It’s getting warmer, the sun is shining more, the kids are taking off with their learning, and the staff is getting JAZZED about the new things coming for next year (more on that in a later post :)).
We have been dabbling with STEM activities all year. One way we practice being engineers is by completing a challenge called “Tower Power.” In this challenge, the kids are split into teams. They have a stack of index cards, a pair of scissors, and some tape. They are asked to build a tower out of the index cards that is 10 inches high and will hold a stuffed frog for 10 seconds without collapsing. As I’m sure you can imagine, this task would be difficult for anyone, let alone kinders; but each trimester, we attempt it. We learn how to improve our designs from the last time, how to work better with our teammates, and how to learn from our failures. Since this is trimester 3, this was the last time I asked the kids to attempt the challenge. Some were successful, some just played with tape, and some argued the whole time...but there was some pretty cool footage! Check it out!
One thing I love so much about the personalized learning journey, is that my students are confident at whatever they try. They aren't scared to "fail" because they understand that failing is a part of learning. They are willing to fail until they find success. How amazing is that?! I can't wait until these kiddos are in 5th grade and running the world!
