Crystal Hearts

We grew crystals this week. We mixed Borax with boiling water until it was dissolved. Then we placed a pipe cleaner heart in and waited. We waited for a long time and then...voila!  Crystal Hearts!  Aren't they beautiful!

Groundhog Day and Shadows

Feb. 2 is Groundhog Day and we have been learning such vocabulary as "hibernation, shadows, groundhog, burrow, winter, spring" etc.  We have also been exploring shadows with an overhead projector and through sunny outside play.

The Amaryllis is Growing

The Amaryllis is very close to blooming!  

Sometimes it is hard to aim the sprayer at the soil.  I think someone got a bit of water in her eye!

It's Growing

The children love spraying the Amaryllis plant and it is beginning to grow!

Watering the Amaryllis

We have been watering the Amaryllis plant daily with a sprayer.  This is hard work for little hands...great for developing Fine Motor Muscles!  The children are learning to take turns too.  I wonder what the plant will look look like when we come back to school next week?  It is hard to be patient and wait for it to grow!

Planting an Amaryllis Bulb

This afternoon, we planted an Amaryllis bulb.  

The children were very eager to spray it with water.  They needed to wait patiently for their turn to spray.  Now we have to be patient and wait for it to grow. 

Ladybugs

Some of the children enjoyed playing in the leaves today.  Surprise!  Under the leaves we discovered ladybugs!

Planting Flowers

We have planted beans and marigolds in Pre K and we will be watching anxiously for them to sprout.  At a play center, we have artificial flowers, soil and other props to play with.  The kids are enjoying this activity.

Wake up Ladybugs!

We spent some time this afternoon finding ladybugs.  They were hibernating under leaves by the fence.    After holding a ladybug for awhile, one boy let the ladybug down and gently covered it with leaves.  "Now it's nice and warm", he said.  Love the compassion!  

Growing Crystals

We have been growing crystals for the past couple of days.  We dissolved Borax in hot water until the solution was saturated.  We inserted a heart shaped pipe cleaner and then patiently waited.  Pre K A needed to be extra patient, as no results were very visible the first day.  Pre K B could see crystals by the same afternoon.  One of the students shared some descriptive vocabulary about the result with her friends.  The crystals were "glittery" and "sparkly".  This science activity was an opportunity to practice social skills....being patient.  Language skills were used too, as lots of language was used by the children to discuss the activity.

Shadow Play

Groundhog Day is coming and we have been learning about shadows in Pre K.

We made Groundhog pop up puppets.  Here, Miss S is playing with her puppet.  She pretended it was her pet and she was brushing his fur.

When we went outside, she pretended to be a groundhog popping out of her burrow.  It was sunny, so she quickly went back into her hole.  Oh, no!  Six more weeks of winter!

We set up an old overhead projector as a light source, and the students had a lot of fun playing with shadows.

Parents came to help trace the children's shadows and we have them displayed in the hall.  Thanks to the parents who came to help.  It was not easy getting wiggly Pre Kindergarten students to stand absolutely still for the time it took to trace their shadows!