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Category Archives: Early Years
Learning about the butterfly life cycle with local butterflies
This year I have challenged myself to use only local animals in the classroom, for budget and ecological reasons. Luckily for me and my students, Cabbage White and Black Swallowtail butterflies go through their life cycle to adulthood in our area before the end of the school year and can easily be found on collard [...]
Finding the right book for science teaching
There are quite a few science topics included in the books on the Association for Library Service to Children’s Young Readers list of 2010 Notable Children’s Books. Selections on the Older Readers list may be useful as well for the photographs and the background information that teachers can read and tell about, such as, Almost Astronauts: [...]
Maple tree seed toss makes a good gross motor activity
The seeds of maple trees are shaped like single wings and rotate around the heavy seed end when tossed into the air. The twirling motion is unexpected because most leaf-like objects fall in a less regular fashion. Collect some for a rainy day. Have children spread out so no one bumps heads, then toss the [...]
When young children use magnifiers
I brought magnifiers into the twos classroom today as a tool for looking at dead insects (and a few other invertebrates) and butterfly eggs on collard plants. The children have used magnifiers many times before but they are always intrigued, and maybe even a little surprised, when things “get bigger”. One child asked why the [...]
Evaporation—children need to know the word and concept
Is it surprising that there are no books for children titled “Evaporation”? Why this exciting subject doesn’t have it’s own title is beyond me—ha! But there are many good books that do touch on the subject in interesting ways. While we don’t need to dwell on the concept of evaporation, it should frequently be part of [...]
Posted in Early Years Tagged books, early childhood, evaporation, rain, resources, water Leave a comment
Citizen scientist action begins at a young age—by extending a helping hand to toads
In Upper Roxborough in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, children helped toads and frogs survive their migratory passage across a road, back to their natal pond (a reservoir) to lay their eggs. The volunteers recorded a count of toads, alive or dead. Naturalist-led toad walks help families understand the toad behavior. The Toad Detour blog has more details [...]
Also posted in ConferencesThanks to the children who attended the conference
Thanks go to all the children who made it possible for their parents to attend the NSTA national conference by coming along with them! In addition to being a reminder of why we were there, these children often added to our experience by modeling activities in the presentations. This one even got his hands dirty helping Lisa [...]
Also posted in ConferencesScience talk in Philadelphia at the NSTA national conference
Science talk between students (not teacher-to-student)—is that possible? We learned how to get started at Kathy Renfrew’s session, NSTA Science Talk: A Tool for Making Meaning, on Thursday. Kathy was an engaging and generous presenter, sharing the floor with participants who had experiences to share. We practiced science talk in a circle (see photo), deepening our understanding of [...]
Gardening begins, inch by inch
Teacher of two-year-olds Sue Hewitt reports that she has already planted with one group—“lettuce last week and will do radish planting this week. I like to do something that can mature and be harvested and eaten by the kids. We usually have a salad bar one day—pick and wash and spin lettuce and have kids each [...]
Farm, frogs, and weather—children making connections