Pre-K larger than life Ice Cream Cones

Just in time for summer... I scream, you scream, we all scream for ICE CREAM!  

Pre-schoolers were challenged to make ice cream cones as tall or taller than themselves.  

To get ourselves excited about this tasty treat, we listed to this funny song about ice cream, words by Jack Prelutsky, sung by Natalie Merchant.

Taller than Mrs. A-K!

Adding sprinkles made from colored rice

Desert Sunset in Saguaro National Forest by first and second graders

First and second grade students read "Cactus Hotel," by Brenda Guiberson.  They use watercolors to paint a sunset sky, using the wash technique.  After the sky was dry, they painted silhouettes of different types of cacti and desert creatures.  Beautiful! 

Cactus Hotel  

Written by Brenda Z. Guiberson
Illustrated by Megan Lloyd
Henry Holt, 1991

"On a hot, dry day in the desert, a bright-red fruit falls from a tall saguaro cactus.Plop. It splits apart on the sandy floor. Two thousand black seeds glisten in the sunlight."

It is another hot day in the desert. Birds and other animals scurry about looking for food. When they get tired they stop to rest at a giant cactus. It is their hotel in the desert!
Many different animals live in the cactus hotel. It protects them; and they protect it, by eating the pests that could harm the cactus.
The cactus grows larger and larger and will live for about two hundred years. When one animal moves out, another moves in. There is never a vacancy in the cactus hotel.

This story--about a desert, a giant cactus, and the animals who live in it--is one that even the youngest child will understand and enjoy.   

from http://www.brendazguiberson.com/books/cactus.php

 

Monet's Waterlilies by grades 5+6

Fifth and sixth grade artists looked at Monet's waterlily paintings and learned about impressionism.  They were amazed that some of Monet's waterlily paintings are the size of an entire wall!

We started by painting the water background on our pictures, exploring color mixing and different types of brushstrokes.

Next, then painted lily pads and waterlily flowers and finally added details with oil pastels. 

Empty Bowls Dinner a Success!

Thank you to all who attended and helped with our Empty Bowls project and dinner.  The final event was a huge success, raising over $1750 for the Vermont Foodbank.  The food from around the world was delicious and there was great student work on display.  Students were so eager to take home their bowls and the possibility of winning one of Leslie's beautiful bowls in the raffle was exciting for everyone.

Thank you to Leslie for sharing your passion for pottery with students.  Thank you to Cheryl for planning and preparing such a delicious, creative meal for our event.  Thank you to all teachers who took on a little extra work at a busy time of year to integrate learning into classrooms and make this project a success.  Thank you to all students and families for your support and participation. Thank you to Sugarbush for hosting our event.  Thank you to the Vermont Principal's Association for a grant that made this event possible.

Check out photos from this great event: