MakerSpaces!

This week our class went to the Learning Commons (formerly known as the library) to explore some of the tasks available in the MakerSpaces there.  It was a great way to get some engaging, hands-on learning during a week when everyone is filled with a great deal of excitement!  Take a look below at all of the different activities we tried!

These students are using the Ozobot robots which have sensors that read and respond to the colors on the surface of an iPad or a sheet of paper.  First students made a simple path for the Ozobot to follow.  Then they tried to use the colors to send directions for the robots to follow such as go slow, go fast, turbo, etc.

 

Students also used the Dash robots on the floor and controlled them by making a path on the iPads to tell the robots to go around an obstacle or turn corners.

We also got to use the new Osmo devices that can "see" what you put on the table in front of them.  Students used letter cards to play a spelling game with a partner (or on their own).  The cards are color-coded so the device knows which player made the play and gives them their points!

Not everything there was about electronics though!  Students used the Legos to try to build the rainbow robot like the model.  It was a challenge with just a short time to work!

Our last activity was the maze wall which has large magnetic pieces that can be used to create a maze for the wooden balls to roll down.  Students worked together to make a maze with at least 3 layers.

Everyone had a good time learning with new materials about sequence and cause and effect!  The students got to experiment and "fail" and try again in a fun way.  I know they will be excited to go back and work again soon.

Mr. McGregor's Wall

Our most recent engineering challenge was to design a wall to keep a rabbit out of a garden.  We began with the "Imagine" stage of the design process.  I read the class "The Story of Peter Rabbit" and we talked about the characters and events in the literature.  We had a visit at school from "Ruffles" the rabbit so everyone could see a rabbit up close and pet it and get a good look at its fur and claws and strong back legs.  We also talked with a garden expert over the internet and asked lots of questions about gardens, garden pests, and how to keep your garden from being eaten.  All of these experiences added to the students' background knowledge about the topic and helped them be prepared to be successful.

Then came the "Planning" stage of the design process.  We studied the materials that would be available for building and the class worked in groups of about 3 students to design their first plan.

The pictures below show groups in the "Design" stage where they are building their wall according to their first plan and trying to make things work.  That led pretty quickly to the "Improve" stage where students tried to fix what didn't work the way they wanted it to.  At this point of the design process we always get into a loop of designing and testing and improving as long as time, materials, and energy hold out.

Some walls got taller than others and students learned that with limited resources, you must plan carefully.  During our final tests, the robots played the part of rabbits trying to get through the wall.  All groups were at least partially successful and during the "Share" part of the design process, we watched the final tests together and discussed what was strong about each wall and what ideas they still have for further improvements.

This design process (imagine, plan, design, improve, share) is what we use to organize our engineering projects, but really it is applicable to many other areas! In math, writing, and reading we try something out (figuring out a new word, solving a problem, spelling a word) and test it to see if it makes sense with what else we know.  If it doesn't, we go back to try to improve our solution.  As we work through many other design projects this year, students will begin to talk about these stages very naturally and incorporate the "design thinking" into many things they do.  Look for examples in daily life of how you use this cycle!

Our Day in Pictures!

In this post I want to let everyone know what a typical day will be like for us in 1st grade.  There will be times our schedule changes due to special events or projects or to share materials with other classes, but this will give you a look into an average day's events.  (These photos were taken over several days during the first days of school.) 

Our school day begins with breakfast, KCAN, and circle time.  In circle time we might share what we did over the weekend, our thoughts about school, problems our class needs to solve, or goals or wishes we have.  After circle time we always share a story that I read to the class.  

Then we will have science and engineering time.  We might be going out to the garden to observe the weather and the season, studying plants and their parts, reading or writing about science or conducting investigations.

In these pictures we are in the science lab observing photos, models, and real objects and trying to find the connection between all the things at one station.  The students found objects that all had to do with birds, sea creatures, bugs, reptiles and mammals.

After science, we usually take a short movement break with dance videos from GoNoodle or other activities and a bathroom and water break for those who need it.  Then it is time for reading.  We may start with a short book or just use a book we have already heard as part of our mini-lesson for the day.  We may be working on strategies to figure out words when they are stuck, things to think about while reading to help them comprehend the book more deeply, reading together to hear rhymes and poems, working on word patterns or more!  Then students will have a chance to do several kinds of reading.  They may read in a group with me or with me individually.  They may read on their own, with a partner, on their iPad with apps like RAZ-Kids or iStation, or do other activities to practice word patterns or sight words.  Reading with me is the time when they will get to work on strategies that are just what they need to make progress to the next level.  Reading on their own gives them a chance to practice those strategies in books that are just right for them.  Partner reading time gives them a chance to read together with a friend and enjoy stories.  They will often pick more challenging books with a partner, especially books I have read to the class, when they can help each other.  Since they are reading aloud with a partner, it also helps them practice their fluency - reading smoothly and with expression.

Here are some partners enjoying books together:

After our reading time, we will often take another short movement break before we start writing.  Writing time also begins with a short mini-lesson about conventions of writing (capitalization and punctuation), choosing ideas to write about, organizing their writing, revising when they have finished, and more.  Then students will have  time to write and make quick illustrations for their stories.  (We will only do full-color, detailed artwork when we are finishing stories to publish.)  Sometimes we will share their writing with the whole class and sometimes in small groups or with partners.  We will also spend some time here working on handwriting and spelling skills.

Writers hard at work:

After writing, we have a break for lunch and recess.  Then it is time for math.  This year we will learn about numbers to 120 (and more), adding and subtracting to solve problems, geometry shapes, fractions, money, and time.  Sometimes we will use manipulatives like blocks or other objects to begin learning a concept hands-on.  At other times we will do work on paper or iPads, drawing pictures or writing equations to show their mathematical thinking.

Our first math unit is on graphs and these pictures show graphs made on the tables as students sorted their pattern shapes by color.  (After this we made graphs using a math app and then put those pictures into another app to label the graphs.  This is what we call app-smashing!)

When math ends the students go to specials classes.  After that we have a block of time at the end of the day that is for a variety of things.  We may use the time to work on big engineering projects or projects for other subjects that need more time.  (Lots of our engineering projects are connected to science concepts, but we sometimes have connections to social studies, math, or language arts.)  We may be working on learning to code, building structures, doing design challenges, building and programming Lego robots, and other STEM related activities.  We might also be working on setting goals for learning or tracking progress on charts for reading, writing, and math.

Here are some of this year's first design challenges.  Build a structure as tall as possible with the materials:

Build a structure where only 1 piece touches the table:

Build a structure that can support the weight of the blocks in the large cup:

Build the tallest structure using 1 piece of paper and NO glue or tape:

The last thing we do every day is to share another read aloud book before students are dismissed.  Starting and ending the day with read aloud time gives us a (kind of) quiet time (there's a surprising amount of conversation during the stories) to share good books and get excited about reading.  We get to share what we think about the books and get to know all kinds of characters in them.  It is a happy way to begin and end our learning time! I hope you enjoyed seeing students at work throughout all parts of our day.