Valentine's Day

This post is going to have Valentine's Day pictures and some odds and ends from February as well.

The kids created some pretty scary-cute Love Monsters for the hallway.  I showed my example to the class and they had the freedom to create any monster they liked.  They turned out so original and unique.  They also made cupcakes to fill in my "Ms. Anglin's Sweeties" bulletin board.

I found the best Valentine's cards and little gifts this year.  They eyeball rings were a hit and so were the heart shaped plates.  Thank you Target Dollar Spot!!

We played a relay game during our Valentine's Day part.  They had to balance candy hearts on a Popsicle stick and get through every member of their team.  If they dropped the candy they had to start over, what a battle it was!

To finish celebrating we also had strawberry pop ice cream floats and played Valentine's Day Bingo.

A Student of the Month program was started in our school this year.  There is one high school/middle school student and one elementary student chosen each month.  The teachers nominate a couple of students each month and the winners are selected- luck of the draw- style.  In February, Colton was the Elementary Student of the Month.  I am so proud of him!

~Ms. Anglin 

Adventures of Show and Tell

I believe I've said it before but this is the craziest year of show and tell I have ever had!  We have had so many cool things and they just keep coming!

Ava brought 2 week old ducklings and a daddy duck.  These kiddos are so gentle with animals, its so amazing to watch.

Then Aaron brought his older ducklings for everyone to see.






















Michael brought a very special show and tell picture to share with the class.  He brought a picture of his Great Grandpa and Great Grandma.  They were 102 and 101 years old!  How amazing is that :)

Peyton brought a special stuffed whale for show and tell one day.

Georgia has brought many things for show and tell throughout the spring.  One of them was her remote controlled Sphero and the other was her jump rope and jump rope skills!




















We are all done with show and tell for the year, oh how I will miss the craziness!

~Ms. Anglin

So much science

We have been having a lot of hands on fun in Science class lately.  We've learned about light, sound, balance, sinking, and floating.

Sound
We had an experiment every day during our sound unit.  The first graders had to guess the items in a container when they were shaken.  Students then got to create sounds using rulers and GeoBoards and rubber bands.  They also got to see the vibrations of music.  I placed a mini speaker next to a bowl covered in saran wrap.  I placed sprinkles on the saran wrap and turned up the music.  Students could see the sprinkles dance to the beat!  My favorite activity was when the students made harmonicas out of Popsicle sticks and rubber bands.  As I said to parents then-  YOU'RE WELCOME!

Light
When we learned about light we did many experiments also.  We tested objects around the room to see if they were transparent, translucent, or opaque.  We also played with shadows in the dark!  I made paper animal puppets and the students shined flashlights on them to create shadows on the walls.  They got into groups and had to create a story with their different animals on the walls and the floor.



Matter
When we learned about matter we also learned about mass.  The students got to use the classroom balance to see who could find heavier and lighter things from around the room.  To finish the chapter, the first graders got to go to the Makerspace again and make their own balances out of Legos.  They were shown an example and got to create on their own.  They did an awesome job figuring out how to make a balance.

Balancing paper clips and beads

Another topic that came up in our matter unit is sinking and floating.  The students brought something things from home- something they thought would sink and something they thought would float.

Air

When we learned about Natural Resources we talked about air and how it moves.  We created moving air to move balloons across the gym floor with a straw.  I thought it would be funny to watch- until I had to participate to make the teams even.  It was not at all easy!

These guys are Super Scientists!!

~Ms. Anglin

Makerspace Machines

This is our first year with a Makerspace thanks to a grant.  We have used it a few times as a class this spring and it was so cool!  The students at our school can also go to the Makerspace before and after school most days.  The Makerspace is a place where students can go to create, learn, and make almost anything that they want.
The first thing we ever did with the Makerspace is an activity with the Child Development class.  We made 2 kinds of Play-Doh- conductive and insulating.

The next time we met we used the Play-Doh and squishy circus to create things.  The kids all worked together to make fish, cupcakes, and even glowing hot dogs!

Colton and his glow fish

Working hard on getting the fish to glow

I see a smiling carrot with glowing eyes

Light-Up cupcake

Ahhh! a glowing hot dog

Meika and a glowing carrot

We went into the Makerspace again, but this time we were alone.  The first graders worked together to create towers made out of paper.  The goal was to make the tallest tower or the strongest tower.  Again, everyone worked so well together!  Meika, Michael, and Oliver created the strongest tower.  Peyton and Becca created the tallest tower.

We had a blast in the Makerspace and I know these kiddos cannot wait to go and create more next year!

~Ms, Anglin