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Seashells will be included in seashell sorting activities and sensory bins this week. Seashells will also connect back to our concepts of research, environments and animals.

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Pens, pencils, markers, paintbrushes, colored pencils, and crayons! A big part of this week's theme is begin to understand the process of writing a letter. Writing utensils will play a key part in this standard and also contribute to creating colorful art pieces and creative notes. Our writing tools will connect back to our concepts of writing, research, art and creativity.

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Sensory bins and all the materials that come with them! Slime, foam, water, dye, sand, play-doh and more for the base parts. Loose parts like smaller toy animals, seashells, jewels, plants and sticks, and other pieces to enhance the sensory bins. Our sensory bins will connect back to our concepts of creativity, environment, animals, and plants.

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Tissue paper, contact paper, construction paper, and craft paper! Paper will be a key material in these experiences as students will be taking notes and creating art projects on paper. Students will be encouraged to take their notes on colored paper! Our paper will connect back to the concept of writing, art, culture, and creativity.

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Students will spend the day completing an ocean theme gallery walk/learning carusale around the room.

Station One: Shell Sorting
Students will sort different shells. Along the way they will record their thoughts about the shapes and textures. They will also learn the different shell names and origin.

Station Two: Ocean Themed Sensory Bin
Students will spend time exploring a series of ocean themed sensory bins. These bins will be created with different environments/habitats in mind. For example, sandy dunes, kelp forests, mangroves, and oysters reefs.

Station Three: Shark Week T
This station is inspired from Double Dose of Learning's Shark Week template. Linked here: https://doubledoseoflearning.com/2021/07/shark-week-activities-for-kids-sharks-research-for-elementary-students-plus-free-printable/

Students will complete worksheets selected from this pre-made lesson plan and decorate their own shark themed pocketbook to store their work. For creativity students will decorate a print out shark. For this activity students will be encouraged to use a wide arrange of materials like fabric and construction paper scraps, glitter, markers, paints, etc.

Station Four: Sea Creature Research
Students will research a sea creature of their choice. They will use resources like books, computers, tablets, etc. Then students will write a letter to a person of their choice (teacher, parent, friend, family member, etc.) telling them about this sea creature, their environment and fun facts they learned about them. Students will be encouraged to decorate their letter based on their research. Encourage creativity!

Station Five: Giant Sea Creature Suncatcher
Students will create a giant suncatcher of their sea creature that they chose to research in the previous station. This idea comes from And Next Comes L website. Linked here: https://www.andnextcomesl.com/2015/07/shark-suncatcher-craft.html?fbclid=IwAR1xyQIOXWKMmo-8rhmbRCaHhmL6mCWJixp8MKswxc3hxhFXFuAwUvKUpVc
Students will use colored tissue paper and be encouraged to create their own shapes, patterns, and designs.

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Students will use their clipboards to record thoughts and ideas when completing research. Our clipboards will connect back to our concepts of research, writing, creativity and art.

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These activity will start with students being read a collection of books and asked questions like, "Describe the setting from the book?", "What are the different ideas you see in this book?", "What do you think about the author? Do you think this book is about them when they were young". Some examples of books include; "Last Stop on Market Street" by Matt de la Peña, Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall, and
Islandborn by Junot Diaz.

Students will create an original art piece based on their environment. They be asked to reflect on their home, community, school, town, culture, and more. Really anything that influence who they are. The students will create their original artwork reflecting on these thoughts. They will have access to wide arrange of materials so they could make anything from a sculpture, painting, drawing, 3D piece, etc.

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Students will use these fans during their Chinese fan and dance decorating activity. Our fans will connect back to our concepts of culture, community, creativity, research, and art.

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Water colors, tempera paints and acrylic paints! Not only will students get to experiment with different paints they will also get to understand the purpose each of these paints serve and how they can best include them in their own work. Our paints will connect back to our concepts of culture, art, and creativity.

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This article from the website Fairy Dust Teaching offers an artful lesson for students to decorate and design a fan based on Chinese painted fans and dancing. When painting their fans the students watched and listened to the Chinese fan dancing (the video is linked within the article). Before completing this experience the teacher will read students the book "Bring in the New Year" by Gracie Lin. Then students will complete research in groups on the art of Chinese culture and dance. They will research the Chinese New Year and learn about different traditions.

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I am always amazed at the level of joy and engagement the exploration of the Chinese New Years brings to the classroom. It is richly embedded with academic learning (for example see Chinese Counting Set ) in a way that addresses multiple learning styles and needs. Fan dancing is another great math…

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Students will learn about coral reefs and the animals that these amazing habitats serve them. The students will learn about how these habitats meet the needs of the animals that live here. They will watch educational videos and read books like "The Coral Kingdom" by  Laura Knowles. These links also include great examples of books about coral reefs that students can read to themselves or have read to them. https://bookroo.com/explore/books/topics/coral-reefs
https://www.getepic.com/collection/720340/ocean-coral-reef
Then students will be encouraged to great their own diorama with a painted cardboard background and a coral reef setting made from pipecleaners and other materials that they can select to enhance their art.

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Ribbons, buttons, fabric scraps, construction paper bits, pipe cleaners, pops pops, glitter, stickers, yarn, and more! These materials will be accessible to students throughout the week in order to create art pieces and complete activities/lessons. Students will be encouraged to recycle pieces and reuse instead of waste. Our loose parts will connect back to our concepts of environment, culture, community, art, creativity, and plants.

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Students will use non-fiction books to research animals and their environment, cultures outside of their own community and different artists and their art. Our research books will connect back to our concepts of writing, research, culture, community, animals and plants.

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Plastic water bottles for our "Letter in a Bottle" activity. These bottles will be saved and repurposed. This will also serve as a lesson in recycling and how materials can be reused for art projects. Our bottles will connect back to our concepts of community, creativity, art, and writing.

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1.L.1.2 Give examples of how the needs of different plants and animals can be met by their environments in North Carolina or different places throughout the world.

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1.L.1.2 Give examples of how the needs of different plants and animals can be met by their environments in North Carolina or different places throughout the world.

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1.CX.1.5 Understand that art is a reflection of the artist’s ideas, environment, and/or resources.

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1.CX.1.5 Understand that art is a reflection of the artist’s ideas, environment, and/or resources.

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1.CX.1.4 Understand how art represents different cultures. 

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1.CX.1.4 Understand how art represents different cultures. 

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1.V.1.2 Create original art that expresses ideas, themes, and events. 

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1.V.1.2 Create original art that expresses ideas, themes, and events. 

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W.1.5 With guidance and support, participate in shared research and writing projects.

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W.1.5 With guidance and support, participate in shared research and writing projects.

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L.1.1 Demonstrate emerging understanding of letter and word use within the K-1 grammar continuum when writing or communicating.

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L.1.1 Demonstrate emerging understanding of letter and word use within the K-1 grammar continuum when writing or communicating.

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This activity will start with the teacher reading the students the book "Flotsam" by David Wiesner.

Students will research and find a piece of artwork from another culture. Students will then craft a letter to the artist, asking them questions about the piece and adding their own reflections. Students will learn how to properly address, sign and seal a letter. Then students will decorate a bottle and place their letter in it to represent a "letter in a bottle".

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1. How can we protect our beaches and sea creatures?

2. How do our own experiences and community around us reflect in our own art? Our ideas? Or the resources and materials we use?

3. What purpose does a letter serve?

4. What does research look like? How do we collaborate and share knowledge?

5. Where do you find resources to complete research?

6. How does our environment support us? How does an animal's environment support them?

7. Can you describe some types of environments we might find in North Carolina? What about in another country? How do these environments differ in look and supporting the animals that live there?

8. How can we express our own ideas through art? What materials can we use?

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Environment

Writing

Research

Culture

Community

Art

Animals

Plants

Creativity