Exploring Pumpkin Farms

Over the past 10 days our First Graders have been learning all about pumpkin farms.  We started with a trip to Whitcomb's Land of Pumpkins.  We saw first hand how much work goes into pumpkin farming and how the farmers sell their products to earn money.  We finished our trip with a walk through the corn maze and each student getting to select a pumpkin to bring home. 

We continued to learn about pumpkin farms and products made from pumpkins this week.  We saw giant pumpkins and smaller pumpkins used for Jack O' Lanterns.  We also cut up a pie pumpkin and roasted the seeds.  We wrapped up our pumpkin study by making crockpot pumpkin pie.  Each student got to add an ingredient for our pie.  It was delicious. 

Farms Make Vermont- Apple Farming

Every other Friday our class is going to dig deep into a science or social studies topic.  Today we looked at the economic cycle of apple farms. We examined how farmers buy what they need, produce a product and sell that product to the consumer.  We learned how farmers plant and maintain their trees, pick their fruit and process apples into products we love.  We decided to try our hand at making applesauce.  Each learner had the chance to peel, core and break up an apple for our homemade applesauce.  We also had a chance to do an apple taste test.  What a fantastic Friday. 

A Tree Can Be...

For our 2nd Through the Woods Thursday, we ventured out to the outdoor classroom to study trees.  Students listened to the story A Tree Can Be...

 

Then we had the chance to explore and observe what we notice about the trees in our outdoor classroom.  Learners then made their first journal entry into their science observation notebook.  We love being outside!

Through the Woods Thursday

We enjoyed our first outdoor learning day of the year!  We trekked to the outdoor classroom and did quite a bit of exploring.  We collected items from nature to use for our self portraits.  Our learners were so respectful of the environment.  We looked for beauty in ourselves and in nature as we created self portraits with the items we found.

It's A Girl! Our First Butterfly is Headed South!

Over the weekend our first butterfly hatched.  We are so excited to share the news, it's a girl!
You may be asking how do we know?  The best thing to do is ask your child, they know!  Boys have thinner lines on their wings and a dark spot on the lower 2 wings.  Girls have thicker lines throughout their wings. 

Our butterfly stayed in our classroom until it got a little warmer outside.

 Once things warmed up, we wished our winged friend well and sent her on her way.  

 Safe travels!

A Fantastic 1st Day!

What a fantastic day with our new First Graders!  We enjoyed getting to know each other and learning a little bit about our classroom.  Our class read Butterflies on the First Day of School and made a butterfly that is in your child's home/school folder.  We also made "Magic Playdough"!  Thank you for a wonderful day!  We are going to have a great year together!