Our community unit continued this week and we started our first Experiential center. We had so much fun!
On Monday the students "set the stage" for our police station. They created badges and police hats, built a station and a jail, and started writing tickets and reports. We talked a lot before we started playing about how we are just pretending, and that no one is really being a law breaker or going to jail. We also talked about playing safe. The community law breakers can break the law by speeding, running a red light, or taking money from the cash register. We also discussed how police officers watch for positive behavior, so our officers can give out Tiger Stripes when they see people following the rules. They like that the best!
On Monday the students "set the stage" for our police station. They created badges and police hats, built a station and a jail, and started writing tickets and reports. We talked a lot before we started playing about how we are just pretending, and that no one is really being a law breaker or going to jail. We also talked about playing safe. The community law breakers can break the law by speeding, running a red light, or taking money from the cash register. We also discussed how police officers watch for positive behavior, so our officers can give out Tiger Stripes when they see people following the rules. They like that the best!
On Tuesday we practiced "paying a fine". If someone breaks the law, they must pay the corresponding fine. The fines are between 5-20 unifix cubes. We practiced counting out each amount and filling out the sheet. The students then had time to play our police station center and had roles such as officer, law breaker or rule follower, front desk (who fills out the incident reports), or builder. Filling out the tickets and reports, paying the fine, and building add elements of literacy, math, and science to our center through play.
We also had ALO with Mrs. Belkind. We did a 3-act math task called "Dotty". The students watched a video that showed 6 dots with an accompanying beep. The screen then goes black, and you hear 4 more beeps. They had to ask questions and figure out how many more dots there would be, and what pattern they would be in. This was the first complex math task we have done this year, and they did great! It was so cool to watch their thinking and have them explain their reasoning. We will be doing many more of these with Mrs. Belkind.
Lastly, we did a STEM challenge with our 3rd grade buddies. The students had to build a tower that was as tall as a yardstick that could support an apple. They had so much fun collaborating and trying different strategies!
We also had ALO with Mrs. Belkind. We did a 3-act math task called "Dotty". The students watched a video that showed 6 dots with an accompanying beep. The screen then goes black, and you hear 4 more beeps. They had to ask questions and figure out how many more dots there would be, and what pattern they would be in. This was the first complex math task we have done this year, and they did great! It was so cool to watch their thinking and have them explain their reasoning. We will be doing many more of these with Mrs. Belkind.
Lastly, we did a STEM challenge with our 3rd grade buddies. The students had to build a tower that was as tall as a yardstick that could support an apple. They had so much fun collaborating and trying different strategies!
On Wednesday, Mrs. Jacobs, our reading teacher, led a lesson on sorting our names. We are going to continue with this next week by sorting it in different ways, and collecting our friend's signatures.
We talked about patterning and all the different types (AB, ABC, ABCD, etc.) We did an activity where the students started a pattern, and then we rotated and they had to solve and finish someone else's pattern.
We finished off our day playing our experiential center! We will be continuing with the police station this week, tweaking it slightly based on how the students want to play.
We talked about patterning and all the different types (AB, ABC, ABCD, etc.) We did an activity where the students started a pattern, and then we rotated and they had to solve and finish someone else's pattern.
We finished off our day playing our experiential center! We will be continuing with the police station this week, tweaking it slightly based on how the students want to play.
Thursday was Cardboard Challenge Day! We started by watching this video to inspire us:
The students were so intrigued and excited to make something of their own out of boxes. We had so much fun working together and being creative.
Friday we talked about Environmental print, and how each student is already a reader! We took turns picking a label (thank you for sending those in!) and reading them.
The students then had center free time, and we learned how to use Raz Kids on the iPads for math.
The students then had center free time, and we learned how to use Raz Kids on the iPads for math.
Next week we will build Highland Park, continue with our police station, and talk about shapes.