Last week’s library contest was a geography quiz. Participants had to correctly label the countries of Australia and New Zealand on a map of Oceania. All correct maps were entered in a drawing for a stuffed bear. One of Mrs. Gagnon’s third graders is the winner.
Latest library contest results
Last week’s estimation jar held 49 colorful plastic sea creatures. The only person to correctly guess the exact amount is Beau Silva. Beau is a kindergartner in Mrs. Morrison’s Purple Room. He wins all the sea creatures. Congratulations, Beau!
Have you met a wide-mouth frog lately?
The kindergartners recently completed a three-week unit on frogs. The unit started with an overview of the frog’s life cycle. The students participated in the reading of the repetitive story Jump, Frog, Jumpby Robert Kalan and then Mrs. Miliano told the story of “The Wide-Mouth Frog.” The students loved the story and the frog puppet so much that they asked to make their own frog puppets and to tell the story again! The following week, the children read the frog counting poem, “The Five Little Frogs,” and heard a retelling of “The Wide-Mouth Frog” with different animals. Then the students made their own frog puppets. In the third lesson, the children used their frog puppets to act out “The Five Little Frogs” and to retell “The Wide-Mouth Frog.” They were stupendous! By the way, did you know the wide-mouth frog lives in Number One Pond in Sanford?!
Second graders tour Africa
Mrs. Gagne’s second graders recently returned from a Google Earth tour of the continent of Africa. Leaving from CJL, the students flew over the Atlantic Ocean and landed in Egypt. They explored the Nile, the world’s longest river, and, of course, the pyramids. From Egypt, the students went to Timbuktu. (Yes, there really is such a place in the semi-arid country of Mali!) Next was the rainforest of Cameroon and the savanna of Tasmania. The students saw Mount Kilimanjaro before heading to Madagascar, Africa’s largest island. There are many unusual animals to see there. Then it was time to visit the Great Lakes region. The Victoria Falls are spectacular! (They reminded the children of Niagara Falls in New York.( The tour continued to South Africa where the students saw a diamond mine and a national park that is home to zebras, elephants, giraffes, ostriches, and other magnificent animals. When visiting the western coast, the travelers were surprised to learn that one kind of penguin lives along the coast of South Africa! Did you know that? The last stop of the tour was the southern tip of South Africa where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet. From there, the students flew home and began planning their next tour–to Australia!
Responsible library users recognized
In the past few weeks, four classrooms have been recognized for their efforts to return their library books promptly. Mrs. Morrison’s Purple Room friends and Mrs. Dillane’s Yellow Room friends (both kindergarten) recently filled their book return charts with 100 stickers. Each group received bookmarks and stickers as a reward. Miss Kimball’s second graders earned the Golden Shelf Elf Award and a prize for the sixth time this year! They have done an outstanding job of returning their books on time. Mrs. Bemis’ first graders have also excelled at being responsible library users. They recently received their fifth letter of congratulations and thanks from IQ Mouse, along with a prize.
Congratulations to all four classes for their accomplishments!