Mid-November Investigations

It is so important to Mrs. Diljee and I to share our daily excitement with classroom happenings with families and we are thrilled that so many of you are visiting the blog.  We hope that the photos allow you to have rich conversations with your children about what they've been engaging in at school.  "Tell me about this" is a wonderful prompt while looking at a photo with your child.

The weather has gotten colder and we continue to meet outside first thing in the morning.  It's been exciting to see the new adventures that children are having with the snow and the creativity that they are using now that our play structures are closed for the winter.  Below is a collage from some of our outdoor play time.  We notice environmental investigations, dramatic play, social development through games, and much more!  We were particularly intrigued by a group of children using branches and logs to create the rooms of a home and calling other children over to give them tours!

A new interest has begun to emerge during our inquiry project time.  A small group of children were interested in the notion of putting on a play.  Other children began to become curious and we realized that it was a rich project for us to begin.  We're taking our cues from the children in that they have brainstormed a list of things to think about (set, costumes, stage, props, story, characters, etc.).  We have begun with two groups:  one group is doing some shared writing about characters and the storyline of the play.  The other has begun researching castles after a trip to the library so that we are able to work on the set.  We've also noticed children incorporating the idea of taking on roles during dramatic play exploration and a group of children exploring dance to classical music which may work their ways into our play.

There was considerable interest in building castles using 3D shapes today.  Children used blocks to create various castles and we were looking for knowledge of 3D shapes as well as richness in the stories they were telling about their structures.  The attention to detail and patience as they balanced blocks was remarkable. In addition to the use of 3D shape vocabulary that we heard a lot of,  we've listed some other things we overheard below.

"It's a half of a circle." - AT

"We are making a tower." - JM

"Let's make it symmetrical so it looks like a real one." - JR

"I built a Chinese castle like Mulan.  She has a castle like this." -AW

"This is the ramp to walk up on (to the castle)."-LR

"This is a path and these are the trees through the forest and this is a house for someone to live." -LR

I am also trying my hand at posting a link below to the 3D shape video we watched as a minds-on activity before our building.  (Though, some of you may remember that last time I tried to post a link, it ended up being a tutorial on how to shuck corn....!!)  

3D Shape Song