Shape Art

One of our integrated math strands has been shape. Today we reviewed our understanding of shape and created a piece of art using the 2d blocks. Here are some examples.

Guest Speakers - How We Express Ourselves

We have recently had two fantastic speakers as part of our unit of inquiry. 
Tara, Ben's Mum came to talk to us about playing the cello. We learnt about what inspired her to play and how she could use it to represent different emotions in her music.

Today James came and talked to us about what inspires him to write music. He shared some music he had written and explained the artistic process he goes through to change his music from an 'idea' into a polished piece of work.

Time to learn

We have been reviewing our understanding of time during the past week. The learning focus has been on understanding and reading analogue and digital clocks, and the calendar. We are practicing reading time to 5 minute intervals.

Imagine

"I found this book in class and read it because it is about imagination. That is one of the ideas in our unit How We Express Ourselves. I liked the pictures."

From Sorriaj

Pinnochio

"I chose this book because it reminds me of Vietnam when I went there to meet my aunt. The book is in Vietnamese and English. The story is about an old man who wishes his puppet was a real boy. I think the author had to have a good imagination to come up with the idea. "

By Erika

Nico and Lola

"I chose this book because this book is hooked to our learner profile. I think it shows responsibility. The main idea why I like it is because it says Being kind is treating others how you want them to treat you."

By Sophia M

Ooblek - Dr Suess

Oobleck is very fascinating stuff! The other week Mrs Karyn brought some into class to show us! We used our imaginations and wrote a narrative using the 'what if' scenario of 'what if the ooblek came to life? The children's ideas were fantastic! Ooblek is a non-newtonian fluid. That is, it acts like a liquid when being poured, but like a solid when a force is acting on it. You can grab it and then it will ooze out of your hands. Make enough Oobleck and you can even walk on it!

Oobleck gets its name from the Dr. Seuss book Bartholomew and the Oobleck where a gooey green substance, Oobleck, fell from the sky and caused chaos in the town. We watched the story online, and then made Ooblek ourselves.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

"I chose this story because it is about a girl who doesn't know it's not OK to use things that don't belong to you, but then she learned a lesson. I think the author is trying to tell us to not use things without permission. The artist helped show the story through pictures by using their imagination to draw what they think the story would look like."

By Sounavann

"This book is about Geronimo Stilton. He goes into a world below the ocean. The book is in Italian. I look at the pictures to find out what is is about. The person who drew the pictures does a good job showing us what it is about. It has some words in colour that I try to find out the meaning of"

By Samir

Big is Big and Little is Little

"I chose this book because it rhymes like a poem and I like the pictures. I think the author and the artist have a good imagination".

By Kim Veng

Kung Fu Panda Legends of Awesomeness

" I chose this book because it had some of our unit of inquiry words in it, so I thought it would be good. I like the pictures too. "

By Ngy Meng

I don't Have Your Eyes

" I chose this book because it tells us that everyone is different. That is the message the artist is giving. I like it because it gives me a nice feeling and reminds me of my family"

By Mimi

Smart Dad

"The book is about a smart dad who builds a boat. I chose it because I like it and I think building is a way to express yourself. When I read it to the class I felt excited. I tried hard and practiced at home"
By Stephen

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

"I chose this book because I like fish, and also because I like to read. I like to talk so it was fun to read to the class. It is part of how we express Ourselves because Dr Seuss wrote it like a rhyming poem. The pictures are very clever too."

By Boramey

The Monster Under the Shed

" I chose this book because I think it is funny. For how you express yourself, I think people should laugh even if you do something silly. The book makes you laugh because when Thomas thinks it's a monster, it is only a hedgehog. The artist did a good job making the hedgehog look scary at the start of the book."

By Lucas

Vanishing Cream

"I chose this book because I like magic and it is a magic key book. They are one of my favourite types of class books. The author is good at expressing themselves and the pictures help you understand the story. "

By Cathal

Barbie Sails The Hawaiian Regatta

"I chose this book because I have had it for a long time and it is my favourite. I like the pictures. When I read it to the class I felt scared." By Sothearath.

Pan De Sal Saves The Day

"I chose this book because it's connected to our unit. It has Pandu Sal likes to express herself by music and singing, In the story she sang a song for everyone in the class. When I had to read to the class I felt shy at first but then I started to feel happy, proud, and excited"

By Wadia

Dream Animals

" I chose this book because I love the characters and the places. The way it shows how we Express Ourselves is how the children used their imaginations in their dreams. I like the pictures. They make me feel like I am in the dream too. I was a bit scared to read to the class but but I felt pleased and calm after reading"
By Yewon

Addie Runs Away

"I chose this book to share because I liked it and it reminds me of travelling. The drawings are one way that we can express ourselves, and the writer of the book expressed themselves by giving a message in the story. It was about a girl who ran away because she thought her mum and dad didn't like her. I felt a bit scared when I had to read to the class but when I had finished I felt calmer and kind of proud."

Scooby Doo Where Are You?

"I chose this book because it is funny. It has been my favourite book since my fourth birthday. I liked reading it to the class and felt happy to share it. I think the author wrote it to entertain people. It is a comic book so the pictures are very important. You can tell what the book is about just by looking at the pictures. The artist is good at making them look funny."
By Oliver

Pete the Cat

In class we have been bringing in our favourite picture books to share. We started doing this today! Hana was the first child to share her book. We will post pictures and their reflections when they share.

"This is my favourite picture book. I like it because it is linked to our previous UOI and our UOI that we have right now. It tells us how to calm down by seeing good in every day. The magic sunglasses changed peoples perspectives...this is one of our concepts in How We Express Ourselves. I felt proud when I read to the class because I was the first one to read."
By Hana

Unit Vocabulary

Today with Ms Tatiana, we reviewed some of our unit vocabulary. Understanding the language we are using will help children make more sense of what we are studying. We looked at pictures and tried to come up with our own synonyms to explain what they mean. Then we carefully matched the words and their definitions.

Puppetry

Today the form of art we looked at was Puppetry.

Puppetry is... the making and manipulation of puppets for use in some kind of theatrical show. A puppet is a figure—human, animal, or abstract in form—that is moved by human, and not mechanical, aid.



We had visiting performers come from the Sovanna Phum Art Association. They presented a one and a half hour show in the Black Box Theatre. It was a combination of small puppetry, storytelling, dance and traditional music. Wow! What a show! The children were really engaged by this traditional Khymer art form.

I have uploaded 3 short clips from todays performance. As part of your homework choose which is your favourite and explain why. What story do you think was being told? What art forms were being used?
                                                                           Example 1:

Example 2:

Example 3:

Not a Box

On Friday we had the early years team visit us to look at our 'not a box' creations. It was wonderful to see the younger children interact with us, asking questions and studying our own creations. What innovative learners we have in grade two! The related concept to out unit of inquiry was 'imagination'.

Sculpture

Every day this week, we will be focusing on a different art form. Children will look briefly at it's history, purpose, and specific examples designed to encourage their own perspective or viewpoint. The children have chosen the examples below because they identified with them in some way.

Today's art form was sculpture. We looked at the works of three important sculptors who use different medium to express themselves.
Sculpture is: 'the action or art of processing (as by carving, modelling, or welding) plastic or hard materials into works of art.' 

The works below (from top left, to bottom right) are by artists Barbara Hepworth (stone), Dale Chihuly (GLASS), Henry Moore (bronze, wood, stone).

As a comment write which is your favourite ad explain why. Make sure you include your name.