Have you been looking for a great way to compare and contrast the changes that come with each season? I was tired of having my students draw what fall means to them, or why they like the spring. I didn’t feel like they were really learning about the season or the changes that take place. So, I set out to look for some new ideas. I found a fabulous and fresh idea on Pinterest, and created my own template. That’s how “exploring the seasons” was born!
Seasonal changes was something that I rushed through last year. I would remember at the last minute and rush to photocopy some leaves for my kids to draw what fall means to them. That was be that. I hung them on the door and hated how they looked, but I was “meeting” my science curriculum.
We also read The Seasons of Arnold’s Apple Tree by Gail Gibbons which got us talking about the changes that take place each season.
We talked about what we see outside in the fall, as well as things that we like to do in the fall. I made a big anchor chart, and then we started our project.
For the fall, we used red, orange, and yellow paint. We dabbed the paint on with Q-tips to create a “leaf” effect. I did A LOT of modeling how to use the Q-tips and the paint because we all know what disasters can take place when you give paint out unsupervised!! Surprisingly, my kinders did an amazing job! There was not one spot of paint on any table or anyone’s clothes! **WOOHOO** I displayed our fall trees with our fall anchor chart, and I am planning on updating it with each season!
As you can see from the picture above, during winter, we will glue cotton balls on and around the tree to represent the snow. In the spring, we will tear and glue pieces of bright tissue paper to look like the tiny buds on a tree. For the summer, we will use the same Q-tip painting technique, but this time with green paint to represent the healthy green trees in the summer!
I LOVE how this project will let us compare and contrast each of the seasons and talk about the changes that take place. I can already tell that my kinders are learning so much more than they did last year!
Really Lovely. I would love this template to do with my class. Can I download it anywhere. Many thanks