Saturday, February 6, 2010

10:30am Wonder Science

What is a Studio?

What is the Wonder Studio?

How is a studio different than a classroom?
How does the studio environment facilitate learning?
I believe that learning for the young child (and big kids too!) happens when he or she is in motion.
In creating a "studio" environment, my goal is to create an environment that invites the children to be in motion, explore, and investigate. In addition, I intend to create a place for adults to think about their child's "thinking".

A classroom might imply to some that the teacher is the director of the learning.
When I hear the word "studio", I think about all of the participants being the director of his/her own learning.
A place of research for all who go there.
New ideas are welcome and valued!
A place where we can question our children and ourselves. We can think about what good questions are. We can observe our children and wonder how we can challenge their ideas and see how their ideas sometimes challenge us.
In looking at the pictures on this blog, I ask that both the adults and children revisit the experiences and rethink what we might have said, done, explored, and investigated. We use the pictures as a memory to challenge our perspective on the child's (and adult's) experience.












Target Ball:
The children are invited to build towers, then knock them down with a ball.
The children are able to experiment with how their swing affects the path of the ball.
This game enables the child to construct an understanding of the correspondence among his/her actions, the actions of the ball, and the resulting action of the target.
p.81
-The Young Child as Scientist
Chaille and Britain
























"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire."

-William Butler Yeats

J. immediately points the flashlight at a peer's shirt in order to observe the result. I love how the light became a source of connection between the two of them. A fantastic idea and one worth exploring further with all the children!



He then goes on to explore what happens if he points the light at himself. Is he attempting to look inside of the flashlight or investigating what the light looks like in his eyes?


Looking inside of the flashlight provides the children with a new perspective. They can now further question what lies "inside" of machines and other objects.


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