Creativity is King

'Ball off the Roofer' by Soph and Karthiga

'Mail Collector and Deliverer' by Brayden
The 'Ding-a-ling a-Bot' by Nessa

Marketing Team at work

Manufacturers at work ... and play

On the assembly line

Creative Chaos

Mrs. Venville talks design with Ruby

Working together in order to lighten the load

Careful construction by Jasmine

Concept to Construction

After the brainstorm.  Kees' initial idea was a desk with a massive sliding insert.  Much more convenient than a flip-top desk 

An automatic pet feeder = inspired.  Kensington will love it!

The make-up gun.  Women are the 'target' market.

Cam Ed ensures kids stay 'in bounds' when at school

The kids are hard at work.  Most are now in the process of turning their initial drawings into detailed digital versions.   Construction will begin shortly! 

Looking to the past when we anticipate possibilities for the future

MOTAT is New Zealand's largest transport and technology museum.  Today the pupils in the senior school visited it in order to discover just how far things have come since settlers first came to New Zealand. If you were given a huge number of cogs, could you arrange them to operate in unison to do work?  The trip's purpose was multi-dimensional - we also explored the way technological development has transformed the way we live now, and will continue to impact our lives as we move towards the future.

The interactive displays encourage innovative and divergent thinking: given a fairly unlimited number of virtual gadgets could you build a modern day butterfly net?   That's what the students were invited to do when they stepped up to the interactive screens/displays in 'The Idea Collective'.   The children were awed by a very young inventor who built a tool to help you to safely cut wood into kindling for fires.  Another group of young and ambitious inventors had created an interactive game that promotes fitness by being paired to a trampoline you are required to 'play' on.   All of these displays have one purpose in mind - to inspire... and to give the children a glimpse into the future.

Ruby 'playing' on the tramp

We hope to take the learning back into the classroom.  From tomorrow the students will start to think about the way they can affect change through their own technological imaginings, investigation and innovation.

Brayden B as inventor

There's something about Buddy Class

       Once a week we have buddy class.  Buddy class is great and it's a chance to build bonds between the kids.  It's fun and it develops confidence and social awareness.  

       There's something about buddy class.  I have witnessed it and it's a truly curious phenomenon.  The big kids love to do the crafty activities at least as much, if not more, as the junior kids. This week it was snakes. The sound of kids issuing instructions, folding paper and laughing at the snake expressions they created, filled the room with a vibrant hum.  It was a series of happy moments as I was asked to meet Mr. Giant Snake, twin baby snakes and many snake families (and that was just the big kids).

         The Year 2s packed up and left with their snake families, leaving my kids to ask, "Mrs Wallace, can we make some for us this week too?" 

         Yes, school is about learning, but sometimes that learning can come in the form of celebrating the place of fun, and about laughter, and about finding pleasure in the simple things - like folding two piece of paper to make a snake.  Yes, yesterday the lesson was mine to learn. Remember that your Year 5 and 6 kids are still kids and make sure you acknowledge this need in your planning, Mrs Wallace. Don't forget that frivolous fun is a vital ingredient in making a child truly engaged in the Sunnyhills School experience. 

Yip, kids, snake making is locked and loaded for Friday afternoon!

Design Thinking and Innovation

Fiona holding her first prototype.  The inside of this wallet is quite intricate

Yesterday the kids were focused on meeting the brief but now some of the more creative thinkers are stepping up and reaching out beyond it.  It is amazing the way some children see the problems they encounter as opportunities to apply innovative solutions and embrace the challenge. Coin holders, security clasps, and clever compartments for hiding shopping lists and private 'stuff' are now being added by the creative and divergent thinkers  - all with the intention of making their wallet stand out. They were never told to do any of these things; the only expectation was that they meet the brief.  

      Tomorrow some of the kids will start off their final version.  Some kids are still playing with prototypes and responding to the 'competition' by continuing to innovate and improve, improve, improve.

            Some of the kids don't want their designs outed by an appearance in this blog.  Sounds like classic R&D behaviour to me! ;-)

Allie is exceeding the brief.  She is including additional features so hers stands out against the other design

Brayden has included a clever clasp in his design, delivering beyond the requirement

BaiLin is thinking outside the box with his second design 

Oh humble whiteboard... How do I love thee? Let me count the ways ...

If there's a piece of learning equipment that is the most useful and most utilised in Room 2 it has to be the humble whiteboard.  

       They are used daily in Mathematics and are a brilliant tool.  The kids can write down their strategies without fear of having their 'mistakes' forever captured in their books.  A lot of kids don't want to see their 'nearly theres', and so whiteboards are brilliant for application and practise of new skills and learning.  They allow a kind of risk-taking that comes with knowing that mistakes can be erased quickly and that there will be no record.   Likewise the poster-like qualities of the board (large lettering, bold colour)  allow the kids to flash (the act of flicking their hidden board around to show me their answers) their successes proudly when working on the mat.   

                 Another great thing about whiteboards is that they give children permission to be messy - with a whiteboard they can focus on the important thinking stuff without being bogged down by the neatness (a potential constraint) that is generally expected in book work.  They allow a kind of freedom that often results in bolder and more creative thinking.

                The photos attached were taken over the last two days, and show work from Reading and Mathematics.  Whiteboards are also used during Spelling and also for doodling while I read to the class.  (I wonder how many people know that research shows that doodling improves listening comprehension?!)  

All hail the mighty whiteboard!

               

Yay Nessa.  You go girl!

Yup, that'll be the scenario where the mad cat woman decides to build an enclosure for her hundred cats.

Cailan writes a definition for the term 'seed bank'.  Rock on, Cailan

Unpacking tricky vocab proves no problem for Jared

Carol discovers that if you want to swim Cook Strait you've got to be committed.

On Inquiry Learning

Why do Inquiry?

Because the skills of inquiry - questioning, investigating and analysing for a specific purpose - are empowering.  Inquiry motivates children by allowing them to own their learning.  It is when children are at the helm that they are engaged and more inclined to become  life-long learners.   The Inquiry philosophy recognises that children are wells to drawn from and not cups to be filled.

“Don’t be encumbered by history.  Go off and do something wonderful.”

This term we will start Genius Hour, an Inquiry that allows children the freedom to explore an area of interest that is not ‘googleable’.  It will require risk taking and an acceptance that ‘failing fast’ is critical in the road to success.

Robert Noyce first developed the microchip.  To do this he had to be prepared to be a pioneer, and to go out on a limb.  He had to be prepared to view his mistakes as critical steps that got him ever closer to his goal. His example, in part, has inspired the development of ‘Genius Hour’.

Be Brave!

During the holidays, I was fortunate to attend a seminar by Anthony Speranzagh who spoke about this type of enriched learning experience.  For those who are curious, feel free to copy this bitly : bit.ly/speranzagh

Reflecting on the learning behind our ANZAC investigations

The availability of the internet has changed the style of research for 21st century learners. 

         Once upon a time, a long time ago, content was king.  As a child my mother would take my to the library and I would hunt out information in books. This was a drawn out process, and the collection of facts I wrote down, generally copied straight from the book (or close to), would secure me an A (especially if accompanied by photos cut from National Geographic). I was particularly strong at regurgitating information, but as I got older, I saw the short comings of this system - it wasn't bringing out my brain.  It never challenged me to think for myself. Thankfully, things have changed.

             We live in a society where the internet has become ubiquitous and 'Googling' is the preferred method for finding out about any number of things.  The availability of Google (and other search engines) has meant that skills designed to develop a strength in research have now assumed dominance.   Because of the sheer amount of information that is available at the click of a finger, students are challenged to spend time thinking about the value of the information they find. Whereas I might have been able to find two or three books on a topic, the children now need to sort the mountain of good information from the bad.   The children are developing skills that allow them to sort through huge amounts of information efficiently, make judgments on its value and to question how it can be used to enrich the learning experience. These skills take many years to develop, but an Inquiry Based Approach to learning at the primary school level fosters this practice.  The ultimate goal is that children will be able to use knowledge, and think critically, to devise novel solutions to problems they encounter.  (This was the intention in undertaking our Eco-friendly Islands learning experience where I challenged them to see themselves as problem solvers and island guardians.)

           The students' online connection (through personal and shared devices) means that they are able to work cooperatively on Google Slideshows even when they are not in the same room - in this instance, there were team members working effectively from our learning hub in the library and communicating findings, delegating responsibilities and expectations without face to face interaction.
           Learning environments have certainly changed, and kids are no longer always contained within the four walls of the classroom. Learning happens when the structure, and scaffolding, allows learning to happen.  Learning is no longer characterised by a teacher lecturing at the front of the room. At Sunnyhill School the children identify themselves as learners capable of leading their own learning journeys.

           The success the children had in unlocking the sad story of Fritz Honore reflects their ability to research effectively, to manage themselves and to work collaboratively.  Well done everyone.  So stoked.  You guys rock!  

Understanding Thinking Skills and the Key Competencies

We are doing Mrs. Wallace's Robinson Crusoe Challenge at the moment.  We had to decide on 'must have' items we would take if we were marooned on a tropical island. 

This exercise requires critical thinking, but more importantly it highlights how Key Competencies are the threads that run through the fabric of our learning.

We worked in groups of three to do our initial brainstorming, and then we had to reduce our list to only ten critical items. This may seem simple ... especially if you were working as an individual and had total control, but we were working in collaborative groups.

Working in a group comes with its own set of problems.  How do you ensure your views are represented?  How to you ensure everyone feels included? What responsibilities do you have to work hard for the benefit of your group?  How do natural leaders learn to help others to succeed (and rein in their natural tendency to dominate)?  These skills are not just important when working at school, these are the skills that children will carry into real life.  

The Key Competencies we talked about before working on this challenge were - Thinking, Relating to others, Managing self, and Participating and contributing.

Let's just say yesterday's noise level reflected the passion and determination of the kids to see their items included on the final list.  It is really difficult to accept that others might have views that don't reflect our own. Learning to subdue our own views for the benefit of the group is a skill that takes time and needs to be practised.

We will eventually link this exercise into our 'Environment' work.  The kids don't know it yet but when they are eventually rescued from this desert island they will be turning it into an eco-friendly resort.  As caretakers of this 'piece of paradise' they will be responsible for ensuring its health and will need to consider how human impact could threaten or enhance this.

Buckle up, it could be a bumpy loud ride!

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.