Schools back this week and I have been hatching a plan to engage my new cohort of Grade 5 and 6 students during the first few days of the year. I want something different to the usual scenario of Getting To Know You activities. What I really want is a way to start with STEM…
Read MoreHow fast do we all go? Life is busier than ever, no wonder the children are tired, in fact the teachers are also tired at this time of year! A timely task to jump in and get involved with in your class is “Mindfulness”. There are some amazing books around like Slow Down World by…
Read MoreI am always on the look out for new ways to engage the learners I work with. Each Semester we ask the students to reflect upon their Semester, detailing the highlights, favourite moments, things they found a challenge etc. Traditionally we have written or drawn these reflections, more recently we completed mind maps and then…
Read MorePresently we are having a big focus on extending our students ability to use a wider range of vocabulary in their writing and to feel confident at reading challenging words they come across. This is always part of our teaching and learning however an activity we used at the start of a lesson the other…
Read MoreOver the term I have noticed on a number of occasions that in order to find success with their Inquiry the students need further help on how to research to find good and relevant information and to work together to timeframes. Last term while we were completing biographies on Explorers I had become aware that…
Read MoreIn the classroom today we are increasingly required to address social and emotional learning in order to best help the students in our care be successful resilient citizens. The power of circle time in my grade has been phenomenal this year, we have unpacked a range of different emotions and developed an active awareness of…
Read MoreMuch of our learning for STEM so far has required us to interact with others in a cooperative and focussed manner. The best outcome is simply not achievable when working alone. This goes for both the teaching team and the students. Collaboration has been the key to our light bulb moments and our deeper understandings…
Read MoreWith first versions of cars built and quite some excitement while racing them over and over and over again the students are now going through the process of where to next and even better if…… They seem ready to delve deeper into some of the science, technology, engineering and maths elements that are associated with…
Read MoreAlready with lots of time already spent designing, measuring, drawing and making lists of required materials the students were ready to start their first prototype today. With amazing speed, enthusiasm and a high level of concentration each student got underway and gathered up the resources required. Very quickly we found four teachers and one support…
Read MoreI’ve never seen the students sit for so long and be fully engaged in the moment. Time after time predictions were made, explanations provided for their thinking and races held. Again and again the 3….2….1….go countdown rung out through our learning space as cars were tested, curious questions discussed and then different scenarios tested again.
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