapes. 2. They could plan how it would look. and 3. I let them use their eyes and a pattern block template for shapes. Quite a difference in the results. NOW that's something we can make connections with in the future.

Solid Writing is a Gas

It was the perfect way to end the week. The journal writing assignment was an effort to determine what they had learned about matter while providing a writing platform. They need only to choose one thing to provide as an example of matter, identify its state, and offer proof. As I read the students work, I could sense the spreading of the warm fuzzy feeling. The one pictured says, "A puddle is a liquid because it can stretch out until it can't any more. Steam is water vapor (language of a scientist we discussed) because it can fill the whole entire room." On the back it continued..."A mug is a solid because it can not change its shape. Matter is real cool." Another student wrote,"A brick is a solid because it won't break unless something does something to it." I found out that "Milk is a liquid that comes from cows." and "An ice cube is a solid because it is hard and won't change its shape." If this wasn't enough, I could also sense their pride in thinking like scientist. Woohoo!

Apples All Around

So we have done a lot with apples lately. We explored last week by making observations, weighing, measuring, and tasting. Monday, we compared our observations about apples and fresh, chunky applesauce. Wednesday, we tasted apples in their liquid form as apple cider. Today, we read a mini-book called "Apples All Around" in two of our small reading groups. The strategy was supposed to be "using picture clues" to figure out unknown words. Well, you have to be flexible when working with young people. They kept reading it as "Apples are"...here and there page after page. Page after page I reminded them to read the words that were on the page. Then a light-bulb comes on in my head. They are, unknowingly, using the "Does it sound right?" strategy. It didn't sound right because it was phrases instead of sentences. They wanted to hear it as sentences. So what do you think we did? Of course, we added the word "are" appropriately to each page and reread the book. It made me smile. Awesome day!

A Spectacular Day for Learning Science

We had so much fun. We first collaborated with classmates to identify the 3 states of matter, the characteristics that define them, and examples of each. Then we made Jello. We discovered that Jello disappears in water, but in the language of scientists it really "dissolves". And in the language of scientists, steam is called "water vapor". We predicted that the Jello would change from a liquid to a solid if we chilled it. We were correct. Then we had to use Mama's rule to split our pieces of Jello with our partners. One child cut, the partner picked their piece, and nobody argued. Math and science are so much fun.

It was such a nice brain workout going outside to practice counting backward from 30. We used our outside voices to help us practice. Not often is an outside voice a "good" thing. It was Friday afternoon.

August Already?!

It is hard to believe that it is August already. I have done a lot of reading. How about you? I have worked in my flowerbeds and played in the pool, too. What have you been up to this summer? In addition to these fun summer activities, I have tried my hand at being a carpenter, electrician, inventor, seamstress, and a writer. Have you tried anything NEW on your vacation? Well, for the next 3 Mondays, I get to play student because I have classes to take in preparation for this school year. I am looking forward to meeting you. Enjoy the rest of the summer and don't forget to enjoy some good books.

Back on Line

We're back on-line. I like the technology as an option to stay in contact with my students and their families. Please follow the blog and feel free to post your comments. I look forward to hearing what you have to say. Let's start with your plans for summer. I'm going to do some reading, some gardening, and some playing in the pool.