Our classroom has been full of building, learning, exploring and art this past week. Our students have been enjoying some of our winter activities, and some new centers to explore. Take a look back on some of the things that we have been up to:

Compost Container

Our school gave us this composting container to use in the classroom to learn about how different materials break down. It has 3 different compartments, and we put a banana peel in the first one, some bread in the middle and a coffee cup in the third. We are using a book to record the changes that we see. We did the first page as a class, we wrote what we put in the container and our predictions for what we think is going to happen. Our class is so excited to see what ‘dissolves’ first, they keep checking it every few hours and saying that they think the banana is disappearing!

Snowman Craft

Our reading buddies joined us this week to create this awesome snowman craft with our kindergarten students. I got this idea from the tinyartroom blog, and I loved it so much that I knew we had to try and make our own. I wanted our students to be succesful with this activity, so I made sure I gave them clear instructions.

Each student got a paper with three circles printed on it (keep reading to get your own copy) and a blue piece of construction paper. Their first task was to use an oil pastel to color the outside edge of each circle. They could also smudge the colour with their finger to make it look nice and clean (we did not tell them which colour to use- we gave them complete creative freedom). Then they cut out the circles and glued them to the construction paper. Then they used scraps of construction paper to create the snowman’s scarf, nose, eyes, and any other details they wanted to add. They finished their artwork by adding snowflakes to the background with a white crayon or oil pastel.

I love how these turned out, and each one is so unique. If you would like to create your own aerial view snowmen with your class, you can download the circles I used here:

Alphabet Work Mats

Students have been focusing on beginning sounds lately, and these work mats are perfect for working on letter sounds, letter formation and fine motor skills. Each mat has 3 pictures that begin with the featured letter, and 3 decoy pictures. Students cover the pictures that correspond to the letter, and then can use play dough to make it.

Our students love working with play dough so this was a great center that kept them engaged during literacy centers. If you would like to get this activity for your class, you can get it from my store:

Christmas Tree STEM Activity

This week we challenged students to build a Christmas that would hold ornaments (pompoms). We set out wood sticks, wood slices and wood blocks that they could use any way they wanted.

Each student created different trees and worked on balancing the pompoms so that they wouldn’t fall. They were encouraged to document their creation using our recording sheet, and count how many ornaments they were able to use.

I love that each tree was so different, and students were able to use their creativity and imagination while building.

If you would like a copy of this recording sheet to try in your classroom, I have added it to my Resource Library as a free download!):

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