1st Grade Research Project: Hibernation, Migration, and Adaptation

The Secret Life of Bears: Hibernation, Migration, and Adaptation

Have you ever wondered what happens to animals in winter? Where are all the bees, hummingbirds, frogs, and turtles? In first grade at TCS, the first graders have embarked on a research project, and are studying how animals adapt to colder conditions when food is scarce by entering into a state of hibernation. The students are learning how these hibernating animals’ hearts and breathing rates slow down and body temperatures drop. Hibernation offers these animals a special adaptation that helps them conserve their energy. Another way animals respond to changes in temperatures and seasons is by migrating or adapting in some way. Some animals that are “true hibernators” are bees, snakes, bats, and woodchucks. Surprisingly, bears are not “true hibernators!” They do go into a deep sleep, but occasionally they might wake up to have a snack or take a walk on a sunny day!

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To kick off our big research project about these animals, the first graders each picked an animal they were interested in learning more about and chose a book to use for their research. Off we went to the library, where Mr. Robertson helped us find books about our animals. The first graders used their books and other online resources to find out information about their animals, such as what it eats, where it lives, interesting facts about their animal, and what it looks like. Of course, the big question they had to find out was, “Does my animal hibernate, migrate, or adapt?” 

These first graders are proudly displaying the animals they chose: 

The first graders were hard at work finding out information about their animals. The students learned how to use a “Table Of Contents” to find information they were looking for. They also used graphic organizers to help keep track of the information they found. Sometimes research requires us to work together:

Sometimes information we are looking for can’t be found in our books, so we turn to online resources to try to answer the questions we have:

The first graders will use this research project as a springboard for our study on emperor penguins and Antarctica. Soon we will be packing our bags for our trip to Antarctica to study these amazing birds, who survive the Antarctic ice and its waters by relying on many clever adaptations!

Nature, Pumpkins, Math and more...

"Where a Leaf Will Land, Only the Wind Knows..."

In first grade we love to use outdoor education as a way to learn about the world around us. So on a beautiful fall day, we set off on an "Observation Hike" around the TCS campus, where we observed worms, butterflies, grasshoppers, dragonflies, and bees, and even a katydid! The campus was buzzing with life!

The first graders also embarked on a leaf hunt, and collected as many different varieties of leaves as they could find. The students took time to try to identify the different leaves: we had sassafras, red maple, oak, american beech, and more! The students made leaf rubbings, and listened to the story Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. In this book, Lois Ehlert creates a Leaf Man as well as many other animals made entirely of leaves. Leaf Man's eyes are acorns and his mouth is a seed pod. He travels over garden vegetables, past prairie meadows, and over lakes and rivers. As Lois Ehlert repeats in her book, "The Leaf Man goes where the wind blows." The first graders took their gathered leaf collections and created their own animal creations, just as the author did in her book. It took some imagination to discover which leaves looked like chicken's legs, or whale's fins, or fish swimming in the ocean! Come see them in our classrooms when you get a chance!

In October, first graders also dove into pumpkin carving! In STEAM you could find the students carving eyes, noses, and mouths, and even cutting off the top of a pumpkin and scooping out the insides (because it's interesting to discover what's in there)! The students also used pumpkins for math by weighing pumpkins and measuring the circumference. Because it was Halloween, Mrs. Lariviere even concocted a scary witch's brew, complete with a floating eyeball (see picture)!

Inside the classroom, first graders are equally busy. Our current math unit focuses on number bonds, which provide a visual representation of the relationship between a number and the parts that combine to make it. Students are learning how to tell an addition story, and use their stories to make number bonds and addition sentences. As the students explore addition in first grade, they learn how to make sums in many ways. Here are the students figuring out how to make the sum of 10 in different ways.

We are looking forward to a busy November with lots more learning! We will be studying Native Americans and taking a voyage on the Mayflower!

Nature and Science in First Grade - Bringing the 'outdoors' indoors...

What's in our tank?

First Graders were excited to discover what was in our
classroom tank when they arrived at school.
With peering eyes and whispering voices, they soon spotted
a very tiny larvae on a large green leaf and a very tiny egg.

Can you guess what was in our tank?

First Graders have been great observers as they watch and learn about

Metamorphosis and the life cycle of the Monarch Butterfly.
The four stages of the monarch butterfly life cycle are 
the egg, the larvae (caterpillar), the pupa (chrysalis), and the adult butterfly. 

caterpillar

chrysalis

Monarch Butterfly

Be sure to ask your child how to tell Male
Monarchs from Female Monarchs.

We have released 3 butterflies and we have 
4 chrysalises in our tanks.

First Days... in First Grade

Our first day together - 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders

listening to the story First Day Jitters by

Julie Danneberg, read by Ms. Alyson Hill

(3rd grade teacher). 

This has been a long time tradition 

in the MacLane House.

Be sure to ask your child who had the "jitters."

After the story the children enjoyed some "jitter juice"

with an added magic potion (Mrs. Treat's special recipe) 

to help chase those jitters away.

The "magic potion!"

Yummy, Yummy, Yummy!

"Jitters, jitters, go away

don't come back another

day!"

 

 Sharing our Summer writing assignment -
"What did you do on your summer vacation?"

 What a great audience...

Everyone enjoyed listening to the many 
adventures and fun things classmates did
over the summer. 

Literacy Stations

Making Words Station - using the game
'Chunks' to make words using
onsets and rimes - (tw - eet)

Word Work -"Contractions" Station - working 

with the game 'Contraction Action' - given 

the contraction 'didn't' - need to find the 

two words that make that contraction. 

After filling all the truck wheels they 

play 'Memory' using contractions.

Game Station - "Long Vowels" - Reinforcing 

our long vowel' sounds by playing 

"Long Vowel Bingo"

Game Station - reading short and long 

vowel words as we move along the

game board

Sentence Station - working on sentence structure, 

handwriting, capitalization, punctuation and

spelling skills. Sentences are then used for 

'mixed-up' sentences and 'cut and combine'

Chicks, chicks and more chicks

First Graders got to visit with the

newly hatched Kindergarten chicks.

Hope everyone found a way to celebrate

Memorial Day today..

The children got an early Memorial

Day sharing...

On Friday we learned about a special

great-grandfather that fought in World War II.

 The children got to see and feel his

Army uniform that was worn in many

countries.

What a wonderful connection also 

to our read aloud 'Horrible Harry

Goes to Sea.'

(the students in Miss Mackle's class are

learning about their ancestors and 

sharing memorabilia, and

everyone just found out that Ida's

great-great grandmother sailed on 

the Titanic - and lived to tell about it.

Miss Mackle decides to take the class

on a riverboat ride) - another tie-in 

to our trip on the RiverQuest on Tuesday.

Love the connections these first 

graders are making!