Elliot: "Do you hear that sound?"

There are different ways of knowing that it is Fall; either you know because of the date in the calendar or because you heard it on the radio.
Today, we were reminded of that through a child's discovery.

The four groups gathered together today to go on a walk in the forest. When we reached the meadow, Kathryn gathered the children and talked about the different sounds we hear in the forest.
On our way back, some children were running, while others were strolling along.
The group in the back was quiet, walking slowly towards the school. 

Halfway there, Elliot asked me a question:




Elliot: "Anamaria, did you hear that?"
Anamaria: "The children running and laughing?"
Elliot: "No. Listen carefully."
Anamaria: "The birds chirping?"
Elliot: "No, me. I'm stepping on these leaves. Listen to the sound it makes. Crunch, crunch, crunch..."






With a big smile on his face, Elliot ran back and forth through the blanket of leaves that was covering the path.

Today, I learned...I learned that Fall comes with a sound. A sound of crunching leaves!

Where is the sound coming from?

How do we hear Sound?

To provoke a reaction to this question, we played a game. The children's task was to identify which direction the sound is coming from while blindfold.









The children enjoyed this games and some were very brave, enough to hear and walk towards the sound right away, while others were hesitant and took more time to start moving their bodies around the room.









We discussed the importance of hearing as well as seeing. We connect the sounds that we hear to what we see, but when there is no visual stimulus, we focus more on the sound and are still able to identify the source.





For the next little while, we will be focusing on different folk songs, breaking them down into studying their form and their context.

Sound Travels

During the formative week*, I jotted down the children's ideas about Sound. We focused on the central idea: How sounds are experienced, and most of the children's answers were "through our ears." 

In continuation of our discussions, we read the story "The listening walk" by Paul Showers and Keira suggested that we should do the same and go on a walk of our own. The children enjoyed listening to the different sounds in our forest and Serena stated that when she closes her eyes, she can hear the sounds better. 
All the other children tried Serena's suggestion and they all said that they could hear the birds in the forest and feel the wind on their faces. 
I could see it on their faces that some of them enjoyed listening to the different sounds with their eyes closed and Zoe mentioned that she can imagine the source of where the sound is coming from better with her eyes closed. The Wind group children are eager to explore this unit on Sound and I am very excited to be a part of their learning. 

This upcoming week, we will inquire more about how sound is experienced and the different sounds in our immediate environment.   


* Formative week - The new unit of inquiry is introduced to the children in the first week and the children are provided with opportunities to demonstrate their prior knowledge and current understanding. All the information gathered from the children will be used to guide and direct the next stage of teaching and learning.

* more pictures of the children riding their horses

Riding horses in the forest 

Kesler

Janet

Angela

Esme took her horse home. She picked a new stick to use as a horse to join the other children in their game. 

Jacob

Angela and Esme:"Our horses are eating some leaves"

Horses resting in the woods

The children are feeding their horses some leaves and sticks 

Expressing ourselves through movement

I observed the children, during playtime in the forest, using sticks to pretend that they are riding horses. These ordinary moments, where the children shift their play into creative and imaginary activities, allow them to freely express their ideas and their thinking. 

The children each got to pick a stick from the forest and decorate it. With string, paper and paint, they each made their own horse. Some children used certain designs to decorate them, while others took the time to name their horses and ride them along the trail. Joy and sounds of happiness arose during these moments. 

We also watched these videos (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apXGSzStESI;  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyHP24rJD7c) about how horses express themselves in nature and we all noticed how happy and excited they look. The joy of being free, running and galloping around. 

Esme looked at her horse and said: "Your name will be Rose Pretty." The roses that she painted on her horse match her name and the adjective "pretty" was added to the name to accentuate the feeling of beauty and happiness when riding her horse.


** more pictures of the children riding their horses to follow 

Expressing ourselves through words and pictures.

This week, the children were given the opportunity to express themselves in the forest. Pictures were taken and their comments recorded. A slideshow will be created and the children will be given the chance to revisit their experience.

Esme came up with the idea of drawing their play in the forest. We painted a tree and each child added some pictures that display their expression in the forest. The pictures show very define detail and most of them express their feelings or their movements in the forest. 

The video will give the children a chance to reflect on their play and by creating the opportunity for the children to draw their experience, allows them to express themselves through visual arts. 

"Patrick, did you hear that bird singing?"

"I am happy. Throwing leaves up in the air and watching them fall."  

"This looks just like the stump I drew this morning"

"We are riding a horse."

"Hold on tight!"

Build it!

Esme wanted to express her idea of a castle and a bride by building it. The children made puppet dolls to attend the wedding at the castle and then they each spent half an hour to build their castle. Some children built their own, while others got together to work in a group. 

At the end, they each had a turn to present their structure, but before, we discussed the importance of being a good listener. 

Esme "Make eye contact with the person that is talking." 

Janet "Keep your hands still" 

Damon "Keep your mouth closed. Put your hand up if you want to share your idea." 

Angela "Keep your body still. Moving around can be very distracting." 

Andrea "No talking while someone else is talking." 

Luca "Listen with your ears."