Stream of Dreams

  
Last week our school participated in the Stream of Dreams
program.  It is Eco-Education with a focus on local Watersheds,
Streams, Rivers and the Ocean. 
  
StrongStart visited Brooklyn Creek earlier in the
week.  We watched the water rushing over the rocks and
read the bulletin boards about the fish that live there.

              
Back at school we learned about the many fish that
live in our streams, rivers and oceans.  That whatever
we put down our drains effects those fish and other
creatures.

 
           For inspiration we read Lois Ehlert`s book Fish Eyes. 
         
        Then in just two days every student and staff painted a fish to
                be a reminder to take care of our waterways.
            

 
On Saturday a group of parents, staff and students got together to
                 hang the fish on our school fence.
 
 

One Fish Two Fish Activities

         
For the light table I traced the shapes of plastic fish and added colour. 
Then laminated the fish on a big sheet and placed it on the table.
 
The children then matched the fish by looking at the size, shapes and colours.
Some were challenging because they were either sideways or upside down.

          
            Fishing in the sensory tub (minus the water).
  
   Not only enjoying the experience of catching the fish
                 but having a fish fry too.

    
                  Fish painting at the art table.
 
Red and blue for patterning but because the fish I used were made
of plastic the focus became more of how to press it on the paper
to make a good print.

               
We discovered, while washing our hands, that red and blue
                    paint together make purple.

  
At the snack table we did a coloured fish sort (so excited that
 these coloured fish crackers are now available in BC).
 
Most of the children would match the cracker to the picture then eat it. 
Others did sort them all and that allowed us to talk about most and least.

Stack-a-Hat

  
     Today’s snack inspired by the Cat in the Hat.
 
 Mini pancakes are the foundation of our hat stacks. 

                    We mixed regular pancake mix.
 
Then in a separate bowl we tinted some of it with red food colouring.
  
While the pancakes were cooking we talked about how to build the hats.
   
As I was  showing a hat similar to the Cat in the Hat’s one of the
children said, “it’s a pattern”.  Wonderful.
   
   I think we made about hundred mini pancakes this morning. 
                There are a few left over for tomorrow.

Thing 1 & 2

   Oh the things we can do as Thing 1 and Thing 2.
     
Who doesn’t love those two little fun mischief makers
from the Cat in the Hat?
      
That’s why today we made Thing hats. 
Bright blue paper strips and scissors to go snip, snip, snip.
 
The children have been experimenting with scissors a lot lately. 
Snipping little pieces of paper whenever they can. 
This was a great activity to encourage more practice.
     
I always appreciate the grown ups adding or modifying
an activity.  Today a grandfather drew short lines on the
paper so his granddaughter would know where to cut
and where to stop.
    
It added another opportunity to practice printing and
I started encouraging new families, that approached
the art table, to do the same.
  
We also made ‘Thing’ badges.  The children could decide
what number they wanted to be.  Many chose their age
although some chose the first letter of their name.
   
      
Meet Thing 1, Thing Q, Thing A, Thing 3 and then there is Thing L
and Thing P Cat too.
     
           It was another fun Seuss day.