Robots and Fossils

We have had a very busy week in the classroom.  We started our unit on place value and number sense.  As a class we are recognizing that numbers such as 152 have 1 hundred, 5 tens, and 2 ones.  In order to really focus in on place value the class created Place Value Robots with hundred flats, ten sticks, and one cubes.  The class got really creative and seemed to have a great time.  On the back of their robot page, the students had to tell me the total value of their robot.

One of the other activities we did this week in math was comparing and ordering numbers.  We talked about the importance of putting numbers in order, even when some are missing.

Our S.T.E.M. activity this week focused on fossils.  Ms. Brown (our new kindergarten teacher at KES) let us borrow a bin full of REAL fossils.  I think at first, the class did not believe me that I was able to bring in real fossils.  Some of them showed plants and leaves, while others showed footprints, or even what we thought might be frog or lizard feet.  Through our investigation, the students learned what it means to observe both with their eyes and their sense of touch.  One of the big things that we did learn about fossils is that they are pretty fragile, but can show us some wonderful information about animals and plants from a long time ago.  We had quite the crew of paleontologists on the scene to make observations about some of the amazing things that can be found on earth.

See the leaf imprint on this one?

Most of the class thought this one was a hoof print.