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Got Goldfish!
Amanda Henry | June 29, 2011 | Comment
Our summer camp class been studying the theme “Under the Sea” and “Water World” for the past couple of weeks. We each brought a fish bowl to Camp and were given a goldfish of our very own! We filled our fishbowls with water. We picked one fish out of the bag and put them into our own fish bowl we brought from home. We fed our fish goldfish flakes. We fed him every other day for one week. We also cleaned out the bowls and gave our fish fresh water. After one week, we took the fish home to the families that wanted a pet. The rest of the fish went into the Camp Aquarium. This was so much fun to watch our fish grow. It taught us a great deal of responsibility!

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Meet Ms. Micaela
Heidi Summers | June 28, 2011 | Comment
Michaela is joining us for the summer as a substitute teacher. She is currently a student at Oklahoma State University, studying Elementary Education. Michaela has volunteered in early childhood programs in the past and has demonstrated that she is a very flexible and energetic teacher.
We’re happy to have her here!

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Meet Ms. Lindsay
Heidi Summers | June 28, 2011 | Comment
Ms. Lindsay is the new teacher joining Ms. Cristen in our EPS classroom. Ms. Lindsay is from Michigan, and she has a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education. She’s been working in the EPS class for a month now, and the children adore her.
Ms. Lindsay is excited to be here. She says, “My philosophy on teaching is I believe that each child is a unique individual who needs a secure, caring, and stimulating atmosphere in which to grow and mature emotionally, intellectually, physically, and socially. It is my desire as an educator to help students meet their highest potential in these areas by providing an environment that is safe, allows child’s natural curiosity, and provides an opportunity for continual learning and growth”.
What a great fit for the Grove School!

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Sublimation Experimentation
Amanda Henry | June 21, 2011 | Comment
In summer camp we have been studying the Arctic. We have been learning a lot about the cold and ice.
The students could only touch the dry ice with rubber gloves on. It is so cold that if you touch it with your bare skin, it could burn you! We were very careful when handling the dry ice.
We started out by sticking a block of dry ice into a plastic tub. Immediately, it started sublimating, or turning from a solid to a gas. We poured water on top of the dry ice to make a lot of fog appear. Next, we poured soap in with the water to create foam and bubbles!
Each student had a turn to put on the rubber gloves and hold the dry ice. It started fogging a lot! The students were thrilled at watching the sublimation and they commented on all the things of which it reminded them: ghosts, movies, fog and steam.
All of us had a blast.

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Garden Update: Harvesting Green Beans
Scott Andersen | June 21, 2011 | Comment
As you know, we have a wonderful organic garden that our students have grown. All the fruits and veggies are progressing nicely. Today, Mrs. Stephanie took the PK students outside to harvest some green beans.
Each of the students used their scissors to cut the beans from the plant. They were thrilled to see how many beans they had and how big they grew.
There will be more beans harvested in the coming days. The students also noticed that there were almost 100 tomatoes growing on the vines.
Enjoy the photos below (click on them to enlarge) of their class green bean harvest. The video below shows the students enjoying their cooked veggies during lunch. There are also new photos below. I was proud of how many of the students tried them at lunch time.

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Growing and Gardening Community Activity
Heidi Summers | June 16, 2011 | Comment
Are you looking for something fun to do with your 2 to 5 yr old? How about attending a Growing and Gardening session with Ms. Miranda? This is a no cost program offered on Wednesday mornings at 9:30.
Ms. Miranda will read stories and participate in gardening and outdoor activities with you and your children.
Please call ahead (972-618-3523) if this is something you would like to attend.

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Early Preschool for Toddlers
Heidi Summers | June 16, 2011 | Comments (2)
The Grove School in Plano offers a fantastic early learning experience for children who are 18 months of age and older. At this time, we are accepting admissions for full and part time children in the fall. Pre-registration is required for this class, so please call now and find out more about our early learners program.

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60 Seconds in Preschool
Scott Andersen | June 14, 2011 | Comment
As I have discussed before on this blog, I like to visit the classrooms throughout the day to watch our students actively engaged in their school day. Today I grabbed the Flip camera and walked into Ms. Gina and Ms. Hunter’s preschool class (3 year olds).
The video shows what a 60 second snapshot looked like today in their class. I can tell you, what I captured today on video is what typically takes place in their class every day. Notice how students are engaged in their centers while the teachers are assisting and facilitating, but not directing.
Students were working in the block center, math center, writing center, and at the computer center.
I thought you might like to see what it looks like.

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Balloon Math
Heidi Summers | June 10, 2011 | Comment
What can you do with a balloon? How about math?
Our students found that balloons are not just for displaying – they can teach important math concepts. During our after school enrichment program, Ms. Mandy had students use balloons to identify colors, count objects, and even create patterns.
This was not a “sit down and learn” lesson. Children were actively engaged as they were asked to stand up, form lines, and count together. As you will see from the pictures, students were allowed to take full advantage of the beautiful day by doing their lessons outdoors. Ms. Mandy has also done several other lessons with balloons already in her summer camp class.
So, what can you do with a balloon? Wait and see – I’m sure we’ll have more updates to follow!

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What is an Owl Pellet?
Miranda Laughlin | June 3, 2011 | Comment
During the school age student’s Eco-Friend strand, students were posed with the question, “What is an Owl Pellet?” Throughout the Wild Animals unit, students explored characteristics of owls including the following facts they shared prior to our dissection: “Owls sleep during the day and are awake at night because they are nocturnal” and “Owls have big eyes that see very well at night so they can catch food when it is dark outside” and “Owls like to eat mice and rodents.”
This previous knowledge spurred on a thoughtful discussion about why owls cannot digest an entire animal causing them to cough up remains of animals leaving us with owl pellets to dissect!
Students were encouraged to observe drawings and diagrams to identify what may be found in an owl pellet and what items to look out for in the dissection.
Next, prior to the dissection, students were asked to make predictions of what they might find in their owl pellets. Most students wanted to find fur and bones in their owl pellet and some wanted to find animals skulls!
The school age class is so brave to take on such an activity and had a wonderful experience! Students were encouraged to gently dissect their owl pellet to prevent breakage of animal bones and to look very carefully for even the smallest bones! Each student found: fur, bones, teeth, jaws and at least parts of an animal skull! Some students discovered an entire mouse skull!
Students were also encouraged to run water over their findings to remove any excess fur from the bones for better observation.
Students were encouraged to describe and look for detail in their findings. The description conversation that followed included, “The bones were so tiny,” “the fur smells bad” and “the mouse teeth are so long!” Finally, students placed their findings in plastic bags for further observation and discussion.
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