For anyone new to this blog, the idea is simple - each day my boys (Joshua - 9 and Archie - 7) choose a stimulus that drives the learning. We hope that you enjoy the blog and can take some inspiration from what we love doing - making learning as engaging as possible!
Flowers
When Archie asked for Friday's stumulus to be all about flowers, I was pleasently suprised. One of the real joys of working with the boys each day and exploring so many of the Talk for Writing techniques with them is that they are taking a real interest in their surroundings. We hope this brightens up your day.
English
language choice to engage the reader
observation skills
I wanted to give the boys the opportunity to draw upon all of our recent learning. We have covered so many writing skills, such as close observation, poetry, language choice and figurative language - I wanted to give them a little invention task to have a go at writing what they wanted.
We discussed a few ideas and possibilities and came up with:
describing a flower (poetry)
making a flower (instructions)
Meeting a flower (narrative)
Interestingly, we all chose differently, tuning into our own styles as writers. Joshua wanted to write instructions (he likes more structure and scaffold), Archie wanted to write a little narrative in the style of a story he has just finished, and I wanted to write a poem, drawing upon an experieince I had in France last year.
We all drafted our ideas and then read them to each other, offering feedback and some development points. With a little editing, this is what we came up with:
A Field of Sunflowers
Fields of lion heads turn
to face the morning sun;
A chorus, in poetic unison.
Petals unfurl;
Pride is pronounced.
Honeycombed faces bask
in the brilliant warmth.
Lapelled leaves stretch,
dining in sunshined rays.
Telescopic stems straighten,
like a batallion on parade.
Beneath the earth, roots wriggle,
cementing nature's power.
© Jamie Thomas 2020
How to make a daisy
Take a piece of an angel's silvery wing.
Curl a golden caterpillar, deep in sleep.
In the centre, attach a python's glistening eye.
Gather the tail of a green grass snake
and a dragon's emerald wing.
by Joshua
Meeting a Chrysanthemum
As I gazed at the chrysanthemum, I wondered: 'why do they look like a perfct pointed pepper? As I walked towards it, I saw angry alien eyes staring at me. It suddenly snapped secretly at me in anger. I gulped and jumped back onto another chrysanthemum which grabbed my shoe. I picked one up and it stung me on the cheek with a thorn. "Ouch!" So I chucked it back on the floor in rage.
by Archie
Maths with Art/DT
time (quarter past / quarter to / half past / o'clock)
5 x table
On a Friday afternoon, when the sun is shining, there is nothing better than some immersive art and craft. Building on our recent work on time, I wanted to revisit the key concepts of quarter past, half past and quarter to, as well as counding in fives. The boys loved the making these flowers!
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My thanks to Pie Corbett and Talk for Writing for inspiring many of the ideas explored in this blog.
Do tune in on Monday, when our stimulus is: