1st Graders Report the Weather!

We have begun our final unit of the year - weather!   What better way to start learning about weather than to read a thermometer!  People use thermometers to discover what the temperature is of things: people, food and the air.  We also talked about how the temperature can be read in Fahrenheit or Celsius.

The lines on the thermometer can be hard to read.

We had two cups of water to take the temperature of. 

After practicing reading the thermometer in the classroom, we tested our skills outside in the garden.  We took the temperature of the air, looked in the sky for any clouds and tried to determine if there was any wind.

So Many Chicks!!!

Day two of the chicks hatching!  When I left school yesterday 13 chicks had hatched!  That is a wonderful success rate!   When I arrived at school this morning....I saw 18 chicks running around in the incubator!  It sure was crowded in there!

Over the course of the day, once the chicks feathers had dried, I moved them into our brooder!

The temperature inside the brooder is 90 degrees F.

They love to huddle next to each other when they get ready to sleep.

Food, water, heat!

They are SO soft!

Since the chicks don't have a mama hen to show them what to do, I chose a few chicks and showed them how to eat the poultry grain and drink the water.  I did this by putting the chicks head right at the food and water.  It took a few tries, but it worked!  Once one chick eats and drinks, the others follow!

They are very curious when I take pictures of them.

They peck at the dots!

Food!

I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings with the chicks!!

The Chicks Have Arrived!

The chicks decided to hatch a day early!  When I arrived at school on Monday one egg had a pip (a hole where the chick first pecks at the shell). It wiggled around throughout the day, but the pip didn't grow much bigger.

However, when I arrived at school today....quite a different story! I could hear peeping even before I opened the door! And what should be waiting for me? Four newly hatched chicks: two Freedom Ranger chicks (yellow) and two Barred Rock chicks (black).

Then I noticed about five other eggs with pips in them! What a busy day we had! Chicks were hatching all day long!

They will stay in the incubator for 24 hours and then they will move to the brooder. 

Another chick getting ready to hatch!

The yellow chick on the top just hatched!

I can't wait to see what they look like tomorrow and to see how many more chicks hatched!

Three More Days Before the Chicks Hatch!

Today the chick eggs were taken out of the egg turner and placed on the mesh floor of the incubator for the final lockdown!  Lockdown is when the humidity level is raised in the incubator to about 70% and the eggs aren't touched until they hatch!  Only 3 more days to wait!  We have been talking in class about the probability that not all eggs will hatch.  When eggs have been flown to their destination (as ours have) a 50% hatch rate is average!

Are they moving?

Looking at the eggs in the incubator.

The PK classes at the Annex came to room 112 to look at the eggs!

What do you think the chick looks like in the egg right now?

Three more days until we find out!!

This is what some of the PK think the chicks look like inside the egg!

Kindergarten is also learning about the life cycle of the chicken.

Two of the eggs have spots on them!

All the eggs are now out of the turner and are ready for lockdown!

The count down continues.

The brooder is ready for the chicks!

PS58's Garden Comes to Life!

After school gardening has started!  We have been busy cleaning the raised beds, adding new compost and planting plants!  

Two different types of lettuce that will
ultimately be harvested for our school salad bar!

Yikes! A baby slug!  Not in our garden!

Much better, one of many earthworms in our raised beds!

More earthworms helping our garden!

We even found a centipede!

Tomatoes and peppers.

We added kale and tomatoes!

Cleaning up leaves.

Planting basil because you can never have enough!

Tomatoes!

Time to water.

We have a special raised bed in our garden dedicated to Nadav from K-115. This garden will keep Nadav's memory alive in our hearts. 

K-115 worked together to get Nadav's garden ready. First they filled the raised bed with soil, then planted some of Nadav's favorite herbs and vegetables: sage, parsley, basil, peppers, eggplant and cherry tomatoes. And lastly, they watered all the plants. K-115 will continue to care for Nadav's garden through the year.

Planting herbs.

Three levels of plants!

Time to water!