California Teachin'

As the kids were coming in on the first day, they worked on this "get to know you" bingo game :)

 I can't believe that this past week began my 5th year of teaching! Obviously, I was very worried about moving to California because I was afraid I wouldn't find a new teaching job. Fortunately, I was able to secure a head teaching position at a new project based charter school. It is definitely going to be a change from the schools I have worked in the past (it is a part-time schedule, so I am also tutoring on my days off), but I am excited for the challenge! I was very drawn to the school's philosophy, where experiential, real-world learning is valued. The calendar year is broken up into 8-9 project themes. Language arts, math, science and social studies are integrated throughout each approximately eight week project session.

The first project theme we are working on in my group (which is a mixed age class of 7/8 year olds) is planting a garden. I introduced the project by reading aloud The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle. We then recorded everything we know about seeds through the essential question What is a Seed?

After recording some initial thoughts on seeds, we dissected lima beans. I soaked the beans overnight so they were easy to peel and split apart. The kids used magnifying glasses to get "up close and personal" with the bean and see what parts of the seed they could identify based on the key words we previewed together (seed coat, root, leaves, food). After they observed the lima beans for a bit, the kids completed a diagram of a lima bean and labeled the picture with the key words.

We continued our seed investigation by "planting" kidney beans in small jars (we used damp paper towels). The kids made predictions in their seed journals about what they think will happen to their beans over the next few days:



 Over the next couple of days, students will watch their beans and record their observations of any sprouting or roots! It should be very exciting!