The Scent Of The Season!

Hey Science Friends,

Now is the time that we all are thinking about the sights, sounds and scents of the season. So many different ways to enjoy the most wonderful time of the year. One of my favorite scents this time of year is peppermint. It is clean and crisp. It just smells like the holidays. Each time this year I make sure I have plenty of peppermint extract on hand to add to paint and play dough. It is clear and won't stain and it is pretty easy to find. You know, just right there by the vanilla extract in your local grocery store.

Just a few drops will transform some dough into a sensory experience sure to get anyone ready to start talking about this fun experience. What I love is that this time of year you could use any color of dough. I have a stockpile of dough that I am ready to use now and toss when we are finished! And what a great way to set the stage for describing properties of objects?

 Who knew Science could be seasonal and fun?

This is such an easy way to grab a quick checklist, engage in a little sensory language and check those items off the assessment list. Can you imagine the words used to describe the dough? What will the scent remind us of? What about the opportunities for comparative language? It's not so hard to think of a little twist to make Science a little seasonal and get our goals accomplished too!  

               If you need a little help with describing properties click here for a freebie!

Have fun investigating!



Science Newsletter Template!

Hey Science Friends,

I have been working on newsletter templates since the summer and have been using them for a lot of different reasons for parent communication this year already. I did not know how much time it would really save me by having a template to organize my thoughts but it really has.

These have been a huge time saver for me.

The biggest reason they have saved time for me is because before I had a simple template, I would spend a lot of time formatting and decorating the newsletter. Now my time is spent on the content of the newsletter. Another reason this has been so helpful for me is because the space it limited and because of that my message is more focused on the content rather than the fluff.

Until now, I have not had a reason to use page two of the newsletter. That is simply because I have not sent any Science news home this year and I had a little more to say. I can easily print this and copy on the back of page one for a two sided letter. If I want to send these as attachments I can send both of them as well. What my experience has taught me is that if I need more space than a front and back newsletter provides, then I need to probably communicate...more often.

I want the message short, simple and to the point because I want the reader to read it and act on it!

The editable weekly newsletter templates are each the same format and have been changed using seasonal graphics because I didn't want to get lost in learning what I could and could not do within multiple different templates because that would defeat the purpose. The purpose is direct and to the point, frequent communication with the families that I serve. When I was goal setting this summer, more frequent and relevant parent communication was on the top of my goal list. And the main reason I didn't do enough of it last year was largely due to feeling like I did not have enough...time. I had to simplify the process so that communicating with parents was less time consuming for me and the template did just that. The seasonal graphics just made me want to send newsletters...more. All in all, this has helped me work towards reaching my goal of more frequent communication and bought me some time to focus on something else!

So, if you are like me and need to take a bite out of parent communication just click on the images above. Until then, have fun investigating!



Last Call!



Hey Kinder Friends,
THE FINAL HOURS!
Don't let a chance pass you by!

Let's talk shopping! This time of year we are all doing a lot of shopping for the Back to School season. So if Back to School shopping has you frazzled, me and my friends at Freebielicious have you covered! To help with your last minute shopping, I am so excited to be giving away a $25 gift card to my favorite online store...AMAZON!

I am thrilled to be able to help you complete your last minute shopping list with Amazon. For me Amazon is the biggest time and life saver throughout the year. I am an Amazon Prime fan for sure. One of my favorite ways to use Amazon for the classroom when I am lesson planning. When I am at the computer the week before my lesson plan is due, I look at my plans and order any books and small supplies I might need from Amazon. I love Amazon Prime and their two day-no limit super fast shipping. With a click of a few buttons I am ready to go straight to the classroom...prepared! No more running around to different stores just for those small items or books. Amazon has given me time back to spend in other areas! All you have to do is enter the Rafflecopter below for your chance to win the Amazon gift card so you too can just click away and be ready for your favorite lesson!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

  

But wait, it gets better. If you hop over to Freebielicious, you have more chances to win a $300 Visa gift card and lots of other great gift cards from my friends at Freebielicious! Seriously, these girls have you covered for some fabulous and fun Back to School shopping so check it out!

Have a great school year kinder friends!





Crisscross Applesauce!



Hey Science Friends,

Happy B2S sale shopping! I just love this time each and every year. And after all the sales are final and you are in our room the serious work begins...teaching. So many things to think about and consider before you dive right in and teach. And you know no matter the subject, listening is crucial. It has to be taught and expectations have to be set for the year ahead. It doesn't have to be hard or difficult but it as to be taught.

I found this book to go along with my discussion on listening. I put this to good use a time or two last year. With a lot of modeling and role playing, it helped to set the stage for our discussions and provided an atmosphere where we could learn, participate and respect each other. I made some printable posters that I could hang in the area where we have our discussions and that is where it stays for the entire year. When needed, I simply point to he poster as a reminder. If I need to use it for a lesson when new students arrive, I can. If you are interested in your own printables jut click on the image below!

 



Are You Living?



Hey Science friends,

I am so excited to finally finish my I Can Be A Scientist~Learning About Living Things. In the previous years my students have really enjoyed slide presentations mainly because of the images. I don't blame them because I do to. Real images of living and non living things in our world can be breathtaking. As I have spent the summer camping in state parks in Texas, I am amazed at the beauty of nature that often we simply ignore. But when you have time to really look around there are beautiful shapes, colors and textures all around us but sometimes we are just too busy to notice. Considering I have spent the summer really observing living and nonliving things I was really excited to work on this project.  

This PowerPoint Presentation is full of slides and guided questions to help aid in discussions of living and nonliving and basic needs. When I am teaching Science, I love to have real life images and books that support what we are learning but that has been a challenge to find over the years. And because of that, I began to collect images.

The presentation has several rounds of high quality images that will go along with what we are learning and discussing in class. The guided questions are there to help scaffold the learning of new concepts. After a few rounds, the children are encouraged to justify their responses.

I know a plant is living because...

After we have spent three days of learning, discussing and notebooking about living and nonliving things and basic needs we move on to sorts. These can be printed, laminated and stored in Science centers or take home bags. We discuss and sort. When the children are using these independently or in small groups I get a chance to observe and listen and make note of any misconceptions. So while they are busy, I am busy assessing as I roam around. It is pretty simple. To conclude the unit I have enclosed printables that the children will use to record their thinking about living and nonliving things and basic needs. These printables serve as their documentation of learning.

And if you are anything like me and you love the ease of PowerPoint, you can add, delete or multiply slides. You can create more rounds of each series of slides because the kids will always ask for another round. If you need more information just click on the images above! Have fun investigating friends!

 



It's A Deal!

Hey Science Friends,

I know it is silly but I still love school supply shopping. Let's be honest, a good school supply deal actually only comes around once a year and it is hard for a teacher not to get excited. And I sure love a sneak a peak add to help me plan for my trip and get all organized so I can get my game face on and hit the stores! This coming week Office Max has poly snap envelopes on sale for a quarter each. I have to admit I got a little excited about this deal. Friends, think of the possibilities! These are way better than baggies to store stuff in. Think of the games and pieces that can go in these little gems and a snap to keep it all together. And what about the color coding possibilities too? It makes me want to go and grab these up right now. The Office Max says that there is a limit of three. But I have always had 100% luck with showing my badge and getting 25 for the same price. I have even called ahead and talked to the manager before my shopping trip just to make sure I was not disappointed when I got there. Honestly to me these are worth the effort. I have no idea why I never thought of these before. I guess putting them in a B2S add helped to get my mind going in the right direction. What ideas do you have for them? 

Sale!



In honor of the fourth of July I am having a sale in my Teachers pay Teachers store! I hope everyone has a wonderful fourth with family and friends and loads of fun! Just click on the link if you take a break from all of the festivities and need a little shopping downtime. I have my cart full and can't wait to do the same! God bless friends!

Now That's Using Your Brain!



Hey Science Friends,

You know I am crazy about good old Sid. And I was kind of a little bit excited to get a notification that Sid has a new release scheduled for today. If I don't already have all the DVD's I have to be getting pretty darn close to collecting them all. If you are a Science lover like me I am sure you have fallen in love with this series. You just can't beat these episodes.

But this time around I am excited that Sid is talking about the human body! This is a great one to pair with those health and even physical education objectives so you have to love that! This DVD includes episodes-

I Have Muscles Where?: Where do we have muscles?

Sid’s Amazing Lungs: What do our lungs do?

How Did My Dog Do That?: Do animals and humans have the same skeletons?

Now That’s Using Your Brain: What does the brain do?

And you know my favorite part is when Sid and his friends get out their Science Notebooks in the Super Fab Lab. I swear I want to be teacher Suzy! So really Science friends this is a no brainer! Order Now That's Using Your Brain today and start gearing up for a new year of Science!

 



A Seasonal Timeline!



Hey Science Friends,

Like most teachers summer gives us a time to reflect on the past year and the opportunity to plan for a new year ahead. It is a good time to take what worked and make it even better or just scrap the bad and start over. One of the things that I liked in my classroom this year was my seasonal timeline. I started off the year with class pictures. It kept us on track with birthdays during the year. But what I didn't like was that some seasons were a little more crowded than others leaving less room to add pictures or information for that specific time of year. I am already thinking of ways to make it work and work better. I have to admit our favorite part of the timeline were the pictures but other important events happen in the year and room needs to be saved for those events. A timeline is a good place to post seasonal science observations like a tree changing throughout the seasons and those events that take place within each season. I think with a little adjustment our timeline just might make the cut and appear again this coming year! 

Inspired By Nature!



Hey Science Friends,

The other day we were outside and noticed on our playground that we had a beautiful blooming bush. Considering that our school in under construction this was a welcome sight each time we went outside. In science we had been previously talking about plants so we naturally wanted to create something after our observations and discussion. This was pretty simple and very child driven but the end results are always simply amazing...

In the first picture the children drew plants and plant parts on their paper. Afterwards, they independently used watercolor paint to paint in the entire picture. We all love projects like this because anything goes. No matter the color or painting technique it always comes out beautiful. This is one of those projects that is open ended and child directed. All I am really looking for are the plant parts and a little conversation about what the child knows about plants.

The painting of this project has taken several days but it does not bother us a bit. This is something to really look forward to do when all other work is done in a quiet area of the room. Who am I kidding? Is there really a quiet area with 22 kids? Between each session these dry pretty quickly on a small drying rack just waiting for more paint.

Our favorite part is adding the oil pastel in black to outline the drawings. This step really makes the drawing defined and the painting come alive. The child uses his or her finger to smear or smudge the lines. It is always interesting to see who smears or smudges. You can clearly see the personality in each painted picture.

Zaniaria wanted very thick and smudgy lines that she smeared deep into the painting. It looks like her work. And she sure had to remind me that she had true artist nails! As soon as our paintings are finished we will post them here!

 





An Update and Freebie!

Happy Game Day Science Friends,

So exciting all the sales going around! So, I thought I would throw one too but before I did I had to add a little something extra to my My five Senses Reports. I added a few pages to include a Rock Report because as we kick off rocks in class, I wanted to have a report ready to go. It's a perfect addition for describing properties of objects and oral language development.

All the reports go well with this freebie that I previously posted. If you need it just click on the image above and grab yours for some great investigative reports! Who knew Science could be so much fun?

If you previously purchased this unit all you have to do is download it again to get the updates! It's really that easy!