The long awaited field trip post

I know, it takes two minutes to import pics. But my kinder-fried brain has a hard time remembering to do that sometimes. But, I finally remembered, so here they are!

Our awesome parents that drove to help us chaperone the trip

A pirate ship!

Teachers kickin' it old school!

Shopping for groceries

What a lion!

Getting our hands dirty

Mechanics at work!

under construction

Tuckered out

If you couldn't tell, all of our kinder tots had a blast. After weeks of studying about jobs people do, they had the opportunity to play and experience them first hand. A great big thank you to the lovely people at OERB that made it all possible!

Smartboard Saturday: Fire Safety

October is Fire Safety Month. My team and I wanted to provide our kindergarten people with real, authentic experiences (like taking up the local fire department on their offer of a field trip, or perhaps inviting them out to our school), however, due to admin., budget, yada, yada, yada, it can't happen. So I have scoured the internet, and have found a little jewel that would make our fire safety lessons a tad more meaningful.

The good people at Owen Sound Fire and Emergency Services in Canada have created a virtual firefighter that displays and explains in great detail each piece of a firefighter's equipment. As you progress through the tour, each piece of the equipment is added to the firefighter, resulting in a fully dressed firefighter at the end. The information itself is a bit wordy for kindergarten people, however, the pictures are fantastic and a crucial part in discussing about not hiding from the "scary" firefighter in the event of a fire.

So there you have it people! Smartboard Saturday is back in action. Have a great weekend!

Zoo Day

Today was the day my little superheros have been waiting for for weeks! ZOO DAY! I was just as excited (perhaps a little more) as my kids were. I love field trips, and am very blessed to be among the dwindling number of schools that still has them. It was a great to watch our kids have this great experience. Many of them have been to the zoo (several times), but they have never been with their friends. It was great to see them "show each other around" and to hear all about the awesome animals they saw.

The highlight, however, was the bus ride. My little John Tesh raises his hand and says "Ms. S, did you know, I have never been on a bus before?" Of course this sparks a chorus of "me, too" and  "neither have I"s. 2 out of 20 friends in our class ride the bus to and from school, so this was a novel expereince for most of our class. They were in a state of pure bliss during the bus ride. Seeing Dunkin Donuts was almost better than seeing the zoo. Who'd a thought?

Zoo shirts

So I have been a lazy bum and haven't posted for a while. Our Easter egg hunt was a great success, and now we are on to our next big spring event...the Zoo! We are blessed to be one of the few (if not the only) in our district who are taking a field trip this year, and we are making the most of it. I learned that it is a Kinder tradition at our school to make shirts for our kiddos to wear in the field trip. Now, I can be as crafty and artsy as the next teacher, until it comes to paint. The mess and stress drives me crazy. But we did it, and it was soooooo worth it.
Who knew that sharpies, sponges, and a little bit of paint could make such adorable creations?