STEM Unit, April and May 2022

In our STEM unit students enjoyed thinking like scientists, engineers, and mathematicians through hands-on learning experiences. 1st and 2nd grade learned all about the life cycle of cardboard by making their own cardboard from paper and testing its strength, discovering what makes things float and sink, then applying what they learned to make cardboard boats. 3rd and 4th grade students explored this history of shelter, what makes a shelter a home, and applied their learning to make a modular home of the future. 5th grade students explored NASA's Artemis program including the different types of people and careers that are making the Artemis missions possible, comparing the Artemis missions to the Apollo missions, exploring the importance of perseverance and grit, then applying what they learned to create a model lunar lander by sending a marble down a zip line and landing it on a target.

Spring GT Project Fair, 2022

For our inquiry and investigation unit, students worked independently or with a partner to explore topics of interest. 1st and 2nd grade students investigated unusual pets to discover patterns of good pets, 3rd and 4th grade students investigated topics that could be connected to the Over Time Icon of Depth & Complexity, and 5th grade tsudents investigated topics that could be connected to the Ethics Icons of Depth & Complexity (evaluating a topic by looking at pros and cons to make a decision or take a stand). To celebrate and share their learning, we held a GT Project Fair.

5th Grade, Fall 2021 (Humanities Unit)

In our Humanities Unit, 5th grade students explored heroes over time. They learned about real-world heroes, as well as heroes from books, movies, and their own lives to find common traits between the different types of heroes. They learned about the Hero's Journey, then investigated a real world ethical issue they are passionate about before creating their own superhero story in which the superhero works with heroes in the real world to solve (or improve) the problem. Below is a sampling of the stories they created.

3rd & 4th Grade, Fall 2021 (Humanities Unit)

In our Humanities Unit, 3rd and 4th grade students explored folklore and mythology over time. They began by looking at storytelling and how it has changed over time (including getting to create their own printing presses), then they explored Greek and Roman gods and goddesses to create trading cards, then closed the unit by investigating a myth or folktale from a different culture, including the story's place in the culture's history and creating games to teach others about what they learned.

1st & 2nd Grade , Fall 2021 (Humanities Unit)

In our Humanities Unit, 1st and 2nd grade students looked for patterns among different types of relationships. As part of this unit, they explored relationships between people (friends and family), relationships with objects (screens, toys, etc.) and how those relationships affect people's relationship with other people, and they closed with cultural relationships by examining patterns among holidays to create their own holiday and plan a celebration. The photos below show the imaginary friends they created to represent all the best characteristics of a good friend, holiday investigations, and their holiday party prep and celebration.

PfLEXpectations & About Me Frames, September 2021

To start the year, it's important that students understand the Depth & Complexity icons and their purpose, as well as think about who they are, why they are in this class, and what they would like to accomplish. To do this, we created PfLEXpectations frames (establishing PfLEX norms for the year) and About Me frames where students could explore the icons with a subject they know well (themselves).

5th Grade Selfie Sculptures, September 2021

5th grade students reflected on who they are as learners by creating selfie sculptures. Information about the meaning of these sculptures can be found here.

Instant Challenge, September 2021

All grade levels completed their first instant challenge for the year. 1st grade students completed the 3 Bags challenge and 3rd-5th grade students completed the Book Without a Cover Challenge. All groups did great for the first instant challenge of the year!

1st Grade Patterns & Growth Mindset, September 2021

1st Grade students have been busy exploring the Depth & Complexity icon of patterns. We went on a pattern hunt around the school where they found all different kinds of patterns, such as...

• They sit at the same table for lunch every day.

• Libraries are full of books.

• Tile flooring makes patterns.

• Permanent signs on the wall have braille.

• Hand washing (water, soap, scrub, rinse, dry).

Students also read The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes and realized mistakes can be a good thing. When we make mistakes, we usually learn from them and grow. If we live our lives worried about always making mistakes, we'll miss out on fun opportunities with our family and friends.