REFLECTIONS

JUNIORS ROOM 3

APRIL REFLECTIONS

Juniors - Room 3

Spring has sprung in Room 3 ! Juniors began the month by exploring concepts about rain and wind which involved interesting experiments and projects. We discussed how the clouds in the sky are full of tiny drops of water. Those drops will get bigger and bigger and soon become too heavy for the cloud to hold them. What happens next? RAIN !! After learning about this process, the children were able to reenact it during their project. They used pipettes to drop water on coffee filters. As the filters got too heavy, the water would drip down as if it were raining ! Within the same week, we learned about the wind. We talked about how you aren't able to see the wind but only see what it does !

The children also discussed facts about another hallmark of Spring....the robin. Your Junior learned, for instance, that baby robins eat 100 times a day !

We are anxiously awaiting the emergence of Painted Lady butterflies, Luna moth and Cercropia moths. We have learned fun caterpillar finger plays and especially enjoyed an interactive puppet version of The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle.

The children are also excited about the chick eggs in Room 2. Mrs. Adams gave us a lesson about the growing chicks inside the eggs. We learned that the incubator acts as a substitute for Mother Hen by warming the eggs and slowly turning them. Illustrations and a calendar near the incubator help us follow the growth and development of the chicks. Watch the signs outside the school for the countdown to Peep, Peep, Peep !!

The children had a challenging activity where they had to cut out an egg shape with a baby chick inside. Cutting out an oval can be a tough task and our class rose to the challenge ! They did a fabulous job of holding their scissors, turning their papers as they cut and staying on the black line to cut out their egg ! Once finished, they glued on yellow feathers to their chick !

The children learned interesting scientific facts about pigs, chicks and cows and have been doing projects relating to these animals. Ask your Junior why cows have a long tail and eyelashes and what foods are made from the milk of a cow. Boxes and tubes were just right for creating 3-dimensional barns and silos. The children were quite proud of the results. (Thank you for your contributions !) The farm-related projects, lessons,puzzles, activities and songs, such as "Down on Grandpa's Farm" and "I Know a Chicken", helped prepare the Juniors for our upcoming trip to a working dairy farm.

We are delighted that Spring has finally arrived and that we can play outside in the fresh air ! In May, we will look forward to welcoming a Very Important Visitor...You, Mom !

Click here for the Calendar

Click here for the Junior's Song Sheet