We were very happy to be back to school on Tuesday and back into our routines after March break and Easter. Tuesday morning, friends were bursting with excitement over their Easter celebrations. We are still talking about chocolate, Easter bunnies, eggs, and seeing lots of ham in lunch kits :)
The Turtles were very interested in decorating eggs. We did a few experiments: colouring with markers, glitter crayons and food colouring. As the children watched the eggs transform, they noticed colours blending together. We revisited colour mixing this week. We set up a Scientist's Lab in the sensory bin so children could see what happens when certain colours mix and make up their own colours too!
The Turtles were very interested in decorating eggs. We did a few experiments: colouring with markers, glitter crayons and food colouring. As the children watched the eggs transform, they noticed colours blending together. We revisited colour mixing this week. We set up a Scientist's Lab in the sensory bin so children could see what happens when certain colours mix and make up their own colours too!
Many friends mentioned flowers as a sign of Spring. With help from the children, dramatic play was transformed into a flower shop. Shopkeepers were very busy making signs, money and floral arrangements for their customers. Mrs. Casselman bought three purple 'orcas' (we made up some of our own flowers too) and it cost $15. She was thanked for her money and told "Please come again soon!" We have very polite shopkeepers here!
One friend talked a lot about his Grandma's return from Mexico this week! He couldn't wait to see her and we wondered how far away Canada was from Mexico. We brought out our globes to take a closer look:
This inspired friends at the block centre to make a map for a car they were building:
Cars of increasing complexity were built each day. Here is the model from Friday morning:
Students stretched out the sounds they heard to make labels for the different parts of car. Encouraging your child to label their pictures is a great way to build writing skills. After the car was built and labels, they looked at a map and planned their route. Which way to Toronto?
This week, the Whales have been very interested in Space. They made rocket ships out of boxes in Dramatic Play. We did lots of research on the planets. Do you know Uranus is the only planet that lays on its side? Some students chose to consolidate their learning by drawing diagrams and pictures of the planets.
Rocket ships got us thinking about other ways to travel. Planes, trains, automobiles....what's your favourite?
Our sink or float experiment has been a popular centre. We are excited to see where this leads. Perhaps we will have some friends interested in making their own boats next week?
Here are a few more pictures to round out the week:
And some sneaky friends made this and hid it in different places around the classroom this morning (including Mrs. Casselman's head!) EEEK! They sure got us. Happy April Fools :) Enjoy the weekend.