Friday, April 27, 2012

Lifecycle of Ladybugs-Larvae Update

Last week you read about our new classroom friends. Our larvae continue to grow! We have been surprised every day this week with how much bigger they look! Many adults around here (including Miss Stephanie) have been surprised that lady bugs look like this when they are babies. We've all probably seen this little bugs outside and had no idea they were going to turn into lady bugs one day!


You can watch a video about the lifecycle of a ladybug here by clicking this link.


When you watch the video, you will see what happens to lady bug spots as a lady bug gets older.


YOUR HOMEWORK
-Watch the video with your son/daughter and listen for what happens to lady bug spots as they get older.
-Draw a picture of what lady bugs look like before they get old and then what starts happening to them when they get older.
-Bring it in on Monday!


Check out what our larvae look like this week!


Look at us cleaning!


We wanted you to see how hard we work in our room to clean up after ourselves. One day this week we had quite the mess of corn on the floor from the messy table. The boys had the idea (all on their own) to get the broom and "the black thing" to clean it up. They were hard workers and picked up (almost) every piece of corn! We like to have fun and get creative....but we also know it is important to put our classroom back the way we found it every day!


Monday, April 23, 2012

Ling Sounds Sound Check

Check out a new link on the right in the "Listening and Speaking" section for kids with hearing aids and cochlear implants.


You can print your own "Ling Sounds" information and sound check for at home. We use this at circle time at the beginning of the day to make sure everyone's equipment is working properly!


From the website:

The sounds ah, ee, oo, sh, s, and mm indicate a child’s ability to detect all aspects of speech as these six sounds encompass the frequency range of all phonemes {speech sounds}.


This check can be used to determine what sounds the student is able to detect, discriminate, and identify.  


These are the Ling Sounds
Click on this link to download your own listening check sheet!


Another printable activity: flashcards and activities to practice the Ling Sounds

Friday, April 20, 2012

Slippery Fish on the Smartboard

One of our favorite songs in class is "Slippery Fish". We have been singing it in both English and Spanish. This week we have been practicing the different words in both version and trying to say them clearly.


We have some videos for you of us interacting with the song on our Smartboard!


AM-One of my deaf students playing with the Smartboard and reenacting the song. He is practicing how to say the words.








PM-Three of my afternoon students listening to the song on the Smartboard and moving the ocean creatures around to follow along with the song...in Spanish!
 


You can hear the song here and sing along with it in English:





Here is the Spanish version:

Our New Classmates-Life Cycle of a Ladybug

You may have heard that we have a bunch of new classmates....
of the insect variety!


They arrived on Thursday and we have been excited about them ever since. The afternoon class still doesn't not know what they are! The morning class did get let in on the secret though.


Both classes drew in their journals when we first saw our new friends. They drew pictures of what they insects look like now. The afternoon class also predicted what they thought the bugs were going to be when they got older.


Some guesses:
-big ant
-butterfly
-snake
-dinosaur
-big spider
-caterpillar
-ladybug
-beatle


The afternoon class drew pictures of their predication in their journals as well.


They were told today that if they went on the classroom website this weekend, they would be able to find out what our new classmates will be when they grow up!


We are going to learn about the stages of a.....



ladybug!



Check out the clip below to see pictures from our ladybug fun! You will see:
-Us seeing them in the tube they arrived in (they are tiny!) Right now some are in the egg stage and some are in the larval stage. Those are called larvae. They crawl all around. 
-Us drawing pictures of what we see in tube (PM) or in the ladybug habitat (AM)]
-Us (PM) drawing pictures of what we think these little bugs will become!






Make sure your child has a chance to see the blog post this weekend so he/she can come back on Monday and share that he/she knows what they will become when they are done with their lifecycle!

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Exploring Different Objects

Check out the most recent slideshow of some of the interesting things we have been doing over the last few weeks. 


Things to notice: 
-Exploring rocks with our eyes (using magnifying glasses) and touch (using our hands). We tried to come up with as many different ways to explain what we noticed as possible and write them down. You can see our list below. 
-Exploring lids and their containers. We did an activity matching up containers to their various sized lids. We talked about why we thought different lids would fit with different containers based on size, shape, and way the lid was put on (push it on or twist it on). 
-Coming up with our own ideas about what to put in the messy table and getting the materials out by ourselves. 


"What do you think?" is one of the most often used phrases in our classroom. It has really helped us come up with our own ideas and brainstorm all kinds of new ideas. Try it out at home when your child comes to you with a question. We have gotten some pretty intelligent and creative answers!








Here you can see the morning class breaking out into singing the alphabet song during snack time all on their own. Miss Stephanie grabbed the camera really fast!

Monday, April 9, 2012

Video About ASL

Touching Video about using ASL with Deaf children.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

President Obama Uses Sign Language

Regardless of political affiliation, it is neat to see the President of the United States using sign language. Check out this blurb and the video!


From the site: 

Stephon stood just a few feet away from Barack Obama. The president, busy shaking hands, looked right at him. “It was like he was waiting for me to say something,” he said later. So the 26-year-old Prince George’s Community College student took his cue and spoke to President Obama in his first language: American Sign Language.
I am proud of you,” Stephon signed.
The president, almost involuntary, instinctively, immediately signed back, “Thank you.
Another deaf student then signed to the president, “I love you.
The president smiled back at her and shook her hand.




http://www.signingtime.com/blog/2012/04/president-obama-converses-with-deaf-student-in-sign-language/