Hello Branch Families!
Where do we start? March turned out to be a busy month! It was tough to fit in all the learning activities and art projects we planned, but we managed it. We kicked off our “Rainbows, Rhymes, and Emotions” study with RAINBOWS! As we began our discussion, we talked about rainbows—their colors and shape. Each month, we start by making a self-portrait, and this time, our Branchers added rainbow borders around theirs. This helped reinforce their new understanding that rainbows are not arches but actually circles. From the ground, we see only an arch, but if we were in the sky, we would see a full circle. We also enjoy watching their fine motor skills develop as they practice drawing themselves, adding more details each month. Their beautiful drawings brighten up our classroom!
Next, as a whole group, we discussed how rainbows are formed. Our Branchers discovered that a rainbow appears when sunlight shines through raindrops. It’s a simple explanation, but it creates a spectacular result! The Branchers were so excited to learn how rainbows form. They even tried making their own in the classroom using sunlight from the window and a prism. They learned that sunlight contains all the colors, and prisms or raindrops help separate those colors so we can see them. As we headed outside that morning, many friends ran out to search the sky for a beautiful rainbow.
In the Branch room, we enjoy incorporating math into our learning. This month, we explored graphing. Branchers are already familiar with voting on books to see which one has more votes, so this time we voted on our favorite color of the rainbow. We placed the votes on the door so we could easily see which color had the most. Purple received the most votes with eight, and red had the least with just one. The Branchers quickly understood the concept of graphing and were proud to see their votes displayed.
Next, it was time to create our rainbow art. Using markers, the Branchers drew their own rainbows! After completing their artwork, they practiced writing the names of the rainbow colors as they are spelled. It was impressive to hear them identify each letter as they carefully wrote them down.
Primary colors were next on our discovery list! At circle time we introduced the book Mix It Up! by Hervé Tullet. In the story we learned about the three primary colors: red, yellow, and blue. The book interactively showed how mixing colors together creates secondary colors: orange, green, and purple. We also discovered that adding white makes colors more pastel, while adding black makes them darker.
Branchers then worked together to make Play-Doh. We couldn’t decide what color to make… and that’s when our leprechaun helped us! When we returned to school the next day, the Play-Doh that had been one big ball of white was shaped into many small balls, but it was still white. We passed out a ball to each Brancher and waited for the leprechaun’s magic to happen! As the Branchers squeezed and played with the dough, it began to change colors. (Hidden inside each white ball was a small amount of colored dough that appeared as they mixed.) Soon, we discovered we had the primary colors: red, yellow, and blue. Mixing Play-Doh is always tempting, and finally, they had permission to try it! So, the Branchers split their dough in half and swapped with a friend who had a different color. As they mixed, they created new secondary colors until we had the entire rainbow! Thank you, Paddy O’Giggles, for such a fun way to make a rainbow!
After learning about color theory, the Branchers tested their knowledge with art of their own. They mixed primary colors of paint to create their very own color wheels! But the color investigation didn’t stop there. Soon the Branchers began wondering what would happen if we mixed secondary colors… so we opened a COLOR LAB! In the lab, our young scientists used pipettes to add dots of color and experiment with mixing them to see what would appear. Our artists created many beautiful shades like chartreuse and periwinkle. Who knew color mixing could be so magical?
The science experiment continued with a “traveling rainbow” activity using food coloring, water, and paper towels. Simple materials led to exciting results! After filling three cups with water, we added food coloring to make the three primary colors. Then, we folded paper towels and placed one end into each cup, creating arches between them. We watched as the colors slowly traveled up the paper towels until they met in the middle. When the colors combined, they formed the secondary colors!
We finished the month by discussing emotions. In the Branch room, we are big fans of author and illustrator Diane Alber and her stories A Little Scribble Spot and The Invisible Scribble. Her books connect feelings with colors in meaningful ways. She also has wonderful songs that the Branchers love singing along to. After reading The Invisible Scribble, the Branchers made their own invisible scribbles. Using a white crayon, they scribbled on paper. We talked about how sometimes we may feel invisible or like nobody wants to play with us. Then we added watercolor paint to the paper and discussed how the colors are like friends. When we work together with friends, everyone feels seen and we can discover new things together.
As you may know, we also had a fun leprechaun visit us before St. Patrick’s Day! One morning, we came into our classroom and found a note left behind. We learned that her name was Paddy O’Giggles, a leprechaun who was only two inches tall! She was so tiny that we could never see her, but we knew she was there. In her note, Paddy explained that she had lost her gold and needed the Branchers’ help to find it. Good thing our Branchers love a challenge! After following a series of notes, clues, and fun games, they managed to find every missing piece of gold for Paddy. As a sweet “thank you,” before going back to Ireland, Paddy left each Brancher a piece of candy in their shoe!
As we say farewell to March and all the fun learning it brought, we are excited to welcome April and everything it has in store. Next up: WEATHER and all its wonders!
Miss Gracen & Miss Heather
