EC Students Enjoy Exploring Musical Instruments

When our EC friends enter the music room, they are presented with large drums, mallets, bins of various percussion instruments including shaker eggs, tambourines, bells, rhythm sticks, Lollipop drums (a favorite!) and other cool and fun musical instruments. They are encouraged to use the first 5-7 minutes of class to simply explore the musical instruments.

One of the most important parts of a young musician's music education is exposure. Exposure to as many sounds, musical experiences, musical traditions, and movement is ideal. 

Young musicians are open to all kinds of musical experiences because everything is still new and fresh and interesting. This presents a ripe opportunity to give them experiences with music without judgment or interference of other influences telling them what is "good" or "bad" music. The same goes with sounds and timbres. Students are encouraged during this exploration time to play  instruments both the way they were intended and also explore trying to play them in different (while still being safe:) ways. There are no "bad" sounds, but sounds.

Here are some images of some of our youngest musicians enjoy this exploratory time, opening their eyes, ears and hearts to music!

Enjoy!

Like Footprints In The Sand

Already, October has brought us to the end of one important chapter in fourth grade and to the beginning of another in second. Like footprints in the sand, the students in science class are taking steps to make the unknown disappear as they encounter new learning experiences.

Fourth grade began the year with a study of many of the sands from around the world. They studied the physical properties such as luster, magnetism, transparence, and texture. The students also used stereo microscopes to discover the mineral composition of the sands they studied. The study concluded during the fourth grade shore trip where sand was collected from the bay and the beach  while at Cape Henlopen. Small samples of sand were taped into each students nature journal and magnifying glasses were used to explore the composition and physical properties of the sand. When we returned from the trip, everyone made sand study booklets that included samples of the Cape Henlopen sand to remember our fantastic voyage.

   

In second grade, we kicked off our science class study of birds during a visit to Rushton Woods. While there, students learned about bird banding. They learned about the different sizes of bands that are used and the tools that are used to measure the birds for banding.  The trip guides taught the students how banding the birds and tracking them is important to help scientist gather important information for many different reasons. Along with getting to know the names of some of the common birds in the area, the students were also able to pet, hold, and release them.

4th grade Learns the Basics of Longhouse and Wigwam Construction from a Professional Engineer

As part of our study about Philadelphia and the Lenape, the fourth grade class will attempt to build a small longhouse in the next few weeks outside of their classrooms. We were fortunate this week to have Brian Fitzhenry, a parent and professional engineer, who is Project Manager in Architecture for the HNTB Corporation to come and share his wealth of knowledge with the students. He visited this class the previous year and presented a lesson about bridge building. Brian started his lesson reviewing what he had taught and the students clearly had retained quite a bit. Brian spoke about the different components that are used when building different types of architecture and the reasons for their usage. He discussed with them the forces of nature at hand and what one needs to think about to combat the elements. He was able to engage the students relating how all these components apply to building a wigwam or longhouse.

The students did an exceptional job answering Brian’s questions and the interactive lesson laid the groundwork for our next phase. The students will make sketches and draw up plans and instructions on how to go about building their designs. They will learn how to lash two branches or sticks together and how to make clove hitches and square knots before the actual building takes place.

A Day in the Life of a Kindergarten Mathematician

Understanding how numbers work, number sense, is the basis for mathematical work in the Lower School. Number sense skills develop gradually over time as the students explore numbers, visualizing them in multiple contexts and relating to them through manipulatives and opportunities for problem solving. To "know" a number, a student has to learn to write and represent that number in a variety of ways, recognize the quantity represented by numerals and understand how a number relates and connects to other numbers.

Our kindergarten Math In Focus curriculum uses a concrete-pictorial-abstract model to teach these math skills with an emphasis on problem solving. The children are listening to math stories, acting out concepts, and using workbooks to demonstrate their understanding.

Counting and one to one correspondence

Practicing number formation

Math is everywhere in kindergarten! Math activities and games are used to support the Math In Focus lessons by stretching and enriching kindergarten minds. Our beginning of the year focus has been on the numerals 0-12 and the students have been practicing writing the numbers as well as counting, comparing, and adding as they strengthen their understanding of number sense. 

 Hands on math activities and manipulatives help kindergarten students to understand what numbers    represent, offer different ways to express numbers, and provide them with opportunities to explore    how numbers relate to one another. And they are fun! The students especially enjoy using new  kindergarten math manipulatives including dice, uni-fix cubes and dominoes to support and  strengthen the concepts presented in their kindergarten math lessons. Below are just a few of the  hands on activities that supported our budding kindergarten mathematicians during one recent school  day:

Using dice, uni-fix cubes and crayons
 to "fill the pumpkin patch" 
and practice number recognition

Comparing uni-fix towers

Creating an impromptu pattern border

A Domino Parking Lot game aids 
in addition practice and number recognition

 Math puzzles help students to reinforce 
number identification and to think and 
develop strategies for problem solving

A Very Important Journey

Last Friday, an already exciting day because it was Field Day, became a great deal more exciting to our first graders when the first monarch butterfly hatched.  The students were brimming over with delight to meet the brand new female butterfly when they arrived at school.  She was just pumping life into her wings, ready to begin the final stage of a life cycle that brought joy and wonder to our classes.  What a magical transformation to go from a speck of a caterpillar, to a great big caterpillar, to a j-stage and then change into a beautiful, glassy green chrysalis speckled with bits of gold.  But Friday's change was the most spectacular of all.  A velvety, black and orange monarch was mesmerizing!

Later in the morning, the children burst from their seats when someone noticed that she had taken her first flight across her netted home, screaming, "She's flying, she's flying!!!" Several students started thinking up names that they thought would be fitting, 'Miss Flutter' being one of them.  That afternoon, our newly hatched monarch and the remaining chrysalises were moved into a large netted house filled with flowers, water and an orange slice for the long weekend.

What a thrill to return Tuesday morning to find ten monarch butterflies!! The students loved watching their graceful flights and seeing them sip nectar and resting quietly on the netting. A new set of observational drawings and writing brought our study up to date.  But now we had to plan for their release and it was with mixed emotions Wednesday afternoon that the students bid their winged friends good-bye.

The first graders each made a special wish for the monarchs out near the rain garden where students from years past joined in our farewell, remembering this experience from their first grade days.  Then the door was opened and one by one the monarchs took to the air to make their monumental journey south to Mexico where they will over winter until their spring migration north.  One monarch was not in any hurry and landed on a few of the students before fluttering away while yet another fueled up on some goldenrod nectar before departing.

We will continue to monitor the migration on Journey North as we explore their final destination, work on our maps and our book and hold fast to the wish that our monarchs will have a safe journey all they way to Mexico!

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Second Grade Connects with Rydal Park Residents

Last week, the second grade classes hopped on a bus for the short ride to Rydal Park to begin what will be a year-long connection with residents there.  Each student brought their hand-made teddy bear to show and a bear drawing they had created.  During the visit, as residents and children colored together, the conversations began to flow and there were smiles all around! One student was lucky enough to have a relative as part of the group, and a teacher discovered the grandmother of one of her students from years ago!  It was a wonderful beginning to friendships that will continue to grow throughout the year.

Author Eric Luper Visits K-4

We are looking forward to author Eric Luper's visit to our kindergarten through fourth grade classes on Thursday, November 16th. He is the author of the Key Hunters series and The Chocolate Lab series. Eric Luper's website is a great way to explore his books and even to get to know him a bit before his visit.
http://www.ericluper.com/faqs.html.


Eric's books will be available for purchase. An order form will be going home with students in their Friday folder on October 13 and should be returned to school by Thursday, November 2 in order for Open Book Bookstore in Elkins Park to have the books to our school in time for Eric Luper's visit. He will sign books during his visit. The order form will also be on our Lower School website.