We've Got Talent!

Hello families!

How are you this week?  I am well.  There is so much that is coming up in the next weeks.  I just cannot believe that the school year is almost over.  The kids are thinking about this a bit, with our presentations starting and also with planning what type of culminating event they would like to have.  They are creating such rich work and are so proud of their abilities.  It is lovely to see.

This week we had many friends share in our school wide Talent show.  I was so amazed and impressed by these kids' ability to overcome any jitters and try out performing.  Each act was unique and special.  I know the kids felt great about their accomplishment.  It was special to be able to experience this together.  Here are a few shots.

Last week's inspiration from Olivia has lead to many finger crochet chains.  The kids are having a great time continuing them so many are VERY LONG!  This has lead us to want to measure them.  The kids are testing their understanding of the basics of measurement and how standards work between any item you are measuring.  What unit of measure do you choose, inches or feet or yards?  How do keep track of how many rulers you used?  How do you go about adding up the quantities you are collecting?  This will be our work in the coming weeks as children continue to bring in their long and fabulous creations.

I realized that I haven't put on any of our recent mandalas.  Here are a few.  The friends are getting more intricate and are creating such balance with their ideas.  They are counting to make sure their work reflects their drawing draft.  There is a lot of adding and subtraction and making connections with quantities when they have to figure out the answers to these questions:  How many circles do I have so far?  How many do I need?  How many do I need to get the rest of how many I need?  Natural math problems to solve.  Very neat to see.

Also, we planted more this week.  Stephanie, Henry's mum, brought us an herb starter kit.  And Madeleyn's family gave us some forget-me-nots.  When we read the directions we were talking about what humidity is.  The kids did a great job explaining this in their own words.  Now we can see the humidity in the dome as the seeds sprout.  So far we have seen 11 sprouts after only a few days!  Thank you for the experience!

Another big thing we were talking about this week is how to prepare for the POLs.  We brainstormed together some basics for five cue cards.  These topics are:
1) What to say when you are starting your presentation
2) What was hard in your work?
3) What did you learn?
4) What did you learn about yourself as a person?
5) Possible final sentences to say at the end of your presentation.

Each friend has conferred with me on what piece of work they would like to present.  Then we are taking chances to practice with a friend.  Some friends are thinking about the strategy that many presenters use, which is a list of key words that can help them remember what they were going to say.  As this is our first more formal style of presentation, this is a learning process. 

We are using this experience to practice, to think about how we plan things and to reflect on ourselves as learners.  Today Tayler started us off with our first presentation, and she did so well using a big, hearable voice and explaining her work.  I know each friend will show their own personal style in their POLs.  We look forward to a special week.  If you haven't signed up for a time to come in for your child, please email or sign up in class. 

Thank you for sharing your children with me!  Love, Jennifer