Classroom

For the month of April we talked about the seven continents: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe and Australia. We learned that Africa, is where the elephants, giraffes and lions live. South America has tropical forests and one of the longest rivers in the world the Amazon River. North America is where we live. Europe and Asia are together on the map, but Australia is an island where the kangaroo and koala bear live. Last but not least Antarctica is way down below frozen and home to the penguins.

Kindergarten

In kindergarten lesson we learned more parts of speech. We learned that a pronoun (I, me, he, she, herself, you, it, that, they, each, few, many, who, whoever, whose, someone, everybody, etc.) is a word that takes the place of a noun. That an adjective describes a noun. Adverbs describe verbs. That conjunctions connect two sentences or phrases acting like a bridge.

Science

For the first week of April we did a science experiment using milk, dish soap and food coloring. We poured the milk into a bowl then added a few drops of food coloring. The drops of food coloring just sat on the surface where we placed them. That’s because food coloring is less dense than milk, so it floats on the surface, and the colors did not mix because we didn’t stir the milk. Then when we added a drop of soap the action began. The soap reduced the surface tension of the milk by dissolving the fat molecules. The surface of the milk outside the soap drops had a higher surface tension, so it pulled the surface away from that spot. The food coloring moved with the surface, streaming away from the soap drops.

 

The second week of April we made bouncy balls using borax, glue, water, food coloring and corn starch. This experiment demonstrated an interesting chemical reaction primarily between the borax and the glue. The borax acted as a “cross-linker” to the polymer molecules in the glue, basically it created chains of molecules that stayed together when we picked them up. The cornstarch helped to bind the molecules together so that they held their shape better.

The third week of April we decided to defy gravity by filling a glass of water up and placing a piece of cardboard on it to turn it upside down. Everything went as planned and the cardboard and water stayed in place, even though the cup of water was upside down. With no air inside the glass, the air pressure from outside the glass was greater than the pressure of the water inside the glass. The extra air pressure managed to hold the cardboard in place, keeping us dry and our water inside the glass.

Music

By: Ms. Faith

In April we got to play some fun games and learned more about musical instruments. Ms. Lisa brought back a game that is the students’ favorite for music class. We played Cat and Mouse. In this game, one or two students start of being the cats, and the rest of the class are mice. There is an area that has cheese in it for the house. When Ms. Lisa plays a song using high notes, the mice enter the house and get the cheese. Then, Ms. Lisa starts playing the same song using low notes queuing the cats to enter the house and try to catch the mice before they leave the house. If a mouse is caught, he or she becomes a cat and tries to catch the rest of the mice. This is a fun way for students to recognize hi and low notes. We also learned how to distinguish different instruments that Ms. Lisa played on her keyboard. She would play a song and the students would have to guess what instrument the keyboard was playing. I was amazed to see how well the students knew the instruments! The students have improved so much in their knowledge of musical terminology over the past school and I’m sure they will continue to fill up their buckets through May.

Art

By: Ms. Faith

This past month was a blast traveling around the world with Ms. Michele. The students were able to complete their Navajo weavings from North America. The colors of the yarn were so beautiful, and every students weaving was unique. The next country we travelled to was Africa, where the people make masks for special ceremonies. Ms. Michele had the students chose an African animal to inspire their masks. While the students drew their animal faces, Ms. Michele played African music to keep the creativity flowing. The next week the students were able to decorate their masks using beads, feathers, and beans for an authentic look. The last week of April we didn’t just focus on one country, but we celebrated the whole world for Earth Day. Ms. Michele collected recycled materials for the class to make Litterbugs. The students glued yogurt containers, fruit containers, bottles, lids, and much more together to make the shape of their insect. After that, they used pipe cleaners or straws to create legs, antenna, and mouths for their trash bugs. During the first week of May, the young artists will get to pain their Litterbugs to bring the characters to life! I can’t believe we only have a few more art classes in the school year. We look forward to see what Ms. Michele has for us to bring the school year to an end.