Creation

Our next unit was Creation.

We began our focus on day 1. The separation between dark and light. As a fun activity we gave the children black and white finger paint and the let them mix the colors to explore the different shades they create when mixing. We also focused on opposites. We plated a matching game by matching pictures of dark/light, up/down, short/tall, etc. We additionally baked delicious black and white cookies.

For day 2, we read the book Little Cloud, by Eric Carle and talked about the separating of the sky and the water. We also learned about clouds and how they absorb water from the earth and then eventually produce rain. In order to make the concept more concrete we conducted a science experiment. We filled a container with water and blue food coloring and then dipped our cotton balls into the water and watched the cotton ball absorb the water, We then removed the cotton ball and squeezed, we watched as the water emptied out of the cotton ball (looking like rain). 

Next, on day 3, for the creation of grass, trees and flowers we made tree artwork and decided how many branches to use by rolling a die, identifying the number on the die and then counting out the appropriate number of branches. For day 4, creation of night and day, we  took out our class globe and discussed how the entire world does not get to see the bright sun or beautiful stars at the same time of day. The children learned that while some parts of earth are waking up and getting ready to start their busy day the other side of the world is getting ready for bed. To make this concept more concrete we lit a flashlight and spun the globe. The children were able to see that as the globe turned the flashlight stayed in one place, like the sun, and was not able to shine on all the parts of earth. Day 5, when creatures in the sky and water were created we discussed which creatures live where. For day 6, creation of animals and people we made a little animal collage. Through the week we created a place mat, sequencing the days of creation. 

an upside down version 

And, last but not least, for day 7, day of rest we celebrated a pajama day and enjoyed delicious chocolate chip pancakes!