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Early Childhood

Teaching the Seasons

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Mary Russell Mary Russell 3435 Points

Teaching the class about the four seasons was entertaining and intrinsically rewarding.  To teach the concept, my partner and I used props to represent each season (gloves and a hat, sandals, leaves, flowers and an umbrella, etc.) We utilized each prop as we explained the time of year we were describing.  The students volunteered to name the season (this technique basically turned the lesson into a fun, educational game which kept them involved).  The students were in pairs and given their own set of PlayDoh, so they can create their own, mini earth models. The students used PlayDoh to exemplify "rotation" and "revolution."  This was a hands on activity that showed the teachers that the students understood the concepts.  In order to display rotation, the students moved their "earths" in circular motions near the sun (held by the teacher).  To prove they understood "revolution," they spun it around the sun completely, which represented one full year.  An entertaining YouTube video was shown to the students to help them associate weather, activities, etc. with each season (i.e: leaves are associated with fall).  Lastly, the students created their own illustrations of weather for any season of their choosing.  Overall, it was a fun, engaging lesson that I would love to teach again!   

Paige McRoberts Paige McRoberts 1205 Points

I love this idea! What a great way to get your students out of their seats by doing a hands on activity. I love how you used real props too, it allows the children to make a connection to the object and real life rather than just showing them a picture! I also like how you can the students many activities to do in order to allow them to make the connection before they created their own illustration! Well done!

Holly Buten Holly Buten 740 Points

I LOVE the idea of giving the kids a manipulative such as playdoh for them to create their own models. I think having kids create models in science is overlooked when it's such an important skill. I loved that they could show you the difference between rotation and revolution because those things can be hard for a kid to explain orally.

Daniela Morales Daniela Morales 505 Points

I really liked your lesson ideas. It sounds like your students had a blast and learned a lot as well. I liked how you engaged them by showing them props and having them guess what season it would be used for. The play doh earth idea was also awesome. Thank you for your season lesson idea!

Alyssa Tannous Alyssa Tannous 980 Points

What a neat idea! Thank you for sharing!

Y-La Nguyen Y-La Nguyen 600 Points

I also had to teach a lesson about the four seasons, but it was my first time teaching a science lesson since I am still a student teacher. I think your lesson is extremely engaging and hands on which is important for students. This would be great for ELL students as well because they have a lot of visuals to help them learn the four seasons. If I had to teach the lesson again, I would include using props and having the students guess or name the season that prop belongs in.

Martha Hernandez Martha Hernandez 760 Points

Thank you for sharing this great idea. Definitely will use it for future classroom.

Martha Hernandez Martha Hernandez 760 Points

Thank you for sharing this great idea. Definitely will use it for future classroom.

Salma Barragan Sosa Salma Barragan Sosa 440 Points

Hello! I am very impresed by how you incorporated the lesson plan and how you made it very fun for the students to learn the different seasons. The way you were part of being able to represent each season by wearing something that matched the season was a very good strategy and fun activity. Everything about this lesson plan was hands-on by using the playdoh and let the students create their own earth models, they are learning and having fun at the same time which is very important because young learners learn through games. Also, as I mentioned they learn by doing/watching fun things, and you did awesome by showing the youtube video, because you're also incorporating technology! Excellent job, I will definetely take this lesson as an example when teaching about seasons.

 

Josie Calderon Erika Ramirez 410 Points

I love the idea of using Play-Doh as a manipulatable tool for children to build models. I think it’s easy to overlook the importance of building models in science when it’s as important as it is. I liked that they were able to demonstrate the difference between rotations and revolutions because these concepts can be difficult for children to explain orally.

Presley Elliott Presley Elliott 500 Points

That sounds like such a fun and engaging lesson!! The students got to share their understanding of the subject in multiple different ways and have fun while doing it!  

Riley Preuss Riley Preuss 1380 Points

This is a great idea! Students are very interested in the seasons and what they all mean. They are at the age where they somewhat understand each season but don't always know the order. Another great way to introduce seasons would be adding a sensory element to each season (fall - leaves, Winter - fake snow)! Just another way to incorporate and allow students to make connections with each of the subjects. I also have seen where the kids decide what season we are in every day so that they grasp the idea of real-world connections. Lastly, I have seen where teachers make play dough that smells like the season and it the corresponding color. They typically put this into a sensory bin and let students explore other seasonal-related items. Great ideas! 

Matthew Cantu Matthew 600 Points

I love this idea, especially the playDoh! It is a great way for younger students to learn about the seasons and rotation/revolution. Early childhood tends to learn kinesthetically and they won't get bored easily if they feel involved and engaged. Definitely will use this idea for my class.

Christy Eagar Christy Eagar 305 Points

I struggled with how to teach very young students the concept of revolution and rotation without making it too complicated. This is a great activity and I'm so glad to know it worked out well for you!! 

Dayse Pena Dayse Pena 880 Points

Hi, Mary! Thank you for providing this lesson! I would love to do this with my students since we are currently learning about seasons and Earth (rotation and revolution). I like how engaging your lesson was!

Julia Satterfield Julia Satterfield 440 Points

Hi, I really enjoy this lesson. I like the idea of using props to display the seasons. This makes the seasons very relatable to the kids because they tend to know the kinds of outfits you wear during the year. The activity using clay is great because of how hands-on it is. I believe all students love clay and using their hands. The evaluation idea is very effective as well.

Jessica Martinez Jessica Martinez 930 Points

What grade is this for? What would be different if i were to do this in kindergarten?

Paige McRoberts Paige McRoberts 1205 Points

I still think that this lesson would be possible for kindergarten! You might have to modify it some like break it into multiple days...a season a day but I think it is possible and they would love this hands on activity!

Ellen Prevish Ellen Prevish 1045 Points

I love this idea! I think this is a great way to give kids a hands on activity about the seasons! I think that most kids learn best when given manipulatives in the classroom. I often keeps them more engaged in the lesson.

Ellen Prevish Ellen Prevish 1045 Points

I love this idea! I think this is a great way to give kids a hands on activity about the seasons! I think that most kids learn best when given manipulatives in the classroom. I often keeps them more engaged in the lesson.

Zaida Guerra Zaida Guerra 475 Points

Yes! I agree your lesson was very interesting and I felt that your students enjoyed themselves while learning about the seasons. I also believe that providing the students with props they have a good visual about the topic being taught.

Cara Cook Cara Cook 5795 Points

What a great way to generate excitement of science! I will try that when my kindergarten students begin in January. I love the whole student approach.

Tocha Moreno Tocha Moreno 1095 Points

I find this idea very interesting and interactive! Thanks for sharing!

Nancy Vo Nancy Vo 795 Points

Thank you for sharing, I will definitely use this! It's very informative.

Danielle Cadenhead Danielle Cadenhead 845 Points

This is an awesome idea! Thanks for sharing! Another pretty awesome way for students to experiment and explore different seasons is a program called Gizmos. Unfortunately, you do have to have a subscription, but it is definitely worth it! Students are able to explore how the position of the Earth and the degree of its axis affect weather and the seasons. Students are able to manipulate the program in "space" to see how those changes affect weather on Earth.

Audrey Stall Audrey Stall 835 Points

That is an awesome idea! I love that you used props and movement in order for the students to continue their learning of this concept. This is an activity that you can bring up throughout the year as the seasons change. Bringing up the activity throughout the year and what they recall from it will keep reinforcing this knowledge and its significance. Great idea!

Kimberly Orozco Kimberly Orozco 460 Points

As a future educator I would like to do this activity with my students because it seems that they may have a lot of fun doing this kind of activitites. I love working with hands-on activities. What a great idea. Thank you for sharing with us. 

Ana Suarez Ana Suarez 280 Points

This is a great activity!!As a future teacher I would like to say I really liked this activity i really love doing hands on activities, this will be a great opportunity for visual learners to learn as well as incorporating more technology activites to learn.

Patricia Avila Patricia Avila 460 Points

Hi Mary, this is such a great activity. This is such a great way to do a hand-on activity with real life props like the gloves, sandles, leaves, flowers, and umbrella etc. Using play-do in hand-on activty is very common especially since it is a number one material that is safe for early childhood students to use.As a future teacher I would really like to use this activity.

SARAH CARRANCO SARAH 370 Points

That's an awesome idea! Would love to implemented in my classroom some day. 

What is another fun activity to teach SEASONS?

Lissette Colunga Lissette 590 Points

What a great idea of getting the students engaged. This is a very fun activity and i would love to use it in the future. 

Jenaya Cruz Jenaya Cruz 1565 Points

It sounds like you and your partner created an incredibly engaging and hands-on lesson to teach the concept of the four seasons! Using props to represent each season not only made the lesson visually stimulating but also helped the students connect with the characteristics of each time of year in a tangible way. Turning the lesson into a game by having students volunteer to name the season sounds like a fantastic way to keep them actively involved and excited about learning. The use of PlayDoh to create mini earth models to demonstrate rotation and revolution is also a brilliant idea. Giving students the opportunity to physically manipulate the models helped solidify their understanding of these concepts in a concrete manner. 

Overall, it sounds like your lesson was not only educational but also incredibly fun and interactive. I'm sure your students had a blast learning about the four seasons, and I can imagine they'll remember the concepts for a long time to come. I am definitely going to use this idea for my students, Great job!

Tashary Castano Tashary Castano 335 Points

This sounds like such a fantastic lesson! Using props to introduce the seasons is a great way to engage the students.Turning it into a guessing game sounds like so much fun, and definitely keeps them on their toes. The PlayDoh earth models are such a creative idea. It's amazing how well it helps visualize rotation and revolution. Love incorporating a video to solidify the connection between weather and the seasons too. Finishing with student illustrations is a perfect way to express their understanding and creativity. 

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