In May we will begin our study of the ocean and sea life in conjunction with our "We Give Back" project about our Topanga Watershed and the Santa Monica aquarium/Heal the Bay, which will kick-off on June 4th, culminating with our field trip on June 14th. We will be studying different ocean creatures for 6 weeks:
Porifera (pore animals)
Arthropods (jointed leg animals)
Echinoderms (spiny-skinned animals)
Mollusks (soft bodied animals)
Cnidarians (stinging celled animals)
Chordates (vertebrates)
We will be creating a mural and many artistic representations of the sea life. I would like to offer easel painting for the children a couple of times a week and hope to incorporate it during reading rotations. I need a couple of parents to clean up the easels, prepare paints and brushes and smocks so that we can easily set it up in the mornings. Please let me know a.s.a.p. if you can do this. You can do it at your convenience, anytime during the day. I also need parents to prepare the craft activities by cutting out small pieces. This is a perfect activity for parents who are unable to help in the classroom because you can take it home and bring it back to school. Let me know if you can help out with this activity.
To follow along with our garden activities & healthy eating (limited sugar, lots of fruits, veggies, protein, etc), I am encouraging the children to have a healthy lunch each day. To help with that, I am adding a page to this blog with a "Healthy Lunch Check Sheet." If a child completes the check sheet, he/she will earn stickers for a Healthy Eater chart. I will include the check sheet with the homework each week, additionally, you can print the charts at home. Please turn them in with Friday homework. Encourage your child to make his/her own lunch the night before, or look at the school cafeteria menu and plan what they will eat ahead of time.
If you are looking for fun summer activities, the Pierce College Kids on Campus program has lots of fun options. You can check it out at http://extension.piercecollege.edu.