How Popcorn Pops!

This week, Discovery and Music were combined downstairs while the older students enjoyed their Mayflower experience in the Activity Room.  We talked about WHY popcorn pops!

We discussed that popcorn comes from corn.  We observed that each kernel is very hard and small and not good to eat (yet!).

We learned something very cool!  We learned that inside each corn kernel is a tiny drop of water!  When the kernel is heated, the heat turns the water to steam, but the steam doesn't have anywhere to go!  Due to the pressure within the kernel, the kernel EXPLODES!  (Kernels that don't pop are "too dry" to pop.)

First, we demonstrated what steam is...and that this is what is happening inside the kernel when it gets hot.  

Next, we put oil in the pan and added enough popcorn for the class.  The kids were very excited waiting for it to pop!  We sang Raffi's Popcorn Song:

You put the oil in the pot
You put the popcorn in
And you start to grin.
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle, sizzle
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle, sizzle
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle, sizzle
POP!

and you let it get hot.

Soon, it started popping!
That made some of our friends laugh!

It started to steam too...

While we waited, we talked about some of the ways people in other countries eat popcorn that is different than us:  in a bowl with milk!  No one asked for milk on their popcorn.
And soon, it was almost time to salt it and eat it!

It was tasty!

We read a funny book about a family of teddy bears who filled their entire house with popcorn and had to eat their way through it.  The kids giggled about this!  It was a fun morning.

Spring Bulbs & Winter Veggies ~ Planting in our Garden!

Before going out to our garden to plant, we talked about what a bulb actually is!  We talked about how a flower is tucked down inside that bulb, waiting to bloom each spring.  We looked at the inside of a bulb and discussed each part:  the shoot, the roots, the scales (modified leaves), and thin outer layer called the tunic!  It's not the words I focused on but the idea that these are small, developing flowers stored inside a perfect package (the bulb) for protection until it's time to bloom!  We talked about the word perennial and that it means that it is a plant that lives longer than two years. 

We planted hyacinth and daffodils in our garden.  Each child got to plant their very own bulb.  As I told them, their flower will bloom and grow, just like them, and in years to come, they can return and see that a part of them is still here, giving our school something bright and beautiful to enjoy every spring.
First, we dug many holes in our garden with a special tool made just for this task.

We marked each bulb with a stick so that we knew where we had planted, and where we needed to water once everyone had covered up their hyacinth or daffodil bulb.  The children loved being able to dig in the dirt and they loved having their own bulb to plant.
All classes were able to go out and work in the garden, even the youngest gardeners!  (I wasn't able to take pictures of everyone because we got our hands dirty, but I did snap a couple!)

We also have cabbage, lettuce, and chives in our garden.  These vegetables are hearty and should grow through the winter.

The kids and I will water the freshly planted bulbs several more times and then we'll cover them with mulch and wait for them to break through the soil in the spring!  It is hard for the children to believe they have to wait four or five months to see their flowers bloom, but they are very excited!  So am I!

Stay tuned for more garden pictures as it grows...