VOTW IS BACK!

Exciting news 2M!

Mrs Tonner emailed me this morning to let me know that VOICES OF THE WORLD is starting up again.

We learnt so much by being part of this project last time. We were connected to new Web2 tools that more importantly connected us to classrooms around the world.

What are your thoughts about being involved with this project again?
Are we in?
Mrs M
(hope you've all had a great start to your holidays - isn't it perfect holiday weather?)

PHRASR FUN

Today we tried a new tool in pimpampum called phrasr.
In phrasr you type in a phrase, press start, then the program searches for pictures in flickr that match with each word in your phrase.
It gives you a choice of pictures so you can change them if you want. Then you publish! The only disappointing thing is that you're not given any code, you can only link to your phrasr or email it.

Here's a few that Riley, Callum and Patrick made today about 'great learning'. Just click on their names to 'see' what their phrases look like.
Riley
Callum
Patrick
What do you think?
How about you maker a phrasr as well, then
send us the link in a comment.
We'd love to 'see' what your phrase 'looks' like.

THINGS HAPPEN, BUT...

2M,
I know that you were upset and frustrated yesterday when you discovered your folders missing from the network and 'devastated' this afternoon when told they could not be retrieved...so here's something that will cheer you up. Scratch away!!!

Create your own Scratch Ticket

WORKING SCIENTIFICALLY - Even babies do it!

The games we play at lunchtime, always seem to feature a ball - whether it be basketball, soccer, touch, handball or just throwing a ball to each other.

There's always a race to get the 'best' ball for the game
or activity, especially for handball - you don't want a tennisball that's lost it's 'bounce'!

We decided to investigate this 'bounce' factor further and this week we will be conducting and filming experiments to test our hypotheses about the factors that affect how well a ball bounces.


Today Mrs M showed us a movie of her granddaughter, who was doing a little investigating of her own on the weekend.
Watch it to answer these questions.
* what was she observing?
* what do you think she was thinking?
* what did she learn?
* what's your hypothesis?

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

TALKING ABOUT LEARNING

It's not often I share 'my' reflections on the class blog but I couldn't keep this to myself!

Whenever my granddaughter visits, I am constantly amazed at the developments she has made since her last visit - which is only a matter of days!

This weekend she took her first step and the house echoed with the word 'tat' everytime she saw my cat Bella. I watched her little face and listened to her 'chatter' as she pulled magnets off the fridge, called out to the cat and experimented with bouncing a ball on the carpet and tiles. 

My observations told me much about her development but still left me wondering... what is she thinking? what is she saying? what does she know? what does she think about her learning?

I can't wait for those conversations!

All of this reflecting on my granddaughter also had me reflecting on the Gems and their learning.

Conversations play a big part in our day. Our room revolves around them -whether face -to- face or on the blogs...they are a constant. 

They set the tone for learning, provide insights and guide future learning...they ARE the learning!

Early last week, some of the Gems were involved in a conversation with a fellow teacher about learning. This teacher is currently looking at student-centred learning as part of her Masters and came to the Gems for their perspective.  

All children completed a Y chart on 'Great Learning' - what it looks, sounds and feels like.

Here are just some of their thoughts:

GREAT LEARNING looks like:

• working in groups
• listening
• co-operation
• teamwork
• talking
• learning together
• teaching/helping each other
• making mistakes
• thinking about thinking
• us making choices about what we want to learn
• blogging
• skyping
• making animotos and wordles
• connecting
• talking to others around the world 

GREAT LEARNING sounds like:

• lots of talking
• busy
• buzz
• noisy

GREAT LEARNING feels like:

• good
• happy
• proud
• success
• wonderful
• exciting
• fresh air!

and if that's not enough to blow you away, have a listen to the podcast.

Remember, these kids are 6 and 7 years old and at times are a little too

eager to share their insights. If you listen carefully though, you'll hear some

real 'gems' of wisdom in the back conversation. 

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LUNCH CHINESE STYLE

All this term, we have been conducting an inquiry into China and chinese culture.

Some of our inquiry questions have focussed on finding out what is typical Chinese food and what are some of their eating rituals. 

So yesterday, to experience this aspect of Chinese culture as well as celebrate what we have learnt, we travelled to Wynnum Gardens Restaurant for lunch.

Some of our parents shared this experience with us and were amazed at how determined we were to eat with chopsticks and try new foods.

Watch our movie to see the wonderful time we had...

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

and if anyone has a recipe for deep fried ice-cream balls, we love for you to share it with us! In fact, please share any of your favourite chinese recipes with us - it's our new favourite food!

(2M - don't forget to share your reflections on our lunch.

Was this a new experience for you? What did you learn...maybe even about yourself? What surprised you? - Mrs M)

WOW - AN AWARD!

We are very proud to announce that we have been 

tagged for this little award by Mr Tony Searl, a teacher 

from NSW. 

Mr Searl told us he regularly reads our blog and that makes us feel extra special because Mr Searl doesn't teach little kids like us - he teaches history to high school students!

Here's what Mr Searl had to say about us on his blog Sliced Bread.

"My last and most important award goes to 2MGems. They are special. They are real 21st century learners and they have a cool blog. Love your work, go kids."

Thankyou Mr Searl for recognizing our blog and reminding us that what we have to say matters.

The rules for this award are as follows:

1. Put the logo on your blog
2. Add a link to the person who awarded you
3. Nominated at least 7 other blogs
4. Add links to those blogs on yours
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs

There are many teacher blogs like Mr Searl's that inspire Mrs M but what about us?

Which blogs do we love reading?

Which blogs engage us with their learning and inspire us to learn more?

It didn't take us long to create our list.

Here are 7 blogs that we find inspiring, motivating and thought provoking:  

Mrs Cassidy's Class

The Kinderkids

The Brainwaves

Kindergarten Tales

4/5 J Hip Hip Hooray

4/5 R Superstars

3C By the Sea

All of these blogs are home to children like us, using 21st century tools to share their learning and engage in conversations with others...and of course, they are home to awesome teachers too!