Provocation: Three large boxes were brought into the classroom and left there for a week. The children were curious about the boxes and asked to interact with them. Some of the children wrote on the boxes, some glued paper onto the boxes, and some hid inside of the boxes. All of the children worked independently with no clear goal in mind. The following week, Mrs. Rauscher wanted to throw away the boxes as they were getting in the way. The children adamantly refused. Our first project of the year has begun! Day 1 - Planning: The grade 1 class had to collectively decide what they wanted to do with the boxes. Each child was given a piece of paper and asked to write down their idea and what the shape they wanted their idea to look like. Curriculum Connection: Language Arts 1. explore and share own ideas on topics of discussion and study 2. follow spoken directions for gathering ideas and information 3. generate and contribute ideas for individual or group oral, print and other media texts Math (Shapes and Objects) 1. replicate composite 2-D shapes and 3-D objects All of the ideas were presented to the children and written on the board. Now it was time for a vote - the students were given the option to change their mind if they liked someone else’s idea better than their own. Curriculum Connection: Language Arts 1. Follow spoken directions for gathering ideas and information 2. Ask questions and contribute ideas related to class investigations on topic of interest Social Studies 1. Collaborate with others to devise strategies for decision making and problem solving 2. Apply ideas and strategies to contribute to decision making and problem solving 3. Consider the ideas and suggestions of others 4. Respond appropriately, verbally and in written forms, using language respectful of human diversity Now we had to agree on how the boxes should be stacked to build our castle. Mrs. Rauscher drew diagrams of all the available options and the children were invited to come up and write their names on the shape that they liked best. Curriculum Connection: Language Arts 1.follow spoken directions for gathering ideas and information 2.Ask questions and contribute ideas related to class investigations on topic of interest Social Studies 1. Collaborate with others to devise strategies for decision making and problem solving 2. Apply ideas and strategies to contribute to decision making and problem solving 3. Consider the ideas and suggestions of others 4.Respond appropriately, verbally and in written forms, using language respectful of human diversity Now that the students had established what they wanted to build and how they wanted it to look, we decided to form committees to get this project underway. Three committees were formed: the building committee, the decorating committee, and the costume committee. The children met with their committees to discuss the things they would need to complete their job. A recorder was assigned in each group who was responsible for writing down their team mates ideas. While the children were engaged in discussion, Mrs. Rauscher used Google images to show the children different examples of castles to help inspire the students’ imaginations. Day 2: Building Begins Curriculum Connection: Science (Building Things) 1. Construct objects and models of objects, using a variety of different materials 2. Identify the purpose of different components in a personally constructed object or model, and identify corresponding components in a related object or model - select appropriate materials, such as papers, plastics, woods; and design and build objects, based on the following kinds of construction tasks; - construct model buildings; e.g. Homes (human, animals, from other cultures), garages, schools The building team met one more time to go over their list of needed materials. They added some things that their classmates suggested and read the list out to Mrs. Rauscher so that she could gather the materials. The kids were anxious to get started and each grabbed scissors and tape. The kids each started cutting, forgetting the shape the boxes were supposed to take. It was chaos! We took a short time out to discuss what the original design was supposed to look like. The kids stacked the boxes to match their diagram. All at once the ideas started to flow. The construction crew independently broke into two groups: one worked on the 2 boxes that formed the bottom of the castle and the other worked on the top box. As the students continued to build, they became more and more creative with their thinking. They brought the other box over and decided to cut out the sides so that they could connect the boxes One student recognized an immediate problem: “If we cut the wall off, we’ll lose the door!” Her teammates immediately got to work solving the problem – they rotated the second box so that the flap of the second box would serve as a door for the first box. It was incredible to watch them independently and successfully solve problems by listening to the various ideas that their teammates came up with. The group working on the top of the castle wanted to make a pointy top just like the castles we saw on Google. They found a simple yet innovative way to accomplish this. Mrs Rauscher: Now what are you doing? C: We want a way to get into the top! Stay tuned for more updates about this project!
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AuthorsThis blog and resources website has been developed through the work of various AISI coaches in PHRD. The lead collaborative teachers for the 2015/2016 school year, Cheryl Frose, Christine Quong and Tammy Tkachuk will continue to update this site. If you have resources you would like to share or would like to contribute to the blog, please contact us. Archives
May 2016
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