Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Scenes from Wonderland

Red Light, Green Light!
We were all participating as a group and learning the rules to our new favorite class game.  It looked so fun that even children from the Elementary joined in.

Scenes from Roxaboxen

We made our own houses today.



The city planners hard at work making roads for the neighborhood.

Team work with marble tracks.

Friday, September 24, 2010

Catch a ride on the Wonderland train.

Our Dramatic Play area has changed into a Train.  The children are busy buying tickets, finding their numbered seats and deciding where to go on their trip.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

My House

After reading "The Three Pigs", we talked about different kinds of houses and how our own houses were made.  This group is making a house of "bricks"...
...and Sam is working on a house of sticks.

                                                 We also made  house collages with pictures
                                                   of our own faces and doors that open.

A beautiful book about our houses
and the shelter they provide in all kinds of weather.

Our young authors share their work


 
 

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Set the Table

We have been playing a game that has become quite popular.
It's called Set the Table.
Gather several objects (a block, pencil, pair of scissors, cup, toys, etc.)
and arrange them on the table or floor.
Ask the other people playing to "study" the set-up.  Then ask them to close their eyes. 
While their eyes are closed, change one thing about the set-up and then ask them to open their eyes and see what's been changed.
It's easy to play anywhere and a good way to practice noticing details.

Scenes from Roxaboxen


We played with cooked pasta at the table on Monday and today we made pictures and the letters in our names with it. 
It actually sticks to the paper quite nicely!

 The new block area has been busy with many construction projects.

Friday, September 17, 2010

Happy Birthday to SCCS


<> 
All decked in the hats we made and ready to get the party started!





Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Lullatones

We used to leave this playing throughout worktime last year.  It's fairly addictive once you start making melodies.  Check it out

What's next in Wonderland?

Parachutes!  What a fun tool to use to learn about ourselves and our friends.  If you are a boy, you can crawl in the parachute.  If you have a dog, you can crawl in the parachute.  If you have a sister, you can crawl in the parachute.  We came up with so many ways to describe our families and used this as a way of sorting ourselves.

Here a Face, There a Face

We read this book today and found faces all over the classroom.
We took pictures of the found faces and are putting our own book together.

We have extended our play in WONDERLAND.

We added a few things to the classroom in Wonderland.  In the Dramatic Play area we added babies, strollers, bottles, hair dryer and a curling iron.  The children are acting out situations from home as well as using their imaginations at the same time.

In the Block Area we added roads, cars, car wash and a car garage.  The children have been sorting the transportation into cars, trucks, trains etc.  While building their roads they are using actions words to indicate position and location as well as working together to make the longest/tallest roads.

Monday, September 13, 2010

Scenes from Roxaboxen

Noticing the colors start to mix
Using the lego pictures to re-create a structure
A lego city starts to form

Saturday, September 11, 2010

I have had several questions about the name of our classroom.
I think the name has prompted many of you to research it, so by now you may know about this wonderful story.  I love reading it now as much as I did when I was first introduced to the children of Pine Needle City.
And I think it fits right in with Honalee and Wonderland as far magical places for children are concerned! 

We created a little Roxaboxen in our sand table this past week with sand, stones,
glass pebbles and our own touch--craft feathers.

Friday, September 10, 2010

What's Happening in Honalee

Sharing our writing
Writing outside

Acting out Caps for Sale
"You monkeys you, you give me back my caps!"

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Scenes from Roxaboxen

We have continued to embellish our printed names and portraits.  We have compared the letters in our names and other things that start with the same letters.  We noticed features on our faces and marveled as we turned ourselves into tigers, knights, and princesses with just a few strokes of the marker or paint brush!
We practiced working with pens first and then adding color with paint.

Singing "Wheels on the Bus" in Spanish with Senora Steelman

Build me a ship and I will tell you a story!  In this case, I was
able to capture one moment in the unfolding story.

What's happening in Wonderland

The blocks are a highlight in Wonderland.  It is amazing to watch and listen to the children as they are building their masterpieces.  It is a great opportunity for the children to work together and share their ideas as well as challenge themselves in the areas of  Math, Science, Literacy etc.  So far this year we have had a lot of houses, carwashes, bridges and highways.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Scenes from Roxaboxen

Working out the finer points of tic-tac-toe.
Author-illustrator time
Light table geometry

ALL ABOUT ME
We have used our portraits this week to explore our faces, different features and adding details.