Month: March 2018

The Brainstorm

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What do you know about bugs?

We sat down together to talk about what we know about bugs, minibeasts and little creatures.

  • Abby “I see a snail.”
  • Kai “Bugs can eat high things. And climb walls.”
  • Reggie “I know that beetles are all coming out at this time of the year because it is nice and warm at this time.”
  • Franz “Bugs use their mouth to scratch leaves and eating. To the bugs wings can fly high, so high to food, so much [they can fly high to get their food]. And bees can fly high to eat the flower, in some honey to eat.”
  • Reggie “O the roof, some beetles have some stickens [sticky feet] so it helps them to get up to the roof. They just rest.”
  • Tyler “Bugs be careful in the car. The speed car be careful. The subway be careful [you need to be careful about the bug flying into the car when you are speeding on the highway].
  • Ryan “I saw a lot of bugs in the tree. Bugs eat honey. He has a home.”
  • Kai “Sometimes we find bees in the beehive and they melt into honey. And then they die. They get water inside their wings.”
  • Ruby “Bugs go outside in the early morning.”
  • Cornelis “The bees were on the trees getting nectar, eating flowers. Trees grow flowers, leaves.”
  • Kai “I saw butterflies having a wrestle.”
  • Tyler “Bugs be careful, they go fast.”
  • Lawrence [in Mandarin] “They eat the sand when they crawl on the floor. Scorpions!”
  • Reggie “They have a poisonous tail!”
  • Franz “They have wings and eyes. There are lots of kinds clips, like marks [they have patterns and marks].” [in Mandarin] Everyone has their own package. They have like a can in their back, they use it to collect things to bring it home.”
  • Ryan “We can’t count because they have many shapes.” [in Mandarin] The bugs eat food, it goes from their throat to their stomach, it goes through. They feed their babies.”
  • Franz “Some bees have things that they use to fly. Sometimes they use wings to fly. Sometimes they use wings to cut the trees. And other wings to help them climb. Minibeasts can’t do that. If you cut the tree then they will die.”
  • Cornelis “They have a little pinch [stinger] on their bottom, it makes you get a red thing on your body.”
  • Reggie “I saw a dragonfly where there is a pond.”

The conversations were about snails, bees, scorpions and dragonflies.

The main concepts shard by students were about:

  • food
    • they eat – nectar,
    • transport food
    • feed their offspring
    • provide food for humans – honey
  • movement
    • fly
    • climb walls
    • crawl
  • homes
    • ponds
    • beehive
  • characteristics
    • eyes
    • tails
    • wings
    • suckers at the end of feet
    • digestive system
  • adaptations
    • poisons
    • sharp teeth
    • patterns
    • to transport food
  • lifestyle due to
    • climate and weather changes
    • day and night
    • seasons
  • behaviours
    • fighting among species
  • safety
    • while traveling
    • bites and stings

We will use the brainstorm to plan some of the experiences that will help us learn more about the creatures we share the planet with.

Patterns

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  • Teacher “What do you know about patterns?”
  • Kai “They have two different colours.”
  • Cornelis “They have more colours of the rainbow the patterns go red, yellow, blue.”
  • Reggie “Patterns can be any colour. Some patterns are patterns, can be anything. Like square, circle, square, circle or blue, red, blue, red.”
  • Franz “I know that patterns are like rainbow, red, orange, green, blue, purple, and some patterns are like red, yellow, green, blue, or rectangle pattern and square patterns.”
  • Tomie “You can use toys to make patterns to make them like, dump truck, excavator, dump truck, excavator, dump truck, excavator.”

Ms. Shemo created a row of shapes. “I want to make a pattern. What might the next shape be?”

We tried to guess.

  • Reggie “Square.”
  • Tomie “Square.”
  • Hannah “Diamond.”
  • Kai “Rectangle.”
  • Max “Square.”
  • Cornelis “Square.”
  • Franz “Triangle.”
  • Yusei “Triangle.”

Next, we created and talked about our own patterns.

SLO: Describe, model and extend simple patterns with shape, colour and real objects.

Taking Action

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A group of students noticed that the water bottle tub was full of water. They worked together to clean it out. They organised the bottles, cleaned the tub and put the bottles back in a clean tub.

Learner Agency:

Students taking responsibility and making decisions through authentic tasks.

The Worms

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Ruby had a banana peel. She wanted to throw it away. Ms. Hannah explained that worms like banana peels.

Ms. Hannah brought in the worms.

  • Reggie “Earth worms!”
  • Ruby “Beach worms!”

We looked closer to see if we can see any worms in the tub.

  • Franz “I see something! I see something!” [He points to the wet soil.
  • Abby “I see very small ones.”

We looked again to see if there were any worms.

Next, we looked from the bottom of the tub. The students saw the worms, wriggling in the soil.

  • Ruby “I can see the worms now. I can see a orange worm!”

The students decided that the worms don’t like to come out and be seen.

  • Ms. Hannah “Why don’t they like to come out?”
  • Kai “Because they like to live under ground.”
  • Reggie “And birds might come and eat them.”
  • Cornelis “They are really quick. Yeah! They are really quick to hide.”
  • Ruby “And they just want to hide all the time.”

Reggie was wondering what they eat.

  • Ruby “Banana peels!”
  • Reggie “Watermelon and dragon fruit.”
  • Kai “And apples.”
  • Ruby “And oranges.”
  • Cornelis “Maybe they eat watermelon.”
  • Kai “Watermelon is too big.”
  • Mia “The worm wants to go to the bottom because they want to eat food.”
  • Cornelis “When they are really quick they want to have food, they hunt for food and then they hide because they always move to the places when they think that the people take their food.”
  • Kai “They take it away into the holes. The holes are underground. The holes are where the worms live. Because they don’t’ want to be eaten.”
  • Franz “Me and Ryan in another day, I see a worm and Ryan can’t see the worm. He is black a worm and he is so long. He is so big and so long. He wants to go to his home but his body is too big he can’t go into the hole. I used my shovel to dig but I can’t find the spot to dig. Then I looked in the sandpit and they don’t like the sand pit because the sand you [they] can’t eat it.”
  • Reggie “We are making the worm house. So, we put soil on two different boxes and then we made a bottom box where the wee goes. So, when they wee and moving around they don’t have to touch any wee. The wee is liquid that worms don’t really like.”

  • Reggie “We are putting the worms into a pot, then we put some watermelon in it for them to eat. And there is one really long worm that Alfred found.”
  • Cornelis “When the black holes are a little shorter they look like a triangle but they look like a circle maybe, they just hide inside their holes when they are this long. 100. Is the biggest number.
  • Reggie “The house is really like a hotel because there is a layer up and a layer down.”

The students made signs for the display.

  • Reggie “Me and Tomie are making signs so that people don’t touch the worms. If you touch the worms you might squeeze it and it might die.”
  • Kai “Be gentle.”
  • Reggie “If you want to touch the worms then you gently pick it up and put it on your hand. But if you gently squeeze it and pull it up it will be dead. We should look after them. We can give them baths. So, you give it like a plate and then you put like soap on it and put the water on and then it will get clean.”
  • Cornelis “They really are quick when they hunt for food. They rush to get food and then they rush back home. They are really scared so they are really quick.”
  • Mia “I am scared. Because he is moving.”
  • Abby “They were very fast.”
  • Reggie “They don’t’ sneak up on you and bite your fingers!”
  • Tomie “The sign says don’t touch , only look.”

SLO’s

  • how to take care of things
  • resources are necessary to meet the needs of living things
  • the ability to take care of things – animate and inanimate
  • appreciation of own environment and all living things in it
  • a sense of wonder and curiosity

The Map of the City

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Cornelis drew a map. He was eager to follow the map to create a structure. A group of friends gathered to help him. 

Cornelis “People are on a lookout because the people are looking for the bad guys. They keep them safe from bad guys.”

Franz “We need a swimming pool because if the city don’t have a swimming pool, then they will not be able to swim.”

Cornelis “When the rocket is here, it goes blast off and stops at Mars. And then the people jump out of the rocket. When it is out of space, they jump out. They get in trouble and they fly into a black hole. There are aliens here. They are stuck in the ground!”

Reggie “In the city, when I come back from the rocket I go swimming. When I come back from Mars it is mostly cold, so I go swimming. We like the city. It is really busy. I mostly have to bring heavy loads to Mars like wood, trees, bricks, heavy things, so we can trap the aliens.”

Kai “Because they are bad guys.”

Reggie “They put masks on our mouth.”

SLO’s

  • tell own stories using words, gestures, and objects

  • listen to others

  • learn to take turns

  • participate in communal classroom activities

Early Years Arts Showcase

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Ms. Heidi came in to launch the Early Years Arts Showcase!

First we listened to the soundtrack. We loved the seasons song!

Next, we listened to Ms. Heidi read the script. It is a story about rabbits in a garden.

Then, we brainstormed ideas for the showcase.

  • Kai “I love ladybugs.”
  • Faye “I like the costumes.”
  • Franz “I like fireflies.”
  • Cornelis “Lots of action.”
  • Reggie “I like the props.”
  • Everyone “SONGS!”

The students decided that they should be able to include movements all around the stage. They asked to have materials and ribbons. One student suggested that we make them like the seaweed ribbons from last years production.

One student from each class pulled out the class characters from a hat.

The Bird Fire Station

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Tyler “This is a story about what’s happening in a bird’s fire station. The nest is the main station, where bird firemen stand and rest; the round red plastic that’s hanging there is the “fire bell”, so when there’s a fire, the bell will ring; and the blue plastic underneath the tree is actually a ladder for the firemen to walk down towards the fire truck (the tricycle) that’s parking down there.”

Carrots!

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K1A came in with invitations written in Chinese and English. They wanted to present us with the information they had collected during their research into ‘carrots‘.

We decided to reflect on what we already know about carrots.

  • Ruby “I like to eat it. They come from the vegetable shop.”
  • Lawrence [in Mandarin] “I saw carrots in a rectangle shape.”
  • Reggie “I like to eat carrots. They let you see in the dark.”
  • Alejandra [in Mandarin] “I like carrots.”
  • Amber [in Mandarin] “The carrots are like triangles. I like this one the best. My mum always fries the carrots.”
  • Ryan “The carrots look like rectangle shape. The front of it looks like a triangle.”
  • Cornelis “When the bunnies eat the carrots, they like to eat it most. The farmer feeds them. They like to eat it really fast. And then when it rains…”
  • Kai “…it will come on top of the carrots! I love them. I always eat them because I like them. Carrots come from the garden. You have to grow it with a seed.”
  • Michelle [in Mandarin] “Carrots, I eat all of them. They are orange. They come from the bowl we are eating.”
  • Yusei “Orange.”
  • Tyler [in Mandarin] “I like to eat the carrots. It tastes sweet. It is very healthy. You can grow up when you eat lots of carrots.”
  • Franz “I like to eat carrots because carrots are orange. The carrots are long and the rocks are big. They grow in the sand.”
  • Jasmine [in Mandarin] “I like to eat carrots because it is healthy. I share it with my big sister.”
  • Mia “Carrots are good, because I like to eat carrots. It is my favourite.”
  • Hannah “I like to eat carrots because carrots are yummy.”

What do you know about carrots?

Family

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Mr. Cal read the story ‘Heather Has Two Mommies’ by Lesléa Newman, illustrated by Diana Souza. This is a simple story about a little girl named Heather who has two mothers. The story illustrates that, “The most important thing about a family is that all the people in it love each other.” Mr. Cal encouraged us to reflect on how different families can be.

After listening to the story, the students drew a picture of their own family. Some pictures included cousins and pets too! They gathered in a circle and shared their picture with the class.

SLO’s

  • respect differences
  • accept that others might have different opinions and preferences about things

Cupcakes!!

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About a month ago, the students shared their knowledge about baking. They discussed how to make a cake. The decided to make a plan:

  • Mia “We are making a cake.”
  • Abby “A chocolate cake!”

Ms. Angie helped us reflect on what we knew about the ingredients. Where they came from and the process they go through.

  • Reggie “Flour comes from wheat.”
  • Franz “Eggs come from chickens, and the chickens lay some eggs.”

We wondered about butter. Where does it come from?

  • Reggie “It comes from milk.”

We wondered why it did not look like milk.

  • Kai “Yeah, but it’s made from milk. You have to put it inside and then melt it.”

We wondered about sugar. Some students suggested that it came from butter.

  • Reggie “No, it doesn’t. It comes from sugarcane.”

We noticed the bowl of coco powder.

  • Cornelis “Chocolate, you have to melt it.”

We wondered why it did not look like the chocolates we usually see.

  • Abby “Coco powder comes from coconut!”

Next, we shared what we know about the items we need to make a cake. A whisk, a sieve.

  • Franz “We need the holes because we are putting the flower.
  • Ruby “because you have to shake it out into the bowl.
  • Reggie “So there are no lumps.”

We began to make the cake. First, we sifted the flour.

Then we creamed the butter by mixing the butter and the sugar.

  • Hannah “Then we cracked the eggs.”
  • Mia “Because we need eggs, because then we can make a cake.”
  • Kai “Then we used a spoon to crack the eggs.”
  • Cornelis “Because when you pinch the egg then we have to crack it or it will spill on the floor.”

  • Tyler “This is chocolate.”
  • Ryan “Because chocolate cakes.”
  • Franz “A chocolate cake needs chocolate.”
  • Cornelis “I think he is mixing it.”
  • Reggie “So when it goes in the cakes there is no lumps.”

  • Abby “Stirring chocolate with eggs.”

  • Cornelis “Then we put it into a cupcake pan.”
  • Amber “So yummy!”
  • Kai “And we put the chocolate in.”
  • Hannah “We put it in our fingers and it was yum.”

  • Reggie “We put it in the tray because when it is baking it won’t wobble or tip over onto the other side.”
  • Amber “Hold slowly.”
  • Cornelis “It won’t go crazy in the oven.”

The Cupcakes!!!!!!!

The students decorated the cupcakes and shared them with their friends in both classes.

The students drew the process. Here are a few examples.

SLO’s

  • reflect on past experiences
  • make a plan
  • sequence events
  • communicate understanding through drawings and words
  • explain a process
  • question to find out more
  • listen to others
  • build on others’ ideas

Nature Walk

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We went of a nature walk around the pond. We were on a mission to observe how the plants and trees around us are changing, as the weather has begun to change.

  • Cornelis “Maybe it is spring and all the leaves have changed colour.”
  • Abby “In winter they shrink.”
  • Mia “Look at the pink flower.”

The teachers encouraged the students to think about the changes they have noticed.

  • Cornelis “That bush turned into flowers.”
  • Ryan “Bees!” [Ryan noticed some small bugs flying around the tree.]

We wondered why there were bees [bugs]. Why did they come?

  • Ryan “Bees come and go.”
  • Cornelis “Bees collect the nectar and then it melts into honey.”
  • Hannah “This is bee’s house.”

We looked around to find the house.

  • Hannah “Bees like flowers.”
  • Franz “Bees visit it for honey.”

We looked around to see if we can spot any bees.

  • Franz “Bees are on the flowers.”

We decided to take a closer look.

  • Mia “It’s like little flies.”

We continued our walk. We noticed a small shoot growing at the base of a tree.

  • Cornelis “The tree is going to grow.”
  • Abby “The acorn is going to grow.”
  • Cornelis “It will take ages and ages to grow.”
  • Teacher “Why will it take ages?”
  • Cornelis continued to explain how plants take a long time to grow. “It will grow in the afternoon.”

We looked closer at the tiny leaves that have just begun to grow. We noticed how the tree was full of flowers but had very few leaves.

  • Reggie “It looks like cauliflowers.”

The students touched the flowers gently.

We will continue to observe the changes in our environment.

What do you notice?

Morning Meeting

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We start each day by greeting one another by name. This is an engaging way to start each morning. It also builds a strong sense of community and sets the students up for success. Students are encouraged to listen, look at the person who is talking, and manage their bodies, which sets the tone for a respectful and trusting learning environment.

Another component of Morning Meeting is the morning message. Students read and interact with a short message written by the students and/or teacher. The message may highlight a task for the day or provide information on the days activities. Creating and reading the message, builds language awareness.

The K1 students worked as a team to create the first part of the message. They took turns to write the different letters that spell ‘Good Morning’.

SLO’s

  • write letters of the alphabet
  • listen and respond in small or large groups for increasing periods of time
  • focus on a speaker and maintain eye contact
  • participate in shared reading and writing experiences

All About ME!

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The students have been discussing the concept of colour and self-expression. The work of  Emmanuelle Moureaux encouraged discussions about art and creativity.

We decided to create our own piece of art, a mobile. The students began by discussing possible ideas for their decorative structure. They wanted it to be about the things they liked and cherished. We decided that each creation would represent an individual person.

The Brainstorm…

We will continue to include more ideas as our inquiry progresses.

Next the students created individual posters. They explained their choices for the different facets that would be included in their creation. Here are a few.

 

 

The students painted the first letter in their name, which will be the first part of the mobile. 

The students used beads and pipe-cleaners to make a flash card. It would represent their age. 

The Display