Even though spring has officially arrived, we are still seeing feeling the effects of winter pop up in an attempt to play some tricks on us! Recently we have started seeing and inquiring about some signs of spring, however, they are often very short lived as the cold weather keeps interrupting what should be happening. So far we have seen icicles dripping on warmer days and that we are able to write our names in the mud (when it is not covered in snow!) just like we could do back in the fall. We have also started seeing some buds beginning to sprout on the trees around the school and at our homes, which tells us that they will soon turn into leaves for the warm summer months ahead. Mrs. Ridgway has even noticed that her tulips and daffodils are starting to poke up through the ground in her gardens, another sign that spring is trying to begin.
Camp Kawartha Visit
Taking advantage of the slightly warmer weather, we had the opportunity to visit Camp Kawartha again this year, thanks to the TLDSB Outdoor Education Fund grant we were approved for. While visiting the sustainable facility this year, we took part in the Tracking and Trailing and Sensorama programming options that were fantastic. Each program allowed us to think about being out in nature to use our senses to notice things that we might overlook and not see, hear, smell, touch that we if we weren't actively thinking about them. Overall, it was an awesome day of outdoor learning that continues to create memories that are shared within the class on a regular basis.
Winter Outdoor Learning Update
With the colder months now upon us, the class continues to venture outdoors in search of some of the amazing things that winter has to bring. Specifically, we have been intrigued by animal footprints we come across in the snow and continue to get better and better at distinguishing which animal they come from on a regular basis. Many of us have become quite good at determining the difference between rabbit, squirrel, deer and dog tracks that we come see while out on the Trans Canada Trail.
One day in particular, we were able to recreate what we thought might have taken place on the newly snow covered trail when we came across fresh tracks. At first, we thought maybe they belonged to a dog out for a walk, but then we noticed that there were no human footprints nearby. Taking this into consideration, we brainstormed and looked a little further away and spotted some tiny tracks that we thought belonged to either a squirrel or raccoon. Putting two and two together, we decided that possibly a coyote might have come across an option for dinner and began to chase it down the trail. We knew that the larger animal was chasing the smaller animal because the tracks went from being closer together, as if the coyote was just out for a walk, to further and further apart as though it were running after something. Unfortunately, our story only has the ending that we created...the squirrel or raccoon got away...because both sets of tracks veered off into the bushes on the opposite side of the fence. Nonetheless, it was fun to use our imagination and visionary skills to think about what might have happened.
Ken Reid Visit
As part of our outdoor learning programming, we chose to take the class to Ken Reid Conservation Area to experience winter in a natural setting. During our visit, we were able to check out the pond area to see the different states of water as some areas of the pond were frozen, other parts looked slushy and other areas still looked completely like water. Cool! We also decided to hike the Escarpment Trail that took us up some crazy rock formations near the entrance of the Conservation Area. In addition to the three states of water we discovered at the pond, there was a small running brook we came across during our travels. Many of us found it quite interesting that the water was running very well in some areas, but was super slow and looked almost frozen in other places. This prompted some exciting discussions as we continued along the trail before heading to the Field House for a quick lunch to refuel our bodies.
Initially hoping to use the large hill overlooking Lake Sturgeon to go tobogganing, we had to make a last minute change of plans as weekend weather brought enough rain to wash the snow away. In place of doing this fun Winter activity, we explored the Cedar Trail and were able to use our senses to find lots of neat things surrounding us. Some of us found some leaves that only had their "skeleton" remaining while others heard the tall cedars creaking and cracking way up high in the sky. We also had the chance to play the game Camouflage and found some awesome places to hide from the person who was "the finder". It was so much fun
November Outdoor Learning Day
In an attempt to get out and enjoy the beautiful and rare November weather, we decided to plan for a morning of outdoor learning. However, after an awesome literacy-based walk on the Trans Canada Trail, we decided to extend our day outside into the middle AND third block of our time together.
On our trail walk, we used three of our five senses as we looked for, listened to and felt things we discovered on the trail. It was so great to see the learning gained from indoors be brought outside and applied in a natural setting. It was also cool to look for things that matched the first letter of our names like B and B standing together on the bridge! After returning from our walk, we held our first outdoor Knowledge Building Circle where we shared our favourite thing that we found on the trail. |
| "I liked seeing the snake the best!" (CS) "I liked the oak leaf I found" (SS) |
During the middle block, we switched gears and put our artistic abilities to the test to see how we could document nature. Many of us chose to try out the outdoor easels and painted pictures of things we saw around us. Others ventured into the garden to sketch things that caught our attention after taking a few calming breaths to relax. In addition to tapping into our artistic skills, some of us built some amazing ramp structures. It was so much fun rolling the ball down them to see how well our ideas panned out. Since the ball worked so well, we tried to challenge ourselves and see how we could get some of the fallen leaves to do the same. Sadly, this wasn't as successful as we had hoped it would be, but it was super fun trying!
Finally, we ended the day with some awesome numeracy-based activities. Lots of us practiced writing numbers on the pavement to help strengthen our fine motor skills. Some of us also created some cool patterns and drew some shapes that we had learned about earlier that ended up looking fantastic. After finishing up our work, many of us also checked out the swings and tire swing to see how they fared in comparison to the ones we usually use during recess. It was pretty fun being able to swing in all directions on the tire swing.
Overall, it was a fantastic day of learning. What we had anticipated as just being a morning ended up being an entire day of outdoor learning...one that we would love to do again soon!
