The students were busy this week learning about simple machines, how to do Speed Stacking and connecting math with art by learning how to do art like M.C. Escher!
In math, the class practiced how to flip , slide and turn shapes on a flat surface. This is called "motion geometry". Then the children took the five square shapes that they created last week to see if they could determine all the possible ways to arrange the squares. This was their introduction to the puzzle game called "Pentominoes". Then the students worked with a partner to figure out all 12 of the possible arrangements. Then after watching a video of different pentomino puzzles, the partners worked on creating their own pentomino puzzles. The children documented their work, calculated the area of the shapes and wrote reflections on the process, on chart paper. These posters are now on display in the hall outside of our classroom. Here is a video that the class watched, for inspiration:
In writing, the children began to learn about the comparative and superlative forms of adjectives. This week the class looked at the basic forms, for example, old, older (comparative) and oldest (superlative). The students also worked on the butterfly portion of their caterpillar/butterfly books. Several children have finished their books and the balance of the books will be finished next week.
In guided reading, the students began to read the book, "Georonimo Stilton's Little Book of Happiness" in their guided reading groups. This is a chapter book and the groups are focusing on the text features unique to Geronimo Stilton books and discussing the messages about what happiness means.
In science, the children learned more about simple machines. Books about wedges and inclined planes were read aloud and the students made posters to keep track of the examples of the 6 different kinds of simple machines. Did you know that your front teeth are an example of wedges? Did you know that stairs are an example of inclined planes? Here are the videos we watched to help understand more about these simple machines.
First...WEDGES...
Next...INCLINED PLANES...
In art, the class learned about the Dutch artist/mathematician M. C. Escher. Escher was fasninated by how shapes are tiled together on a flat surface without any gaps or overlaps. Simple examples are squares because they can be arranged to cover a surface completely. Escher experimented with changing different basic tiling shapes to make his art. He was inspired by nature to make tiles in the shape of lizards and butterflies, for example. Later in the week, each student created his/her own unique shape and began to create an artwork using the same method as Escher. These types of patterns are called "tessellations".
Finally, the class learned about the sport of Speed Stacking or Sport Stacking. This is a sport which develops hand-eye coordination and helps children to set and achieve simple goals...to stack and unstack plastic cups as fast as possible. Here is a link to the Canadian website for this sport:
https://www.sportstackingcanada.ca/
Books read aloud this week:
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (chapter book - now finished)
Pippi Moves In - Pippi Longstocking Comics by Astrid Lindgren and Ingrid Vang Nyman
Get to Know Wedges by Jennifer Christiansen
Get to Know Inclined Planes by John Brigham
M. C. Escher - The Graphic Work by
Geronimo Stilton's Little Book of Happiness by Elisabetta Dami (chapter book)
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