During Writers Workshop we have been focusing on having an ending to our stories that suggests to the reader that the book is finished without saying "the end". You might call this the conclusion. This example was created by Mr. M today all by himself! Too adorable I had to share!
To end his nonfiction book about geckos he wrote this page. And if you are not well versed in kindergarten writing it says, "I love geckos. Nobody is going... to know as much as I do."
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Because of conferences and then getting back into the swing of things after spring break blogging has been at a minimum. Here are a few great pics of them learning over the last couple weeks. I also added a post previously about an awesome action project your kiddos created and carried out. Please check it out! As we neared the end of our unit of inquiry on the roles we play in the communities we belong to I asked the kiddos how we can help our school community. We noticed that the bathrooms down the hall have been really dirty by the end of the day... toilets not flushed, garbage on the floor, sinks not turned off so they decided to take action! Your kiddos collaboratively decided that we needed to remind our school community to clean up after themselves and keep our school clean. They chose to make signs that remind bathroom visitors to flush the toilets, wash their hands, turn off faucets, and to feed the garbage can. To get started on this project we decided that we needed to know how many bathrooms there are at our school and how many of each sign we were going to need. I asked them how we were going to do that. They came up with a brilliant plan to go for a walk and take a count. (Insert most authentic math lesson ever!!!) So we took clipboards, a blank sheet of paper, and pencil and set off to take the count. We counted toilets and urinals, sinks, and trash cans. Then we went back to class and discussed our data. We shared with each other and noticed how we each kept track of our count and how everyone did it a little different but got the same results. We were also shocked that there are 34 toilets and urinals at our school! Poor custodians! Then we set out to make our signs. Then we took another walk and hung up the signs. Way to take action kinder kiddos!
We were happy to have some new math Centers today. After recess we had Writer's Workshop and a visit from Jake Arrowtop who read to us a Salish Coyote Story. After lunch recess we read Heart Prints a story about leaving "heart prints" on people's hearts when we are kind. This sparked a discussion about our final project. I asked the question, "How can we help the communitites we belong to?" HOLY SMOKES!... they had so many great ideas. In the next few days before Spring Break we will be working to help our family communities and our classroom and school community. Here is the quick list we made. (Pardon the messy list... it was the only way to get their ideas down that were flying out so fast. It's a good problem to have!) Then we had some time for Inquiry Centers. They have been really into making paper creations. One of our friends had the idea of gluing pages together so that their folded origami creations could be larger. Such good problem solving!
Today we finished our community abstract mural inspired by Kandinsky's concentric circle art piece. We went around the circle and said a word that describes a positive trait they bring to our classroom community. They came up with some amazing words like creative, calm, caring, knowledgeable, strong, loving, kind, creageous, mindful, focused, friendly, and thoughtful. Then they each wrote that word on a strip of paper and decorated it. Then they added it to our mural that is now hanging on our wall for all to admire!
We if our final parent visitor on Friday. Not only is Mr. Q's mom Sara a social worker she is also an Army Veteran. The kiddos were very intrigued about her time in the military. Being Friday we also got to visit the library! In the afternoon we put together our Kandinsky inspired concentric circles. We made these circles to represent ourselves and the communities that we belong to.After they dried I cut them in fourths. After a mini fractions lesson we put our circles back together. Then we put the squares back together, kept one of the fourths, then shared the other three fourths with our classmates. Once we had our new pieces, we put our new circle art together. They noticed that their art looked more interesting, cooler, and more like abstract art when we shared our pieces with each other. Then one of our friends said, "Just like our community, things are better when we do it together." I swear I didn't plant her in the audience!!!
Then I asked what we should do with these and they worked together to come up with the idea of putting the new squares together like Kandinsky's original piece of work. This beautiful work of art will be on display at conferences! What a great day to be a kindergartner. After starting the day with specials we came back to the room and read the book Green Eggs and Ham, by Dr. Seuss. Then we taste tested green eggs and ham that Dessa made us as we read the book. After tasting this delectable dish we graphed whether we liked it or didn't like it "yet". It was unanimous... everyone liked it (minus two that decided even a mouse nibble wasn't going to happen). After lunch we had another parent visitor. Doug, Mr. T's dad, is a fly fishing guide. He helps people get outdoors to enjoy nature while fly fishing. We had some time to pull out centers, make Dr. Seuss hats, eat an adorable Dr. Seuss snack provided by Ms. A's family, and watch an episode of "Cat in the Hat Knows A lot About That" on hibernation. It was a great day to be a kindergartener.
We began the day with a math lesson about teen numbers. We decomposed teen numbers into ones and tens and then rebuilt them using base ten blocks. Then we had Dr. Seuss themed Math and Literacy Centers. We had another parent visitor today. Ms. R's mom Kristin came in and spoke with us about her role in the community. She is a social worker for Community Hospital. She gave the kiddos each a pen, magnet, and chapstick from Community. Probably the highlight of their day. Ms. Ploski and I had a PLC meeting and we were subbed out for a big chunk of the day. When we came back your kiddos were richly engaged in Inquiry Learning Centers. Tomorrow is pajama day! We will be celebrating literary legend Dr. Seuss!!!
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by Mrs. WinterKindergarten is truly the BEST and that is why I want to share our world with you! Archives
September 2017
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