The children had so much fun creating the graph ‘How many quarters did we collect from each state?’ Then we gathered the data and found out some interesting facts! We collected 307 quarters. Virginia was the state with the most. It had 17. New York and Connecticut both had 16. The states with the least coins were Arizona, Florida and Nebraska. They had only one each. Each child also studied one of the state coins and drew all the symbols that were on the coin. We really had fun and learned a lot too! [nggallery id=20]

Today we took a nature walk and looked at all of the signs of spring. The children wrote down what they saw, heard, felt, and smelled. These discoveries will be the seeds for our nature poems.

We really enjoyed singing this song today. We hope you enjoy it too!

We started our Poetry Unit this week and we have really enjoyed listening to poems and looking at the world through they eyes of a poet. This is the saying we have glued in the front of our Poetry Notebooks. “Poets see the world in different, fresh, and unusual ways. They see the world in ways never imangined. They look at the world closely and carefully. They look with their hearts and their minds.” I can’t wait to see what our poets write after the vacation. Here is a poem we wrote together:
SPRING DAY
Cool breeze
on my skin
Warm grass
under my toes
Sun shining
in my eyes
Birds
singing everywhere
Birds
flying in the great blue sky
Kids
playing and running
all around
BY THE POETS OF ROOM 65

We hope you love our presentation!!

Being flexible helps us when we need to cope with changes. Flexibility helps us to think about problems in new, creative ways. Listen to It Looked Like Spilt Milk by Charles Shaw.

What does this look like to you?  Come up with three different ideas. 

From Blackberry Ink by Eve Merriam
Bella had a new umbrella
Didn’t want to lose it,
So when she walked out in the rain
She didn’t ever use it.
Her nose went sniff,
Her shoes went squish,
Her socks grew soggy,
Her glasses got foggy,
Her pockets filled with water
And a little green froggy.
All she could speak was a weak Kachoo!
But Bella’s umbrella Stayed nice and new.
Was Bella flexible in this poem? What would you have done?

Listen to: Tom Chapin’s Incredible Flexible You, Track 9.

Challenge: Suppose you were given these three objects: one flip-flop, an empty water bottle, a shoelace. Which one of the three would you give up if you had to give one back? Why? What could you do with the other two things? Could you use them together? How?

This is the newest silent e song that we have been singing. There are so many great phonics songs on you tube. Enjoy!
http://youtu.be/rD9dwkrUf8s

Persistence is the word of the month for March.  It is important to remember that all activities take hard work and determination. Sometimes a task maybe easy but when activities are difficult you must not give up.  Persistence to achieve even through a difficult task will benefit you greatly.  The Little Engine that Could, Dumpy LaRue, The Giving Tree, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar all show characters who never give up.  Here is Eric Carle reading is very own book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Ask your parents about a time in their lives when they showed great persistence.  What did they learn? What was the outcome? What could have happened if they gave up? How did they feel in the beginning and in the end? Now think of something in your life that is hard for you.  Make a commitment to show persistence like one of the characters from the titles above and post it to our blog.

Keep Learning: Are you interested in learning more about caterpillars and butterflies?  Visit the San Diego Zoo today!

Have fun singing these great money songs!

We loved singing this song today. Happy 100th day!!