A Very Seuss-ical Week!

After this week, I can't help but feel like I am supposed to fill this blog posting with silly nonsense words and rhymes!  We celebrated Dr. Seuss like no other class has ever celebrated Dr. Seuss!  We read his books in the morning, we read his books at night, we read his books here and there, we read his books everywhere!  
We absolutely loved having so many guest readers popping in to read a good book to us... in fact, here are some photos of those good sports! Thanks again everyone for volunteering your time and talent!

 The kids were busy all week long with festive Seuss activities, especially during centers.  Here are some photos from Seuss centers:

We also took a vote on some of our favorite Dr. Seuss books, graphed the results, and compared and contrasted the numbers!  The winner was...

                                                                       GREEN EGGS AND HAM! 

Our week of Seuss ended with a messy, gooey Science project.  We played with Oobleck!  What's Oobleck? It is an equal mixture of corn starch and water (approximate).  We had to decided if it was a liquid or a solid.  We were pretty undecided, since it had both liquid properties and solid properties.  It felt wet, it could slosh around like a liquid, and it filled the container, but when we poked it or squeezed it, it felt like a solid.  Here is a photo of the gooey substance:

The final result- Oobleck is a Non-Newtonian Fluid, meaning that it has both liquid and solid properties.  And, it makes a pretty big mess, too! But mess = fun, so the kids were happy! 

On a slightly more serious note, the kids are beginning to learn how to say the rosary.  Each child was given a rosary "kit" to keep in their desks.  Since we are First Graders, we are only saying one decade a day.  The faithful Firsties have learned that rosaries are very special tools to be used for prayer, and we must treat the rosaries with respect.  We have also learned that the Blessed Virgin Mary is very fond of the rosary.  Here are some photos of the kiddos learning to pray the rosary:

   We will definitely be ready for the May Procession if we keep this up!  

Here's a quick glance at what the Firsties are learning these days:
Language Arts: We are working on reading and spelling with long vowels. We have covered a, e, i, and now we are moving onto o.
Religion: Learning to pray the rosary, learning about Lent, and soon, learning the Stations of the Cross
English: Using adjectives to describe nouns.  We have learned that an adjective can be a color, number, and descriptive words that can finish the sentence "It's so _____________!"
We have also finished writing our first complete friendly letters.  
Math: The kids are finishing up their unit on place value.  We will be tested on place value later this week, then we will move onto shapes!
Science: We are learning about animals and their habitats.  This week we will focus on animals' coverings. We need to be fully informed before we head to the zoo!
Social Studies: We have finished learning about presidents, and now we are moving onto American Symbols.  Please click here to view a live webcam of Bald Eagles right here in California at our Channel Islands: Bald Eagles


Speaking of the zoo, our trip is confirmed for March 27th, a Wednesday, to go to the beautiful Santa Barbara Zoo!  We will be selecting 7 lucky chaperones' names out of a hat this week. Each parent will be responsible for guiding and caring for their own group of Firsties.  This is an educational field trip that is worth points towards their Science grade.  If for some reason your child is unable to attend this field trip, please see me for information on how he or she will make up the work.  This will be our 7th field trip to the Santa Barbara Zoo, and we are positive it will be just as wonderful as all of our previous trips!  I realize some parents are concerned with the length of the drive to the zoo, but please rest assure, we will all be safe and sound together on the bus, enjoying the picturesque views of the Pacific Ocean, possibly spotting a dolphin or two!  The trip home is usually filled with some worn-out Firsties, many of them napping the whole way.  Please look for the zoo field trip forms sometime soon in your child's homework folder.  The cost per child of the field trip is unknown at this time, but it will include entrance to the zoo, a ride on the zoo train, and the cost of the bus.  Unfortunately, if you or your child has a membership to the zoo, the zoo does not allow you to use it since we will be entering the zoo before the zoo actually opens.  More details will be included on a letter sent home with the field trip form.  We can't wait! 

I hope everyone enjoys this sunny weekend!  I'm off to the happiest place in California (location name to be withheld)... 

= )

Take care!
~Ms. Hudson