Force and Motion -- Marshmallow Shooters!

Whew! I needed a blogging break. Keeping up with this blog and my classroom blog for parents was stretching me thin. But I'm back with some fun science activities to teach force and motion!

This week we are learning about push and pull, friction, and how to measure movement. When I saw this idea from Real Simple magazine (my FAVE!), I knew it would be the perfect fun for this unit!

So after I had these made, I gave all of the students a few marshmallows to eat....just to get that out of the way! The rest were STRICTLY used for Science!

We discussed and demonstrated that little force won't move an object very far (or very fast), but if you use BIG force, it will move faster and travel farther. Wow, they had fun practicing that with their marshmallows!

We also discussed how we can measure how far things move. We went outside and each student had a turn to see how far they could launch their marshmallow. We used a tape measure to record the results.

Push and pull....force....measurement.....what a fun way to teach these concepts!!

Halloween Punch-A-Bunch!

Today, we had a wonderful time celebrating Halloween! I love all the Halloween freebies going around, including the WONDERFUL October Fun Facts by Denise at SUNNY DAYS. I was thinking about how to use these fun facts with my class. Somehow I got to thinking about Price Is Right and my favorite game was Punch-a-Bunch, where they punch a board and get the money that is inside. So I made my own punch-a-bunch board for my kiddos. Each student got to punch one, and inside they found candy and also a fun fact that we read to the class and discussed. It was so much fun!

To make the Punch board, I used styrofoam bowls, 2 layers of tissue paper, and tape. I taped the bowls to a science display board. It worked perfectly.

***However, if I were to do this again....I'd use the thicker Chinet brand bowls, they could be reused that way. You could of course use this idea for a review game for a test in any content area or skill. 

The board before the punches.

The students picked a punch....

Grabbed the goodies....

and read the fun fact to the class.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!

A Pumpkin Experiment

We started this experiment a couple of weeks ago when we studied pumpkins. We wanted to know if we could grow a pumpkin plant inside of a pumpkin, if we took of the top and added soil and water. We wanted to grow a pumpkin in a pumpkin! Here's what we did:

Guess what! Yesterday, 9 days after we did our experiment, we saw this:

And today there are 4 sprouts! The kids were so excited to see that our hypothesis was correct! This is a fun activity to add to your pumpkin unit!

Techy Tip - Podcasting

Often when we talk about using technology in the classroom, it's the teachers who are using the tech (SMART boards, document readers, etc). What are you doing to get the kids using technology?

One of my favorite teachers is Mr. Colosi. I first heard of him when I was competing for an Interwrite contest. Mr. Colosi's class won. He puts the tech in the kids' hands and the things his first graders do are amazing! You can check our Mr. Colosi's class by going HERE.

One thing he does with his class is podcasting. Podcasting is really simple with GarageBand. If you followed my TUTORIAL on how to record books in GarageBand, you can teach your kids to podcast. The main thing they need to know is how to record (push the red button) and how to stop recording (spacebar). Then you can show them how to click and drag images and music into the podcast.

I use podcasting with one of my above level reading groups. The goal they are working on is reading fluency, and podcasting helps them analyze their expression, rate, and intonation. It's a powerful self-reflection for them!

Here's a sample I did with my kids this week. If you would like more information about podcasting with your class and a sample script, please comment below.

CHOICE Time for the Daily 5!

Yesterday was the day my firsties have been waiting for -- making their own choices for the Daily 5! I knew they were ready! We spent the minilesson during the first choice to talk about my expectations for choosing, which include the following:

1. You must pick Read to Self every day.
2. You must do Work on Writing 2 times a week (we also have a separate time for writing).
3. No more than 6 at the Listen to Reading Center. 
4. There must be an even number for Read to Someone. 
5. Pick a variety of activities.

So far, so good! I will start reading groups tomorrow -- for now, I'm still individual conferencing and making sure things are smooth before I'm committed to groups!

But isn't this a beautiful thing??

My Word Work and Work on Writing stations are on the other side of my classroom.

Also just wanted to share how I use our "CHECK OUT OUR SCHEMA" chart.

A student stands under the poster and tells us their schema prior to reading a book. **Emphasize to the others in the class that everyone's schema is different. They may not have the same schema as this student does.

 

Then, we read the story....

After the story, the same student gets up to tell us the new schema they have after reading the book. Also, if their were some misconceptions, those are talked about as well. Students are really able to see how schema grows and changes during this lesson.

 

Thanks to Rachael for the fabulous idea! This reading response sheet can be used to recording schema and thinking prior to reading, and after reading. Mark schema before reading with red, and after reading with blue! Here's a freebie for you! Great idea!!

If the graphics aren't showing up below, don't worry, it will download just fine. 

schemaresponse

October Readers' Theater

I love to have every student in my class participate in a readers' theater during the month of October. We practice a lot, have fun putting props together, and then we invite the parents in for a fun little show.

Each one of these scripts has 10 parts --- perfect to split your class in half. Depending on how many kids I have each year, I may assign the narrator parts differently.

They are challenging enough for your higher students, and there are parts for your beginning readers too. 

The first one I'm offering is Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman. This is a cute tale about a witch who can't get her pumpkin off of the vine and the friends that help her.

bigpumpkinRT



This story is always a favorite! The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams is a fun story about a lady who is walking home and runs into a pair of shoes, a shirt, a pair of pants...and a HUGE PUMPKIN HEAD! The ending may surprise you!

littleoldladyRT2010

Have a great week, everyone!!

More and More Clouds

Well, wouldn't you know it?! It's been such a beautiful week that there has only been 1 day with clouds that we can observe! Just loving this awesome weather we are having in KS this week!

Just wanted to update with a couple more activities we are doing this week with clouds.

Yesterday, we made Cloud Dough.

*8 Cups of Flour
*1 Cup of Baby Oil

Mix with your hands until it has the texture of cornmeal.

We have a gluten-free kiddo -- but rice flour is a fine substitute for regular all-purpose flour!

 

Once you touch this stuff, you'll know why it's called Cloud Dough. OHMIGOODNESS, it's the softest stuff and so fun to play with. I put this in one of our centers for discovery. Big hit with the littles!

Today we read:

And then we made our very own cloud pictures based on the book. This activity was inspired by 

Mrs. Schmelzer. I just loved how creative the kids got with this!

Feel free to grab this printable I made for this. Happy Friday Eve everyone!

Spilt Milk