MS. DETERRA'S MAKER STUDIO

Hello Everyone!

Report card time! Before we go to Winter Break, you will be receiving the term one report card. In December, we will begin working on term two units — one on CREATIVITY/CHANGE, and the second on EXPLORATION/IDENTITY.

Here is an overview of the many things we did during TERM ONE, FALL 2023. 

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To tie the big ideas from our curriculum together into a larger, enduring understanding,
we studied all subjects through the lens of a universal, conceptual theme.

We focused on the concept of SYSTEMS
in our unit BODY WORKS. 

Unit Focus Statement:  

Our personal choices play a role
in how the interconnected system of the human body works.

Core Competency Focus:

Personal Awareness and Responsibility
Critical Thinking

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What is the SYSTEM for a great learning community?
(Core Competencies, Socials, Science, PHE, ADST, Career Education)

We spent the first two weeks creating the foundation of a great learning community!

We worked in small teams to design marble roller coasters all over the classroom, discussing both science concepts and what great collaboration looks like during projects.

To get to know one another, we created Six Word Memoir Pictures, to communicate some of our interests, strengths, or thoughts to our new classmates. We also did a variety of games and collaborative math challenges and puzzles. We learned how to have class meetings to voice our preferences, concerns, and ideas about classroom activities.

 

We brainstormed what makes a classroom SYSTEM work well, relating it to the UNIVERSAL SYSTEMS MODEL, an important part of our unit discussions. What do we want to get out of our learning? (output) What do we need to put in to our learning experiences to accomplish our desired output? (input/process)

To better understand this, we analyzed other systems we know, such as our community and ecosystems. We debriefed our roller coaster activity: What makes an exciting roller coaster work well? (physics, clothoid loops, creativity, speed, etc.) We identified what our classroom would need to be a successful system. Students brainstormed essential agreements and values, which we refer to every day in our work together. What kind of community do we want to build together?

Throughout the term, we focused on the core competencies of personal awareness and critical thinking, which were embedded into each activity and lesson for the unit.

Each week we engaged in social thinking activities as part of our morning Recalibrate Time. This is an opportunity to recalibrate or prepare our thinking as the day starts, so we can have positive relationships and learning experiences at school. We discussed how:

• Looking carefully for social cues helps us find out the expected behaviour in a particular situation,
• Our unexpected behaviour can cause others stress and affect our relationships,
• Our reaction to a problem needs to match the size of the problem,
• Active listening is important to building relationships and involves critical thinking and specific body language,
• Stepping outside of our comfort zone, taking a risk to try something new, is when our best learning happens, and
• Everyone is learning something, we can’t be perfect at all of it, and it is okay to make mistakes or to not know something!

THE HUMAN BODY SYSTEMS!
(Science, Socials,  Math, Inquiry Processes, LA)

What do you already know about human anatomy? We created life-sized drawings of classmates to identify the inside parts we already knew from our many body systems. We already knew quite a bit, but we needed some more specific information.

So, we did independent investigation stations! We gathered facts from non-fiction books and online resources like Kids Health, and completed fun experiments about our heart rate, the digestive system length, and the role of saliva in breaking down food, among others.

We then pretended the Human Body Corporation was having money problems, needed to make budget cuts, and planned to fire one of the many organs in the body! After learning about paragraphs and business letter format, each student chose an organ to research further and wrote a letter to the Corporation with detailed reasons their organ should not be fired!

We did experiments to expand our knowledge of germs and how they are spread, and about how blood typing works! Students learned to use the scientific method, to gather data through careful observations, and to analyze results using math and critical-thinking skills.

We discussed genetic traits and extracted strawberry DNA, a process which allowed us to learn the role soap plays in bursting the cell membranes of pathogens. There’s a reason to use soap when washing hands!

Then, we had discussions about herd immunity, vaccines, epistemology (the diagnosis of diseases), communicable and non-communicable diseases, and some of the personal choices we can make to help prevent disease.

Our lab on “patient zero” allowed us to see how germs are spread quickly in a group!

Finally, we tested a variety of sites in the school and grew germ colonies in petri dishes. We made careful observations, gathered and analyzed data, and crunched the numbers to determine the probability of having touched a bacteria, yeast, mold, or fungus. We used math to help us make some positive personal choices to prevent the spread of germs.

During all experiments, we used critical-thinking to ask questions and make conclusions, and we used personal awareness to work with others collaboratively and safely.

At the end of the unit, each student chose a disease to investigate further with a partner. They learned how to find information, take research notes, and present their information to the class in a PowerPoint presentation and speech. Afterwards, they used their new found knowledge, pretending to be a group of doctors with other students, and helping diagnose mystery diseases presented by Ms. D.

What helps the body system work well?
(Socials, Science, PHE-Health, Math, Career Education, Language Arts):

To make our SYSTEM of the human body function effectively, we need to be aware of the INPUTS we put into our body. What are the personal choices we can make that help us to be healthy? Students looked at informational graphs, watched TED talks, and listened to a variety of perspectives about good health to learn how to make positive food and environmental choices.

This included exploring the Indigenous Health and Wellness Model to discuss holistic aspects of health, such as the relationship between good health and your connection with family and community. Students looked at Indigenous Medicine Wheel models and reflected on the emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual things that contribute to our good health.

How does what and how we eat affect our bodies and health?  We discussed mindful eating during lunch, which means having presence while eating and becoming aware of the eating experience. If we slow down, we taste more of the food and allow our digestive system time to do its job properly!

Students also brought in some favourite snacks and analyzed ingredients lists and the math on food labels to better understand the nutritional value of processed foods. We sorted foods into categories of GO, SLOW, and WHOA to better understand how much of certain foods we can have based on their nutritional content.

We also studied the impact of vitamins and minerals on the body. Each student chose and conducted research about a vitamin or mineral and its impact on the body. They then created informational posters with facts to share with their classmates.

 

Gut Bacteria and Artificial Intelligence!
(Science, ADST, PHE, Technology, Math Computational Thinking)

As we explored nutrition, we learned about our second brain located in our gut! Ever feel “butterflies” in your stomach or lower guts before you have a test? That’s your gut brain! Inside our gut are many healthy bacteria helping us with the digestive process. We discussed the strong connection between having a healthy gut microbiome and our overall physical and mental wellness.

Through Science World’s Tech-Up Program, we had an in-class workshop about gut bacteria! We learned about the different types of gut bacteria, what conditions in our gut cultivate healthy bacteria, and how we can take care of our microbiome by getting proper sleep, managing our stress, only taking antibiotics when needed, and eating healthy foods including fibre and green, leafy vegetables.

Then, we learned about the language of artificial intelligence chatbots, natural language processing. As a class, we programmed an AI Chatbot to answer questions as if it was a specific gut bacteria! This involved some basic coding, computational thinking, and identifying the specific information the AI would need in order to respond. We had great discussions about how AI could be helpful, as well as the ethics needed to use it responsibly. We look forward to doing more coding in December as part of the Hour of Code!

Mental Health & Self-Expression
(Socials/Science/PHE/Career Ed/Fine Art/LA):

Students explored the connection between our mental health and physical health.

As we played a variety of active games in the gym, we explored how to monitor our heart rate and identified the value of daily exercise and getting the appropriate amount of sleep!

We discussed brain structure and how emotion impacts higher thinking, so we can better understand how we self-regulate in times of stress. We learned the function of the main parts of the brain, including the amygdala, pre-frontal cortex, and hippocampus.  We had great discussion about how it is hard to make rational decisions when one is emotional, so it is important to find self-regulation strategies to calm the brain before taking action.

We tried many self-regulation strategies in class, including daily mindful breathing, practicing gratitude, taking time outside to get fresh air or take a walk, and using the class break board to reset our thinking and bodies during longer work periods.

We watched the TED talk “How to Make Stress Your Friend” and discussed how not all stress is bad. We learned that managing stress and being connected with your community contributes to long life. In gym we did yoga to explore how stretching and focusing our breathing can help with stress management. We surveyed our peers and made graphs to represent all of the ways we manage our daily stress in positive ways.

Part of mental health is building connections with others. We practiced this through class meetings, free choice times, playing games, organizing classroom decorations for holidays, and doing Suncrest activities together such as the Pumpkin Patch!

Many students also chose to be involved in Suncrest extracurricular activities, such as the Cross Country team, Chess Club, Intermediate Choir, or our Family Math Games Night. Thank you Division 5 for all of your contributions to the greater community!

 

Creativity is an important tool for mental health, and we had many conversations in the classroom about the positive feelings we have when making something!

 

We created beautiful poppy paintings for Remembrance Day, applying elements and principles of art such as colour, emphasis, and negative space.

 

We also created HIVE art, using mixed media to represent people, places, and things that bring us strength and help us thrive. A bee hive is strong, and so is the community we build around us!

           

Gathering and Communicating Data
(Math, Science, PHE, Career Education, Language Arts):

We played many probability games, read the entertaining book It’s Possible, discussed the language referring to probability, and through experiments discovered the difference between experimental and theoretical probability. This involved discussion of basic fractions, decimals, and how to find percentages.

We applied this math to our germ lab to express the probability of touching pathogens in locations throughout the school. This is an example of how math knowledge can help us make personal choices that impact our health in positive ways.

We used the NY Times Learning Network to look at different types of graphs about nutrition, climate change, and blood sugar levels. We practiced two questions to increase our critical thinking and observation skills, “What do you notice?” and “What do you wonder?” We identified essential parts of a graph and how graphs communicate data.

We also practiced gathering data, whether about ourselves, genetic traits, or class preferences.

We learned to analyze data using measures of central tendency such as mean, median, mode, and range, then applied these skills as we pretended to be consultants analyzing Halloween Welch’s gummies packages for a fair distribution of colours and shapes.

There are SYSTEMS for communicating, finding, and documenting information!  (Language Arts, Socials, Science, French)

Throughout all subjects, we used language arts curricular competencies, whether it was to analyze news articles and non-fiction resources, to communicate information in graphics and speeches, or to do research on diseases or nutrition.

We read a variety of non-fiction articles from Kids Health, learned to take research notes by identifying key ideas, identified criteria for finding appropriate resources online, and discussed ways to better present our ideas in clear, organized, and/or persuasive ways.

We learned about personal and business letter formats, and we discussed how to make a strong, organized paragraph. We strengthened our writing by adding creative vocabulary and looking for ways to express ideas in ways that inspire others.

We talked about what makes an effective speech, and how to be a respectful active listener in the audience. We also discussed how to add detail to our e-portfolios to better communicate ideas and our learning.

We also looked at the SYSTEM or CODE behind all human languages, and began the process of creating one of our own for fun!

We look forward to continuing our learning about writing in term two!

French:

As part of this discussion of the system of languages, we began our French studies for the year. We practiced some basic French with one another using songs and conversation with peers.

Students were encouraged to learn basic greetings, colours, and numbers, as well as some basic vocabulary for parts of the body in connection with our unit. They also created small posters to show their learning and did mini dialogues with peers to practice.

Students with French fluency were encouraged to read French articles in magazines we have in the classroom, and to write information about them in their journals.

 

Putting Learning Together in a Creative Way!
(ADST, Science, Socials, Math, PHE, Language Arts, Core Competencies)

We ended the term synthesizing our knowledge of SYSTEMS, and then showing our understanding of how personal choices impact the human body through the creation of a fun game to play with peers.

The goal was to include material from all of the subject areas we discussed as part of this unit on SYSTEMS and PERSONAL AWARENESS.

Students had a lot of fun using applied design skills to create unique and interactive games! We plan to share our games with our buddies in Ms. Silva’s class.

Overall, it was an amazing term! We invite you to see student reflections about their work, documented in their e-portfolios and report cards.