Thursday and Friday, June 12-13, 2014

Yesterday was field day at School #33.  The students spent the entire day in various team-building activities like soccer, a walk-a-thon, painting stones, playing in a bounce house and more.

Today, the first graders and I spent the day at Becker Farms.  Most of the students have never had the opportunity to pick their own fruit or vegetables, so we were taking them strawberry picking.  It was a late season for strawberries here and we were worried that they wouldn't be ready, but it turned out that we were the first group to pick this year!!!

We started the tour in the old barn. 

You could see goats and a pond from the barn window.

The students learned about what the farmers do.

Then we rode on a wagon.

The wagon took us down the road...

...to the strawberry fields.

The students quickly spread out around the field,
looking for the best strawberries.

We saw a tiny friend on the strawberry plant.

A little ladybug! 

Every student picked a container full of strawberries!

I thought the strawberry plants were beautiful.

After strawberry picking, we got to feed the animals! 

We found many baby toads.

The girls found a "mama" toad and decided to reunite her with the
babies. 

 After lunch, we had time to play on the playground!

There was a tiny turtle who was difficult to photograph.

And lots of fish! 

J was quietly searching for toads.

This was a great trip!  One of the students who never really speaks was so animated on the ride from the strawberry fields.  I've never heard him talk so much!  Being out in nature, seeing how the food they get from the supermarket is grown, seeing animals, interacting with the environment- these things are so valuable and create lasting memories for children. Once again, I'm grateful to be able to interact and capture these moments.  The "mama frog" story was a delightful experience. I hope they will document that with me as they reflect on the trip. 

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

120- I pushed in today, as I had to leave early to go on a field trip with 112. As soon as I walked in, J called me over to him to take a picture of what he was creating.

J- They are Mama and Daddy.
A- This is a whale with the dinosaurs.
J2- We found babies for the mom and the dad.
Teacher- Your provocation is, "What do the animals need to survive?" Tell me about that.
J3- They all need water.
A- Food.
J3- A rock to stand up. Fish. The shark needs fish.
A- Toys and a bed. In a house!
Teacher- What is the animals' house?
J2- It's like the fairy house! Outside.
A- Monkeys live in trees. And we all need air.
Teacher- What is the animal's home called?
A- A home? No... A house?
J4- A habitat!
Teacher- Do all animals have the same habitat?
A- Some got water, some got air and some got homes.
Teacher- What kind of home?
A- Like the tree the monkeys live in. They've got to find food. Dinosaurs got to find meat.


After 120, I boarded a bus with 112 to head to the Aquarium of Niagara.  We brought their ocean mural, which is being installed in the community room of the aquarium.  They offered to hang it for us and they promised to send me a photo once it's in place.

The students had so much fun seeing the creatures they'd studied all year in person. They watched penguins being fed, saw the sea lion show twice and were surprised that we'd booked the Touch Tank, which allowed them to touch and hold several sea creatures!

Watching the penguins being fed.

This shark cage was a big hit.
Everyone took turns pretending they were being attacked by the shark.

The sea lion show from above.

The touch tank had starfish...

...and snails...

...four different kinds of crabs...

...a horseshoe crab...

...a lobster...

He had rubber bands on his claws so he couldn't pinch us.

The students were timid at first, but then they enjoyed touching the creatures.

We saw turtles that looked like dinosaurs.

This is where the mural is going to go.  It's the perfect spot! 

The second graders are studying the sturgeon, so I took a pic for them.

We had time to do some observational drawings of the sea lions.

Then we watched the sea lion show from below. 

Before we left, I asked them to make predictions about what we would see. Seven students were on the trip and six had never been to the aquarium before.

Predictions:
We will see: 
Penguins
Fish
Shark
Turtle 
Drawings

At the end, I asked them to use the bus ride to think about something they learned.

M- Sea lions are friends with people and they can do tricks.
D- The sea lions can jump really high.
Marylian- The sea lion swim fast.
Arelys- The sea lion eats fish and the penguins eat fish.

When we got back to school, the students used graphic language to describe what they learned about.

 

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

120- We took our fairy house on a walk...

 We wanted to place the house in nature, to see if any fairies find the house and move in.

On our walk, we saw how still the water is in the creek. We noticed littering, too, which we used to talk about the Alberto Rey exhibit at the Burchfield and why we mustn't litter.  We saw a frog and heard birds.

108- I had two students create their identity portraits, as they our new to our building and we don't want them to feel left out of the classroom identity book. 

118- The students are still diligently working on their animal book. 

101 and 103- We took the pre-k students outside and let them draw their fairy houses in a natural setting. They made up stories about the fairies, pretending to see the fairies enter and enjoy the new house and its setting.