Rocks and Pigeons!

The layers of the earth

The Kindergarten kids began learning about rocks and the layers of the earth this week.  They learned the properties of each layer, made models of the layers, and labeled the crust, mantle, outer core, and inner core.

We are so lucky to have the Middle and Upper School science lab in our building!  The Kindergarten kids were able to borrow really cool rocks and begin to learn the three main types of rocks (igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic) and their different characteristics.  They were each given a rock and had to figure out what group the rock belonged to and find other friends with the same type of rocks.

The kids had so much fun creating pet rocks on Friday!  They each chose a rock, painted different features on the rock, and wrote about the pet rock's special features such as the colors, the sound the rock makes, and the name of the new pet.

Writing about the Pet Rock

In math this week, the Kindergarten kids read comparison stories and drew pictures to solve the story problem (ex. Sarah is inviting 26 friends to her birthday party.  She made 17 invitations.  How many more invitations does she need?).  They also investigated the dime and played a math game that encouraged them to collect pennies and exchange them for dimes as needed.  Lastly, the Kindergarten kids practiced counting by 2s and telling time to the half hour.

Emerald City Theater Company in Chicago puts on wonderful plays specifically geared toward children.  The kids loved watching the play, Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!  The play was based off of several Mo Williems books.  During Writer's Workshop, the kids practiced mimicking his illustrations and writing technique of using speech bubbles.  Their stories were very funny and many kids were able to perfectly recreate the pigeon from the books.

We also focused on the feelings of the pigeon throughout the Mo Williems books.  The poor pigeon goes from feeling elated to frustrated to jealous to hopeful.  The kids role played the different feelings and drew pictures of the feelings the pigeon felt.

Next week we will begin learning about volcanoes and end the week with a fun explosion!