Planning for Play: December - January - February

Making time for play in Kindergarten is important... even in the 21st Century! 

Sign up for newsletters and gain access to my exclusive and FREE Yearlong Plan for Structured Play and follow along as we discuss themes for December, January, and February. 

Overview:

December is a wild and crazy time of year as students anticipate the holiday season. So, why not tap into their imaginations and incorporate engineering and science? With the gingerbread engineering theme students  can collaborate, create, and problem solve while having lots of holiday fun!
My favorite TpT resource for December:

January often brings cold weather and indoor recess. This is a great time to build on the engineering theme from December and incorporate force and motion concepts using marble runs, ramps and balls, and vehicles. Students learn about the effects of force and motion through exploration and experimenting.
My favorite resources for January:

February is a time when we tend to think about relationships and letting our loved ones know how much they are loved. In spite of major advancements in modern technology, written communication remains a skill all students need to develop. With the theme Post Office students are encouraged to write, communication, and nurture relationships.
My favorite TpT resources for February:

BE SURE TO CHECK OUT PLANS FOR EVERY MONTH OF THE YEAR!

August - Learning How to Play

September - Community Helpers: Restaurant

October - 21st Century Learners: The News 1, The News 2

November - Thanksgiving: Travel Agency

December - Engineering: Gingerbread Houses

January - Engineering: Force and Motion

February - Writing: Post Office

March - The Arts: My Talents

April - Animals: Vet's Office

May - Culminating Event: Pizza Parlor

Planning for Play: Yearlong Overview

Play in the 21st Century Kindergarten classroom shouldn't just be an arbitrary assortment of toys. It needs to be well thought-out and planned, tied to the standards, and must include a wide variety of materials to maintain the engagement of 21st Century Learners. In this video we will explore what it takes to plan structured play for the 21st Century Kindergarten classroom and I will outline my yearlong plan for play.



Play themes in my 21st Century Kindergarten classroom align with academic themes and are meant to enhance learning in all areas by immersing students in real-world situations. Here's a quick glance at the yearlong plan:

August - Learning How to Play

September - Community Helpers: Restaurant

October - 21st Century Learners: The News 1, The News 2

November - Thanksgiving: Travel Agency

December - Engineering: Gingerbread Houses

January - Engineering: Force and Motion

February - Writing: Post Office

March - The Arts: My Talents

April - Animals: Vet's Office

May - Culminating Event: Pizza Parlor

Be sure to sign up for newsletters and gain access to this FREEBIE to see my yearlong plan for these themes that includes standards connections, learning targets, and resources. (Includes blank planning pages that you can edit in PowerPoint!)

Yearlong Plan for Play in the Kindergarten Classroom

Happy Earth Day!

Have you checked out the new Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)?

For the past year or so teachers at my school have been working to adjust our science curriculum to meet these standards and it has been tough!  For my team of Kindergarten teachers it has been hard to "let go" of some favorite topics and themes in order to make time to address the rigor of our new standards.  BUT, I have truly enjoyed incorporating the engineering standards!  

21st Century Students are practically crying out for more lessons that involve multiple levels of thinking and melding various topics that apply to "real-world!"

One topic that we all love to teach that has not been moved to another grade, though, is Earth Day!

NGSS-K-ESS3-3.	Communicate solutions that will reduce the impact of humans on the land, water, air, and/or other living things in the local environment.

In a couple of weeks we will dive into a unit on the 3 R's and culminate our various themes from the entire year that pertain to the Earth (ie. plants, animals, weather, and even maps/globes).  I think the topic of Earth Day appeals to primary students and teachers alike because it is a call to action that knows no limit in age.  Anyone can help care for our earth and everyone should!

Some favorite Earth Day books:

Why Should I Save Water? By Jen Green

Our House is Round By Yolanda Kondonassis

Recycle Every Day By Nancy Elizabeth Oliver

It's Earth Day By Mercer Myer

The Earth and I By Frank Asch

What Does it Mean to Be Green? By Rana DiOrio

The Lorax By Dr. Seuss

Harry Kindergarten has the best songs and videos on YouTube... His Earth Day songs are fun and catchy!

And... check out my new Earth Day freebie!

Now that I have shared it's your turn!  

Link up any and all of your favorite Earth Day blog posts, products, freebies, and pins here for the next week as we plan to celebrate our wonderful planet!

An InLinkz Link-up

Primary STEM Unit for St. Patrick's Day, "Leprechaun Traps!"

This week we had lots of fun in my Kindergarten class putting our engineering skills to work with my primary STEM unit for St. Patrick's Day trying to catch a Leprechaun!  

One of my favorite ways to introduce a new concept is in the convergent style.  In this way you provide students the "pieces" and they find connections, draw conclusions, and converge on the topic in their own way and their own time.  It is so much fun to watch them figure out what we will be learning about next!

On Monday we read Clever Tom and the Leprechaun by Linda Shute and learned about old Irish folktales that say if you catch a Leprechaun he will give you his gold!  Then I provided my students ample time and lots of supplies to create their own Leprechaun traps.  They quickly set to work planning, creating, and building some pretty

neat contraptions!

Afterward we all gathered around each other and listened as students explained how their traps would work and question eachother on their plans.  We left the traps set at the end of the day (much to the dismay of the custodians who had much to clean around... but they were very good sports and asked that we share the gold with them.)

When students arrived on St. Patrick's Day morning they carefully walked around checking their traps.  But, that pesky Leprechaun just busted all the traps and had gotten away! *Wink! One little girl was shocked to find "green pee" in the toilet!  When we started up our Smart Board Calendar there was a message from the Leprechaun saying our traps were tricky, but we couldn't catch him.  He said he had left some special gold for us hidden in the classroom.  The students' disappointment at not trapping the Leprechaun melted as they devoured their chocolate gold coins at snack time!

For the remainder of the week we learned about Simple Machines and how they make work easier.  Since we ran out of time this week, we will take Monday to plan new Leprechaun traps (for next year, of course), and complete our extended response assessment.  You can check out our fun unit, "Leprechaun Traps," in my TpT store!

You Oughta Know About Force & Motion

I'm so excited to link up with Ms. McClain again this month for the return of her

"You Oughta Know Blog Hop!" 

Be sure to follow all the links below to find everything "You oughta know" about in January!

For my post I'm letting you know what "You oughta know" about Force & Motion!  When our district adopted the new Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) last year we were overwhelmed by some of the changes we needed to make in our curriculum. 

The standards on Force & Motion were among the first we tackled and this week our planning came to life in my classroom!

Every month I change out my play and explore centers to revolve around a theme or concept.  I have found that this benefits my students in SO many ways!  The student-centered, self-directed centers provide an experimental way for them to learn while also providing real-life opportunities to learn cooperation, communication, and conflict-resolution skills.  And all of these are just by-products to addressing the standards!  WOW!

This month all centers are focused on Force & Motion with some Engineering mixed in for good measure.  I hope you will find some of these ideas useful in your classroom... I know my Kinders are LOVING it!  (Click on each photo to link to resources!)



There are lots of great FREE online games about Force & Motion!



These magnetic shape builders were a hit!



This exact set is not available anymore, but there are lots of other great sets out there!



"Using force to push these magnets together is impossible!"



We have to keep a running sign-in sheet for the popular Marble Run!

The STEM science kits from Lakeshore Learning are well worth the investment!

They are 100% aligned to NGSS!

And, of course, the "old fashioned" tracks and trucks are always perfect!
These little guys are pretending to be gold miners from the hit A&E show, "Gold Rush!" 

 Has your school adopted the NGSS? 
If so, how are you addressing the shifts in curriculum?

An InLinkz Link-up

Interested in another Linky?  Check out my post here on the 100th Day of School!  Add your free/paid products or blog posts as we prepare for the 100th Day of School!

The Winter Sun

My students and I had lots of fun learning a little about the water cycle and the affect the sun has on the earth's surface this week! 

We used this new unit:

My favorite part of the unit was the writing activity.  It was wonderful to see my students' imagination and ingenuity as they created ways to block the sun so their snowmen wouldn't melt!

We created some very cute, very melted snowmen to end the week of study.  I found this great art idea on Pinterest HERE from First Grade Blue Skies.  They turned out so cute! 

 

You can get this fun handwriting poem for free at 21st Century K!

 

 

 

Happy Holidays!

Before I wrap up the 2014 holiday season and pack away the Christmas trees I thought I'd take a little time to reflect on some of the holiday activities I shared with my Kinders.  I wish I had made more time to blog while it was happening because we had so much fun while learning 21st Century concepts and applying the Common Core!

Our Gingerbread Unit on engineering involved designing new houses for the Gingerbread family and decorating our child-sized house! 

To culminate the unit, students decorated their own small house to take home!

Our second holiday unit was on Santa's Economics.  Students learned all about wants, needs, consumers, producers, goods, and services in the context of Christmas.  Each Kindergarten class on my team worked to develop a stand and we sold reindeer food to the first graders at our "Reindeer Food Marketplace" in the cafeteria. 

All our students learned so much about consumerism and economics and, most of all, it was fun! 

And it wasn't just fun for the kids, either!   It gave me chills when one teammate told me, "You know, I thought this project was way over the top at first, but these kids get this stuff.  This is the most fun I've had teaching all year!"

I can't wait to work on this unit over the coming year to have it ready for other teachers next Christmas! 

For now, here are a few shots of our project...

The advertising team made posters...

...and hung them in the first grade hall.

The production team formed an assembly line and produced 80 bags of reindeer food in under one hour!

No assembly line is complete without quality control!

Our sales team set up shop in the marketplace!

The sales team worked hard to sell as many bags as possible using our school-wide rewards as currency.

"Team N" sold out of reindeer food after issuing coupons!
Why didn't we think of that?!?

 I hope you and those you hold dearest have had the happiest of holiday seasons!

 

Wishlist!

Joining with Play to Learn Preschool this week in sharing wish lists for Black Friday!

 

Among lots of fun clipart for inspiring my new product ideas, I have "wish-listed" plenty for my own classroom use!  Here are a few:

1. NGSS "I Can..." Posters for Kindergarten

2.Dramatic Play Set Bundle

3.Pennant Banner Clip Art

4. Alphabet Letter of the Week Bundle

 

And now, what do you need to add to your wish list, you ask? Here are my newest Christmas-themed products... just in time for the holiday season!

1. The Perfect Gift 

NGSS and Common Core Aligned Unit for First Grade

2. December Interactive Smart Board Calendar 

NGSS and Common Core Aligned for Kindergarten

3. Santa's Economics

Common Core Aligned Unit for Kindergarten and First Grade

4. Gingerbread Engineering

NGSS and Common Core Aligned Unit for Kindergarten