Stories serve as a useful platform to share about values and good habits. Since the children could tell me about the characteristics of Roberto in the story, there is a common understanding between us when I reminded them about helping friends in need using their skills and talents.
The children designed and planned their playground on paper and used Makedo components to saw and join the cardboard pieces to create 3D structures. A group innovated by using a girl's hair band to propel a marble down a ramp. Another group created a marble tube by using toilet paper rolls. The more ideas are shared, the more ideas they have!
Ever seen this noise barrier at construction sites? The purpose of these panels are to minimise noise and dust to the surrounding residences due to the underground MRT construction. It's the details that matter. On closer inspection, I suppose that the individual rectangular panels can be taken apart and put together. The different colours have to be fixed in a calculated manner to enable others to see a represented image of trees. It's interesting to discuss about what we see on the streets. Hopefully, those children who did not get a chance to see these will be able to observe one soon.
In Singapore, we board the public bus from the front and alight through another door situated in the middle of the bus. Most of the buses are wheelchair accessible, in this photo, while the bus driver was assisting a wheelchair-bound passenger to board the bus at the other door, the rest of the passengers had to wait at the front. Only when the wheelchair-bound passenger is safely secured in the bus, will the driver open the front door to allow the rest of the passengers to board.
Sometimes I wonder if the passengers would still wait patiently at the door should the front door be opened? I'm sure the bus drivers were trained to do this because they could anticipate that it would be more efficient by allowing the wheelchair-bound passenger to board first as there will be more space to manoeuvre. Thus, any bus driver would know better than to open the front door first.
So, human psychology is applicable in the classroom or workplace. In eduation, we term it as classroom management. Understanding how people think and behave very much has an impact to the flow of lessons in school. For instance, most teachers would not distribute materials/ resources to the students first before our explanation. Logically speaking, it is nice to have all the materials placed on the desk in front of the students before they walk in. But, in reality anyone working with young children in public education can tell you it would take a lot of discipline from the child to keep their hands or eyes off the materials right in front of them and just focus on your verbal instructions.
Recently, I attended a workshop by Dr Andrea Kantrowitz. The activities were more practical than theorical which was something we could adapt in school and I was curious about how she linked ideas. There were bits and pieces of work that I had done in school before but not in a context which she had shown us during the workshop. For example, the participants manipulated papers in pairs and groups interchangeably and using paper circuits in a dark room.
This term, my students started with a story about Roberto The Insect Architect. Alternatively, you can show this animation. Then, we talked about an artist, Han Sai Por (1993) artwork and artworks from another paper artist. Based on prior experience, I think it's a good idea to show the students a few ways to cut and fold the papers and I always tell them you can't learn to be a good swimmer by watching a few swimming videos, you've got to practise it on your own.
They are using white glue instead of the glue stick as they stay on longer. Asking them to recite a dot is a lot before using the white glue does the trick! My consolation was that I had only one kid who smeared the glue all over his hand 😩. The white glue were distributed in smaller containers to each group of students and applied with an ice-cream stick.
