Mrs. Ni
An Electric Week
The Kindergarten class experienced quite a crossover between history and science this week. We studied perhaps one of the most creative Founding Fathers named Benjamin Franklin. We learned of his many inventions and his theories about electricity. The students had time to observe electricity in a practical way by rubbing wool over an inflated balloon and holding the balloon over grains of salt. How wondrous it was to see the salt grains “jump” to the surface of the balloon! We also loved learning about his role in writing the Declaration of Independence.
This week, our imaginations traveled to the continent of South America. We did some map work and learned names of countries like Peru, Brazil, and Argentina. We honed in on the country of Chile this week as we read the book Lucia’s Travel Bus. It’s a bittersweet story about a young chiquita’s travels with her grandfather through the country. The class learned that magellan penguins live at the southern tip of Chile and guanaco live all across the roaming hills.
The students further studied the virtue of temperance by reading a tale about Genghis Khan. Because of his anger, he made a rash decision that he wished he could take back. We all discussed counting to 10 and taking a deep breath when we feel upset or overwhelmed. I hope to see the children putting these ideas into practice!
