Have you heard the one about the kids who got to design their own camp?

What collaboration looks like in Room 2

Well, the kids had a great time, got the opportunity to get their creative juices flowing and worked effectively in teams.

Bad joke ... but seriously good learning experience.  

At face value the level of thinking for this project might not seem very complicated, but consider these questions ...

What kind of activities should school camps provide?

How much space does a horse arena require?  

Where would you put the camp toilets, and how close should these facilities be to the sleeping area?

How do you most effectively show a lot of information on a single map?

How do you show the physical space between zones?

How do you best negotiate in a group environment to ensure your ideas are included in plans?

How do you market your camp to schools?

More thinking than you first thought, right?

In Room 2 we are not intimidated by these kinds of thinking tasks. We take it all in our stride because that's just the way we roll.  

A big thank you to Mrs Turner who supported Mrs Wallace in the development of this idea.  You rock, Mrs Turner.

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

In Room 2 we look to positive role models to inspire us. Romero Britto is an artist who has a story that is worth exploring.

"I believe that every human being should try to do good for someone else.  There are so many different ways to do it.  My art can be an instrument for helping people... What a good feeling - that I can do that with my art ..."  Romero Britto

Romero Britto was born in Brazil.  He did not have a privileged upbringing but what he did have was an amazing imagination.  When life was tough he escaped into the world of his imagination where everything was bright and cheerful. Having an optimistic outlook led him to move to Miami where he established himself as artist (in spite of the fact he had no formal training).

His artworks bring happiness to many, and that's one of the reasons Mrs Wallace chose him to inspire our self-portraits.

Romero Britto has a very distinctive style. His work is child-like, with a bold bright colour palette that communicates joy and hope.  He often incorporates ‘happy’ words like ‘smile’, ‘dream’ and ‘laugh’ into his works.

Our aim was to channel our ‘inner Britto’ and imbue our portraits with a positive spirit.

Nadia

Success Criteria

Our portrait incorporates some of the symbols commonly found in Britto’s work

We use colour boldy

Our work has a childlike, almost cartoonish feel

We have taken pride in our work

Tandia and Joseph

Asaro Mudmen?

No, the Year 6 kids are not learning about the culture of the 'mudmen' of Papua New Guinea's eastern highlands, but they are trying new things, facing fears, and learning about their limitations

        Survivor (Lakewood Lodge style) might not provide quite the challenge of the TV show, but the kids learned the hard way that there's nothing quite as unpalatable as a cold sausage, and there's nothing quite as frustrating as trying to get mud out of your nostrils, ears and hair post the mud run.

Thanks to all the parents who supported the kids during their fun-filled camp week.  We honestly couldn't do these things without your help.

Thinking Skills - The Hat Challenge

What would you wear if you met someone really important?

Our milliners (Year 5 students) were commissioned to design a hat (or fascinator) that would be suitable for an audience with the Queen.  It had to look good and fit well.

Well, that should've been easy, right?
Think again.

The only materials our milliners had access to were sheets of newspaper and Cellotape.
The biggest problem?
They had LESS THAN AN HOUR to design and construct their creations for this most auspicious event. They had to co-operate, be innovative, and adapt their designs as they encountered technical and design-based obstacles.


Well, so how did they go?

Naturally, they smashed it.  Check out Jasmine, Nessa  (with Nadia) and Samuel.
You guys are too too awesome!

Is there a doctor on board?

Yes, there's 27!   Sadly, they're not medical doctors.

Samuel is now Dr. Samuel.
Allie is now Dr. Allie.
Jake is now Dr. Jake.

The kids in Room 2 have all been awarded (imaginary) doctorates in the field of Zoology - with first class honours, I suspect.

The Brief: As zoologists with a global conscience, we are focused on developing captive breeding programmes to help identified threatened species.  We need to choose five animals that are vulnerable; research their breeding habits (recording the number of babies they are likely to have with each pregnancy), and then create a spreadsheet that shows the projected number of births (and therefore benefit of the programme) after seven, twelve and thirty three years.

This learning experience incorporates many skills and is complex in its demands.  Mrs Wallace calls this sort of learning Thinking Skills.  Mrs Wallace loves Thinking Skills.  Mrs Wallace loves pizza, but loves Thinking Skills more.

So what are the kids learning?

1. The kids are being encouraged to see that can be agents of change in the world.
2. The kids are learning to think critically, e.g. that some animals are endangered as a consequence of their sluggish breeding habits. This fact will affect the success of their breeding programme.  Another threatened animal could be significantly boosted by human intervention because the birth rate is affected by conditions that can be altered and controlled.  The children need to think carefully about the animals they include in their breeding programme.
3.  The children are being asked to use mathematical reasoning, e.g. BaiLin asked how to record data on an animal that has between 1 - 4 babies per breeding season.  Mrs Wallace suggested BaiLin (strong in mathematics) put 2.5 per year, and then asked him to consider how this was possible.  Mrs Wallace talked to BaiLin about using the average, calculated over a two year period.  BaiLin loved the fact Mrs Wallace challenged his existing belief that it's impossible to have a half baby.
4.  The children are learning to use technology; more importantly they are learning that they can tell computers how to think, and that they can do work for us, e.g. when inputting formulas into Google Sheets.  The kids loved it when Mrs Wallace changed one number on her sheet, and then by simply pushing 'enter' the spreadsheet data completely changed.  Mrs Wallace pointed out she was not a magician, but had simply made the computer her slave.


Here is Mrs Wallace's spreadsheet.  As you can see it's incomplete.  Can anyone remind me about the formula I need to use?!  Email me your answer.

Btw, the dictzy dog is SERIOUSLY on the brink of extinction! ;-)

Developing Relationships and the Art of Giving

Once,
when we were small,
we looked up to our big buddies.  We thought they were as tall as skyscrapers and they held us captive with the extent of their knowledge and their abilities.   We loved our buddies (up there in the senior school), but we never believed that we would get to that stage or develop those skills.  It all seemed so far away...

We are now in the position of being the big kids.  We notice that when our buddies look at us their eyes filled with wonder.  And we remember that in giving them our time we are creating special memories; it's a privilege.

Our buddy class is Room 22.  Year 2s from Room 22.  Nice

We have been developing rhythm by playing games. Here is a photo Mrs Wallace took.

Who am I?

I am considered the greatest poet of all time.  I was born a long time ago (well before anyone even conceived of the idea of a camera), in a place called Stratford-upon-Avon.  I wrote the plays Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth and King Lear.  They call me The Bard because, seriously, I am that good at writing.  Just sayin'.

If you think you know who I am, please email your answers through to Mrs Wallace by Monday morning.

By the way, we are going to be working on writing good poetry this term.  We will learn about tone and tension.  We will also practise using simile and metaphor effectively.

Here is a poem I wrote to help people understand about poetry and poets.

About the Poet

she had an artist's mind

but not an artist's hand,

and as a consequence,

it's true,

she often
wrote

but never drew.

(Yes, the lower case 's' is on purpose!)  (Yes, I know it's not that good, but it only took a couple of minutes!)

In the ongoing saga of Life in Room 2...

Episode 2

While our heroine, Mrs Wallace, continues to amaze with her slick teaching techniques....

Sophie shows the cricket ball who's boss and bowls out three members of Room 3 (in a row!) when playing inter- class cricket.  You're amazing, Sophie!  Hip hip hooray!  Teacher nearly passes out with all the excitement and has to remind herself to breathe.

Jared astounds his teacher with his ability to single-handedly sort the class into order (during the cricket game) and then ensures morale remains high by whooping, leaping and praising his classmates continually.  Such high empathy and energy, Jared.  Rock on!

The humble BaiLin provides swimming tips to those who require technique adjustment.  Mrs Wallace watches on in awe and takes notes, celebrating the benefits of peer to peer teaching.  So proud of you, mate.  I suspect you might be the next Mark Bone.

Tune in for our next episode of ...

Life in Room 2

Instructions for Life in Room 2

.... that moment when you know you have an awesome class and it's going to be a great year!

Yes, I know some people hate incomplete sentences, but still .....

We have been working on our alternative to the conventional class treaty; we took a quick look at 'instructions' written by the Dalai Lama for living well.
           The Room 2 kids are so insightful; far more mature and reflective than I ever was at ten or eleven.  Have a look at some of their top tips for getting along in life.  This is just a sampler.  Enjoy!

Have fun!

Be awesome!

Think positively

Mistakes prove you are trying

Don’t let something small ruin your day!

Make sure you’re happy

Be yourself

Manage yourself

Believe in who you are!

Show responsibility for your actions

Don’t lose your temper when someone provokes you

Creativity is da key (like the creative spelling here! ;-) Mrs Wallace)

Everyone is good in their own way

Be yourself, everyone else is taken

Be happy

You’re beautiful just the way you are

Anything can be done with confidence

Stand up for yourself

Honour, respect, loyalty

You’re not bad, you’re just learning

Things aren’t perfect - expect that!

Have fun with friends

Learn from your mistakes

Laugh and live

Care and Share

Don’t be rude

Be grateful for the stuff you’re given

Never swear

Don’t get mad over silly things

Eat healthily

Never have too much sugar

Practise makes perfect

Good things come to those who go out and earn them

Light can be found in the darkest of places, if one remembers to turn on the light (Albus Dumbledore)

Determination

Co-operate with classmates

Laugh often and learn well

Be kind to other people