1. Literature
Throughout the week, the children engaged with a variety of literature about homes. We read a poem about a forest home, explored photographs of different homes from around the world, and learned about animal homes. The nonfiction literature and poetry helped to scaffold deeper conversations about what a home needs and what kind of materials can be used to construct a home.
The children made connections to their own homes, recognizing similarities and differences. We read one final book towards the end of the week, Our Big Home. A collection of poems about the home we all share - our world. On Thursday, we looked at photographs of fairy houses for further inspiration prior to our afternoon of construction.
2. Planning
As with any design project, planning is an important part of the process. We discussed why we plan our work and the process of first having an idea and then representing an idea on paper. The children had the choice of graph paper or plain paper. At the top of their work, we read the title sentence;
My Fairy House blueprint.
We talked about the sight word my. If we know by (a word introduced at the beginning of the year) we know my! The Kindergarteners were invited to explain the details in their blueprints, sharing the meaning or story behind each intentional mark. In the below photographs, IM explains a ladder connecting the bottom of her fairy house to the top, a sort of tree fort. OC smiles as he talks about the moss he will use as insulation in his fairy house. Following their work, we had a museum walk around the edge of our oval rug, examining and admiring each detailed plan.
3. Sorting and Counting
Throughout the week the children had many opportunities to sort and count the beautiful materials shared with us. We compared how many, discussing the concept of more and less. The children made predictions, using their knowledge about numbers and quantity to determine which material we had the most of. The children printed numbers on sticky notes to record how many.
Our materials held meaning. Children were invested in the counting process, there was a shared excitement for each seed, pebble, acorn, and piece of wood. They noticed how the materials felt and smelt, providing a hands on and interactive experience.
4. Construction!
5. A Representation of their Structure
On Friday morning I invited the children to draw their structure using black sharpie. Following their representation, they added bursts of warmth with bright water colors. The children noticed the shapes and lines in their work. Again, we had conversations about perspective.
The Kindergarteners were incredibly engaged throughout the experience, taking our morning work time as well as most of our afternoon to complete their representations. I believe in the importance of offering multiple ways to represent the same thing - whether it's a story or a structure. The drawing of their final piece was a wonderful conclusion to our week, but I don't believe a conclusion to the experience - the deep connections the children have made through the building of fairy houses will continue to support and encourage their learning throughout our year together.
