4's Class

Autumn...

At Morning Meeting, we began talking about the changes that are taking place outside.  We looked up the temperature and realized that it is much colder outside. The children were given leaves to hold. We noted that the leaves were green, red and brown. We pretended to be the wind blowing the leaves around- the leaves moved! When the wind picked up the leaves finally fell to the ground. 

We asked the children to keep their eyes and ears open to notice the new sights, sounds and smells outside. We want to approach the season of Autumn by engaging all of our senses. How do we see the fall? How do we hear it? What are the smells, tastes and textures of fall?

 

We also reviewed "The Story of An Apple Tree" which has the separate stages that we can observe in a real tree. Many of the children chose to make their own scrolls which illustrate the tree's life cycle. 

Vocabulary included: seed,  sapling,  young tree- 1 year old,  mature tree - 5 years old. 

After the tree produces apples, the leaves fall down and later WINTER will come. When spring comes again we see buds, blossoms and then comes the fruit which carries the seeds!)

 Making this "book" encouraged many skills including: listening, following complex directions, sequencing, fine motor, (cutting/gluing), planning and task completion. Some children related the steps back to us by using the pictures. When they bring the books home, I would encourage you to make up a story with your child using the pictures. They love adding characters and a plot.