I blinked and this week was over! Welcome back from spring break everyone! We didn't waste a second jumping right back into learning and explorations. Here's what we were up to this week:
This week was all about clouds! What do they look like? How do they change shape? Why are some clouds high and some clouds are low? Ask the children! They can tell you all about it! The teachers also got a lesson in cloud formation. It turns out, the temperature and the weather have a lot to do with the shape, color and height of the clouds in the sky. The children also learned about the different types of clouds including, Stratus (flat clouds, low in the sky), Cumulus (big fluffy clouds) and Cirrus (thin, curly, wispy clouds). Each morning, the children looked out the window, determined the type of clouds that are in the sky and graphed it during morning meeting. See the pictures below for the beginning stages of the cloud graph.
During our group discussions, a few of the children made a great observation. They observed when the clouds cover the sun the temperature is much cooler then when the sun is out and shining. Great observation, little meteorologists! We also read some great books including, "Weather Clouds," by Ann Herriges, "Cloud Dance," by Thomas Locker, "Little Cloud," by Eric Carle and "Clouds," by Anne Rockwell. You should also ask your child to sing you the weather songs they learned this week!
And you all know how much I love a good experiment! The children observed and participated in two great experiments this week. The first is called, "Cloud in a Bottle." The experiment began with a plastic bottle, rubber plug, bike pump, and warm water. We began by asking the children what they thought would happen. Some children thought the water would heat up or cool down. Others thought the bottle would explode! After the hypotheses, Mrs. M began by filling the bottle with a small amount of warm water. She quickly sealed it up and began to pump air inside. After just 5 pumps, the plug popped off and out poofed a cloud! I wish you all could have been here to hear the cheers and excitement from the children! And they convinced Mrs. M to do it several more times, each time being more and more exciting!
Our second experiment asked the children, "How does a cloud know what it is ready to rain?" Some of the answers included, "when it's really wet" and "when it gets really dark." The children are on the right track! So we filled a jar with water, used shaving cream to make the cloud and began to drop blue colored water onto the cloud. After probably 100 drops, the "cloud" began to "rain" blue water! So the children learned that clouds can hold a lot of water and they begin to rain when they are too heavy.
This week also included cloud sketching, creating cloud formations by stretching cotton balls and counting cotton "clouds" using clothespins to also practice fine motor skills.
Phew, I think that's all!
Here's what's up next:
May is seed and planting month! The children will explore and learn all about seeds, roots, plant parts and flower parts. We will also begin to plant in our outdoor vegetable garden and make our outdoor play space more beautiful and inspiring for the children.
Reminders and Important Dates:
- Tuition was due today, May 1, 2015. Please submit your payment if you haven't already done so.
- Our Playground Beautification Day is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, May 16th in the morning. Look for an Evite in your inbox soon. We are inviting all parents to help us make the playground even more beautiful for the children. This includes, extending our garden for more vegetables to grow, adding fresh sand to the sandbox, preparing the ground for grass seed, planting bushes and flowers and leveling the play houses on the hill. Any and all help is very much appreciated!
- SEE will be closed on Monday, May 25th for Memorial Day.
- Class picture re-take days will happen on June 4th and 5th at 9:30am. Reminder emails will be send as the date approaches.
- Our end of the year play will take place on Thursday, June 25th and Friday, June 26th at 10am. Each child will be assigned to a performance date and an important role in the play. Save the date and stay tuned for more information! A casting party will follow after each performance.
Check out a few of the pictures from this week:
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| Shaving cream cloud formations |
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| The rain cloud experiment set up |
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| The rain is coming! |
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| The beginning of the cloud graph Hope you enjoyed the blog! Have a lovely weekend! Joanna |
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