Boat Float

We have been learning about solids and liquids.  We experimented with testing many objects in water to see what would sink and what would float.  We also tested all kinds of plastic bowls and cups to see which one would make the best boat:

dollar section at target several years ago

 "the winner" -  We decided it must be because it is wider and has straight sides.

This really helped the students see why a boat must be balanced.

Next, the students made their own foil boat! 

Each student recorded how many frogs their boat held.

They also recorded this in their Learning Log!

The winning boat!!

It held 164 frogs!!! 



Pumpkin, Pumpkin . . .

This week we read the story Pumpkin, Pumpkin by Jeanne Titherington. 

After reading the story we talked about how a pumpkin grows from a seed, to a sprout, to a flower, to a green pumpkin, then a small orange pumpkin, and then finally a full grown PUMPKIN!  I wanted the students to be able to share this story at home.  I gave each student to paper plates to paint orange. 

Then each student colored and cut out the life cycle of a pumpkin. 

After each student had colored and cut out the parts we stapled them to some fun, root looking yarn.  Next, we stapled the end of the yarn that was attached to the small orange pumpkin to the plate.   (This allowed the students to pull out each phase of the cycle as they told the story.)  We then stapled the two plates together to make a pocket and added a stem

pumpkins start as a seed

 then they grow a stem and a flower

after the flower, comes a green pumpkin, and an orange pumpkin

The students LOVED the craft and they were excited to take it home to share it with their families.

Behavior Plan

This year we have started a school-wide behavior plan.  Each teacher has this poster in their classroom (I added the positive parts to my classroom poster)

This system seems to be working FABULOUSLY.  Each time the child makes a good choice they move their clip up.  Each time they need to be reminded of the rules they move their clip down.  At the end of each day the students colors their behavior on this log and they write a word to describe their day.  This allows the parents to see how their child’s day was each day.

I Can DRAW

This year I have noticed my students really need practice drawing.  I found this Follow the Directions and Draw It All by Yourself book. 

Each week I pick an animal from this book, then I find a book that will teach the students about that animal.   Next, I use the book to help me draw animals.  This model how to draw the animal.  We then create a Story Map of details from the book.  My students use this map during writing to help them recall the facts from the story.