Our Winter Bulletin Board Is Finished

Thank you to Donna Johnstone, a grandmother of one of our students, for all of her work in helping me to create a bulletin board with our first graders.  This was the culminating project on our unit of study which answered the question, "What Do Maine Animals Do To Get Ready For Winter?"   Students worked one on one with Donna to create one animal from multiple craft sources such as felt, cloth, yarn, and paint.  Each child then researched facts about their animal from a variety of sources including the internet, library books, and their personal collection of books.  They each word processed (with assistance) a few sentences about what that animal does to survive in the winter in Maine.   Their choices were adapt, migrate, or hibernate.  Here are some pictures of sections of the completed bulletin board.

Phases of the Moon With Oreos

Today we finished our study of night and day.  We answered many questions such as "What is the moon made of? and "Has anyone ever been to the moon?"  As a culminating activity, we duplicated the phases of the moon by scraping away the cream in Oreo cookies.   The children have been extremely engaged in this unit.  Several have expressed an interest in being an astronaut.   Here are some of the pictures of a waning moon, Oreo cookie style. 

A full moon:

The moon begins to wane:

More moon is gone (eaten):

Finally, the moon is completely eaten:

Box Tops For Education

We are having a big push for Box Tops For Education for the net couple of weeks.  We receive 10 cents for every Box Top sent to school.  Do you have any at home in your kitchen cupboards?  Please send them in.  Thank you. 

Thank You Aunt Anna!

My Aunt Anna knitted 25 scarves this past summer.  Each scarf was a different color and a different pattern.  Today Mrs. Bryant (Danielle's grandmother) and my mother helped me distribute the scarves and take pictures of the children.  We are going to create a class book and a picture journal as a thank you to Aunt Anna.  Here are some of the pictures.

This is a picture of Mrs. Bryant and my mom deciding who is going to get which scarf.  We matched them to the jackets of the first graders.

Here is a picture of all of the scarves in clear bags waiting to be distributed to the children.

 This is a picture of the children learning they would be getting a new, home made scarf.

Here is a picture of the entire class dressed in their scarves.  They are making heart shapes with their hands to show their thanks for their new scarves.