I love the video below because it is truly an authentic moment in our new TK class.  Mrs. Hunter had the students working on a joint project that she had set up on the floor.

Listen carefully to their dialogue and you will hear what I heard, students engaged in their own learning, discovering and thinking while working very collaboratively with their peers.

Even though this is quite simple, it is one of my favorite videos to date.  I’d love to know your thoughts as well.

Josh Knowland, a parent at the school, poses with the picnic table he made for the staff.

As you know, our school has a wonderful Parent Advisory Committee (PAC). One of the missions of the PAC is to support the wonderful teachers at our school. Well, they did that and then some!

The PAC collected funds and asked one of our parents, Josh Knowland, to buy the materials with the funds they raised and build the table.

As part of our July 1st family event celebrating the completion of the first month of our summer EcoAdventures program, the PAC dedicated the table in front of the entire student body, staff and parents.

The PAC expressed its appreciation for all the hard work our teachers do to make our school such a special place for their children.  The teachers were touched by the PAC’s appreciation and greatly anticipate using the table.

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!

We’re happy to have her here!

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!

Today, we studied dry 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.

Students carefully pick the green beans.

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.

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.

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.

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!