Unit: Ocean (Who lives in the ocean?)

Unit: Ocean  

Lesson Plan #4

Background Information Child Must Know:Children know some creatures living under the sea such as fishes.  Concepts: Children will learn facts about the ocean and know some of the creatures that thrive under the water.	Subject: Who lives in the ocean? Grade: Grade 1 Day of Week:Date:
Specific Behavioral Objectives:Identify different creatures that live in the ocean. Describe the creatures that live in the ocean. Recognize the movements of the creatures in the ocean. Construct an ocean scene in an area of the classroom.	Materials: Pictures of different sea creatures The book “somewhere in the ocean” big white butcher paper Blue paint Sponge white construction paper Red paint Paint brushes scissors pre-cut fishes (medium size) Different painting colors Paint brushes

Curriculum Frameworks:

ScienceL6 Recognize that plants and animals grow to resemble their parents. 

Language:
 

L1 Media, Materials and Techniques; Use a variety of materials and methods and identify distinctive visual effects that can be achieved by the use of different materials.

 Opening the lesson: 

I am going to show you a portion of a picture of creatures that live in the sea. But before we move on, I want you to tell me what other creatures live in the sea? Can you name one?….Ok, what you mentioned are all correct. Now, what you are going to do is guess the creatures I have here with me, after peeking through the image. After you guessed it we are also going to read the words under the picture. Are you ready? (

peek) A fish lives in the sea.

(peek) A sea turtle lives in the sea.

(peek) A sea horse lives in the sea.

(peek) A shark lives in the sea.

(peek) A starfish lives in the sea.

(peek) A walrus lives in the sea.

(peek) A red crab lives in the sea.

(peek) A dolphin lives in the sea.

(peek) An octopus lives in the sea.

(peek) A whale lives in the sea.

(peek) A jellyfish lives in the sea.

(peek) But a diver does not live in the sea. 

Developing the Lesson:   Did you enjoy guessing and peeking through the pictures? Now, we are not going to guess these creatures on this book which I am going to read to you. I am going to read to you a book entitled “Somewhere in the Ocean” by Jennifer Ward to learn more creatures that live under the ocean.As I read each page, I want you to be more aware of how each creature move under the sea and you are going to pretend how they act….  

Page 1 …can you show me how does a manatee nibbles? (children will pretend to nibble)

Page 2… how does a whale splash and jump? (children will pretend to splash and jump)

Page 3….how does a fish nestle in their sea anemone?

Page 4…how does a hermit crab dress on different shells?

Page 5….now how about a sea otter…how do they munch the urchins?

Page 6….this is going to be fun…how does a tiger shark cruise under the sea?

Page 7…. And my favorite, the seahorses…how do they sway on the sea grasses?

Page 8…how do the sea turtles paddle?

Page 9…show me how the jellyfishes snap their tasty tidbits of food?

Page 10…and the last one, how do the octopuses squirt? 

Out of all the creatures which among them is your favorite? Describe it.      

Follow up to the Lesson: 

Activity #1: Blue Ocean Sponge painting

Materials: big white butcher paper

Blue paint

Sponge 

Have the children sponge paint a big butcher paper to serve as the ocean.

  Activity #2 Fishy painting

Materials:  pre-cut fishes (medium size)

Different painting colors

Paint brushes 

Instruct the children to get 2 fishes and paint them as colorful as they can.  

Activity #3 Crab Hand

Materials: white construction paper

Red paint

Paint brushes

scissors 

Tell the children that they are going to make a red crab using their left and right hand. They are going to paint their right hand red. After painting, press the painted hand on the paper. Next, ask the children to paint their left hand and press the painted hand next to the right hand, which will look like a red crab. 

Adaptations: 

On Activity #2, instead of offering pre-cut fishes, children can also dip their hands on a washable painting and press the painted hand on the paper. Once it is dried, children are going to trace the outline and put lips and you got a fish!After all the activities are done, invite children to construct an under the sea area decoration by putting the things they made all together. 

Evaluation of the students: Did the children identify creatures that live in the sea?  

Self-Evaluation; Have the activities helped the children learn more creatures that live under the sea other than fishes?    

Unit: Ocean (Waves)

Apparently, I lost the lesson plan #2, so this is the next part of the 8 series. Sorry about that ;-(

-A.S.

 Unit: Ocean 

Lesson Plan #3 

Background Information Child Must Know: Children have seen waves.  Concepts: Children will learn facts about the ocean and know some of the creatures that thrive under the water.	Subject: WavesGrade: Grade 1 Day of Week:Date:
Specific Behavioral Objectives:Identify what causes waves Create a message in a bottle Express themselves through the unit by singing a song Distinguish the real horses referred in  the poem	Materials: Clear plastic 1-liter botle, empty Water Tape Mineral oil, 1 pint(500 ml) Blue food coloringa tub of water and straws.  A plastic cloth message blank Scissors Crayons Clear plastic soda bottles with screw on tops Sand

Curriculum Frameworks:

Arts: Music1.1 Singing independently maintaining accurate intonation.

Language11 Identify the themes in fiction and non-fiction and relate them to personal experiences.

14.1 Identify the theme of a poem.

19.5 Engage in journal writing or learning log. 

Opening the lesson: I am going to read to you a poem entitled The Horses of the Sea by Christina Rossetti. After I read this poem, I want you to guess what the horses of the sea really are in this poem: 

The Horses of the Sea 

The horses of the sea           

Rear a foaming crestBut the horses of the land           

Serve us best.

The horses of the land           

Munch corn and clover,

While the foaming sea-horses           

Toss and turn over. 

Can you guess what the horses of the sea really are in this poem?  

Developing the Lesson:  

We are going to learn a song to the tune of the farmer in the dell to learn how the waves in the ocean move. 

The Waves Move Sung to: “The farmer in the dell” The waves move up and down,
Without making a sound.
they move through water and through air,
The waves move up and down.
The waves move up and down,
Without making a sound.
They move everywhere,
The waves move up and down.

Now that we know and acted like the waves in the ocean, we will do some activities that will enhance your knowledge on what causes waves in the ocean? Can somebody tell me what causes the waves in the ocean? Write their answers on a paper. 

Follow up to the Lesson: 

Activity #1: Waves of OilMaterials
Clear plastic 1-liter botle, empty
Water
Tape
Mineral oil, 1 pint(500 ml)
Blue food coloring 

What to do

1. Pour mineral oil into the empty bottle and add water to fill.
2. Place five to six drops of blue food coloring in the bottle and shake.
3. Point out how the oil and water don’t mix, which will be obvious because the oil will be clear and the water will turn blue.
4. Seal the bottle with a lid and tape it shut so it will not leak. You may even wish to seal with a hot glue gun.
5. Gently rock the bottle from side to simulate waves.

  Activity #2 Making Waves:

Materials:  a tub of water and straws. 

Ask the children if they know or can guess what causes waves on the ocean. Then invite them to try this activity to find out:

1. Place a plastic cloth or towel beneath the fish tank to protect the area from spilled water. Then fill the fish tank almost to the top with water. Let children take turns blowing across the surface of the water at once. (Stronger winds will cause bigger waves. Also, the bigger the tank, the bigger the waves will be, just as bigger waves build over bigger bodies of water.)
2. Discuss what students discovered. They should conclude that wind is a major cause of waves. (Earthquakes and landslides under the ocean also cause waves.) Encourage students to imagine what the waves would be like in the ocean during a storm.

 Activity #3 Carried Away (message in a bottle)

Materials: message blankScissorsCrayonsClear plastic soda bottles with screw on topsSand Children are going to send messages in a bottle that could be carried across the ocean. Tell the children that about one out of 10 messages scientists send out are returned! Tell the children that it might take years for a message in a bottle to be found and returned. Some children might even have a message returned after they are grown up.Procedure:Have the children cut out their message blanks and fill in their names and addresses. Help them roll up the messages and put them into the bottles. Add one or two inches of sand as ballast and close the bottles tightly. Arrange to have the bottles released offshore from a boat, such as a fishing boat or sightseeing boat.    

Adaptations: 

On Activity #2, students can either use the straw or just blow right out of their mouth.

On Activity #3 help students tighten the cap on their message in a bottle. The children can also take their message in the bottle home, and send a note home for the parents to release the bottle on their trip to the beach or ocean. 

Evaluation of the students: Did the children identify what causes waves?  

Self-Evaluation; Have the activities helped the children understand better how waves are created?   

Unit: Ocean (Sights and Sounds of the Ocean)

This is a unit lesson on Ocean that consists of 8 lesson plans. I wrote all of these as part of my Curriculum and Methods I requirements and which I taught the whole Unit during the summer season. The students used to enjoy doing the lessons and they learned from it as much as I did.

Be sure to check out the rest of this Unit.

- Alpha

Unit: Ocean

Lesson Plan #1  

Background Information Child Must Know: Children must have background or knowledge about the ocean.  Concepts: Children will learn facts about the ocean and know some of the creatures that thrive under the water.	Subject: Sights and Sounds of the OceanGrade: Grade 1Day of Week:Date:
Specific Behavioral Objectives:Describe an ocean according to the children’s five senses. .Describe the things they see in the oceanWrite a story about the ocean.	Materials:A picture of the ocean Out of the Ocean by Debra FrasierS ome pretzels or saltine crackers Styrofoam cups or plastic cups Chart paper Blue construction paper Ocean Bingo kit Ocean Poem Different fishes for the Ocean view A Box

 Curriculum Frameworks: Grade 1

Math

P3 Identify objects that are alike or different by attributes other than color, shape and size. 

Opening the lesson: “Who among you have seen the ocean? Please raise your hand.”“Who among you haven’t seen the ocean? Please raise your hand.”If you haven’t seen the ocean yet, what do you think an ocean might be like?“What do you think is an ocean?”Oceans are the largest bodies of water on earth. In fact, oceans cover over half the earth. (Ocean is 71% while land is 29%). -          Present a picture of the ocean) This is a picture of the ocean. Ask the questions:

1. What color is the water in the ocean?
2. What are the waves like?
3. What do you see when you look out over the ocean?
4. Are there animals or plants?
5. How far can you see?

 Developing the Lesson:  

Read the book Out of the Ocean by Debra FrasierBefore reading the book, ask the children how might it feel like to be out of the ocean. Ask them:Is the water warm or cold? Is the beach sandy or rocky? What is the weather like?  We are going to read “Out of the Ocean” by Debra Frasier. Here we go: *….everyday I ask for water,  she says and look – water everywhere….At this point, ask the children, “what do you think ocean water tastes like?’…”I will give you a bit of pretzel or a saltine cracker to experience a taste similar to the salty ocean. How do you like the taste of the ocean water?” * …I know you can ask…..arriving empty, most times worn by the sand and waves…“Imagine hearing the waves on the ocean. How does it sound?” Ok, I will give a cup and I want you to hold this paper cup over your ear to hear the sound of the ocean and the sound of the wave. Do hear the ocean waves? How does it sound like? After reading the book, ask the children what are the things they remember seeing in the ocean?What do you think of the ocean? What other things they see on the ocean? What about under the ocean? List their ideas on a chart paper and tell them we will be learning all about the ocean. 

Follow up to the Lesson: 

Activity #1: Drawing Ocean ThingsDraw the things they see on the ocean on a blue construction paper. 

Activity #2 Ocean BingoThe children are going to play this ocean bingo with the different things they see on the ocean. 

Activity #3 Ocean StoryThe children are going to write their very own ocean story and draw them on the paper.  

Activity #4 Ocean ViewChildren are going to color different fishes that can be found in the ocean. Each child will be given a different fish to complete the 16 slides for the “ocean’s view finder box” where they will later on view the fishes as an ocean view.    

Adaptations: On Activity #1, help children think of more than 5 things they can see on the ocean other than one or two things.On Activity #2, assign a child as the caller and ask children to take turns as the caller. 

Evaluation of the students: Did the children describe the ocean using their five senses?  

Self-Evaluation; Have we encouraged the children to be more imaginative with the things they see on the ocean?

An Assessment Write-up (Example)

***Check out the date: I wrote this particular assessment two years ago!

-A.S. 

ASSESSMENT WRITE-UP

SN 540 Psychological and Educational Assessment

02/20/06  

Background Information            

It made my assessment project easier when Dr. Cawthorne approved of using one of my students in my Pre-K class who is of Kindergarten age as the subject of this requirement.           

I chose K, a happy but tend to be stubborn and withdrawn if she wants to. There is a possible negative result of this withdrawn attitude that KW is exhibiting in correlation to her potential academic growth. In school, she likes to play and pick up more concepts when she is with a group.  But several instances have confirmed that KW does not respond too well when she is on a one-to-one setting with the teacher. This behavior could be hazardous to attaining her fullest academic achievement; nonetheless she is still a smart and caring child. 

She lives with her mom and her brother for most of the weekdays but only spends time with her father on the weekends, when he comes back home from his job in another state. She has a brother who receives special education needs, to which whom she cares so much about. When her friends talk about their families, she will usually step up and talk about how she wants to help her brother read or write or talk. She will tell about how she misses her mom, even though her mom just dropped her off to school and how she loves to go home and spend time with mom and her brother.            

For the few weeks that I spent a direct and more focused observation and a closer assessment on her, I realized how smart and inquisitive she is, than I first thought. Her answers to some of the conversational questions I asked her during our normal class hours and even during our “assessment” time together showed that this child does not only think on the surface of the problem, but even consider other aspects for possible solutions. One example happened when K and a friend was making a heart decoration for our St. Valentine’s theme, when her friend noticed that there were different shades of red, brown and pink thrown in the markers’ bin. Normally, a Pre-K child in my classroom would just label anything that looks like red as “red”, but K told her friend that “this is maroon, burgundy and sangria” and referred to another shade of pink as “magenta” and another brown shade as “amber and bronze”.            

K mentioned that she learned these different color shades from her friends and sometimes from the TV.            

In the latter part of this project, I realized that K learns better with hands-on experience (group learning) and with the use of multimedia technology. Discussion of this strategy will be explored in one of the areas of assessment tools. 

Anecdotal Records           

Two anecdotal records were taken to assess K’s social, communication and behavioral skills. One anecdotal record was taken in a week with 5 consecutive days of tracking the 3 above mentioned skills. Another one was taken to identify how she behaves and socializes when she is in a certain area in the classroom.            

On the previous anecdotal records, K showed a consistent “thinking outside the box” attitude and not just “on the surface” type of thinking with comments and conversations made between us. One incident was when I asked her how many sides does a circle have (with previous discussions on how many sides that a triangle, square and rectangle have) and she answered quite questioning me, “but it is round.” Another was when she showed interest in using the stethoscope I brought for our theme on hearts, and she commented on using the stethoscope to check if her mom’s heart is in good condition.            

The anecdotal record for how she behaves in the different areas of the class reveals how she can be stubborn, bossy and tends to “withdraw” herself from the crowd when she wants to. She can be manipulative to her friends but still demonstrates her care to them. She usually does not respond to her friends’ calling her name when she is playing alone, thus totally ignoring her friends until she is ready to respond to them. When she stays on the literacy corner, she displays her above-average skills on scissor cutting and drawing, but sometimes, she can be too engrossed in doing these activities unless called out many times or physically cue her to get her attention.

Checklists           

The checklists used cover the visual recognition, sound recognition and writing of the letters of the alphabet. K and I went through the first 2 checklists mentioned above and found out that K visually recognized all of the uppercase of the letters but do not know 7 of the lowercases of the alphabet. K was able to give 15 correct sounds of the letters of the alphabet. In the writing of the letters, I asked K to write the letters on a piece of paper as I say the letter of the alphabet. She was able to follow the direction easily. From this, K was able to write all the uppercase forms of the letters correctly but did not know how to write 10 letters of the alphabet in their lowercase forms.            

I also tried to answer the Emerging Literacy Checklist provided by one of my classmates based from my observations on K. On this checklist, K revealed her interest in print materials, her advanced book orientation and knowledge as well as her basal reading strategies which includes predicting what a book is all about based on the pictures on the book cover, attempting to read independently and read some simple words.           

Three more checklists on K’s behavior were used such as the BASC (Behavior Assessment System for Children), Participation to Classroom Activities checklist and Cooperative Group Learning Checklist. From these tools, it can be verified that K learns, thinks and works better in a group rather than in a small or one-on-one setting, from which she has the tendency to block the other person thus, blocking her mind as well to reason out and to function as a whole.

Self-Assessment           

In addition to using the open-ended questions for self-assessment on Kindergarten (Pre-K), I used a hands-on experience using multimedia technology to easily measure K’s knowledge of the alphabet letters.           

In self-assessing her adeptness on the sounds of the alphabet, I have her use the magnetic letters on our classroom refrigerator. The procedure was given to her prior to the execution of the self assessment and found out that K can follow a more complex direction very well. K picked one letter from the refrigerator then lifted up and then said the corresponding sound of the letter on her hand. Once she said the sound of the letter, she placed the letter into the “sound machine” which played the correct sound of the letter. If she got it right, K would tell the teacher and then proceed to the next, until all of the letters are completely done.           

In self-assessing her knowledge on the upper and lower cases of the letters of the alphabet, I asked K to use the computer and placed an Alphabet Express Preschool CD-rom on Letters (both upper and lower cases). At the end of this game, it showed that K scored Good on the game, with a probable mistake of between 3-7 items.

Rubric           

The rubric assessment was utilized in accordance to the visual recognition, sound recognition and writing of the alphabet. K scored 4 on the visual recognition of the uppercase of the alphabet but only when it came to the lower case form of the alphabet. In sounding the letters of the alphabet, K scored 3 with some incorrect sound of the letter asked for identification. Finally, K scored 4 in writing the uppercase of the alphabet and another 3 in writing the lower case of the alphabet.

Formal Assessment           

I got a similar Woodcock Johnson Test from the Internet but focuses on Preschool letter and simple words recognition of which I used to determine K’s grade level. From the scale this test provided, KW scored a total of 13 on letter recognition and some simple word recognition which is equivalent to a 1.3 grade level or 1^st grade three months in school.            

I also administered a Teacher-made formal assessment by using a flashcard to sound out the letters of the alphabet. I asked K to stand with the flashcard on her hands while I watched her. As she flipped the cards she also said the sound of the letter. At first she was hesitant to do it, but after a few encouragements, she did it. The result was a higher number of incorrect sounds to the letters identified compared to the time when we did the checklist. My hypothesis is that K might be shy and did this just so she will complete the process.

Remediation           

According to the assessment tools used, K will need some remediation on the mastery of writing and recognition of the lowercase form of the alphabet as well as a minimal assistance on the mastery of the sounds of the letters.           

I have laid out some plans for her remediation based one of her favorite books, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom to generate faster and better results on the mastery of the skills needed to improve on. These plans will allow he to use both at home and at school:    

Remediation for lowercase letter recognition 

1. Read Chicka, Chicka Boom Boom and follow the site for the interactive activity which can be done at home with the assistance of mom.

 http://www.mrsnelsonsclass.com/downloads/powerpoint/chicka_alphabet.ppt#256,1,Slide 1  

Remediation for writing lowercase letters 

2. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom coloring pages with lowercases of the alphabet, obtained from

http://www.dltk-kids.com/books/chicka/chickacoloring.htm  Remediation for sounding out letters 

3. Play BINGO cards and KW will be the caller to sound out the letter sounds, obtained from

http://www.geocities.com/pbottoms2001/CCBB_Bingo_Cards.html           

Analysis           

All of the assessment tools used provided an almost consistent result on K’s knowledge level on recognizing the upper and lower cases of the alphabet, the sound of the letters and writing the alphabet both in upper and lower cases. There was only one significant contradiction to the results presented between the teacher-made formal assessment on the letter sound recognition as opposed to the checklist previously conducted with K. With the observation and anecdotal records, I have confirmed that K shy away from a one-to-one setting thus lowering her sound recognition on the teacher-made formal assessment.           

The most significant and most reliable findings on K’s performance and knowledge level on the letters of alphabet were revealed by using the similar Woodcock Johnson assessment obtained from the internet but focuses mainly on a preschooler’s knowledge of the alphabet. Based from this tool, it can be concluded that K’s present grade level is 1.3 or 1^st grade and three months.  

Limitations           

Although there is a substantial regularity of the observation and behavioral checklists conducted with K presenting her tendency to shut herself off from the group as a hazard to her academic growth, I do not have the full capacity to analyze and provide proper remediation to this behavior or maybe a social problem that she could probably have. It can be a good study to conduct separately as K is found to be academically advanced compared to her peers.

Another Assessment Tool

I think this was given to me by one of my Professors at ENC. I do not know exactly where she got it but I know for sure I had lots of fun when I used this particular tool. Let me know how it worked in your classroom!

-A.S.

Self-Assessment

Date:__________________________________________________
Student’s Name:__________________________________________

Directions: Have available three faces (one sad, one happy, one nuetral). These can be drawn on heavy paper and laminated, or made from two circles of cloth, stuffed and finished with buttons for eyes, felt for the nose, and felt or wool for the mouth. Ask the student the following questions and explain that she/he should respond by choosing the appropriate face. Record the answer by drawing the shpe of the mouth chosen and by noting any pertinent verbal response.  

1. When you look at a book all by yourself, how do you feel?

2. When I ask you to talk about your picture, how do you feel?

3. When you get up in the morning and you know you are going to school, how do you feel?

4. When I read a story to the whole class, how do you feel?

5. When you are working at a center all by yourself, how do you feel?

6. When someone asks you to play, how do you feel?

7. When we go to the community room, how do you feel?

8. When we sing in class, how do you feel?

9. When it’s time to play outside, how do you feel?

Comments:
_________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________

Teacher-Made Assessment Tool

Below is an example of an assessment tool I personally made and reconstructed which I used to assess my students before.

I hope this will be of a great help! Check out also one of my Assessment write-up which will give you an example of how to write an assessment for a Pre-K student.

-A.S. 

 

Child’s Name: ___________________________________________________________________

Date: __________________________________________________________________________

  VISUAL RECOGNITION OF THE ALPHABET CHECKLIST  

Uppercase letters	Yes	No	Lowercase Letters	Yes	No
A			a
B			b
C			c
D			d
E			e
F			f
G			g
H			h
I			i
J			j
K			k
L			l
M			m
N			n
O			o
P			p
Q			q
R			r
S			s
T			t
U			u
V			v
W			w
X			x
Y			y
Z			z

 

Child’s Name: ___________________________________________________________________

Date: __________________________________________________________________________

  RECOGNITION OF LETTER SOUND CHECKLIST  

	Yes	No
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z

 

Child’s Name: ___________________________________________________________________

Date: __________________________________________________________________________

  WRITING OF THE ALPHABET CHECKLIST  

Uppercase letters	Yes	No	Lowercase Letters	Yes	No
A			a
B			b
C			c
D			d
E			e
F			f
G			g
H			h
I			i
J			j
K			k
L			l
M			m
N			n
O			o
P			p
Q			q
R			r
S			s
T			t
U			u
V			v
W			w
X			x
Y			y
Z			z

              Alphabet Sound Rubric

Score	Description	Cut off scores
1	Makes little or no attempt to sound out or read a letter.	High Risk
2	Says the wrong sounds for the letters.	High Risk
3	Inconsistently says correct sounds for letters.	Some Risk
4	Sounds out letters, with no hesitation	On Track

 Sight Letter Rubric

Score	Description	Cut off scores
1	49% and below of sight letters	High Risk
2	50-79% of sight letters	Some Risk
3	79-89% of sight letters	Some Risk
4	90-100% of sight letters	On Track

   Alphabet Writing Rubric

Score	Description	Cut off scores
1	Makes lines, scribbles.  Uses letter-like symbols.	High risk
2	Uses letter-like symbols	High risk
3	Uses random letters or random letters and numbers.	On Track
4	All letters are well-represented.	On track

 Remediation for lowercase letter recognition 

1. Read Chicka, Chicka Boom Boom and follow the site for the interactive activity which will  be do at home with the assistance of mom.

http://www.mrsnelsonsclass.com/downloads/powerpoint/chicka_alphabet.ppt#256,1,Slide 1

  Remediation for writing lowercase letters 

2. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom coloring pages obtained from

http://www.dltk-kids.com/books/chicka/chickacoloring.htm

  Remediation for sounding out letters 

3. Play BINGO cards obtained from

http://www.geocities.com/pbottoms2001/CCBB_Bingo_Cards.html

     

Massachusetts Pre-k Learning Standards

 Just in case you are wondering about what I used to teach in kindergarten/preschool here is the curriculum frameworks that the state of Massachusetts issued. These frameworks are the guidelines that we used to follow al year long in planning for our activities, making sure every lesson, every play activity falls under one of the MA Learning Standards!

I hope this will help give you an idea!

-A.S.

Earth and Space Science	Life Science	Physical Sciences	Technology/Engineering
GRADES PreK-2
·         Recognize that water, rocks, soil, and living organisms are found on the earth’s surface. ·         Understand that air is a mixture of gases that is all around us and that wind is moving air. ·         Describe the weather changes from day to day and over the seasons. ·         Recognize that the sun supplies heat and light to the earth and is necessary for life. ·         Identify some events around us that have repeating patterns, including the seasons of the year, day and night.	·         Recognize that animals (including humans) and plants are living things that grow, reproduce, and need food, air, and water. ·         Differentiate between living and nonliving things. Group both living and nonliving things according to the characteristics that they share. ·         Recognize that plants and animals have life cycles, and that life cycles vary for different living things. ·         Describe ways in which many plants and animals closely resemble their parents in observed appearance. ·         Recognize that fossils provide us with information about living things that inhabited the earth years ago. ·         Recognize that people and other animals interact with the environment through their senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste. ·         Recognize changes in appearance that animals and plants go through as the seasons change. ·         Identify the ways in which an organism’s habitat provides for its basic needs (plants require air, water, nutrients, and light; animals require food, water, air, and shelter).	·         Sort objects by observable properties such as size, shape, color, weight, and texture. ·         Identify objects and materials as solid, liquid, or gas. Recognize that solids have a definite shape and that liquids and gases take the shape of their container. ·         Describe the various ways that objects can move, such as in a straight line, zigzag, back-and-forth, round-and-round, fast, and slow. ·         Demonstrate that the way to change the motion of an object is to apply a force (give it a push or a pull). The greater the force, the greater the change in the motion of the object. ·         Recognize that under some conditions, objects can be balanced.	·         Identify and describe characteristics of natural materials (e.g., wood, cotton, fur, wool) and human-made materials (e.g., plastic, Styrofoam). ·         Identify and explain some possible uses for natural materials (e.g., wood, cotton, fur, wool) and human-made materials (e.g., plastic, Styrofoam). ·         Identify and describe the safe and proper use of tools and materials (e.g., glue, scissors, tape, ruler, paper, toothpicks, straws, spools) to construct simple structures. ·         Identify tools and simple machines used for a specific purpose, e.g., ramp, wheel, pulley, lever. ·         Describe how human beings use parts of the body as tools (e.g., teeth for cutting, hands for grasping and catching), and compare their use with the ways in which animals use those parts of their bodies.

  The PreK–12 Standards for Music in this Strand:

     1.   Singing. Students will sing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

     2.   Reading and Notation. Students will read music written in standard notation.

     3.   Playing Instruments. Students will play instruments, alone and with others, to perform a varied repertoire of music.

     4.   Improvisation and Composition. Students will improvise, compose, and arrange music.

     5.   Critical Response. Students will describe and analyze their own music and the music of others using appropriate music vocabulary. When appropriate, students will connect their analysis to interpretation and evaluation.

 

Connections Strand, beginning on page 75:

     6.   Purposes and Meanings in the Arts. Students will describe the purposes for which works of dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and architecture were and are created, and, when appropriate, interpret their meanings.

     7.   Roles of Artists in Communities. Students will describe the roles of artists, patrons, cultural organizations, and arts institutions in societies of the past and present.

     8.   Concepts of Style, Stylistic Influence, and Stylistic Change. Students will demonstrate their understanding of styles, stylistic influence, and stylistic change by identifying when and where art works were created, and by analyzing characteristic features of art works from various historical periods, cultures, and genres.

     9.   Inventions, Technologies, and the Arts. Students will describe and analyze how performing and visual artists use and have used materials, inventions, and technologies in their work.

  10.   Interdisciplinary Connections. Students will apply their knowledge of the arts to the study of English language arts, foreign languages, health, history and social science, mathematics, and science and technology/engineering.

 

Theatre Strands and Standards

STRAND Connections: History, Criticism, and Links to Other Disciplines 

Students learn about the history and criticism of theatre, its role in the community, and its links to other disciplines

 PreK–12 STANDARDS PreK–12 STANDARD 6Purposes and Meanings in the Arts 

Students will describe the purposes for which works of dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and architecture were and are created, and, when appropriate, interpret their meanings.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 7Roles of Artists in Communities 

Students will describe the roles of artists, patrons, cultural organizations, and arts institutions in societies of the past and present.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 8 Concepts of Style, Stylistic Influence, and Stylistic Change 

Students will demonstrate their understanding of styles, stylistic influence, and stylistic change by identifying when and where art works were created, and by analyzing characteristic features of art works from various historical periods, cultures, and genres.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 9Inventions, Technologies, and the Arts 

Students will describe and analyze how performing and visual artists use and have used materials, inventions, and technologies in their work.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 10Interdisciplinary Connections Students will apply their knowledge of the arts to the study of English language arts, foreign languages, health, history and social science, mathematics, and science and technology/engineering.

Visual Arts Strands and Standards

STRAND The Arts Disciplines 

Students learn about and use the symbolic language of the visual arts.

 PreK–12 STANDARDS PreK–12 STANDARD 1Methods, Materials, and Techniques 

Students will demonstrate knowledge of the methods, materials, and techniques unique to the visual arts.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 2Elements and Principles of Design 

Students will demonstrate knowledge of the elements and principles of design.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 3 Observation, Abstraction, Invention, and Expression 

Students will demonstrate their powers of observation, abstraction, invention, and expression in a variety of media, materials, and techniques.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 4Drafting, Revising, and Exhibiting 

Students will demonstrate knowledge of the processes of creating and exhibiting artwork: drafts, critique, self-assessment, refinement, and exhibit preparation.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 5Critical Response Students will describe and analyze their own work and the work of others using appropriate visual arts vocabulary. When appropriate, students will connect their analysis to interpretation and evaluation.

Visual Arts Strands and Standards

STRAND Connections: History, Criticism, and Links to Other Disciplines 

Students learn about the history and criticism of visual arts and architecture, their role in the community, and their links to other disciplines.

 PreK–12 STANDARDS PreK–12 STANDARD 6Purposes and Meanings in the Arts 

Students will describe the purposes for which works of dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and architecture were and are created, and, when appropriate, interpret their meanings.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 7Roles of Artists in Communities 

Students will describe the roles of artists, patrons, cultural organizations, and arts institutions in societies of the past and present.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 8 Concepts of Style, Stylistic Influence, and Stylistic Change 

Students will demonstrate their understanding of styles, stylistic influence, and stylistic change by identifying when and where art works were created, and by analyzing characteristic features of art works from various historical periods, cultures, and genres.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 9Inventions, Technologies, and the Arts 

Students will describe and analyze how performing and visual artists use and have used materials, inventions, and technologies in their work.

 PreK–12 STANDARD 10Interdisciplinary Connections Students will apply their knowledge of the arts to the study of English language arts, foreign languages, health, history and social science, mathematics, and science and technology/engineering. 

MATH

 

Learning Standards

Students engage in problem solving, communicating, reasoning, connecting, and representing as they:K.N.1      Count by ones to at least 20. :K.N.2      Match quantities up to at least 10 with numerals and words.: K.N.3     Identify positions of objects in sequences (e.g., first, second) up to fifth. : K.N.4     Compare sets of up to at least 10 concrete objects using appropriate language (e.g., none, more than, fewer than, same number of, one more than) and order numbers. : K.N.5      Understand the concepts of whole and half. :K.N.6      Identify U.S. coins by name. :  K.N.7     Use objects and drawings to model and solve related addition and subtraction problems to ten. l   K.N.8     Estimate the number of objects in a group and verify results. s

 

CHILD CARE RESPONSIBILITIES

I was going through my old files when I used to work as a kindergarten teacher in a local childcare center when I came across this list of all the things I used to do. I think I wrote this list for me to hand it out to my new teacher assistants who would like to get acquianted with the jobs we were all supposed to do and for me to briefly orient her. I hope you’ll learn something about working in a childcare setting.

You will notice on the list that there are too many little details we used to do.

Have fun reading!

-A.S.

 

1, Kitchen responsibilities

-          remember to put away things in their proper places such as vanilla extract, food coloring, vinegar, oil, etc. Do not leave them within the reach of the children because you never know when the children have an allergic reaction to any of the ingredients.

-          When preparing morning snacks, remember to ask children first and count how many of them would want to eat so as not to waste food.

-          Follow the snacks menu.

-          When putting out juice or milk, anything that is in excess should be thrown away. Do not put them back in the refrigerator once it is put out for a few minutes or hours.

-          Do keep bananas out. Do not put in the refrigerator. Other fruits such as apples, bananas etc should be kept in the refrigerator.

-          Excess cucumber, carrots, celery should be wrapped in thin foil so keep them fresh.

-          Clean the refrigerator ONCE a week.

-          Check for the expiration date of anything that you use for the children, such as catsup, whipped cream, butter – you don’t want the children to eat anything that is expired!

-          FOOD ORDERS. Monthly food orders (BJ products – waffles, bagels, French toast sticks, bread, freeze pops, butter, cream cheese) are ordered only ONCE a month. Be sure to manage these food orders within a month’s supply for your children. Once they are out, you can not request for anything more. Food management is highly appreciated!

-          WEEKLY FOOD ORDERS. It is the responsibility of the teacher to put our weekly food orders (such as milk, juice, fruits, vegetables, and some food projects) every FRIDAY. Weekly food orders are done on Mondays, so think ahead. Put weekly food orders out on Fridays, if not you won’t be getting anything for your class for the whole week ahead.

-          KITCHEN SUPPLIES INVENTORY. There is an inventory kitchen supplies on the receptionist’s desk. This can be found next to the FOOD SUPPLY list. It is the responsibility of the teacher to put out enough inventory for the whole week. It is easier to do it all at once, every Friday so everything will be all set for the next week ahead. You can also still place kitchen supplies inventory everyday (before you go in your class), but it is easier just to do it once a week.

-          For spoon, fork and knives – it is the responsibility of the teacher to stock up fork, spoon and knives in the classroom. They can be found in the main kitchen (under the sink). What you can do is get 3 big plastic bags (Ziploc bag) and fill them with spoon, fork and knives. That way it is easier. You do not have to stock them up everyday.

-          BLEACH BOTTLE. Be sure to change the bleach bottle content every day. Get it changed in the kitchen where a BIG bleach bottle is made everyday fresh.

-          SPILLAGE. Clean up any spills right away. Do not wait for any extra minutes to clean it up.

-          KITCHEN CABINETS – make sure to clean off any paint or any spillage on the white cabinets. We want to make sure that our furniture will last long and they look clean for the parents and for the children.

-          SINK – clean the sink every day. As much as possible clean it after lunch when the sink could get a lot of toothpaste and some soap.

-          CLEANING THE TABLES – in order to avoid any marking from markers, paint, stamps, etc make sure you lay out enough newspaper on the table before doing any messy activities with the children. Make sure you are using WASHABLE MARKERS AND PAINTS  ONLY. If for some reasons, you get any marks on the table, use shaving cream and/or toothpaste they work like miracles! Also in cleaning the table, first clean it with a mixture of soap and water, and then once it is all clean just MIST it with Bleach (do not wipe the table again). Let he bleach soak in on the table to keep the bacteria away.

-          STACK UP THE CHAIRS. Stack up the chairs after lunch time. Stack up to only 4 or 5 chairs high no higher than that. Stack up the chars again before going outside in the afternoon. Check for any chair damages and call up the desk. Clean the chairs as you clean the tables.

-          When cooking in the MAIN KITCHEN, please make sure that anything you use, you should clean them. Nobody is expected to clean them for you except you!

-          When using the STOVE, make sure the burner is clean before you use it. If you see some crumbs, clean the burner first before using them. In that way, there won’t be any burnt smell that may set the alarm off. When using the stove, make sure you are PRESENT all the time while cooking. Do not attempt to leave the stove on without you there. You never know what will happen. Also when using the oven, keep the kitchen door closed all the time. Do  keep the food the oven on a look-out. Do not burn the food (obviously!).

-          When using the microwave, please be considerate to clean it if you have spillage. Do not put any metal in the microwave.

-          When using the popcorn maker, do not add butter or salt in it. It will burn the popcorn maker.

-          When using the oven toaster in your classroom (every classroom has one), make sure that when you use it, the children are away from it. You should be on the look out or better yet stay close to the toaster to monitor the food. Remember you do not want to burn the food or else the alarm will come off. Clean the toaster after using it.

-          Make sure when you use a switch, close the plug with a plastic “thing”.

-          Use children-made placemats. Refrain from using the paper towel as the children’s placemat. These placemats should be replaced once a month.

-          Instruct the children not to thrown any liquid in the trash can. Any liquid should be thrown into the sink. When the children eat cereal, assist them in straining the cereal from the milk, and they can throw the extra cereal in the trash can.

-          Wipe the trash can every after snack, lunch time and afternoon snacks. Push down anything you throw in the trash can.

-          Sweep the kitchen floor. If there is any spillage, clean them off before sweeping the floor.

-          Use gloves every time you cook or handle any food.

-          When setting up the children’s lunch, do not put them out an hour early…or do not put them out yourselves. Let the children learn how to take them out of their lunchboxes and let them learn how to set their lunches up.

-          Serve MILK only during morning snacks, WATER only during lunch time ( do not give any other juice or milk to any children, they should just eat what their parents gave them for lunch), JUICE or WATER only during afternoon snacks. When serving fruits during snacks, only serve WATER, no fruit juice or milk at all.

-          The secret formula for juice is ¾ water and ¼ juice.

-          When cooking egg, or using egg for projects, make sure to put them in the refrigerator right away after the project is done. Take them out only when the children are ready to go home.

-          When cooking something with the children, ALWAYS accompany it with a recipe. They might want to cook it again at home with their parents. Print the recipe out and send them home.

-          Check for any allergy reaction from your children before using any ingredients.

2. FIELD TRIPS; WALKING TRIPS

-          before taking any field trip, check your EMERGENCRY CARD INFORMATION, see if they are updated. If not call the parents ahead of time and make sure they still have the same number.

-          Count the numbers of the children before going. Take an extra teacher with you so that there will be  three teachers with the children. One teacher will be at the lead, the second teacher will be in the middle (hopefully trying to stop the traffic, if needed) and the last teacher will stay at the end of the line to make sure everybody is safe.

-          Take the following to the field trips: emergency/health kits bags, clipboard, cell phones, tissues, emergency cards and permission slip, if needed.

-          Make sure you get the permission slip from the parents the day of days before the field trip.

-          Inform the parents the route, which street you are walking to during your field trip.

-          If your walking trip lasts more than 30 minutes and it is off Hancock St., there should be a permission slip needed. Walking trips should be along Hancock St. and within the Wollaston center only, other than these areas there should be permission slips needed.

-          Get the children on an alternate position in holding the rope, not just in one straight line. It is easier and faster to walk in this position.

-          Before taking any walking trips, make the children go to the bathroom; go over the rules (no picking of anything on the road, no holding of fences or other people’s property, use the normal voice because other people might still be sleeping, etc.);

3. USING CLASSROOM MATERIALS

-          only use brown paper for children to draw on their leisure time or free play.

-          Only use lined paper for journal.

-          Only use construction paper with projects, and bulletin boards.

-          Only put out a few washable markers, about 12 pieces only.

-          Keep the scissors, papers, markers, etc. on the table. If you see children using these materials on the floor, immediately instruct them to put them back on the table for safety reasons.

-          If you need to fill the glue bottles with glue, take the galloon of glue from the “closet” and pump the glue in it.

-          If you need more construction paper, take some from the closet.

-          If you need more paint, fill them up with the galloons of paints from the closet and fill them up in the main kitchen using a funnel.

-          Make sure when using the paints, wipe the excess or spills that could have gotten on the floor, on the tables and on the easel.

-          For a supply of pens and stick glue for the teacher ask the front desk.

-          LAMINATING. When you need something to be laminated, check the size first. If the size is of smaller or same as a regular copy paper, give it to Eli. She will laminate it on the smaller laminating machine. If you need bigger and longer pieces laminated, take them to Karen. She will take care of it. Make sure that whatever you laminate it is the school’s property.

-          PHOTOCOPYING. Any worksheets, coloring pages, practice exercises or any other school work that are needed in numerous copies, have them photocopied in the morning for Eli. Or submit it to Eli’s mailbox and she will take care of it. Just leave the pages, number of pieces to be copied as well as what color of paper you desire to get it copied. Refrain from using the machine if you are unsure of using it.

-          BOOKS: Tape stories, big books, board books and other types of books are available for use in your class from the community resource room. You can take as much books as you want for your class from the resource room as long as you list the name of the books in the resource room.

-          CRAFT SUPPLIES. Every month each classroom is given $25 worth of classroom’s budget which you can spend on anything your class might need such as craft supplies. If getting some craft supplies from the “closet” make sure to just get enough amount of craft supply for your class so it will clutter your whole classroom with extra unneeded craft supplies.

-          PLAY DOUGH. We do not order play dough, we MAKE them! The recipe can be found in the kitchen as well as all the ingredients. When cooking play dough keep the fire low so that it won’t burn. Be present in the kitchen at all times when cooking. After cooking, clean up your mess!

-          Bring in your extra grocery bags and newspapers. They come in handy at all times!

If you have any questions regarding teaching in MA, USA, please don’t be shy to shoot me an email. I will try to answer with the best of my ability whatever is bothering you. Expect delays though (remember I have a family) but rest assured you will get some type of reply. This my address on the web: balayfashionjewelry-at-comcast-dot-net (Sorry, my address is totally irrelevant to what I professionally do. That used to be my second job!)
-Alpha

I am a Filipino teacher in Massachusetts working in a self-contained classroom. I got my BSE from the University of the Philippines (Kolehiyo ng Edukasyon) and I currently divide my time between my daughter, my husband, teaching and writing!
Oh, and I have to say…I am allergic to chalkdust.
Mabuhay!
-Alpha