Arthur+Miller+School

"Dinosaur Dig"


Rooms 4 and 5 have been on a "Dinosaur Dig". Check out what interesting bones they have found. WOW!! What a great afternoon. toc

Learning Story format
We have started this afternoon our learning story for the first part of term 4. Taking a different approach, we are doing a powerpoint display that includes information, photos and children's work that would normally be in the learning story book. What's great about this is that at the end we can simply print the powerpoint on A3 paper and bind it so the children can look through it - all work done and we won't have to sit down for hours to put it all together. Also, the titles, fonts, colours and boxes are already formatted so it is very simple. You could print as you go so the journey moves as your class learns.

Junior
Our significant learning in the Junior School has been the success of the learning stories. We have started putting student work and the inquiry process on our walls for the children to refer to and keep track of the inquiry. We then transfer the material on the wall into big books. After the popularity of the children's own publishing, the learning stories have captivated the children. They read the inquiry learning stories by choice during silent reading time, before school and any time they get the chance. They use the learning stories to share their inquiry with parents when they come in.

We think the children love these because their 'I wonder' questions direct the inquiry and are vitally important to where we head. Their 'I wonder' questions also initiate reflection within the room, we come back to these early questions and the children comment in light of their new learning. They laugh at some of their misconceptions and can identify their new learning - they are five!!

The children are recognising that their understanding unfolds and develops. They review initial ideas and change these in light of experiences within inquiry, they are more happy to risk being wrong.

It is a great feeling to see the kids empowered and see them in action challenging themselves to grow.

A controversial/current issue in Term 4 in Napier was... Do we need Marineland? So we set about finding out!
 * What do we already know? Tuning in....

to be continued!

School Inquiry Model: **