Pumpkin Fun!

We had a blast learning about pumpkins the week before Halloween. We had a wonderful visit to the Parker Family Farm to kick off our unit, and then spent time investigating pumpkins and learning all about the life cycle of a pumpkin. 

Investigating how tall our pumpkins were.

How many links fit around the pumpkin?

Will the pumpkin float or sink?

 We read Pumpkin, Pumpkin by Jeanne Titherington, and then sequenced the life cycle of a pumpkin. 

  We read the book How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin? by Margaret McNamara, and then estimated how many seeds our class pumpkin would have in it. We then brainstormed how we could count the seeds to figure out the answer. We decided to use ten frames and count by tens. 

 We had to count really high! Our small pumpkin had 362 seeds! Wow!

Fun At the Pumpkin Patch!

The chilly temperature didn't stop us from having a wonderful time at the Parker Family Farm learning all about pumpkins this afternoon! We started our day with an educational slide show about the life cycle of a pumpkin. We then toured some of the fields and got to feel and describe a variety of pumpkins. The yummiest part of the afternoon was when we got to taste different pumpkin foods, including pumpkin applesauce, roasted pumpkin seeds, pumpkin dip, and pumpkin cookies. I was so proud of all of the students for trying some new and different foods! We finished our trip with picking out our very own pumpkins to bring home. We will use these pumpkins at school for a day or two to do some investigations before they will be sent home. Thank you to the parent chaperones who helped this trip run so smoothly!

Go Noodle!

You may have heard your child talk about the "Brain Breaks" that we take in our classroom. We do these frequently throughout the day so that we can move our bodies and re-energize ourselves. Some of our personal favorites include:

Hello, My Name Is Joe

Pop-See-Ko

Happy

Ants in Your Pants

Boom Chicka Boom

You can sign up to use Go Noodle for free! Create an account and have your child show you his or her favorite! 

https://www.gonoodle.com/

Fire Safety Fun

Today, members of the Hinesburg Fire Department visited H.C.S. to talk to us about fire safety. We even got to explore one of the fire trucks!

Spill Five Beans

We learned a new math game today called "Spill Five Beans." In this game, partners work together to spill five bean counters and count how many beans were red. They then record the number of red beans on their recording sheet. Play continues until partners have filled three columns on their papers. This game helps students practice numeral formation, number combinations to five and counting groups of objects. 

Welcome to Kindergarten!

We have had a wonderful first week and a half of school! We are spending lots of time getting to know each other and the routines and expectations of our classroom and school. I am so impressed with how well all of the children have transitioned into kindergarten! I am sure you've noticed they are a bit more tired than usual, as the demands of the day can be a big change for children. They are all handling these changes very well and I know we will have a fabulous year together! I've tried to take lots of pictures so that you can see all of the fun we have been having!

Building a marble tower during choice time.

Lego City!

Counting the letters in our name and graphing the results.

Hunting for the elusive Gingerbread Cookie!

We found it hiding in Mrs. Miller's office!

Yum yum!

Ripping paper to cover the first letter in our names. 

Building names with magnetic letters.

Working as a group on puzzles.

Fun during free choice time.

Practicing how to make a quiet line. 

Practicing quiet hallway behavior. 

Exploring With Math Tools

We have been spending time learning about how to use various math manipulatives, including unified cubes, polydrons, pattern blocks, geoboards, and pennies and counting mats. We've also used this opportunity to practice rotating through work stations.