Germs! Germs! Germs!

Today we started the day with the Touch and Feel pool full of letters.  We searched to find the letters in our names, we spelled words, we talked about sounds!  So much independent and peer learning happening.....it was very exciting!

We spent the morning circle talking about Groundhog Day!  The kids learned all about Phil and how he made weather predictions.  We have groundhogs in North Carolina, but Phil is famous.  This morning, before school, Phil did NOT see his shadow....so he is predicting an early spring!  Which we are all very much in favor of actually happening!!

Ms. Michelle was here today for OT.  We started with an academic obstacle course.  The kids had to each select a colored ring, then transport that ring to the seal's neck across the room on a scooter board.  Using their arms to move the scooter board, there was lots of creative ways to carry the ring, like on their backs or around their foot!  Then the kids had to pick a colored animal, hop to the snowflake, and throw that animal to the matching colored paper.  Lots of multi-step directions, so this was an activity that required lots of concentration to complete successfully!  Finger fun was four stations of fine motor tasks.  One group used tongs to move pom poms into an egg carton, one group matched pegs to colored pictures, one group put together straws using small connectors, and the last group used tiny pegs to make pictures.  Everyone got a turn in each group....but there were some clear favorites that everyone liked best!!

Our story today was Germs! Germs! Germs! by Bobbi Katz.  This rhyming story introduced us to germs and where they live.  It talks about food begin left out of the refrigerator to the inside of the body....germs live everywhere!  There were also some good examples of how to keep the germs away so we can stay healthy.

During our language time, we made list of some facts we learned about germs.  Facts are things that are true.  We even learned some new vocabulary words....like invisible and infection....from our book that we talked about more and added to the chart.

For art, we made a reminder about washing our hands. Since we can't see germs, we have to make sure that our hands are always clean....and never in our mouths....so we won't get sick.  The kids glued down all the pieces, and then added a thin layer of dirt and "germs" to the hands.

We decided that the whole class would be the "germ police" helping our friends to not spread germs.  No fingers in the mouth in our class.  No picking noses in our class.  No dirty hands in our class.  Always using cough catchers in our class.  The "police" had LOTS and LOTS of rules.....that they spent the rest of the day taking very seriously!  If this keeps everyone healthy and at school to learn, it will all be worth it!