For anyone new to this blog, the idea is simple - each day my boys (Joshua - 9 and Archie - 8) 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!
Bubbles
With children around the country returning to school in 'bubbles' today, we thought this would be a fantastic stimulus. Bubbles are such amazing things. They are delicate and fragile and amazingly beautiful. Put that into the school context and it spreads a wonderfully positive message.
We hope you all had a wonderful day, whatever your bubble.
English
Playful observational poetry
Adverbs, adjectives, verbs, similes, metaphors.
The following short-burst writing activity is one I saw Pie Corbett present at a 'greater depth' conference. The concept is beautifully simple and the outcomes are stunningly creative.
Like any great hook, we began by totally immersing ourselves in bubbles.
Whilst the boys enjoyed chasing them around the garden, I asked them to look closely and describe to me how they were moving. We then captured adjectives that described them, as well as a list of similes of what they reminded us of or could be. Whilst the boys immersed themselves in bubbles, I captured all the language and ideas:
We then turned out attention to the poem. The model Pie had shared at the comment followed this simple pattern:
Adverb (-ly)
Adjective bubbles
Verb
Simile
Having modelled a couple of stanzas, the boys were away, drawing upon the immersive experience and language we had populated together. Here is my model and the boys' outcomes.
Bubbles
Brilliantly,
buoyant bubbles
beam
like happy faces,
full of joy.
Magically,
magenta bubbles
meander
across serene skies.
Cheekily,
plump bubbles
swell and pop
like perfect poached eggs.
Regally,
proud bubbles
pirouette
like blissful ballerinas.
Inquisitively,
window bubbles
peer down at the earth
like a gazillion glass eyes.
Randomly,
fragile bubbles
twist and turn
like fickle fairies.
Quietly,
rainbow bubbles
journey afar
like orbs of hope,
free from fear.
© Jamie Thomas 2020
Bubbles by Joshua
Stickily,
glassy bubbles
pop
like popcorn nests.
Magically,
rainbow bubbles
sparkle
like Queen’s palaces.
Quickly,
bubbly banana bubbles
bounce
like a trampoline.
Bubbles by Archie
Amazingly,
emerald bubbles
dive
like a king fisher, swimming.
Cheekily,
rainbow bubbles
travel
like a jet, zooming.
Gracefully,
slippery bubbles
dance
like ballerinas.
Slowly,
still bubbles
pop
like bouncy balloons.
Magically,
sparkly bubbles
boom
like a gun shot.
Silently,
shiny bubbles
dip
like a flying fish.
Maths
Mental arithmetic
Addition / subtraction / multiplication
For our creative maths, we explored number bond bubbles. The beauty of this is that you can make it as simple or challenging as you like, using simple addition as well as inverse operations. If you fancy an even greater challenge, also explore multiplication strands with the children.
If you are enjoying this blog, please do share it and spread the word. Thank you to all of you who have got in touch and shared some of the outcomes from what you have tried - we love to hear from you.
Do tune in tomorrow for:
Myths
My thanks to Pie Corbett, Julia Strong and the Talk for Writing team for inspiring many of the ideas explored in this blog.