What a glorious, fun, and full week we've had! Some of the highlights were:
Making pumpkin volcanoes!! We talked about the chemical reaction of an acid and base (baking soda and vinegar), and then experimented with adding food coloring and a bit of dish soap for an extra exciting eruption! The class enjoyed this so much, they carried it over to a potion making station at our mud kitchen for ongoing potion- making throughout the week
“Playing Teacher”- the children have been taking turns “playing teacher" and reading books to the rest of the group gathered on the rug. It is so wonderful to see how this brings out confidence among our students to share and present with the rest of the class as they practice their reading or pre-reading skills.
Number Hunt- The children enjoyed finding numbers 1- 10 hidden around the room and then tracing or crossing them out on their scavenger hunt sheets as they find each number. They enjoyed this so much that they requested a hunt for number 1- 20 the following day!
Guessing, estimating, and counting pumpkin seeds! After all making our best guesses, we counted the seeds in some of our smaller pumpkins by counting 10 at a time in egg carton holes. It was great practice for children to experience counting by 10’s in a practical way, and many children were able to observe the patterns they heard as we counted by 10’s, eventually joining in and counting with the teacher.
Halloween Word Building- We’ve been continuing to explore phonics concepts through games, stories and play, and this week the children enjoyed building Halloween- themed words with letter tiles.
“Mañana Iguana”- We enjoyed a story called "Mañana, Iguana", a variation of “The Little Red Hen” that is all about helping out to throw a party (just as we were this week)! This book also built on some of the Spanish vocabulary we’ve been practicing, and the children enjoyed practicing saying each Spanish word aloud and joining in with the repetitive language of this story.
We spent lots of time preparing for our Halloween Story Time event by creating props and set pieces for Room on the Broom, making a piñata and games for the party!
Practicing poetry, a verse at a time, and exploring the poem through movement. One of our class favorites has been “Come Little Leaves” by George Cooper
We also celebrated Esther’s 5th birthday this week by making cards for her and enjoying a “birthday walk,” with a special visit from Esther’s mom. :)
Farewell, October! We've loved you so much!
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