As part of their study on Asia, Primary students are being introduced to languages that use symbols other than our alphabet. Students are using a wet/dry board to try to replicate Kanji, Chinese characters used in the Japanese writing system which represent ideas and words rather than just sounds.
Upper Elementary students are getting ready to help out around the house as they begin using power tools. Using a cordless drill, students determined which drill bit to use to drill a pilot hole, then switched bits to drive a screw into a piece of wood.
Lower Elementary used movement, signs, and their bodies to study photosynthesis, the process plants use to create their own carbohydrates as food. Students stood on a green mat representing chloroplast which absorbs the sun and held signs representing the sun and other molecules. By making carbohydrates, plants break down molecules and releases the “leftover” oxygen which benefits animals around them. Movement and acting out scientific processes help ingrain knowledge, in this case why plants need water, carbon dioxide and energy from the sun to create a carbohydrate.
Montessori transfer activities develop fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, concentration, and independence in the Primary classroom. Materials used include liquids, dry items such as beans, and transfers that require a tool like the tongs above. In this work, tongs are used to transfer beautiful glass leaves from one container to the next. We can observe the utter focus of this student who has the freedom and time to pass the glass leaves back and forth as often as they would like.
Middle School students offered argumentative summaries, presentations, and various discussions on bringing back extinct animals last week. They explored possibilities and any unforeseen complications based on recent scientific research using various reading passages and resources. In this presentation, a few students took a playful approach to the idea of designing the return of a couple of prehistoric dinosaurs with some alterations, while considering a possible foreseen habitat, food sources, and survival rate. This exercise could be considered a “cosmic question.” In the Montessori philosophy, a “cosmic question” is an existential question meant to spark wonder and curiosity.
Using a cup, straws, balloons and tape, Middle School students created lungs. The cup represents the chest cavity and tape which seals around the straw is the nose and mouth. Inside the cup, the straws replicate the bronchi and trachea. Lungs are placed at the bottom in the form of balloons. The bottom of the cup is covered with a large balloon to stand in place of the diaphragm. When pulled, the lungs inflate!
The Oxford NAACP hosted its annual MLK Jr. Community Celebration and Creative Arts Exposition at the Oxford Community Arts Center. We are grateful to the NAACP for the extraordinary opportunity for our students to know they are a part of the celebration of Dr. King. Thank you to McGuffey staff for fostering student participation and for the families who could come see all of the wonderful art.
Primary students are studying the human body, turning their attention to bones. Works on the shelf include a life-size skeleton puzzle, a layered human body puzzle, and animal bones. Kindergarteners are digging deeper, literally! They are dissecting owl pellets, the compact mass of indigestible materials that owl’s regurgitate. Owl pellets contain fur, feathers, teeth, and bones of smaller animals. Kindergarteners match the contents of the pellet to a control chart to identify what they discovered in the owl pellet. Note that bones found in nature should always cleaned and sterilized before handling.
The Reading Partners program in Lower Elementary is in full swing. Reading aloud to a friend not only brings comfort, it can also build fluency and confidence. Sharing a book with another student improves critical thinking for both students as they process and discuss text together, analyzing its meaning. Besides academic growth and social-emotional time, it’s downright cozy on a winter day.
