Busy times!

Some math .  .  . 

Some swimming . . . 

Some science  . . . .

And lots of work on polar animals!   It's been a full week in the Ladybugs!

Integrated Studies, part 2

Today we were learning about symmetry.  After a demonstration of making a symmetrical figure, the children were tasked with making their own design.  The kids were supplied with a variety of geometric shapes (pattern blocks) and asked to build a figure around a line of symmetry.  They were so successful!  Would they have been as successful on a worksheet?  Maybe.  Would it have been as engaging?  Doubtful.  Would they remember how to do it using a different medium?  Maybe.    We moved to the art tables, the fold in the paper was the line of symmetry.  Paint was dripped on one side of the fold and then the paper was folded closed.   The kids immediately recognized the art as symmetrical.  They did it over and over again.  Was this art or math or both?  Could it also be science?

Integrated Studies, part 1

At Seabury, I love that we are given the freedom to teach in ways that make sense for children.   Much of what we do in the Early Learning Division is hands on and messy.  We do very few work sheets, instead we rely on activities where the children can be actively involved.  The activities we do don't always need to be classified as "math" or "science",  rather they come under the heading of "integrated studies".   This project was painting with baking soda paint and then dripping vinegar on the paper. This is a science project but it's also art.  The kids enjoyed the process and asked to repeat it several times.  Did they learn anything?  Yes!  When you add vinegar to baking soda it foams up and spreads across the paper.  Will they remember doing it?  Most likely.  Can we take what we observed and apply to a different situation?  A  baking soda volcano perhaps?  Absolutely!  This project was multi faceted.  Fine motor skills were needed for the pipettes.  They needed to use just enough vinegar for the paint to move and not so much that it ran off the paper (that takes a lot of thought and control). The usual social skills were also used to ask for new colors of paint and taking turns.  It was a successful activity.

Swimming lessons!

Swimming lessons are off to a great start!  Everyone is having a good time and the instructors are great with the kids.

Back to School!

beginning observation

ending observation

 We're back in the swing of things in the Ladybug class.  We have been learning about winter weather and snowmen.  For science, we did an observation of waterbeads.  This sparked an interesting discussion and the use of very descriptive vocabulary.  The kids made 3 separate observations and recorded them with drawings of what they saw.  This was a good opportunity to sharpen their observation and descriptive skills.