Thursday, December 8, 2016

How We Organise Ourselves - Rights and Responsibilities

We have now finished the 'Getting Started' phase of our current unit of inquiry and will continue to investigate, make connections and go further after the Christmas holidays. You can click on the link, below, to see the evidence of student understanding we will be looking for at each stage of the unit of inquiry.
The Inquiry process students engage with at Seisen Elementary School during their units of inquiry


Click here for the Grade 4 - How We Organise Ourselves Learning Intentions (Central Idea - The rules, rights and responsibilities within social structures can either support or deny human rights.) 

Wednesday, December 7, 2016

Human Body Transitions to Rights, Responsibilities and Rules

Last Gasps of the Human Body Unit (Who We Are)

Fourth graders in both classes shared their learning within the last week or two about the human body with a presentation. During that time, 4A students completed a model of the respiratory system using a balloon, a rubber glove and the top of a two litre, plastic bottle.

















Most groups created a working model within about twenty minutes. However, understanding how the model shows the function of the system requires careful analysis.


Please ask your daughter what part of the system the balloon (lungs), the rubber glove (diaphragm) and the plastic bottle (trachea and chest cavity) represent. They should be able to explain what the model looks like when it represents inhaling and what it looks like when it represents exhaling.


Getting Started with Rights, Responsibilities, and Rules
(How We Organise Ourselves)

One way fourth graders got started this week with Rights, Responsibilities and Rules (RRR) was by sorting rules and discussing what made them good or bad.

4A students are almost finished reading Riding Freedom by Pam Munoz Ryan, so we used the story for a structured discussion about RRR. The story is a fictionalised account of a real life. Charlotte Parkhurst lived in the United States during the mid-1800s. She became a legendary stagecoach driver and the first woman in the state of California to vote, despite the fact that both activities were prohibited to women at that time. Charlotte broke the rules by pretending to be a man. Most people did not know "Charley" was a woman until after her death.


Since all students had read most of the book and were familiar with the story of Charlotte Parkhurst, most students had plenty to say about her life and how it connects to rights, responsibilities, and rules. Here is a sample:





Thursday, December 1, 2016

Picking Mikan and Making New Friends

This week 4th graders had the opportunity to travel to Miura Nature House of Seisen Kamakura to meet fourth graders from Seisen Kamakura. The clouds gave way and the sun came out creating a beautiful rainbow that greeted us as we arrived at the nature center.






Seisen Kamakura fourth graders greeted us and we paired off into groups. We walked with our new friends to enjoy some mikan picking. 



                    


After eating lunch and our freshly picked mikan, the Seisen Kamakura fourth graders led us in some tradition Japanese dances and games. 


What was your favorite part about our field trip?
Urielle- Picking mikan with our groups.
Sono- I liked playing the game "Let's Go Hunting" "Mouju Gari."
Seorin- I liked the the traditional dance (bonn odori) best.