Kindergarten Thankful Projects

I am thankful for denise

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The Secret of Saying Thanks

Our May Book of the Month is The Secret of Saying Thanks by Douglas Wood. Here is the "secret" if you don't already know..."The heart that gives thanks is a happy one, for we cannot feel thankful and unhappy at the same time. The more we say thanks, the more we find to be thankful for. And the more we find to be thankful for, the happier we become.We don't give thanks because we are happy. We are happy because we give thanks."




Enjoy our "thankful" projects...

I am thankful for grace

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1st Graders Lost in the Solar System...

Ok, we're not really "lost" in the Solar System but we sure are having fun finding out all about the Solar System!  Visit this cool site to learn more: http://kids.nineplanets.org/portfoli.htm

First Graders Present...Bats!

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Bats danielle

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Super Scientific Circus Class Poll

On Friday, all of Mrs. Zawis and Mrs. Skipper's students headed off to see the "Super Scientific Circus" at the Wilson Center. What an amazing show it was, and certainly proved itself to be super scientific! Two very funny performers, Mr. Fish and Trent the Mime, took several scientific concepts, and explained and demonstrated them through circus and magic tricks. We saw the principles such as centripetal force, gravity, ultraviolet light, sonic booms, air pressure, and many more demonstrated through the use of boomerangs, bull whips, balloons, bubbles, and lots more. Each concept was explained to the audience, and furthermore, we learned how to do many of the science "tricks" and "magic" ourselves. We learned a great deal and really enjoyed the show. In the word of Mr. Fish, "Science is fun!"

We did a class poll and here's what the 1st and 2nd graders liked best about the show:
2nd:
Lainey: Bubbles and Trent
Jack: Trent the mime
Bobbi: Needle through the balloon
Emma N: Sonic Booms and Trent
Seth: Plate spinning
Trevor: Boomerangs
Markis: Boomerangs
Alexandra: Roboman and Ultravoilet dancer
Abby: Light
Amy: Bubbles
Ariana: Needle through balloon
Chloe: Trent the mime
Aiden: Balancing
Sean: Balloon Trick
William: Trent the Mime and Roboman
Jackson: Boomerangs
Emma R: Needle in balloon
Macy: Roboman and Trent the Mime
Abigale: Broom balancing
Carson: Trent fake balancing
Ryan: Roboman, Trent's fake balancing, and Needle through balloon

Stay tuned for the 1st grade results...

My Life as a Reader

So we were challenged by our "Technology Coach" Melanie Holtsman to blog once a week.  I have accepted this challenge because when I first began blogging this was my intention, and I have not kept up with it for one reason or another.  So here goes...

When I think about myself as a reader my mind goes in so many different directions because I am always surrounded by books.  They are in stacks on my nightstand, on my desk, in my car, and overflowing from my children's bookshelves, they are everywhere! I love books and I love to read.  I, like many of my colleagues tend to be a "seasonal" reader. In the summer there is nothing I enjoy more than reading a book.  I mostly read fiction for pleasure.  I love "get-away" books.  You know the kind of books that take you somewhere, the kind you can't put down.  I love reading easy books like the ones written by Sophie Kinsella but I also enjoy the much deeper novels of Jodi Picoult and everything in between. I can read two books like this over a vacation weekend if you let me.

During the school year I devour books that will help me better myself as a teacher.  Currently I am reading Igniting Creativity in Gifted Learners, K-6 by Joan Franklin Smutny and S.E. von Fremd. Books like this I will read and re-read, mark pages, highlight, and take notes until I think I've "got-it" and can put it into practice. 

I also always have some sort of inspirational book lying around that I can pick up and "read on the run."  One of my favorites is Laugh Yourself to Sleep by Rachel St. John-Gilbert.  She describes her book as nighttime devotions for the "Unconventional Woman."  It is a perfect "pick me up" book.

I am a lover of children's literature.  I am always searching for books to share with my children and my students.  In fact, a package just arrived on my doorstep yesterday.  The book fair just so happened to be at our school this week and while browsing the racks I came across the most fantastic book simply titled Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal.  This book is perfect for my gifted class because it is based around the old duck/rabbit optical illusion that has been around forever.  It is about seeing things from two completely different perspectives, which is what my students tend to do.  After purchasing this book I just had to have more by this author so I bought two more books that are perfectly suited for my class as well, Spoon and Little Oink. I can't wait to share all three with my students!

So I really am a lifelong reader.  I simply love to read. Developing students who are lifelong readers has always been my goal as a teacher.  I was talking to my students the other day about one of my childhood favorites, Be Nice to Spiders, I can't remember who it was written by but I can see the cover and remember the book by heart. I plan to find it this week and use it in a lesson.

So, now it is your turn to tell me who you are as a reader! I can't wait to read the replies!

1st Grade is Going Batty!

We are going batty in 1st grade! After reading the book Stelluna by Janell Cannon we were very curious to learn more about these interesting creatures.  Did you know that bats are the only mammal that can fly? Did you know that bats help spread seeds?  Find out all about bats by doing the Stelluna Web Quest.