Exploring our Classroom Library Together!

 The first month of school was spent exploring the many kinds of books we have in our classroom library. After a couple of days of sharing what kinds of books we read, students were able to notice the many kinds of topics we have. We noticed many alphabet books, shape and number books, books about school and animals. After sorting and organizing books with help, students were guided to help make labels to organize our library

 As the year progresses, our library will change and include various topics. For example, we have a new basket with Fall/ Autumn themed books. We played a game where we look at all the books inside this new basket and guess the topic that they all have in common. This project can continue as the year goes on! 

Taking a Mommy Break!

Mrs. Nesser has been taking a little break from blogging and teaching for a while to spend some time with family and to take care of her new baby, Levi! We've had such a wonderful few months together! Now that baby Levi is a little older, it's time to get back to the classroom. Stay tuned for more from our Kindergarten class this year!

A Day at the Garden

  Last week our class visited the Queens Botanical Garden to learn and observe trees in the Fall.  We observed different kinds of trees and their leaves. Some have pine needles. These trees do not lose their leaves in the Fall.

We saw many different kinds of leaves and observed different sizes, shapes and colors. We collected the leaves for a special project.

We also took a break to look into the pond at the Garden to observe the fish!

Last, we made beautiful artwork out of the leaves we collected to bring home. What changes do you see around you in the Fall?

Making Muffins

 Our class wanted to make a special treat for our Thanksgiving Feast this week. We decided together that we were going to make chocolate chip muffins. First we looked at the recipe together and made a list of the ingredients we would need. The students helped me to write the shopping list. We needed flour, sugar, chocolate chips, eggs, milk, vegetable oil, salt and baking soda. We also would need a big mixing bow, a spatula and a muffin tin with paper cups. 

   During choice time, the students helped to make small batches of muffins. We mixed the dry ingredients together with the eggs, milk and oil. Everyone helped to mix and pour the batter into the cups. It smelled so good while it was baking! Then,  we were able to enjoy our muffins for dessert at our Thanksgiving Feast!

Toys, Toys, Toys!

 Our class recently has been showing interest in talking about the toys they have at home- so we decided to have a special day to share our favorite toys! We started off our day with a toy "show and tell", where students were able to share their favorite toys from home, and students could ask their friends questions about the toy, or show us how the toy works. Our class was very engaged in listening to our friends talk about their toys.
    Next we did detailed sketches of our toys and some were able to include labels and words too!
Later in the day we organized our toys into like groups and we discovered that we had many stuffed animals, action figures, dolls and vehicles, We made a large visual tree map of our toys.
It was an exciting day for all!

"Building" Our Communication

 This week in Choice Time, we worked on using building materials together and practicing our communication with our group members.

  Students used Magna- tiles (magnetic colorful translucent tiles) to create a castle together.

 

     In the block center, students spent several days sharing, planning and creating a city. After the students felt the city was completed, we took pictures and they sketched what they made using paper and clipboards. each day, we did a Choice Time share so students could see what other groups had created!

The Birthday Graph & Light Box

This week we learned all about our birthdays. We colored and cut out cakes with our birthdays on it, and we learned about all the months in a year with a fun song. Then, we made a big graph showing all of our birthdays organized by month. It was fun to see how many people had a birthday in each month.
We also learned about a new center in our class, the light box center. Here we can explore with colors and shapes over light. We can create our own pictures and stories using the shapes. It's fun to use our imaginations to create! What would you make?