What a wonderful year it has been! I'm sad that this will be the last blog post for this fantastic class...
I'll start with the important housekeeping points first: Your child's paper Learning Journal and Investigation Journal were sent home today in his/her blue folder. Your child's Art Folder was also sent home. Please be on the lookout for those items! I would hate for these irreplaceable memories of K1 to get lost...
Speaking of memories, you have received an email with a link to some photos and videos of your child in action over the year. I hope that these, in combination with the blog posts and the paper Learning Journal have given you a window into the life of your child while in K1. It has been a pleasure to get to know them -and you.
Once again, Ms. Hadma, Mrs. Saez and I wish you all the best!
Please stay tuned for a proper blog post update over the weekend, but I just wanted to say a very big thank you from me, Ms. Hadma and Mrs. Saez. We have had a fantastic year, in no small part because of all your help and support; we really couldn't do it without you! Thank you for the class presents -your thoughtfulness is very appreciated by all of us. I'll have some presents for you, in the form of your child's Learning Journal and Art portfolio, as well as photos and videos taken throughout the year, which will be sent home and shared with you on Tuesday, so please be on the lookout for these items.
It really is a bittersweet time, but I know I'll have the pleasure of seeing how the students continue to grow and mature next year. We visited Mrs. McHugh's class a couple of weeks ago and they shared their animal research posters with us. I was very impressed!
The students were so excited to show you all they could do at their Arts Festival. They are still talking about it this week! Here are some of their reflections about the experience.
Using the app Drawing Pad to capture their thoughts
Tadpoles!
The sign-in question "Are tadpoles alive?" was much too easy; everyone signed in on the yes side. Here are some of the reasons why:
"Because they go into a life cycle." -Lyla
"Because they turn into frogs." -Alfie
"They have to be alive because they are part of the frog cycle." -Ante
"Because tadpoles can move." -Laura
"Because they can swim." -Christopher
"Because they come from a frog. They come in small eggs and the black thing is them hiding in a ball." -Agnes
"I saw tadpoles alive on a documentary on my tv." -Som
Yes, a better question would have been "Do you think your teacher can KEEP the tadpoles she brought into the classroom alive?" but I'm not going to ask that! I'm just going to keep my fingers crossed, because the students are very interested in them, and I hope we can see some changes happen over these last few weeks of school. Two more tadpole/frog sign in questions also led to some interesting discussions.
"Do tadpoles sleep?"
Most said "Yes" and here are some of their reasons why:
"Because if they don't have enough sleep they can't go fast and they can't grow into a frog then." -Kai
"Because they will get too tired. They swim around, and then they get too tired and sleep." -Yaana
"Because every living thing sleeps." -Nadia (But is that true? Perhaps a question next week will ask if trees or plants sleep...)
A few friends said "No" and this is the thinking behind their answers:
"Because tadpoles want to play." -Rinka
"I think they are always moving." -Mira
"Because they are small and fast." -Mercer
"Would you like to be a frog?"
20 students said "No".
"Because all you do is jump." -Aaryav
"Because then you can't go on land for a long time." -Ben
"Then my body would be slimy." -Laura
"I will miss my mummy and daddy." -Mercer
2 students said "Yes"
"Because I like jumping." -Liam
"Because I like to swim for a long time." -Christopher
Studying the tadpoles
Making sketches
Displaying her work
Using teamwork to finish the frog life cycle puzzle
Playdough frogs
Reminders:
The June Show and Tell Roster will go home on Monday.
Arts Festival rehearsals have been taking up a lot of our time this week. Ms. Luiza has done an amazing job organising and practising with the class and, fingers crossed, they will show what stars they are on Thursday's performance. Please help your child get lots of rest before the big day! The children were busy making the tickets you ordered, and they were all stapled into the communication books on Friday. Please check your child's communication book and keep your tickets safe.
We still managed to find some time to think about space this week, as it remains an area many students are quite fascinated by.
Space adventures at the Light Table
What does the International Space Station look like?
Something like this!
Imaginative space pictures
Astronaut art on the iPad
REMINDERS
Please remember there is no school on Monday; enjoy your long weekend!
What an exciting day we had in K1! All week we were preparing for our visitor, Mr. Aki Hoshide. Not only is Mr. Hoshide an astronaut who has lived in the international space station, he is also a former student of UWCSEA (it makes me think that maybe one day that could be one of your children!). We revisited some of our old space discussions, and thought of questions we would ask him. Here were some of their ideas:
"Is it hot in your special suit and mask?' -Mercer
"Do you have a special place to keep your suit?" -Aidan
"How does the space station stay up in the sky? Why does it not crash back to Earth?" -Julianna
"How do they get into the space station?" -Lyla
"How does a star die?" -Agnes
"What do they eat?" -Yaana
"How did they build the space station?" -Kai
"How did the Space Station window get a crack in it?" -Laura
"How do they go to the toliet?" -Ben
At Discovery Time the students were invited to make pages for a book we could give him, as a way to say thank you for taking time out of his busy schedule to chat to us, and we also made a "Thank You" card with Ms. Zac's class. The students were giddy with anticipation for our visitor.
This morning's sign in question
He was wearing a special suit...
It just wasn't this spacesuit!
Listening attentively to his answers
Mr. Hoshide arrived and the students couldn't wait to learn about space. He reached in the box and randomly selected questions from CaM and MZa students. We learned that it does get very hot inside the space suits (but they have a cooling system built inside it) and they do have special places to keep their suits. They must take very good care of them, so they don't get a rip or tear! Mr. Hoshide was a lovely visitor, but all good things must come to an end, and it was time to say good-bye. What a privilege to have an astronaut come and talk to the class, to inspire us to dream big and reach for the stars...
Charlie's Show and Tell got us drawing and talking about coconuts!
This question got us thinking...
Liam was the first one in class, and he started off our survey, signing in on the "Yes" side. Immediately there was some debate...
“No, because it’s big. It’s big and it’s not titchy as a seed. It’s not the same size.” -Lyla
“Are all seeds the same size?” -Ms. Malone
“Yeah, no, so it’s not a seed.” -Lyla- “I think Liam’s the only one who will say it’s a seed.”
“Yes... It’s like a seed which is grown up.” -Aaryav
“No. It’s a coconut. It’s just a coconut.” -Aidan
A former student, now in grade 2, came in to say hello...
“You came at just the right time to help my friends read a tricky sentence today. Do you think that you could help them?” -Ms. Malone
“Is a coconut a seed?” -Kristina- “I have no idea! I don’t know! Do you know?”
“I don’t know either.” -Ms. Malone
“Maybe we can discover today.” -Julianna
“What’s your best guess, Julianna?” -Ms Malone
“No. It’s too big.” -Chloe
“I think it’s a big seed.” -Julianna
“Yes, because it looks like the shape of a seed.” -Charlie
“It looks like a giant seed, yeah, it looks like the shape of a seed, but a bigger version.” -Alfie
“A coconut is just a coconut.” -Kai
“It’s a bigger version of a seed.” -Alfie
“Coconuts are not seeds.” -Kai- “They’re just coconuts!”
“Yes... there’s a lot of holes but nothing’s coming out.” -Chloe
“Yes, because I think it’s a big seed.” -Olivia
“Why is everybody saying “yes” now?” -Kai
“It’s quite heavy.” -Agnes
“Is a coconut a seed? No, because coconuts are too big and the coconuts are food but they don’t grow.” -Laura- ”And it’s too big to plant it, and it would take a really long time and they won’t grow.”
“Coconuts can’t grow because they’re so big and round.” -Agnes -”There’s not enough dirt to cover a whole coconut.”
“Yes, because it’s the right size.” -Rinka
“Is a coconut a seed? The answer’s no, because if a coconut is a seed how will you eat it when it’s in the dirt?” -Yaana
“No, because once you take it out of the dirt it will be so yucky.” -Christopher
“Som, why did you sign in the middle?” -Ms. Malone
“Because I don’t really know.” -Som
“No, no, no, no.” -Vivian -"I agree with Yaana."
“Yes, because it has all those dots on it.” -Mercer
“Well, you can’t plant anything.” -Ben
“Because it’s a nut and a nut does not have a seed to plant; it just grows on a tree.” -Ante
“Is a coconut a seed?” -Ms. Malone
“No, because it just grows on trees.” -Ben
“I think no because it’s a big nut.” -Mira
“No, because a seed is like, small (makes a small circle with his fingers). -Ante
So many ideas and theories about seeds for us to explore...
For a short week there were a quite few inquiries happening:
What will happen to the water in the jars?
By the end of the day a little bit had transferred to the empty jar
The next morning... Surprise!
A lot of water was in the jar, and it was green!
The blue and yellow food colouring mixed together.
Rich storytelling inspired by projections
and light exploration
Noticing the exterior details about the fish
Wondering about what was inside the fish...
Drawing their observations
Thank you again for coming to last week's SLCs. I hope everyone enjoyed the experience. Your children were very pleased that you came to spend time with them in the classroom!
The students were in very good spirits this week; they were clearly excited to see their friends again, and to talk about their holiday adventures. Some had photos to share, which tied in very nicely with their term two landmarks and buildings activities and inspired a new round of classroom construction.
Flower Hunts around the school remain a popular option. Ms. Marschall brought a group out for a nature walk and they practised their photography skills while looking for flowers.
This interest in plants continues back inside the classroom.
The students were also very busy preparing for Thursday's upcoming Student Led Conferences. An email from the school was sent out last week telling you of the time you and your child are meant to come to the classroom. If you have not yet received the email or are unsure about your time (or what Student Led Conferences entail) please let me know, and I'll be happy to help you. The children are very excited at the thought of spending time with you at school!
On a related note, please think to add an extra 15-20 minutes before or after your SLC so that you can bring your child to the RBT to explore and contribute to the K1 Art Exhibition. They have a choice of art activities and we hope each child will participate and create something to be added to our project.
This week also saw us begin to prepare for our upcoming K1 Arts Festival. Here's just a quick sneak peek from their music lesson:
Reminders:
Please send in as many recycled boxes, cardboard rolls, etc as you can. We will be using them next week during Student Led Conferences... and we can alway use any odd bits and bobs!
A new April/May calendar has gone home in your child's blue folder today. The previous March/April calendar forgot the SLCs and PD day! Please accept my apologies and refer to the new calendar for the Show and Tell roster.
