"It's so tiny!"

Ms. Amy is our resident garden expert and plans and tends to it all year.  Have you seen our weekly farmer's market?  She needed help with seeds and we were there to assist her in any way possible!  This was our chance to use our first science tool- the hand lens or magnifying glass.

With Ms. Amy, the children discussed the seeds in detail and counted how many days until it would be harvest time.  They then planted the seeds.  We have one hanging on the window and check the root progress often.  It went from one root to three overnight!

"That's what a scientist uses!"

This week we focused what scientists might use.  They need tools to do their jobs.  We looked at pictures together of a variety of tools and then talked about how they could be used.

This is for picking out wood from your finger.
This is for picking up small things.  Like bugs.

That's for swimming.
Goggles are for keeping your eyes safe.
Goggles are for looking far away.

Computers are to look something up like how big a dinosaur is.
That's for sending emails to other scientists.

We went over how to be safe with science tools.  How should they be used?  How can people be safe with them?  How do you think you will use them in our classroom this year?  The children cut out and discussed pictures of tools as they added them to their notebooks.  In the next few weeks the children will spend the working with each tool.  They will practice safety and practice being thoughtful investigators.