We made our first trip to the vernal pool this week. We were prohibited from visiting it in the fall due to concerns about a possible outbreak of the West Nile Virus in our area. The children were very excited about this impromptu trip and voiced much excitement and misinformation, as well as anxiety about what our trip would involve. Will we be taking a bus? Will there be bears in the woods? Here is a class picture taken by the biggest tree in the pool area.

From beginning to end, I recorded some of the happenings and thinking going on. Here is a link to the video prepared after all was said and done. It is another wonderful example of Kindergarten science in action. A side benefit to this experience is the developing language skills of the students. More and more are asking to participate in sharing their thoughts and observations.
Click on the Google Video logo and choose full screen for a bigger image.

This week, our class used Mac laptops alone for the very first time. We explored the installed software StoryBook Deluxe. While there were a number of questions, the children seemed more than happy to click away. When they really got stumped with an error type message, they called for help. The friends at their table were also happy to jump up and show them how they could do something cool. As for Mrs. Piper and I, we were more than happy with the end result. I have signed up for the cart again this Friday afternoon for the short time we have during rest. It is reserved for big blocks of time for much of April already. We will try to steal a bit of time whenever possible. Here is a short video of some of the students as they try to explain what they are doing. Once again, I emphasize the importance of developing good language skills. Explaining their own processing requires higher level thinking skills. Great stuff from some great kids!!!
Click on the Google Video logo and choose full screen for a bigger image.

For several weeks we have shared a VoiceThread presentation of a child acting as the Star of the Week. The rotation for the Star is over but we have not celebrated each child with their own VoiceThread. So let us continue on through the class. This week we will hear a bit more about Our Buddy Zeynep. I hope you enjoy the video of Zeynep as she talks about the plant on her table. The full video on this activity may be found at Kindergarten Science – Plants.

Here is a link to this week’s newsletter.

microsoft-word-news0327

Here is a link to this week’s newsletter.

microsoft-word-news0320