Let me take a step back. Deep breath in ... and I'll start by explaining what this looks like in our classroom.
Last week, we had an empty Halloween chip box in our recycle bin. One of our curious little kinders picked it up out of the recycle bin and asked, "What's this doing in there?" I explained (to the best of my ability) why it was in the recycle bin, but for him, this just would not do. I looked up from our conversation and noticed about 20 eyes on us. I had no idea that 4 year olds really were more interested in the BOX than what's inside the box. I ran with the idea ... I walked around the school and found about 4 more big boxes that we could "play with".
During centre time, I made sure that the cubby area was clear and we put the boxes in there to play with. Students climbed in, they pushed one another, they slid across the floor, they started a bumper-cars war (okay, that didn't really happen, but I'm sure that if I wasn't sitting right there with them then it would have happened) ...
As one student climbed in, I closed up the lid on her and knocked on the outside of the box and said, "Little pig, little pig, let me in!" ... and to my surprise, she responded, "Not by the hair of my chinny-chin chin."
TAAADAAAAA! Lightbulbs went off. From a planning perspective, there is so much that a Kindergarten teacher can do with "Les Trois Petits Cochons." I could not have been more thankful for that kinder to pull the chip box out of the recycling bin ... It was just the inspiration that I needed. And besides, I had been meaning to start an AIM play with them! From this day, we have since read "Les Trois Petits Cochons" a few times (and they're starting to 'read' it and chime in - yay!), we have drawn the story and we have created both LARGE and small 'house' replicas. Here are some visuals:
Youtube video of the AIM play, "Les Trois Petits Cochons." This isn't me ... but I also look this crazy when I 'read' the play. Haha.
The first little pig in his straw house.
Students were asked to make 'pig puppets' and they were given a variety of tools but they were not told HOW to make them. LOVE the creativity that came out of this.
Creating popsicle-stick houses. Another 'thought-provoking' activity because we could NOT get those houses to stick together.
These centres were presented as 'choice' centres ... students were not told that they HAD to complete a puppet or a house, or a drawing ... but because most of them are interested in the play and the story, they are interested in the follow-up activities. In a nutshell, even though the students were steering where they wanted their learning to go, I was right there directing them and pushing them to their limits, giving them problems to solve and questioning their process. For the adults in our room (always at least 2, usually 3, sometimes 4 ... and maybe even more!) we posted some 'open-ended questions' to help guide the students. At any centre, at any point in time, we can ask things like, "What would happen if ... " and "What made you think of doing it that way?"... questions to probe vocabulary and get students thinking about the process of their learning.
Our questions are posted WAYYYYY up high. Not at the students' level at all because they're there for the adults in the room.
I promise not to ever disappear again (it's been 3 weeks since my last blog - eek!).
Sorry!!
TTFN,
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