Learning With Room 120

On Thursday we had a Mystery Reader that treated us to two books by the same author.  The authors name is Julia Donaldson.  The first book was Tabby McTat a story about a cat named Tabby McTat and his friend Fred who sing together for people on the street.  Then the two are separated and have to live separate lives until they are back together again.  The second book was Room on the Broom a story about a witch who loses some of her things while riding on her broom.  Her things are found and returned but, each character that finds something wants a ride on the broom.  When the broom breaks they must face a dragon and help each other out.  The students loved both of the books.  They each had rhyming text and wonderful pictures.

On Wednesday we had two Mystery Readers.  Our first reader brought Alphabet Zoo by Stephen Holmes, a big book with wonderful pictures that allowed the students to participate in the reading of the book.   The students took turns finding animals whose names began with letters of the alphabet from A to Z.  They were all very enthusiastic and excited to find the animals within the pictures of the book.  The second Mystery Reader celebrated his birthday with us by reading the Aesop’s Fable The Fox and the Stork.  The fox and the stork are friends but don’t always treat each other like friends.  To go along with the story the Mystery Reader brought along a cake decorated with the characters from the story.  The class enjoyed the story and the treat.

Our Mystery Reader today read two books and had a special treat for us.  The first book was The Little Red Hen.  We know that story well but in this version instead of bread the little red hen made pie.  As a special treat the Mystery Reader brought different kinds of pies (meat, vegetable, pineapple, and corn) to share with the children.  The students enjoyed this version and being able to help tell the story since they were so familiar with it.  The second book was The Boy Who Cried Wolf.  In that story a boy learns that if he always lies no one will believe him when he tells the truth.

Tuesday was an extra special day - 100 Days of Kindergarten at ISB!  In the morning, all of the kindergarten classes celebrated with a 100 Day Song and 100 Cupcakes.  In the afternoon we used our special 100 Day Glasses to go on a  “Kindergarten 100 Day Museum Walk”.  During our museum walk we got to see all of the different 100 Day Collections in all of the kindergarten classrooms.  In class we wrote 10’s numbers, made sets of ten to get to 100, counted to 100 by 10’s, and read 100 Day books.  It was a fun day filled with numbers.  Click here to see all of the pictures.

This week we were visited by some second graders, from two different classes, who were collecting data on lost teeth at ISB.  It was an extra special activity because the second grade mathematicians each had a sibling in our class.  During one collection the kindergartners wrote their names and how many teeth they had lost on sticky notes that were collected by the second grader.  During the second collection the kindergartners were separated into two groups and asked how many teeth they had lost.  Then the answers were recorded on a graph by the second graders.  The second grade students did a great job collecting their data and the kindergartners were very cooperative.

All of the young scientists in the class were very excited to find nature, both living and non-living, during our trip to Vachirabenjatas Park on Tuesday.  They took time to closely observe nature and talk about what they saw with their small groups.  The scientists discovered a pond with lily pads and small insects; many trees with different kinds of bark, leaves, and flowers; many plants with different colored flowers; and some birds, squirrels, caterpillars, and ants.  One of the most popular places to explore was the butterfly area.  The students were able to see butterflies of all sizes and colors flying around in their natural habitat, even one that looks like a leaf when it’s wings are closed.  Each of the groups had a camera so that they could record what they saw as a scientist, so there are many wonderful pictures of the nature at the park and the scientists, click here to see them all and talk to your child about them.

In January we had a grandmother and three moms as Mystery Readers.

Our first Mystery Reader for January read Smiley Shark by Ruth Galloway.  It is a book about a shark that loves to smile but when he smiles all the other fish are scared of his shark teeth.  This makes Smiley sad.  When the fish get caught in a net they are glad that Smiley can save them with his sharp teeth.  It is a good story about how everyone can help.

The next Mystery Reader read two books to the students.  The first was Alligator Baby by Robert Munsch.  It is about a mom and dad that are supposed to be bringing home a new baby brother but, they keep bringing home babies from the zoo.  It is a very funny story.  The second book was Rikki Tikki Tembo retold by Arlene Mosel.  It is a Chinese folktale about why Chinese children are given short names.

The third Mystery Reader first read There’s Something in My Attic by Mercer Mayer.  It is a story about a brave little girl that captures the nightmare in her attic.  The next story was Bubble Bath Pirates by Jarrett J. Krosoczka.  This book was about two boys playing pirates in the bath tub.  Their mom even plays along.  This book had great pirate talk and pictures.

Our final Mystery Reader for the month also read two stories.  The first was an Aesop’s Fable The Fox and the Crow.  In the story a fox tricks a crow into dropping a piece of cheese by flattering the crow.  Then the fox gets to have the cheese.  The second story was Toy Trouble by Justine Korman Fontes.  When Zack looses his favorite toy his friends offer to share their toys while they help him find his.  It was a great sharing story.

Thank you to all of our January readers!

Right before our semester break, some of the moms from the class came in with some fun activities for the students. They got to decorate gingerbread men cookies and eat them, make a Christmas tree, listen to a holiday story, and make a paper candy cane.  To see more pictures click on the Photo Album 2 on the right below.

ES Games provided all of the students a chance to work as a team, run, throw, catch, jump, climb, hop, hit, kick, balance, and have lots of fun.  The  pictures for our class are here.

Thank you to everyone that came to our Student-Parent Share in December.  All of the students were very excited and proud to show you some of their reading, writing, science, and math.  All of the pictures are now on our Flickr account just click here to view them.