Building, creating and exploring in January!

Time to do a little catch up from the last two weeks of adventures!

We had a great time exploring in the snow:

We really enjoyed creating musical instruments and performing for Miss Lizzy:

We tried our hand at tunnelling: 

We have been working on a variety of math skills, including estimating, counting, and adding:

We explored the helicopters from the maple tree and the tracks from the deer and rabbits in our school yard: 

We learned about Inukshuks with Mrs. Keiver and created our own that were very tasty!

We read "The Man With the Violin" and watched the video of Joshua Bell playing his violin in a subway station. We then listened to the music he played, and created art based on what we heard and felt while listening to the music:

We completed a tower challenge, starting with 10 of one material, then adding our 10 with a partner's 10, then working with a group of 4, and finally working with everyone who had the same materials. Ask your child how they created their tall towers:

 We enjoyed a special guest reader from Grade 3:

We worked with shapes and shadows:

January was loads of fun, and now we just can't wait to see what February has in store for us!

Process vs. Product

We have had such a great week of exploration, creation and imagination. Students worked so hard independently, in small groups, and as a whole. Both indoors and outdoors, students set their mind to a plan, and adjusted it as needed. They were resourceful and innovative, using materials in new and wonderful ways. It really was an incredible week to observe!

Students enjoyed a 'mindful moment' with snow falling on their faces. They calmed their body, listened to the sounds around them and gathered their thoughts about what they might create in the snow.

They then set about putting their plans into action! We all worked together for over an hour, and the cooperative language and exchange of ideas was amazing to hear. We were all so pleased with the 'snow tub' we created!

Students were inspired by Mrs. Keiver's lesson about life in the north this week. They worked on recreating the scene from a song we sang, incorporating many animals from the north. Ask your child about the steps they took to create their image.

Creative minds need a break sometimes! This persuasive group talked me into adding marshmallows to our tea this week, and obviously loved every minute of it.

On Friday, we invited our Grade 1 buddies from Mrs. Strachan-Garrells class to join us for a story called, "If I Built A Car". Students had been bringing in recycled items all week (thank you!!) and were so excited about using these materials to create their own cars. What should have been absolute chaos was actually incredible to watch- students calmly collected materials they wanted for their cars, worked diligently at putting their cars together, asked for help from other students when needed, and experimented with new ideas. These types of projects are the perfect example of "process" projects, where the process behind a creation is so much more important than the final product. Students worked for over an hour, trying new ideas and adjusting their ideas when things didn't work. They gained insight watching others work, and felt confident enough to try something new. When I looked at the final products that individual students would be taking home, my hope was that posting here about the process would help parents appreciate all of the energy and effort that went into these amazing creations. 

Students are now already looking forward to creating their own musical instruments with the supplies that were left over! This week, Ms. Lizzy inspired us to think about new and interesting ways of combining existing instruments, so I can't wait to see what students come up with!

Oh Caribou!

We had such a great start to the week with a trip to McKim theatre for a performance by Yukon's Remy Rodden. His songs were really funny and educational, and the tunes were so catchy that the kids were singing them the rest of the day. We especially loved his songs "The Caribou Song", "What's That, Habitat" and "Garbage". He even gave us two of his CDs to bring back for our school to enjoy! You can check out more of his music at: https://remyrodden.com/music . 

We also had an awesome time with Captain Powder during Winter Wonder today! We were shown a variety of furs, and taught so much about animals who tolerate, hibernate, and migrate in the winter. We learned about snowflakes, and investigated how the snow feels different depending on how long it's been in our yard. We created mouse houses and pretended we were lynx for a game. We were also buried by our teachers! Ask your child about the animals they learned about indoors and outdoors!