Toddlers
The toddlers experienced their five senses using Jello for touch, smell, hearing, and sight. For sense of taste, we used fruit juice and gelatin to make a healthier version of jello. The students helped the returning birds by hanging additional birdhouses around the school grounds. We visited the pond to count the number of splashes we heard to indicate how many frogs are living there. The toddlers filled a planting box with soil and had fun digging in the worm bin for worms to add to the box. They also visited the woods, armed with trowels and buckets, in search of giant earthworms to add to the new garden beds in the lower school playground. The children were excited to observe a variety of tadpoles, fish, and aquatic insects that were added to a tank in the LTL room. We filled plastic egg cartons with soil and planted heritage “adzuki” beans. The toddler class was excited to create ephemeral art by placing trails of a variety of seeds on paper that had been splattered with colorful ink.
Preschool
The Preschool students had fun learning about dinosaurs. They watched videos, explored books, and made dinosaur prints. The students really enjoyed making the dinosaur playscapes. They placed sand on trays and added trees, rocks, dinosaurs, and even an exploding volcano! Next we explored a mixture of seeds, discussing the different sizes shapes, and colors. Then the students sorted the seeds into separate bowls. We examined the roots, stems, and leaves of different plants. The preschoolers completed their “tree cycle” by making their spring tree, decorated with pink tissue paper flowers. They worked tirelessly to fill the new garden beds with soil and then they planted radishes, peas, basil, and tomatoes. The children were excited to observe a variety of tadpoles, fish, and aquatic insects that were added to a tank in the LTL room. Finally, we connected with the classroom IB unit,” There are many different ways to get from here to there”. The students had fun watching videos about different forms of transportation, sorting pictures of vehicles, and using toy vehicles to make roads and mountains in the corn flour in the activity table.
Kindergarten
The kindergarten students began trimester 3 with the IB unit, “Interdependence is essential to the web of life”. We explored the school grounds, looking for living and nonliving features. The students made sketches of the forest ecosystem. We learned about food webs and used cards to demonstrate a variety of webs. The class learned about vertebrates and invertebrates and sorted pictures of vertebrates into their correct class. We also looked at the lifecycle of frogs, chickens, alligators, and salmon. Next the class began the IB unit, “Food travels and goes through various processes before it reaches our table”. We watched videos about honey, wheat, tomatoes, and milk that described how some of our food is grown and processed. Students worked in the garden to first plant peas and potatoes, then popcorn and Anasazi beans. A field trip to Howell Farm gave the students a feel for how much work is involved in growing and processing our food. The students finished the year by decorating birdhouse gourds with colorful alcohol inks, which allowed the unique patterns on each gourd to show through.
Grade 1
Grade 1 students began trimester 3 with the IB unit, “Interdependence is essential to the web of life”. We explored the school grounds, looking for living and nonliving features. We learned about food webs and used cards to demonstrate a variety of webs. The class learned about vertebrates and invertebrates and sorted pictures of vertebrates into their correct classes. We also looked at the life cycle of frogs, chickens, rabbits, alligators, and salmon. Grade 1 students assembled an Endangered Animals flip book while learning about some of the problems these animals face in their ecosystems. Next the class began the IB unit, “Food travels and goes through various processes before it reaches our table”. We watched videos about honey, wheat, tomatoes, and milk that described how some of our food is grown and processed. The students worked in the garden to plant peas, potatoes, popcorn, and beans, which they will harvest when they return in the fall. They had the opportunity to experience “Where our food comes from” when we took a field trip to Howell Farm. Students made cornbread, they churned butter, and they shelled and planted corn.
Grades 2/3
During the final trimester, Grade 2/3 students learned about Endangered Animals of New Jersey. They each choose an animal to study; they researched the characteristics of their animal, learned about its threats to survival, and predicted what would happen in its ecosystem if the animal became extinct. During a discussion how LTL could connect with the IB unit “Societies create marketplaces to distribute and exchange goods and services”, students came up with the idea of making shrink plastic jewelry of the animals they were studying to sell at the market. The necklaces sold out in a very short period of time and additional necklaces were requested. Next the students explored sound with the IB unit “Sound is a tool for communication and creative expression”. First, the class took a trip outdoors to make “sound maps”, focusing on all of the noises they could hear in the area. They learned about the parts of the human ear and how they work together with the brain to interpret vibrations into recognizable sounds. Students participated in 10 different activities that demonstrated how vibrations create sound. They played Ear Anatomy Bingo” and made straw kazoos. Grade 2/3 helped to clean up the garden beds, planted Yukon Gold potatoes, and neatened the birch allée and labyrinth area. The students also spread 30 bags of leaves over an area of the garden to suppress the growth of weeds.
Grade 4
To connect with the IB unit,” The effective interaction of human body systems contributes to health and survival”, Grade 4 students studied the human body during the final trimester. They assembled a Human Body 10 Organ Systems foldable booklet, complete with a photo of themselves on the cover. The respiratory system was covered in detail and the students even made workable models of pairs of lungs. We also looked at the nervous system, the muscular system, and the circulatory system. Next, the class began a unit on the Ocean. We watched several Blue Planet videos to pique excitement for the topic. Students learned about the features of the ocean floor and how it is similar to the topography of the world’s land areas. Each student was assigned an Endangered Marine Animal to study. They researched the characteristics of their animal, learned about its threats to survival, and predicted what would happen to its ecosystem if the animal became extinct. Students were enthusiastic and delved into the assignment. They were excited to present their projects to their classmates, even on the very last day of the school!
Grade 5
As an introduction to the IB unit, “The choices we make as consumers have local and global consequences” the fifth grade students watched several videos, including The Story of Bottled Water and The Story of Stuff. They learned how materials are sorted for recycling at a Materials Recovery Facility. These videos prompted a discussion about “waste’’ and how PJS could become more sustainable by decreasing the amount of trash that we send to landfills. The students sorted the trash and recycling bins on two occasions and discovered that we throw away about five pounds of compostable materials daily. They wrote persuasive letters to Lawrence Township, requesting that PJS be permitted to participate in their Curbside Organic Recycling Program. The class created informative posters and PowerPoint presentations about recycling, composting, and landfills. The fifth grade students made sure that every classroom had a designated and well-labeled recycling bin and that the teachers and students were aware of what should go in it. Once the composting program was approved and launched, the students took turns emptying the daily compost collection into the large bin outside that is picked up weekly. They estimate that the composting program will divert about 850 pounds of organic matter from the landfill annually. Additionally, increased attention has been given to recycling and this has also reduced the amount of waste. The fifth grade formally introduced our new green initiatives and emphasized the importance of recycling and composting to the entire school body during their Sustainability assembly.
Next, the students took a brief look at plant and animal cells. They learned how to prepare a wet mount slide of a section of onionskin and how to obtain human epithelial cells for observation. Students learned about the parts of cells and the differences and similarities between plant and animal cells. The remainder of the class time this trimester was devoted to working on the students’ Exhibitions.
Next, the students took a brief look at plant and animal cells. They learned how to prepare a wet mount slide of a section of onionskin and how to obtain human epithelial cells for observation. Students learned about the parts of cells and the differences and similarities between plant and animal cells. The remainder of the class time this trimester was devoted to working on the students’ Exhibitions.