The students have been Tuning In to our new unit of inquiry which will explore how Animals and their habitats are connected. We began by differentiating between Living (bird), Non-Living (glass) and Once Alive/Dead (wood). The children then showed great enthusiasm and knowledge about animals and thought about where different animals lived. They shared this knowledge through sketches and graphic organisers. The students have chosen many, many books from the library that they think connect to this unit and we have begun to sort these into different habitat areas. They will explore these in more detail once we begin our research stage (Finding Out). Ahead of our field trip to Kent Ridge Park, we read The Great Kapok Tree, a book about the Amazon Rainforest and the animals that live there. We made the connection between the climate there and Singapore being quite similar. Some predictions for things we will see on our visit include monkeys, butterflies, ants, jaguars, bats, flowers, ponds and snakes. There is also a smallish Kapok tree in the park which we will see. The children also explored some of the habitats in and around school, including a temporary habitat for some snails from Ms. Hima's garden and a sun-bird's nest which is on the tree behind the upper playground. They are discovering what living things need to survive by caring for the snails. They could also see that the nest was attached to orchids growing on the tree and had been made from elements taken from the surrounding area. In this way, they deepened their understanding of the concept of connection within the natural world. This week also saw the Grade 5's celebrate their PYP journey through their Exhibition. This year the students chose to inquire into how their passions can help them make a difference. The children enjoyed participating in the workshop-style presentations and learning more from the various groups.
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This was the last week of our inquiry into how "We learn about civilisations from what was left behind". Over the course of the unit, the children have enjoyed finding out about what archaeology is for and what an archaeologist does. They have developed their thinking and observational skills when examining artefacts. They have discovered more about Pompeii and undertaken independent research into civilisations of their choice. They have also reflected on what evidence will be left behind by today's societies and created a small piece to add to a class legacy board, to leave behind themselves. This week, they have had some hands-on practise with using maps and grids drawn by their peers, to find hidden objects and have then analysed these finds. They commented that it was sometimes hard to follow a map and that it needed details to help us locate things easily. They have also reflected on what they have learnt and began to make connections between the various civilisations to find similarities and things they have in common. The students collaborated on a class information book entitled "The Big Book of Ancient Civilisations", in which they shared some of their research. They applied their knowledge of text features and how informational books are organised. They have expanded their technical vocabulary and many now use words such as "excavate, midden, ancient, temples, artefacts, pyramids, tombs, scientists" in their discussions and writing. We enjoyed spending some time with 2.2 and K2 this week during which small groups shared their knowledge of maps, compasses and beebots and also read together. We also enjoyed an interactive presentation by some Grade 5 students about food and cooking. This week also saw the final conference of the year in which the students led their parents around school and shared various activities and learning. It was great to see them taking responsibility for explaining what they had done and showing off the things they were proud of. Finally, we were proud to have both the winners from the Eco-Design Challenge come from our class. Mia and Liam made a platypus and a windmill respectively to win the Animal and Buildings categories. Our class definitely enjoy using our recycled and art resources areas to explore and create and it was lovely to see this creativity recognised. There has been lots going on at school this week. Grade 2 have been lucky to learn about what other students have been inquiring into and join in various events. We continued to support Grade 5 in their Exhibition actions and are incorporating fitness routines into our day. We also had some students come in and teach us a dance. Singing Club, Coding Club and Eco-Design Challenge were some of the other events organised by Grade 5 that children chose to take part in. The Grade 2 Salvation Army Donation Drive was a success with lots of items given by the school community. The Grade 3 Clothes Swap was another popular event with many of the children being thrilled with their "free" clothes. Finally, we visited the Middle School during their STEAM week and saw the interesting learning about water filtration and sustainable and resilient housing that they have been doing. The children were engaged and able to talk about what they had seen and heard when we came back to class. Haruto was even inspired to begin designing his own house to withstand extreme weather, (he had already done his own water filter!). All these fantastic events help to make ISS a vibrant, exciting and cohesive community for the children to be a part of. It will hopefully inspire them to find ways to contribute and share their own ideas and learning. Back in class, we continued our inquiries into maps and directions exploring with compasses and drawing maps of our own.
We also began to think about our third line of inquiry in UOI: evidence we will leave behind. We discussed what archaeologists might find in the future and what the children themselves might leave behind. Many suggestions were shared and "plastic" items came up a lot as possible MIDDEN of the future. The children sorted their ideas using a Venn Diagram (useful/not useful) and we realised that everything an archaeologist finds can be useful as it tells them something about life in that time. We then thought about whether the evidence was helpful for the planet and this changed the sorting again. The students returned this week and enthusiastically tuned back in to our inquiry into how We learn about civilisations from what was left behind. To help with this process we visited Fort Canning Park and were able to see part of an excavation site and some of the artefacts that had been found there. The children also identified other evidence from the past, such as the buildings, cannons, monuments, plaques and paintings The students have chosen ancient civilisations to research and we continued this in the Library. Mrs. Grant led a session on note-taking, which consolidated the skill of finding key words to use in note-taking. The children are also taking action and supporting action around ISS. Grade 2 have organised a Salvation Army Donation Drive. The Donation bins will be at ISS on Thursday 12th and Friday 13th April. This connects both to our last unit about Exchange Systems and with World Water Day and the Grade 3 Clothes Swap (Wednesday 11th). The Grade 5 Exhibition is also underway and the children are getting involved with the various surveys and events or groups being organised by the older students. Singing club, Coding events, an Eco-Design Challenge and fitness activities in class are some of the things Grade 2 are supporting. We also continued our engagement with the Learning Displays around school by writing letter to Grade 5. As part of their persuasive writing, the Grade 5 students had written letters to monsters with reasons why they should not eat them. Grade 2 took on the role of the monster and after reading and considering a Grade 5 student's letter, they replied with what they had decided. We then delivered the letters.
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AuthorGrade 2.1 are a class of 7 and 8 year old students who attend ISS International School in Singapore. We learn together and play together and enjoy sharing our discoveries with you. Archives
June 2018
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