Our outdoor immersion week at Xwaaqw'um (Burgoyne Bay) was absolutely wonderful! One afternoon Quentin joined us to lead small groups in a 'found art' project that led to some beautiful creations. Mandalas have been an ongoing exploration in our classroom, but usually out of geometric math toys like pattern blocks. Later in the week we walked back along the trail where these works of art had been created, and most were still intact! The children expressed pride and excitement upon discovering their art was still there, and we talked about how other people might come across their art and enjoy it too!
Photo credit and a great deal of gratitude to Quentin for joining us and for sharing the photos he took!
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The snow and ice we experienced here on Salt Spring in December and January was a surprise and a lot of fun for the kids! Before the temperature warmed, we made some beautiful art that lasted much longer than I expected it to. Our ice ornaments hung in a tree near the front entry of the school for others to admire, until one sunny day they melted away. In our fall inquiry about birds we learned a lot about nests and how very different they can be from one another. From the smallest hummingbird nests delicately wrapped in spider web, to nests made out of spit or carefully woven blades of grass, to the giant aeries of eagles. The children were shocked by how large Bald Eagle nests could be (up to two metres in diameter) and we experimented with building nests that large for ourselves. Of course we couldn't place them in the tops of trees, but the kids did work hard to make them the right size and worked in cooperative teams to build them, gathering large fallen branches from the forest floor to construct them. Fall, when it is getting cooler and we are re-establishing our sense of community, is the perfect time for building challenges!
In October we had an artist in our classroom every Thursday afternoon. Lisa helped us use our senses to explore art and nature in a very creative way. The children drew and painted with their eyes closed - exploring the texture of a natural object in one hand while they draw/paint what that texture feels like with the other. They were also often asked to switch hands and use their non-dominant hand to draw. Working in solo, silent sit spots, this exploration is far more about the process than the final product.
When we first started this activity last year, many children were focused on the product and would not (or could not) follow Lisa's instructions to close their eyes, to paint what they sensed with their hands or ears, rather than what they saw with their eyes. Most children also had limited stamina for the activity. Returning to sensory nature art this year, both Lisa and I observed huge changes in the way the children approached the activity and their engagement. Most seemed truly committed to the process - equal parts an exercise in mindfulness, creativity, and sensory exploration, and spent long periods of time deeply focused on whatever task they had been given. Lisa will be returning to us this spring to extend our exploration and I'm excited to see what happens this time! The first three weeks of school have flown past and we are off to a fantastic start. The class is excited to get back to the forest and we will make the trek to Singing Bird for the first time this coming week.
To start the year we are learning about birds and have begun by asking questions about birds and exploring how birds make their nests. We learned that birds make all sorts of nests. Some use twigs, some use moss and grass, some find holes in trees or burrows made by other animals. Some birds steal other birds' nests, and some make floating rafts. Hummingbirds make tiny nests out of moss and spiderwebs that are only 5 centimeters across while bald eagles make nests out of branches and twigs that are over 2 meters wide. Some birds even make nests out of spit! We thought about the materials used to make nests by different birds and spent an afternoon trying to make our own nests. We found twigs, dry grass, and moss mostly, though some did try to collect spider webs to make their own hummingbird nests. They discovered that that task was actually very difficult! Here are some pictures taken by one of the students (class photographer for the day) of our creations: Last year some students became fascinated by creating mandalas out of pattern blocks. They worked together - sometimes in pairs, sometimes in groups of 6 or 7 - creating increasingly larger and larger symmetrical mandalas. Their excitement didn't go away over the summer, as pattern blocks continue to be a favourite during choice time. The mathematical thinking and cooperation shown through these creations is clear. Through this kind of play, they are using spatial reasoning, thinking about shape and symmetry, communicating their ideas to one another and working together to make them a reality. Aren't the mandalas beautiful?
A photo taken near the end of last school year by a parent. We had so many wonderful and happy days learning outside during the end of the school year and I hope for many more in the year ahead. The class really grew together as a community over the school year and our gratitude circles frequently included comments about being thankful for one another, for nature and the beautiful place we live, and for school. See you all again soon!
It snowed! It actually snowed! As I suspected, the snow did not stick around very long, it barely lasted a day. We got all of our snow gear on first thing in the morning and got outside to play. While we played, the students learned about cooperation, working towards a shared goal (and how to decide on that goal in the first place), how to share limited resources, the mathematical term for a ball (a sphere), how big a snowball they could lift on their own, how to work together to lift a larger snowball, and how to stay warm in cold weather. Most important of all, we had a great deal of fun outside in weather that we rarely get to experience here on the wet coast!
The day finally arrived, after weeks of anticipation three baby goats have been born at Singing Bird Farm. Zenna gave birth to a doeling and Savannah had two bucklings. We got a chance to meet all three new goats and hold them. We knew we needed to stay quiet and calm so the goats would enjoy being held and surrounded by kids, and they seemed content to sit in one lap and then another for quite some time as we all took turns. Now we get to watch them grow as we visit the farm each week. Today's post takes you back in time to December - what a busy month! So much gratitude for all the family members who joined us that day for a feast, and for the parent volunteers who came in and helped prepare food. Here are some pictures of the children hard at work chopping veggies for the salad and veggie bake, and apples for the crisp. They worked so hard and were very safe with the knives they were given - you can just tell through these photos the level of engagement and their focus on the task of preparing the food. From some students this was the first time they had used a knife for chopping or preparing food, others were seasoned kitchen helpers! I look forward to more opportunities to cook this spring and explore our food and where it comes from!
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March 2017
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