We have been working hard on our writing skills! We have been learning to use classroom resources to help us with our writing. We have also been learning how to draw our creations that we have been building. Our students have a writing journal that we use to reduce the amount of loose papers moving between home and school.
Our students use their sight word lists everyday! We are so proud of all the strategies they use to help them be successful. Some of them use rulers to underline the word they want to write. Others use an eraser. Some students use their pencil to underline and then erase it. We have a math word list and sight word list they use.
Click this image to head to tpt for a copy.
Year 2 students (Senior Kindergarten) have chosen a writing goal that they want to work on. They wrote their goal and stuck it to their basket on their desk so they can see it when they are writing.
We have also been learning about whole body listening. We watched the video from Sesame Street to help us. We then did this follow up worksheet (click worksheet image for link to tpt).
Until we're able to be back in schools again, we thought we'd pass along some resources for learning at home. Parents, we know this is a difficult time as many of you are not only parenting/teaching but also working from home. So, we hope some of these resources help you during this time.
1. Scholastic- Learn at Home
This website has Grade level books and activities on various curriculum topics daily.
This website has drawing tutorials. You can search topics on the website, which you can't do on YouTube. Their YouTube channel has many free drawing tutorials.
We were challenged as a school to decorate the windows beside our classroom doors. We have been exploring lines in art and used this in our collaborative creation. Using acrylic paint and a clear plastic table cloth, we created a winter themed mandala as the background for our representation of the book 'The Mitten'. Here are photos from the mandala painting process.
We read the book together as a class and discussed what animals they wanted to create to add to our window scene. Students used a variety of materials to make their animals.
I am excited to have a storefront on Amazon where I will share resources and materials we use in our classroom! I have tried to link most of what you see here, on the blog or over on Instagram (@wonderfullinquiry) and Twitter (@wonder_inquiry).
"Art has the role in education of helping children become like themselves instead of more of everyone else"
-Sydney Clemens
At the beginning of each school year, we spend a lot of time learning about emotions and self-regulation. We use the Zones of Regulation to support building language around feelings and emotions (See last year's post about how we use Zones by clickinghere). We spent time reading a variety of books about different feelings.
We learned that all feelings are okay. It's okay to be sad, or scared, or angry, or frustrated, or happy.
We read the book 'How are you Peeling? Foods with Moods', which inspired a wonderful art and literacy project for our learners. Our artists decided they wanted to create their own foods with feelings.
Our artists used their knowledge of feelings to create a representation of different emotions using clay/plasticine.
We then turned their artwork into a book! Our writers added words to describe each feeling.
(We used the company Book Bub to have our book published).
We have been learning a lot about mathematics as an educator team this year. Mostly we have been learning to take on the observer role and notice all the math our learners are doing daily. From there we have been supporting their math thinking. Our mathematicians this year have been exploring counting and numbers in their play very regularly. They have become curious and fascinated about using math tools to count large volumes of materials and exploring growing number patterns through building. What has been so interesting to us is that many different mathematicians are beginning to explore these concepts at their developmentally appropriate level. Math through play allows learners to enter in at their level but to be challenged to expand their thinking and skills.
Our mathematicians observe what their peers are doing and then work to create their own representation.
Our mathematicians explored how they can show numbers. They loved using 10 frames as a tool for showing numbers.
We also used numerals and dice to show numbers.
Working on sorting and counting the number of sides on the shapes.
Mathematicians explore numbers outdoors during Outdoor Learning. Two boys worked together to use their bodies to create numerals. We always have clipboards available during outdoor learning and this Year 1 decided to show her thinking of how to add numbers together.
Retelling stories through the use of math.
Playing the game Tenzis to work on subitizing skills.
This mathematician created a growing pattern through the use of addition sentences (see the white board). She was then encouraged to use the counters to show her thinking. She was then able to see the pattern growing and determine which would come next.
Another way to use counters to show knowledge of numbers.
Creating towers of numbers and noticing the patterns inside them became a favourite of our mathematicians. They created growing patterns inside their towers or growing patterns between the towers. Once one student tried it, others were inspired as well.
As a class we counted the seeds in our pumpkin. We used 10 and 5 frames to help us. Afterwards a group of students worked together to count all the seeds from the other pumpkin. They persisted and filled the entire carpet with 10 frames to count the seeds. They shared their work with the class and this has since inspired many variations of counting materials in the room.
Counting the manipulatives
Sorting and counting the 3D shapes.
Sorting by colour, counting and recording the number on sticky notes.
After sorting the colours at the light table these girls worked together to count each colour and then record the total with numbers.
Another group did the same thing another day
Counting and representing
With all this counting we have begun to explore efficiency of strategies (i.e. counting every single counter starting at 1 is going to be hard and take a long time). Many of our mathematicians will tell you that we should count by 10s. To build their fluency with counting by 10s we have listened to some songs.
We're looking forward to seeing what our mathematicians do next!
