Today, we had so much fun learning about how plants grow and change, all while using colorful Playdoh! The plant life cycle is the process that a plant goes through as it grows, and we made each step come to life with our hands. Let me tell you what we did!

We started by making a small, round Playdoh ball. This is the seed! We learned that seeds come in many shapes and sizes, but they all need the right conditions to grow. Next, we showed how a seed begins to grow. We made a little crack in the seed, and from the crack, a tiny root started to appear. After that, we added a little sprout on top of the seed. From the sprout grew a sturdy stem. We made tiny leaves with Playdoh and placed them on our little plant.

Our plant kept growing taller, and soon it was a big, strong plant with even more leaves! This stage is when the plant is fully grown, and it can start to make flowers or even fruit. We made flowers on top of our plant to show how beautiful a fully grown plant can be! Once the flowers are pollinated, they will turn into seeds, and the cycle starts all over again. Using Playdoh made it easy to see how plants grow step by step. It was so fun to shape the seed, roots, leaves, and flowers with our hands! Plus, we got to play while learning, which made the lesson even more exciting.

There’s nothing quite as exciting as Show and Tell Day in a first-grade classroom! It’s a time when little voices shine, creativity bursts forth, and everyone gets a chance to share something special. For a first grader, Show and Tell isn’t just about bringing a toy or trinket to school—it’s about storytelling, pride, and connection.

Show and Tell is more than just a fun activity; it’s an opportunity for kids to practice important life skills in a safe and supportive environment. Show and tell builds the students’ confidence. Standing in front of peers to share a story or an object helps children gain confidence in public speaking. Kids think outside the box when choosing what to share. Whether it’s a favorite book, a homemade craft, or a pet rock, their imaginations come alive! It encourages the students to be thoughtful members of the audience. While one child speaks, the rest practice active listening and asking thoughtful questions. Show and Tell brings the class together by encouraging kids to learn about each other’s lives and interests.

In first grade, every child has a unique story to tell. Show-and-tell is a way to celebrate those stories, building confidence and connections that last far beyond the classroom. So next time your little one prepares for Show-and-Tell, know that it’s not just about the item in their hands—it’s about the courage in their hearts.

On the Friday before Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, all of the lower school students came together to watch and listen to a Scholastic Live Read Aloud of You Are A Star, Martin Luther King, Jr., with author Anastasia Magloire Williams. It was a great moment to share together and soak in Dr. King's words.

First grade is back in action and ready to take on the second school semester! With it being January and us having a possibility of snow this week, the class had a snowball fight to get them ready for the potential fun in the snow. Knowing our Texas weather, it might be the only way they will have a snowball fight this week. For the inside snowball fight, students gathered around 50 paper snowballs and waited for me to say “Go”. Once I said go, the children had some time to gently throw snowballs at each other. Then I told them to freeze and they would stop throwing and pick up four snowballs. After everyone gathered their four snowballs I put them into pairs. After they found their partner, each student opened their snowballs and read the sentences that were typed inside the snowballs to their partner. Who knows if we will be able to have a real snowball fight this year, but we will be having another one in class, maybe with math facts next time!

The holiday season is a magical time for first graders, filled with curiosity and excitement. It is a tradition in first grade for each student to choose a country and present its Christmas traditions. What better way to channel that energy than by taking a journey around the world to learn how different cultures celebrate Christmas? This engaging project combines geography, history, and cultural studies into a fun, festive experience. Introducing first graders to global Christmas traditions broadens their understanding of the world, fostering appreciation for diversity. It’s a joyful way to explore the values of kindness, family, and celebration that unite us all—no matter where we’re from. It also creates opportunities for hands-on learning through crafts, music, and storytelling, making lessons memorable and interactive.

First grade has started working with teen numbers in math. They are learning multiple strategies to add and subtract a single digit from teen numbers. The most common strategy is to make or subtract from ten. To be able to do this, you must know how to decompose numbers. To give the class practice, they rolled dice and had to find the parts; one part had to be ten. This practice allowed them to build it with their hands and make the decomposition of teen numbers more automatic.

The class really enjoyed the time we spent learning about the moon’s phases. To wrap up our learning, the students sculpted the moon’s phases using Oreos!! Not only was that fun, but it allowed them to create what they had been taught. When everyone had completed their Oreo moons, the second grade visited, and the class taught them about the phases using Oreos. It was a great way for the class to share their knowledge.

Second grade had their turn to teach science to first grade the next week. The second grade’s weekly story was about volcanos. At the end of that week, they invited us over to teach us about creative and destructive volcanoes. Then in groups, they watched as the second graders erupted a mini volcano. It was exciting and so beneficial for the students to practice teaching what they’ve learned.