Happy Halloween!!!
10/30/2020
At PNA, our mission is to educate students to be exceptional learners and independent thinkers of vision, courage, and integrity. So much of that mission is achieved through the culture we create in our school and through project- based learning. Each day, students at PNA are encouraged to explore, create and question. One of the key components of a PBL project is student choice. One example of student choice can be the ability to choose the subject they would like to study or create. Teachers have a vision for the project and know which standards and content students will learn but students drive the project. They are encouraged to create a vision for the project and their ideas are heard and honored. Halloween is a holiday our Kindergarteners have been looking forward to for several weeks. One morning, a couple of students shared that they would not be able to go trick or treating or have a large party with all their friends this year due to COVID-19. This led us to discuss our driving question for our next project: How can we plan and celebrate Halloween this year? The Kindergarteners followed the engineering design process to plan their Halloween party. The steps include, ask, imagine, plan, create and improve. They brainstormed creative ideas which included a maze leading to our Magical Forest, a Spooky House, a treasure hunt and a Halloween candy store. Sometimes their ideas even changed the direction of the project and that is meaningful for them. When students’ ideas are consistently heard and valued it gives them the confidence to continue to share them. During Inquiry Workshop, students began creating their Spooky House using a variety of supplies. It was amazing to see their ideas come to life as they added rooms, traps, a kitchen, slides and Halloween characters. The students then embarked on a sight word treasure hunt to find and write words. They practiced simple addition adding the cost of items from the Halloween Store. In addition, they practiced writing standards as they made invitations for their families to join the all school parade. Integration of different subjects allows students to see the usefulness and importance of what they are learning. Project based learning is a framework that allows us to do just that. It allows us to honor the way we naturally learn and to teach students not only how to learn, but to think like mathematicians, readers, writers, scientist, engineers and even party planners!
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Saania AliMs. Ali graduated from the University of Houston with a Bachelors of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies. She specializes in Early Childhood Education, ESL, and Special Education. Her hobbies include traveling, reading, and painting! Archives
April 2021
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