February 16th - 19th

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

More On Maps

The Summerland and Penticton AIM groups (grades 1 - 3) started creating their own, aged looking treasure maps.  Students had fun creating and naming mountains, rivers, lakes, oceans and other geographic features.  They then ripped and crumpled their maps and painted them with tea to give them an aged look.  We will be working with these maps in future classes.

Project Time

The Penticton grade 4s and 5s continued to work on their treasure projects.  Some of the grade 4s presented their finished projects.  Max, Jimmy, and Graham presented their radio interview on pirates and Marcus presented his slideshow on rare gems and ores in Minecraft.  We look forward to more presentations in the weeks to come!

The Summerland ASPIRE group (grade 4s and 5s) continued to work on their 'Protect the Treasure' 3D models.  We have models with rolling boulders, hand scanners, snake pits and more!

Improv Bingo

The Penticton grade 5s continued to explore the process of working in choice versus no choice groups in Improv Bingo.  This week they did not get to choose who was in their group; I made did the groupings (ensuring that the usual pairings were not together).  They did a marvellous job with their skits!  Through this process I hope that the students are getting an opportunity to experience the pros (instead of focussing on the cons) of different sorts of groupings.  I think they are beginning to see the strengths of all of the members of our class and to trust that they can collaborate with anyone in the class to create good work.

Two for the Price of One

I didn't get a post out last week, so here's what we did This Week (and last) In Gifted.

World of Treasure Slide Shows

Below are the last two slide shows from the Penticton grade 1 - 3 classes.  You can see previous slideshows here and here.

Sophie, Ryan M, and Ellen (link).



Anya, Ryan A, Katie, and Gerry (link).

Improv Bingo

The Penticton 5s and 4s did Improv Bingo, the drama game where a person, place, goal, obstacle and object are all chosen at random and then incorporated into skits by groups of 3-4 with hilarious results.  Students brainstorm, collaborate, create and then perform their skits.  At the end of each skit audience members are asked to comment on what each group did well (appreciations).  This helps the whole group to critically think about what makes a good story or play so that we can all improve.

This week was the first time this year that the 4s had done Improv Bingo and they did wonderfully!  The 5s were pushed out of their comfort zone a little as they weren't allowed to go into their 'usual' groups; they were partnered up with people may not normally work with.  We talked about the benefits of 'choice' groups vs. groups that someone else chooses.  All went well.

Protect the Treasure

The Summerland ASPIRE (gr 4 & 5) group continued to work on their 3D models.  Students are creating models showing how they would hide and protect a valuable treasure.  They were busy with glue guns, modelling clay, pipe-cleaners and more and their plans are gradually taking shape.  

Maps

The Summerland and Penticton grade 1 - 3 groups worked with maps.  Together we created maps of our classroom.  Then students were given tokens to hide and mark in the corresponding spot on their maps.  Students then swapped maps and hunted down the each others tokens.

Zip Line Design Challenge

The Summerland AIM class (gr 1 - 3) were tasked with designing something to transport a ping pong ball from the top of a zip line to the bottom in 4 seconds or less.  The students tried different ways to balance their carriers and to reduce friction.  Everyone was successful and some even took on the challenge to transpire more than one ping pong ball at a time.

Treasure Projects

The Penticton 4s and 5s continued to work on their treasure projects, with many students finished or nearing completion.  Students have tackled lots of different treasure related topics and are presenting them using a variety of formats.  I hope to highlight individual projects here in the coming weeks.

Thank you for stopping by to find out what we've been up to!

Little DJs

Little DJs on Go Okanagan

In November Wayne McDougall from Shaw TV visited the Penticton grade 5 group to do a story on the radio project all of the gifted classes worked on last year.  We had a great time being interviewed and learning about how television is made.  The resulting piece, called Little DJs, has now aired on Shaw's Go Okanagan and can be viewed below (link).

5 Card Photo Story

This week it was the Summerland AIM and the Penticton grade 5 groups turn to do the 5 card photo story.  The Penticton grade 1-3s also finished up their 5 card photo stories from last week.  The students came up with some great stories!  We heard about royal bunnies, vampire bunnies, ducks, quests for carrots and so much more.   Here are the slides they had to work with (link):

Projects

The grade 4s and 5s continued to work on their projects.  The Summerland ASPIRE group started building the 3D models of their booby trapped treasure caches.

The Penticton grade 4s and 5s continued working on their treasure research projects.  Some students are almost ready to present their work to their peers.  In fact one of the grade 4s, Jonas (pictured below), presented his project on dragons this week.

 

Body Spell

The Penticton grade 4s played Body Spell.  Students were placed in groups of 4 or 5 people each.  Each person had 3 - 4 letters written on their hands and feet.  Then the class was given a word to spell.  It was chaotic, it was crazy, and it was fun!  The students did a great job of using their hands and feet to spell.

SHRED

SHRED

THIRSTY

THIRSTY

More MaKey MaKey

The Summerland AIM and ASPIRE groups continued to work with the MaKey MaKey invention kits.  They experimented with making foot pads, banana keys and drum kits.  Plans for giant piano keys are in the works!

Keys made out of play dough.

Tin foil footpads.

Banana key!

 Thanks for stopping by to see a few of the things that we did... This Week In Gifted!

January 19th - 22nd

This Week's World of Treasure Slide Show

This week's slideshow is brought to you by Dija, Jayda, and Kailey from the Penticton grade 1 - 3 class (link)

Paper Table Building Challenge

The Penticton grade 5s had their first building challenge of the year.  Their task was to build a table using only the following materials:
8 sheets of newspaper
1 sheet of cardboard 8"x11" (cereal box cardboard)
masking tape

Their paper table had to be at least 20 cm tall and had to support a heavy textbook.  Prior to building their tables, we talked about how rolling the newspaper into tight tubes makes it fairly strong.  It is interesting seeing the different designs the students came up with.  The students worked in pairs or groups of three.  Agreeing on how to build the table and sharing tasks equally can be a challenge, but they all handled things quite well.  All of the groups were able to get their tables to hold one textbook.  Many of the students took up the challenge to see if they could strengthen their tables so that they could support multiple textbooks.  You won't believe how much some of the tables held!  Check out the photos below (link).  I love how excited the kids are with their creations.

5 Card Photo Stories

This week the Penticton grade 1-3 class tackled 5 Card Photo Stories for the first time.  How it works: I show the group 5 images, and then each student comes up with a story that involves all 5 images.  Prior to creating their stories we discuss what makes a good story.  This class really got into it, many of them wanting more time, so they'll be finishing them off next week.  The Summerland ASPIRE group also did this activity and they knocked my socks off (again!) with their amazing stories!  

My Favourite Thing!

The Penticton grade 4s played 'My Favourite Thing!'  It is a drama / storytelling activity where students are given an object and asked to make up a story on the spot explaining why it is their favourite thing.  Some of the objects used were a fox hand puppet, a plastic coat hanger, and a crystal ball.  We had stories involving lasers, aliens, aliens with lasers, aliens playing ping pong, Dr. Who, aliens and Dr. Who and much much more.  Honourable mention: Graham's Italian coat hanger hat story.  I'm not even going to try and explain it, you'll just have to trust me that it was hilarious (and that it didn't involve aliens).

MaKey MaKey

The ASPIRE and AIM classes used the MaKey MaKey kits.  With these kits students can turn various items into computer keys.  In the photo below Iain is using a banana as a space key.

We've also hooked people up to the MaKey MaKey and then opened up a piano program on the computer; when you touch each person a different note sounds on the piano!

Thank you for taking the time to check out a few of the things that we have been up to... This Week In Gifted!

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.