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Dear friends and families,
I would first like to say a huge thank you to all the children, parents and staff for welcoming me into the ISG family! I have loved getting to know all the children and can’t wait to continue to learn more each day. Our classroom has transformed from a blank canvas to a place where all our learning is visible!
The Who am I? topic sparked many interesting conversations amongst the children but very quickly, a fascination with evolution theories emerged. Inquisitively discussing the differences between humans and monkeys, the children decided they need to study their own faces and monkeys faces in more depth to compare. The images turned out to be quite humorous and the children quickly realised that even though parts of their faces were covered, they could still recognise each other. Despite everyone having two eyes and eyebrows, one nose and one mouth, the shape, size and colour of these features were never the same. The magnitude of the philosophical question Who am I? quickly dawned on the children; it is a question that runs deeper than just the uniqueness that is visible on the outside. Following this the children decided they wanted to concentrate their thinking on events that have shaped who they are. Beginning with a supermassive black hole that created the universe and finishing in 2019 – a lot to cover! I’m sure you will be pleased to hear that many of the parent’s birthdays were featured on the timeline as the children discussed when exactly “The Olden Days” was! Finally, Caius settled with deciding “it was after the first people on earth but definitely before The Tudors.”
Furthermore, drawing more inspiration from our IPC theme, the children have been questioning more than just their own existence. They have been wondering how the world has come to be. Searching for answers, the children turned to creation myths. Research began by drawing inspiration from cultures far away before finally they were introduced to The Fire Children story. The children followed the path of the story and memorised key events. The year 1 children thought carefully about the story background and how important the setting is in shaping the story. Collecting natural objects from the garden, the children collaborated in small groups to design the main backdrops. The children used physical, natural objects to create the rocky terrains, tall trees and flowing rivers. Afterwards they thought carefully about the way in which their settings appealed to the senses inviting others to look, touch, smell and listen. They had created a way in which they were able to experience the story. Enthused by their own basket worlds, the children will create their own creation myth in the coming weeks!
We have also been exploring our local community on Friday afternoons and visiting the local parks. Here the children have found endless inspiration and have been recording notes about the changing of the seasons. Last week the children were so excited to hear the fairies giggling in the trees! Upon returning to school, the children have been thinking about their own local community and place in the world, which has inspired them to design posters encouraging others to take care of the environment. The passion the children feel about fighting for their futures is incredibly motivating and there are lessons we can all learn from them!
Construction has become a recurring theme in lower primary! The children have been exploring the properties of many different materials and how these can be used for different effects. Using the Makedo, the children have been constructing the perfect home made from recycled cardboard. The architects of the house have built a complex structure with room partitions, mapped out in blueprints before and after the building process, and the walls have been decorated with beautiful paintings. The children have started to research designers that use paper and cardboard to construct furniture to inspire their very own designs!
The children have also been building an intricate Aztec world out of Kapla. Research into the Aztec pyramids led to a ginormous trail of Kapla around the classroom used as a booby trap! None of the jewels could be stolen now! It was a delight to watch everybody in lower primary working together as a team to balance the Kapla in the trap! Their commitment and determination shone through. The children remained resilient even when one block was knocked, and they all fell! Finally, they finished and Sama had the satisfaction of pushing the first one to trigger the rest of the trap to fall! Screams and giggles filled the corridor as the children were so excited and proud of their constructed trap!
I am so excited to be undertaking important research with the children this year and cannot wait to see where their imagination, determination and passions lead us…
Love Beth
