Hello all,
“Letter Q is for Question Week” was Quite amazing! Compared to Letter P week, Letter Q’s share box was definitely a bit light. The share box this week contained such Q items as quails, Q-Tips, “quicksand”, and even a queen! Speaking of queen, the most famous race car of all – Lightning McQueen – made his way into the share box this week! Well, “Letter Q is for Question Week” has come and gone. Read on below to discover the learning that took place and fun that was had throughout the week!
On Monday and Tuesday morning, the students worked one on one with the teachers to complete their Letter Q identification/fine motor activity pages. The older students worked diligently while some of the younger students worked Quickly. Either way, the students did a great job. In the afternoon, the students created the seventeenth letter list of the year! As a whole group, the students took turns brainstorming and contributing words that begin with the letter Q. They also hunted around the classroom for letter Q items!
How many Q shares do you see?
Answer: Quilt, Quarter and a Q!
Later in the afternoon on both Monday and Tuesday, the students brainstormed a list of Questions that they wanted to “investigate” throughout “Letter Q is for Questions Week”. The Monday students voted and picked a question from their list to investigate on Wednesday and Friday. The Tuesday students picked a question from their question list, shown below, to investigate on Thursday. Keep reading through the entry to learn which questions they chose!
On Wednesday morning, the question on everyone’s mind was…
Where does rain come from?
Seeing that it was particularly rainy on Wednesday morning, the question the students chose proved extremely fitting! The day began with a group discussion and a technology presentation all about rain. The students began by brainstorming all that they knew about where rain comes from, why it rains, and when it rains. Their investigation grew deeper as the students observed the following informative clip about puddles. But what do puddles have to do with rain? Click below to find out!
After observing what happened to Hippo’s puddle and learning the “BIG KID SCIENCE” word – EVAPORATION, the students were fascinated to continue discussing where the water from the puddle went. The teachers explained that the wet water turns into invisible water vapor and floats up to the sky and that is what forms the clouds. The wind moves the clouds around and when they are ready, the clouds drop the water drops to the ground once again! The students had a blast learning all about the water cycle and rain! One student even commented that with all the puddles outside we would have rain again soon! 🙂
To help them remember all they had learned through their investigation of rain, the students made the following art project!
On Thursday morning, the question on everyone’s mind was…
Why do Giraffes have long necks?
The day began with a group discussion all about giraffes. The students began by hypothesizing (or guessing) why giraffes might have long necks? One hypothesis was particularly adorable – Giraffes have long necks because, “maybe they got their heads stuck somewhere and it stretched their necks?” 🙂 The students investigation continued with a technology presentation which featured this informative clip.
What an amazing fun fact about giraffes! The teachers also explained that having a long neck helps keep giraffes safe as they can see danger from far away! The students also learned that giraffes can swing their neck to defend or protect themselves from animals who are trying to hurt them. To help remember these three giraffe facts, the students created the following art project.
The Question fun continued on Friday as the students (from Wednesday) returned to school and continued to expand their knowledge of rain and the water cycle. For morning work, the students conducted an experiment like the one shown in the Hippo/Puddle clip above. They observed what happened when water from the sink was poured into a bowl with a clear lid on top. The students marked the water line level to see what would happen. The teachers then placed the container of water into the microwave and heated it. Three minutes later, the teachers returned to the table and the students were fascinated to see the water was below the line and some water was now on top of the lid. The water on top was even beginning to drip – just like real rain! Wow, the PPA students made rain themselves! Experimenting sure is fun! 🙂 Click below to watch one four year old student explain the entire water cycle process in detail! Way to go!
Friday afternoon wrapped up with a final technology presentation all about the Letter Q and the various questions the students had also asked throughout the week! The teachers made sure to add a few other interesting questions from the PPA lists as well. The students clearly had a great time exploring and investigating these questions during “Letter Q is for Questions Week”. It may be the end of Letter Q week but that does not mean the questions have to stop! As we get ready for Letter R week, Remember to keep asking questions and keep learning! Enjoy the weekend!
-PPA
REMINDERS:
Parent-Teacher Conferences will take place in March.
Please check your email or the school calendar board for your scheduled conference day and timeslot.
Upcoming School Closing:
Spring Recess – Friday, March 25 – Friday, April 2nd
School Resumes Monday, April 4th
