Francois Tregouet, STEAM Coordinator and 3rd grade teacher, lead an collaborative project between 4th graders and kindergarteners. The 4th graders studied polygons and learned how to code Probot to trace them. Kindergarteners learned to identify polygons, named them, both in English and French, and recognized their names in capital letter, lowercase and cursive. Both grades then met: the 4th graders coded Probot to trace polygons and Kindergarteners had to name them orally, and identify them by their writing as well. This is a perfect example of peer teaching, with a twist of high-tech!
This week our PK0 students had their first mini-forum. They presented a mimed story in French ” le village de Chut”. Some of our young students were still intimidated by the setting and the presence of so many parents and friends, but most of them were really proud and happy to perform for an audience. Then our PK2 did a song and dance number for a captivated public. “Les trois petits cochons” and farm animals were the theme of their performance, and a reflection of the classroom learning.
Again a great performance from SDFAS preschoolers!
Our PK0 are using the Album “ toutes les couleurs” d’Alex Sanders as a starting point to introduce the vocabulary of the body. In the album, a cute little rabbit is playing outside, and ends up with a green bottom from the grass, a red mouth from the strawberry, brown feet from the mud and so on. Our students are creating their own album, painting the background, and acting the part of the adventurous rabbit.
SDFAS teachers always promote active learning as it makes learning relevant and fun!
Last week, our Kindergarteners came up with lots of questions regarding the North Pole. By reading different books, watching videos, and making science experiments they will find answers. For instance they were curious about the way the polar bear stay warm.
The first hypothesis was that bears had some warm fur.
In order to test this hypothesis, SDFAS students put their hands in very cold water and then inside a fur mitten then back into the cold water to compare. Indeed, the water was much colder without the fur.
Another experiment showed them that if they put their hands in blubber, they could not feel the cold anymore. Active learning is fun!
