Today in Reading

This year I have really been working on instilling a love for reading in my kindergarteners. It is so wonderful to see the kids in love with books, reading to themselves, and reading with others. February is I Love to Read Month here at Cold Springs and we will be (and have been) celebrating reading in a variety of ways. This morning the kids chose to do some quiet reading. As usual, I give them the choice to read in a comfortable spot. They all congregated under their tables to read - some with each other, some on their own. I got some of these pictures of them in action - well, not really "action", more like hard-at-work. Priceless.

The Dinosaur Song

Whew...welcome back everyone. I hope you are all rested from our snow-days. And two of them in a row - that is a rarity in our district.

We picked up right where we left of in our science study of dinosaurs. Here is a great video that has some facts about dinosaurs. It's a catchy little tune. 

You'll also find the same video and additional dino facts on Wonderopolis Wonder of the Day # 275 - How do dinosaurs get their names? 

Everybody Do the Dinosaur

It's January in Dragon-land and were learning about...dinosaurs.  Dinosaurs are fascinating, and the topic never fails to hook the kids. Last week we started reading dinosaur books to introduce and, for some, revisit some popular dinosaur vocabulary like fossils, bones, carnivore, herbivore, triceratops, stegosaurus, and of course...T-REX. Oh, an even better hook is that the first T-Rex skull was found in Montana in 1902, and the Maiasaura roamed Montana as well. 

This week we've been getting hands on with some fossils. The kids know that fossils are dinosaur bones that over millions of years have turned in to stone.  We discussed the process in class so I'll spare you the details.  We also discussed that fossils don't always have to be from dinosaurs. We looked at, and held, fossilized shells, wood, fish, eggs, and droppings - but the proper term is coprolite.  We've seen replicas of a Baronyx claw, a Troodon egg, and a T-Rex tooth. Next week we'll extend our learning into some writing and math.