Maps!

After a long break, we're finally back at it.  Here are some of the things that we did... This Week In Gifted!

This Week's World of Treasure Slide Show

Prior to the winter break the AIM classes were working on finding images and information on different things that they considered to be treasure.  In small groups they created slideshows sharing what they learned.  This week we are featuring Summerland AIM students Rhett, Oscar and Iain's show.  (link)

Protect the Treasure!

The Summerland ASPIRE group (grades 4 & 5) were introduced to the project they will be working on for the next little while; Protect the Treasure!  They have been given the task of hiding and protecting an incredibly valuable treasure.  Their job: to create a 3D model showing where they have hidden the treasure (the cache) and how they are protecting it! We talked about famous treasures from real life and popular culture and how they have been protected and we watched a few video clips for inspiration (the heist scene from Wallace and Gromit's The Wrong Trousers, trailer for the TV show The Curse of Oak Island, an edited version of the opening scene from Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Arc). Students are in the planning stages and have some amazing ideas.

Research Projects

The Penticton grade 4s and 5s continued to work on the research projects they started before the break. Despite the big hiatus, the students keenly and enthusiastically got back to work. They are each researching a different treasure related topic and finding a creative way to share what they've learned. Some students are building on the work we did last year, and creating short radio shows. Some are producing newspaper articles or magazines. Others are creating Jeopardy style games using the interactive whiteboard.

Maps!

The Summerland and Penticton AIM classes (grades 1-3) explored maps.  We talked about when and why we use maps and then we did a little exploring on Google Maps.  Students looked up where they lived and then found out how to get from their homes to our class either at Wiltse or Trout Creek Elementary.  After that we started to go further afield, checking out other places in BC and then on to the rest of the world!  Students used Street View to look at photos of familiar places (homes of friends and family, school etc) and also more exotic places.  The Thursday group strolled around in Moscow's Red Square! 

What is Social Time?

Katie and Gerry look at microscope slides during Social Time

We start every class with Social Time.  This time is an opportunity for students to connect with each other while playing games or building and creating together.  Popular things to do during Social Time include:
- building circuits using the Snap Circuits kit
- building large structures with the Magnetics kit
- playing strategy games such as Labyrinth, Gobblet, Mancala, or Uno
- solving matchstick puzzles or the Rubik's cube
Social Time is also an excellent opportunity for me to touch base with each of the students and see how their week has been.

Thanks for checking out what we did This Week In Gifted!

December 1st to 4th

Here are a few of the things that we did... This Week In Gifted!

Watercraft Building Challenge

The Summerland ASPIRE class were challenged to build a watercraft out of the following materials:

• duct tape
• paper cups
• 25 cm strip of plastic wrap
• 10 straws
• paper towels
• 15 steel washers (1" diameter)

The watercraft had to hold 15 steel washers and stay afloat for a minimum of 10 seconds.  Before building their watercraft we discussed buoyancy and the different types of designs we see in various watercraft.  Niamh and Benjamin quickly built a minimalist watercraft that did the job; sometimes the simplest designs work best!  See the slideshow below for the other student designs (link).

Balloon Rockets

The Summerland AIM group built balloon rockets.  They used balloons which they inflated and taped to straws.  The straws were threaded onto monofilament (fishing line).  They started out racing the balloons two at a time on two monofilament lines running horizontally and parallel to each other.  The group discovered that using a shorter straw (half the original length) worked best and that the size of the balloon didn't matter as much as the air pressure in the balloon; a fully inflated small balloon went faster than a larger balloon that was only partially inflated.  After the horizontal races we tied some monofilament line to a ceiling hook and tried launching the balloons vertically and on the diagonal.  You can check out the results below (link).

Improv Bingo and Funny Faces

The Penticton grade 1 - 3 group played the drama game Funny Faces.  It is very similar to charades and requires students to act out scenarios while the rest of the class tries to guess what they are / what they are doing.  The students did a wonderful job acting.  I look forward to seeing how they do with more challenging drama games.

The Penticton grade 5 group played a different drama game; Improv Bingo.  A character, place, goal, obstacle and object are chosen at random and small groups of students create skits incorporating all of these.  One of the challenges in this activity is working together with others to agree upon a skit.  This group excels at collaborating and as a result they can quickly come up with and act out creative scenarios.

Research Projects

All of the groups have been researching topics related to our theme X Marks The Spot; The Search For Treasure.  The grade 1- 3 groups continued to work on their World of Treasures Slideshows, the Summerland ASPIRE students shared what they had discovered during their research, and the Penticton grade 4s and 5s continued researching with some students starting to work on their presentations.

First Term Wraps Up

This week was our last week of classes for the winter term.  There are no classes for December 8 - 19th.  Classes will resume the week of January 12th.  I wish students and families well--have a great last two weeks of school and a wonderful holiday!

November 24th - 27th

Here are a few things we did last week in gifted classes.

Snap Circuits

Building a circuit.

Some of the classes have already used the Snap Circuits set, but this week it was the Summerland AIM class's first time working with it.  They made a circuit that required you to clap loudly to turn on a light, and they also learned that the orientation of an LED is important when setting up a circuit.  The students are keen to work with the electronic circuits again!

World of Treasure Slideshow

The Summerland and Penticton AIM groups (grades 1 - 3) continued to work on their World of Treasure slide shows.  Students are learning about gems, precious metals, pirates and many other treasure related topics.  I look forward to sharing their slideshows with you soon!

Visit From Shaw TV

Wayne demonstrating how to conduct an interview.

The Penticton grade 5 group got a visit from Shaw TV's Wayne McDougall.  Shaw is interested in the radio project that we did last year with Peach City Radio.  (If you haven't listened to the student radio shows, this post outlines what is on each episode and where to go to listen to or download it.)  Wayne shot video of students working with audio and he interviewed myself and some of the students.  The 30 minutes or so of video that he shot will be turned into a 3 minute spot that will run on Shaw TV in about 3 weeks.  I'll post dates and times here.  Once the spot airs, it will be archived on Shaw's YouTube channel.  After shooting video, Wayne spent time talking to the students about the process of filming, conducting interviews, and turning the 'wilds' (raw footage) into a finished product.  He shared tips on how to conduct a good interview and fielded questions from the students.  Students also got to see some of the footage that Wayne shot.  It will be interesting to see the final product!

5 Card Photo Story

The Summerland ASPIRE group (gr 4 & 5) came up with some amazing 5 Card Photo Stories.  They've done these in the past and are becoming real pros!  They are given 5 photographs and a limited amount of time to come up with a story incorporating the photos.  It's a opportunity to be creative, think outside the box, and to hone their presentation skills.  Below are the photos they had to work with.

Research

All of the grade 4 and 5s continued to gather information on their 'X Marks the Spot!' research project.

And those are just a few of the things that we did last week in gifted classes.

November 17th to 20th

X-Marks the Spot Research Project

This week all of the grade 4s and 5s had at least some time to work on the X-Marks the Spot research project.  Students are investigating famous people, places or things associated with treasure.  Once students have gathered their information they will be putting it together in a format to present to their peers.  More on this in the weeks ahead!

World of Treasure Slideshow

The grade 1 - 3s have also been busy doing research for their 'World of Treasures' slideshow.  Students are searching for images and information on a wide variety of 'treasures'.  The images and information are being added to collaborative slideshows.  Students have found images and information on some of the following:
- gems (emeralds, topaz, diamonds)
- gold
- money
- treasure chests
- shipwrecks (e.g. the Titanic)
- friendship

My Favourite Thing

STOP! by Michael Gil, on Flickr

Some of the classes this week played the drama game 'My Favourite Thing'.  In this game students are given a prop and asked to tell a story as to why this prop is their favourite thing.  Students are encouraged to be creative and think outside the box.  One prop we used was a hand held stop sign like flag people use.  It was used to; stop a comet from crashing into Earth, defeat an alien robot in a game of ping pong, flip another alien out of someone's house (using it much like a pancake flipper) and so much more!  Through this activity students not only get the opportunity to be creative, but they also benefit from hearing their peers' stories and talking about what worked well in each story.

December 1st to 4th--Last Week of Classes Before the Winter Break

Gifted Program classes will wrap up the week of December 1st to 4th and resume again in January.  The classes wrap up a few weeks prior to winter break in order to let students fully participate in any special activities that may be going on in their classroom or school.  It also provides me time to assess students who have been referred to the Gifted Program.  

Thanks for checking out what we did... This Week In Gifted!

Treasure Brainstorm

Here are a few of the things that we did... This Week In Gifted!

Treasure Brainstorm

Our theme this year is X Marks the Spot!  The Search for Treasure, so we did some brainstorming about the people, places, and things we think about when we hear the word 'treasure'.  After the brainstorm session, students got down to the business of choosing and researching a topic having to do with treasure.

Researching

The Summerland AIM students (grades 1-3) started putting together a collaborative slide show with images and information about various treasures that they are interested in.  They will continue to build on this in the weeks ahead.

The Penticton grade 4 and 5 groups started gathering information on their treasure topics.  Once they've collected enough information they will be choosing a format in which to present their information to their peers.  Possible formats include creating a game, recording a radio interview, drawing a comic strip... the possibilities are endless!  

Treasure Tasks

This week it was the Penticton AIM group's (grades 1 - 3) turn to do some treasure tasks as described in the last post.  Students created detailed drawings and complicated structures related to the different treasure puzzles we put together.

IEPS Home

This week and last Individual Education Plans (IEPs) were sent home outlining your child's strengths and the goals for this year.  If you did not receive your child's IEP, let me know and I will send you a digital copy.

More Photos Added to Name Plate Slideshow

In the last post there was a slideshow of student Name Plate posters.  I've updated the slideshow with more photos.  Check out the slide show here.

Thanks for checking out the TWIG blog!

Name Plates

Here are a few of the things we did... This Week In Gifted!

Name Plate Posters

For the past couple of weeks, students have been working on making Name Plate posters. The goal of the Name Plate is to illustrate who the student is. On the posters the students have to include:

• their name 
• representation of family (however they wish to define family)
• representation of things they enjoy doing, are proud of, or make them unique 

This week, students had the opportunity to present their posters to their peers. All along the focus has not been so much on artistry (though there has been a lot of that!) as it has been on explaining the items that they chose to include in their posters. Through the presentations, students got to know each other better, to make connections ("Hey, I like Minecraft too!"), and to practice their presentation skills. Students were also asked to comment on each others' work focusing on what each student did well with their Name Plate.

Below is a slideshow of the student work. Not all of the Name Plates have been photographed yet, but I will be adding them all over the next week. If you know one of the Name Plate artists, perhaps you'll be lucky enough to hear what they have to say about their poster!  (slideshow link)

Treasure Tasks

Last week students did a puzzle treasure hunt where they had to find the hidden pieces of a treasure related puzzle and put it together.  This week the grade 4 & 5s as well as the Summerland AIM group were given a series of tasks associated with each puzzle to choose from.  For example, some students made drawings and told stories about a booby trapped treasure chest.  Others made lego models of a treasure hunters ship and described the journey they took and the treasure they found.  

These are just a few of the things that we did This Week In Gifted, thanks for checking in!

Here are a few things that we did This Week (and last!) In Gifted.

The first two weeks of classes have been all about getting to know each other.  In order to feel confidant taking risks and being creative it is important that the students feel comfortable with each other.  All of the classes have spent a bit of time playing name games.  The Penticton 4s and the Summerland AIM groups are really fast with the Name Game Ball Pass.  The Penticton 1-3 class had fun with My Name Is... And I Like To... My favourite is The Name Game Shootout that the Penticton 5s and the Summerland ASPIRE class have been playing.

We've also been working on Name Plates.  Students are creating posters featuring their names and depicting family, as well as the things that they enjoy doing or are proud of.  The different ways that student have used materials (pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, tissue paper wrapped in cello tape...) has been inspiring.  Students have depicted family in a variety of ways; some depicting activities or items that represent family to them.  For example a few students have represented family with a Christmas tree, the Tardis from Dr. Who (as this show is something this student's family enjoys together), favourite colours of different family members, first letters of each person's name with pictures of things they enjoy, to name just a few.  To work on their presentation skills students will be presenting their posters to each other explaining what the different items and images on their posters represent.

This week we also touched on our theme, X Marks the Spot--The Search For Treasure, with a puzzle treasure hunt.  We will be getting more into our theme in the weeks to come.

Thanks for checking out what we did... This Week In Gifted!