Tens and Ones

In Math we have been working with numbers to 100.  We  have  practiced different counting patterns:  counting by 2s, 5s and 10s.  Now we are learning how to show numbers to 100 as tens and ones.

Today students were engaged in a partner activity where they had to count how many items were in a bag.  They sorted the items into tens and ones, then recorded the number on their paper.

Chairs for the Pigeon!

As a final activity for our Science unit on Objects and Materials, students built a chair for the pigeon (from the Mo Willems series of books).  They brought a variety of materials from home and then got to work at school this afternoon building their chairs.  We tested each chair by having the pigeon sit on it!

Hard at work!

It was nice to see a little collaboration going on when students needed some help!

Oops!  This chair was a bit too small!

Here's a sturdy one!

This looks very comfy!

Some chairs were very elaborate!

Special thanks to a teacher in Manitoba (from "First Grade Garden") for the idea for this lesson!

Does it Repel or Absorb Water?

This afternoon we did an experiment in Science.  Students worked together in groups of three to see which kind of material would absorb or repel water.  We tested cotton, rayon, linen and nylon.  Students tested the absorbency of these materials by releasing and counting water drops from a medicine dropper.  One person dripped, one counted and one watched to see when (or if) the water would go through the material and drop into the cup.

The students discovered that the blue material (rayon) was the best at repelling the water and the linen was the best at absorbing the water.

Students dropping water  onto fabric.

This was the rayon material.  A lot of water stayed on top of the fabric before it soaked through into the cup.

The rayon was the best at repelling water.  Students thought that this would be the best kind of material to sew a raincoat!

Budding Architects!

Here are some pictures of our latest Art project.  We started this a while back when students drew a variety of shapes, coloured them by making rubbings over various textured things in our classroom and then cut them out.
Today the children looked at many pictures of houses (some were really crazy!) and then they designed their own houses by gluing their shapes and colouring a background.  They did a wonderful job!

Work in progress

Tangrams, Objects and Materials

One of the math outcomes in the Grade One curriculum is to be able to replicate shapes and objects.  Today we looked at tangrams.  A tangram puzzle has 7 pieces that can be put together to form a square.

Tomorrow we will be building animal shapes using tangrams.

In Science we went on a scavenger hunt!  Students looked around the classroom to find objects made out of the following materials:
metal, wood, plastic, glass, cloth and paper.

Skating and Miscellaneous Things

We had a busy day!  First thing this morning, we boarded a  schoolbus for a short ride to the rink for an hour of skating!  Everyone had a great time!

Friends helping each other skate!

Having a little rest!

After skating - waiting for the bus to pick us up!

 In Language Arts we have been learning about the Bossy R sound.  We played Bossy R Triplet Bingo (ir, er, ur) to review words with these sounds.

We started a new project in Art.  Students drew different shapes, then found places around the classroom with different textures.  They made rubbings with wax crayons and cut out the shapes.  Next Art class we will use the shapes to create a picture of a fantastic structure.

Have a great weekend!