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We are off to a great start in the 2000-2001 school year! There are 20 children in our class. We
 
Watermelons
 We started off our year with a watermelon unit. We hunted all over the schoolfor the watermelon and met all the school workers as we looked for it. We finally found it in the principal's office,We estimated how much the watermelon weighed and graphed the results. Next,we predicted whether or not the watermelon would float and then put it in a big trash can to see if it would. (It floated!!) Of course, we got to eat the watermelon. We each counted how many seeds our own piece of watermelon had. We saved the seeds to make an art project. Lastly we made a "Watermelon, Watermelon, What do You See?" book, which we took home and "read" to our parents.
Fall Activities
 We are doing all sorts of exciting fall activities. Onereally fun activity we did involved looking at pumpkins using all of our senses. We brainstormed about what we saw, what we heard,what we felt, what we smelled, and what we tasted when we explored our pumpkins. Then we wrote about it on pumpkin shaped paper. They were put up on the wall for all to see. Christmas Around the World
 We are having a lots of fun "traveling' from country to country as we learn about the Christmas customs in different parts of the world. We hand in our passports as we "board an airplane to our destination." For the United States, we took a "train tour" and "visited" different states. When we land, a tour guide shares some of the holiday traditions of the country. We reenact one or more of the traditions together. For Mexico we did a Las Posadas. We held lanterns and went to different parts of the room to find a place where thre "innkeeper would let us in. In England we went "a wassailing" and in Holland we placed our shoes by the "fireplace. We talked about the foods that they eat in each country. (we will be trying some of them on the last day of our unit) Next, we studied the map to learn where in our world each land is. We made a flag for each country. We did a writing activity and then made a Christmas craft from each land.
Wiggling Worms!!!
We have worms!!!! Mrs. Dunkerley finally brought in the worms!! We looked at them in their worm-house, held them...they tickled, and made a worm house that we could keep in the classroom. We also wrote as scientists about what we saw and did with the worms. Did you know that worms are efficient food-digesting machines that eat over half their body weight in organic material every day?!!! We are feeding them vegetables, coffee grounds, pasta and breads. Their castings make wonderful compost. We are going to use the soil for our Mother's Day flowers. Everybody who visits our class has to see our worms!!!
Our New Class Pets!
As part of our science curriculum, we have been learning about habitats. As a class we put together a habitat where fish could live. We now have two goldfish living in our classroom. They are so much fun to watch!!
Click on the words above or on the train to the right to see pictures of our first grade field trip by train into Los Angeles to see Olvera Street.
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