Preparing for Chicks!

The chicks are almost here! The students have been waiting so patiently week after week
anticipating the arrival of our chicken eggs. The wait is nearly over as the Prairie Room will
receive the eggs next Monday, the 20th and help put them in the incubator on the following
Tuesday.
Chicken Eggs
While the students anticipate their arrival, there are a lot of questions they want answered.
One of question Preston brought up was; what color will the eggs be? The students took
turns predicting what the chicken eggs will look like.
Making Predictions:
What color do you think the eggs are going to be?
White

Brown

Orange

Blue

Red

Pink

Purple

Yellow

Andrew
Jacob L.
Aya
Aria

Charley
Cael
Grayson
Jimmy
Jacob S.
Evan

Will

Alex
Emmett

Daniel

Jackson
Charlotte
Shalin

Hayden
Alexa

Cole
Connor
Preston

Chick Development
The students used wooden eggs to practice the gentle handling
of the egg and took turns caring for the egg. The students also
read many new books about chicks, eggs, and other farm
animals which help inspired more questions. As we wait for the
arrival of the eggs, the students have
been learning that when the eggs
arrive at Elmhurst Academy, they will
not hatch right away because they
need time to grow and get big before
they hatch. The students watched an
animation video of the chick
development inside the egg. At first
the students giggled saying, Thats
not a chicken and as the chick started to develop different
features, Grayson thought, It kind of looks like a monster with his
big eye! After watching the video, the students were able to get
a better understanding of what takes place inside the egg.

During another center this week, the students

explored our new chick development eggs.
Each plastic egg is numbered from 1- 21,
representing a day the chick is in the
incubator. When the students opened up the
eggs, they were able to see the chick
development that was on that given day.
On day 1, the
students
noticed that
the chick looked like a
little dot, and when they
opened up the egg for
day 15 they noticed that
its almost like a chick.
The students were able
to practice their
sequencing skills as they
saw the progression of a chick developing as well as
their fine motor skills as they had to open and close the
egg.
A Visit from a Chick Expert
On Thursday, the students welcomed our chick expert, Ethan, from the Lakeview Classroom.
Connors big brother, Ethan, hatched chicks at his previous school, and thus gained a
tremendous amount of information and chick handling skills which he shared with the Prairie
Room. The students were able to participate in a discussion and ask Ethan about the chicks
and eggs he had.
Please find the students Q & A below:
Q How do you protect the eggs? Jimmy
A The incubator is there so the eggs dont get hurt Ethan
Q How do you protect the chickens? Will
A They have to go in a box when they hatch. You have to be nice to
them Ethan
Q How do you hold the egg? Grayson
A Like this *holds the egg steadily in both palms* Ethan
Q Do the chicks sleep? Hayden
A I dont know, maybe during nap time? Ethan
Q Do the egg eat? Connor
A No, you dont feed the eggs Ethan

Thank You

At the end, we asked Ethan one final question, What was your
favorite part of hatching chicks? In which he replied, Holding the
cute tiny chicks theyre so soft!
Feather Exploration
At another provocation, the students came to the table to find
some soft clay, feathers, beans, and corn as well as some chicken
puppets and wooden eggs. This provocation allowed the students
to create eggs and chicken of their own. The students used their
fine motor skills as they rolled, squeezed, and molded the soft dough
into their desire form. We encourage you to stop by the Incubation
Station to see some of the childrens final product!

Chicks Week One

Chick Responsibility
The chicks have finally arrived to the Prairie Room and the
students could not be more excited! The students have
undergone a tremendous amount of responsibility as it is our
duty to take care of the
chicken eggs during their
incubation time to ensure
a successful hatch. The
students have discussed
and come up with a set
of rules for their
classmates to follow to
ensure we protect the
chicks.

Feather Exploration
As our chick expert, Ethan has told us his favorite part
of his hatching chicks project was feeling their soft
feathers once they hatched! While the Prairie Room
has yet to feel the soft texture of the chicks, the
students participated in a feather exploration. The
students were encouraged to create their chicks and
then glue on some feathers. As the students were
participating in this feather exploration, the students
began a discussion about what color the chicks
feathers will look like. Preston replied, I think some
yellow and some white while Charley stated, I think
they will have lots of different color feathers, like a rainbow!

Rules:
1. Be careful holding the
chicks Charlotte
2. We have to be gentle
with them Jimmy
3. No drop! Jacob S.
4. Dont unplug the
incubator Charley
5. We look with our eyes
and dont touch the
incubator buttons
Hayden
6. We have to take care
of them -Wyatt

In addition, the students participated in a light and shadow activity

which allowed the students to freely explore the feathers and the
projector. Cael enjoyed throwing his feathers up in the sky and watching
their shadows slowly float back down.
Fun Facts ~ Brown vs. white eggs
Did you know there is no difference in taste or
nutritional composition between brown and
white eggs? Chicken with red earlobes lay brown eggs while
chickens with white earlobes lay white eggs. This week the
students were able to see that a chicken with red earlobes laid
the eggs we have in our incubator as we have all brown eggs.

Chick Development
During the first week of incubation, the chicks have already begun developing!
Day 1 (Tuesday) ~ Nervous system, head and eye begin forming
Day 2 (Wednesday) ~ Heart and ear begin to form. Hear begins to beat
Day 3 (Thursday) ~ Nose, legs, and wings begin to form
Day 4 (Friday) ~ Reproductive organs begin to form

Salt Dough Chick Representations

The students measured and mixed flour, salt,
and water to create a batch of play dough for
our class to use. Feathers, black dots, scrap
paper, and sticks were made available for the
students to use to create their representational
model of chick. As students molded and
created with the dough, they were seen
identifying and representing different stages of
the embryonic development. Some students
made an egg, rolling the dough in their hand to
form a round ball. Others added just eyes, some a beak, and some with feathers to
represent a fully grown and hatched chick.

Chicks Week 2
Exploring Chicks on the iPad
On Monday, the students incorporated technology into their chick
explorations. The students used the iPads
to play several new chicks games. One
game allowed the students to complete
a chicken race, in which they were
challenged to run through the barn
collecting all the eggs. In another game,
the students had to guide their chicks
through a maze bringing all the eggs
back to their nest. These games encouraged the students to use
their hand-eye coordination as well as fine motor muscles as they
had to manipulate their characters displayed on the iPads.
Candling Activity
This week, the students participated in their first
candling activity. Candling is a method used in
embryology to study the growth and development
of an embryo inside an egg. The ability to test this is
to hold the egg to direct
light to get a glimpse
inside the shell. Before the
students began their
candling activity, they
practiced their egg
handling skills. The
students took turns
practicing these skills by
holding a wooden egg,
and once they mastered
their safe handling, the
students were able to hold the actual chicken egg.
The students commented on how warm and how
smooth the egg was. After each child held the
egg, we began our candling, as we examined the
growing chick with the light. Some students
commented that its dark or they see red inside.
While we were unable to see the actual chick inside,
the students were able to get a glimpse at the matter growing inside.

Hen House
While our eggs stay warm in the incubator, the students have
come to realize that on a farm, the mother hens would sit on
their eggs to keep them warm. This week the students began
transforming our dramatic play area into a farm, complete
with a hen house, also known as a chicken coop. A hen
house typically consists of several nesting boxes for each
chicken to sit in while laying their eggs or sleeping, often filled
with hay or straw. To create our hen house, the students cut
strips of paper and fabric and then used it to fill a shelf to
create nine nesting boxes. Additionally, baskets, egg cartons, and play chickens were
added to the area to add to the students play. The
students even helped construct and paint several hens,
making sure to add the beak, eyes, and comb.
Play Farms
To continue building the students understanding that
chickens live on a farm (usually), the students had the
opportunity to engage in play with a set of barns and farm
animals.
Clay Chicks
This week, the students were able to explore clay using feathers
and creating their very own chick. Since we are studying chicks
this was a great way for Prairie friends to join together and create
their personal chick and learning the body parts of a chick. Clay
is an important aspect for children using their
fine motor abilities and working their muscles
in their hands and fingers. It is also a great
way for them to enhance their creativity
and art skills experiencing clay and what it
can do.
Chicken Feet
On day 11, the chickens feet were completely formed. As a fun
activity to demonstrate the shape and difference in chicken feet, the
students were encouraged to put on some chick feet and roam around
the chicken coop.
Chick Development
During the second week of incubation:
Day 7 (Monday) ~ The chicks begin to develop their comb
Day 8 (Tuesday) ~ The feathers begin to form
Day 9 (Wednesday) ~ The embryo begins to resemble a bird. Mouth opening appears
Day 10 (Thursday) ~ The beak starts to harden
Day 11 (Friday) ~ Tail feathers appear. Toes are fully formed.

Did you know?

The red appendage on top of the chickens head is called the comb. While
there are many accepted theories as to why chickens have combs, one of
the most widely known reason chickens have combs is because they act as
a cooling system. As blood flows to the comb, it cools off as the vessels are
closer to the skin and not insulated by the feathers. There are also over 10
different types of combs. The most widely recognized is called the single
comb.

Hatching Chicks Week Three

Chick Development
During the second week of incubation:
Day 13&14 (Sunday & Monday) ~ Scales begin to appear on feet.
Day 15 (Tuesday) ~ Stomach is drawn into the abdominal cavity.
Day 16 & 17 (Wednesday & Thursday) ~ Feathers completely cover body. Scales, claws, and
beak become firm.
Day 18 (Friday) ~ Growth is nearly complete.
Day 17 Why is it a special day?
As some of you may have noticed, there was a change in the
incubator on Day 17 of our incubation period. On day 17 and
18, the chicks are preparing to hatch. To ensure a successful
hatch, we have taken out the automatic turner and increased
the humidity. With a rather full grown baby chick inside, laying
the egg flat on the grate allows the chick to position themselves
as they prepare to hatch. We should be expecting a few pips
on Monday. As the egg tooth starts to penetrate the
membrane, the lungs are fully working and breathe in all the air
from the air cell in the egg, once it pips through the shell is able
to breathe in oxygen from the outside.

Chicken Pip

Monday will mark Day 21, which for the majority of chicks is hatch day! We should be able to
see some chicks making their journey out of the shell. This process is a long and tiring process
for the baby chick and typically lasts for 12-18 hours, so it is very common to see baby chicks
exhausted after their hatch, resting and laying down just outside their egg.
Did you Know?
Chickens love to play!
Chickens have full-color vision
Chickens can feel pain or distress and loses
feathers when stressed
Chickens actually dream when they sleep
Chickens can taste saltines

And in that Prairie Room they had a barn E I E I O

As the students are getting more and more interested in the chicks,
they have showed much interest in farm animals. Our dramatic
play has been a number of things this school year; a locksmith
shop, a coffee shop, a restaurant, a jungle and now it will
become a barn! This week the students began transforming our
dramatic into a barn. We began by creating the exterior of the
barn and the students helped by painting it. Some students
wanted to use their paintbrushes while several students chose to
finger paint the barn red.
Exploring Chick Feed
When visiting a farm, what is it chickens are eating off the ground?
Well chickens eat a number of things; they eat vegetables, fruits,
flowers, grass as well as grains and seeds. Chickens are often
found scratching the grounds looking for bugs and specks of things
that we cant see. This week, the students explored the seeds and
grains in our sensory table. Some of the students were pretending
to feed the eggs, while others were pretending to put all the seed
inside the chickens stomach.
Finish the Egg
With less than a week left before our eggs hatch, the students are
preparing for the big arrival! The students were encouraged to
scaffold and use their gained knowledge about chickens to create
a vision of their own as they hypothesize what is currently inside the
egg. The students used chalk to create their chick inside the egg.

Chicks Hatching - Week Four

After 21 long days, the chicks have finally arrived! On Monday,
during the morning the students were surprised to find two
baby chicks that have recently hatched. Throughout the day,
the students were able to watch the amazing process of the
chicks hatching and emerging from their shell. By the end of
Monday, the Prairie Room had 9 chicks and on Tuesday
morning we were surprised to find a total of 16 hatched chicks!

Once the chicks had dried and were fluffy, they were placed in brooder box, where the
students observed them roaming and huddled together for warmth.
Observing the Chicks
With the excitement of new chicks, the students spent the majority of the day on Monday
observing the process of chicks hatching. Students used their journals to draw
representations of the chicks emerging from their shell.
Preston wanted to write about it and asked, What letter
does chick start with? The students continued to utilize
their observation skills throughout the week as we began
to watch the chicks in their brooder box. We learned
that chicks like to play and theyre always jumping on
each other. Evan also observed that chicks sometimes
sleep when theyre standing up while others lay down.
The students also noticed that chicks like to cuddle under
the light, which Wyatt predicted because, They like it
warm! While our classroom can be rather noisy at time
with the voices of children playing and laughing, we can really hear the chicks during lunch
and snack time as well as nap time as we listen to their little peeps!
Chick Differentiation
As the chicks had become drier, it was clear to see what color their
feathers were. While many of us were expecting yellow chicks, we
were surprised to find our chicks were black with various yellow spots.
Upon research, we were able to identify what types of chicks the
Prairie Room had. It is clear now that we have Black Star Chicks. With
Black Star Chicks it is easy to differentiate the genders between the
two as males have yellow feathers on the top of their head while
females have black feathers on their head and have light-colored
chest feathers. The students were able to identify that we have 13
male and 3 female chicks!

Holding the Chicks

On Tuesday, the students were presented with the opportunity to
hold the chicks! The students practiced hygiene skills as they washed
their hands before and after holding the chicks. The students also
worked on their Character Counts pillars as they needed to
demonstrate trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, and caring when
handling the chicks. The students were thrilled as they were able to
hold the chicks and feel their soft and fluffy feathers. They also
noticed that the chicken feet tickled their hands when the chick
would try to walk on their palms. After we all took turns holding the
chick, the students watched the chicks up close as we placed the
chick on the ground to roam. The students giggled as they saw the chick cheeping at them
or walking towards them.