Kindergarten Q2 - Post #1: Happy Halloween! This week in science lab, students played with FLUBBER, which we re-named "Halloween Slime" to get in the spirit of the season :). I loved watching the young scientists put on their thinking caps and get creative. There were "slime waterfalls," "slime gloves," "slime pumpkins," "slime bridges," "slime ghosts," and a whole host of other spooky creations! A recipe to make more flubber was sent home with all students.
Kindergarten Q1 - Post #8: In science lab, Kindergartners are exploring the fascinating properties of water. We talked about how much water “loves” water (cohesion), and how it just can’t help but “stick” to itself. Students explored cohesion with a sheet of wax paper, water, a pipette, and a penny. Check out their findings below! All of these experiments are easy to recreate at home.
Kindergarten Q1 - Post #7: This week in science lab, Kindergartners were given a pipette, some paper products, a beaker of water and time to experiment! The students observed what happened when several drops of water were dropped into the various paper surfaces. We discussed three big scientific terms: adhesion, absorption, and cohesion. These words weren’t easy and neither were the concepts, but the young observers did notice a difference between each and that was the main goal. Not to mention, they had fun experimenting and making observations!
Kindergarten Q1 - Post #6: Kindergartners had a great time with the magic of chromatography last week. It was fun seeing their excitement when different colors seeped out of the black ink. This week, I let them explore chromatography a little more by choosing any and all colors to write on their filter paper. When the filters are completely dry, it’s fun to cut out shapes and hang them in a window. Butterflies, hearts, and stars are just a few ideas! Chromatography is also a great lab to try at home! You’ll just need a coffee filter, some water soluble pens, and your child’s pipet. The wet erase markers and the Prang brand markers seem to work well. Have fun!
Kindergarten Q1 - Post #5: A few weeks ago in science lab, kindergartners mixed colors together. This week, they unmixed colors using a simple process called chromatography. Chromatography really means “color writing”. In its advanced form, it is used to separate mixtures, enabling scientists to determine ingredients of a perfume, analyze pollution, separate blood proteins, etc. Fortunately, in its simplest form, it can be used to separate colors! We opted for the simple approach :o).
Kindergarten Q1 - Post #4: This week in science lab, we took a break from our regular curriculum to start working in St. Timothy’s Learning Garden. We have a goal this year for all students K-4 to have a “hand” (quite literally) in planting, up-keep, and harvesting. Mrs. Morgan, one of the Pre-K assistants, has a background in agriculture and has worked very hard to plan our set of crops. I wouldn’t be able to do this without her expertise! On their “planting day,” students first had an opportunity to taste the vegetable they would plant. Then we traveled from the lab to the garden, and each student had a chance to plant seeds. Click HERE to see pictures from planting day.
Kindergarten Q1 - Post #3: On their third visit to science lab, Kindergartners invented a brand new color! Inventing new things is a very important part of science. We pretended that a big crayon company had hired the students to create new, exciting colors. The students used the three primary colors and their pipets to mix, invent, and name their new color. Finally, students pipetted their color inventions into a test tube to take home!
Kindergarten Q1 - Post #2: On their second visit, Kindergartners mixed colored water in ice cube trays... just like real laboratory scientists! Our focus was on the three primary colors, red, yellow, and blue, and the secondary colors created when mixed together. We incorporated a bit of math in as well, as the young scientists recorded their findings using simple equations. It seemed like many Kindergartners have been practicing with pipets at home, because they were pros! Next week, the students will have a chance to create their own, brand new color! They'll even get to name it and take a sample home.
Kindergarten Q1 - Post #1: On their first visit, Kindergartners learned how to use a simple lab tool called a pipet. It took a while for the kids to figure it out, but once they did, it was so much fun to play with! Each of the young scientists will get their very own pipet in either this week or next week's Friday Folder. Let your child "experiment" with it in the bathtub, outside with a bowl of water, or in the sink! There's no need for your child to bring pipets back to school -- I'll provide them in class. Happy squirting!