Hands On Hearts Full

11/07/2023

This term we read Katherine Rundell’s The Wolf Wilder together. This novel is set in early 1900’s Russia, and although it’s fiction, it touches on many real political and social issues during that time. This book got them really interested in what a ‘revolution’ is and how/why they might occur. By the end of this book, we had all become very invested in the characters and their lives! Here are some character posters we made, complete with descriptive adjectives and supporting quotes from the book.

27/06/2023

End of year testing can be so stressful for students and it always breaks my heart a little bit. As much as I try to bring positivity to the language we use about the tests, and although we work throughout the year build confidence and comfortability, I can see that panic reaction come up so clearly in them when it’s time for the exams. Something I’ve found really useful this time is to start the day of an exam with something mindful that also includes some movement, and if it can be outside the classroom, even better. I am loving this nature color-match activity becuase it ticks all those boxes, and kids always come in afterwards seeming really calm, relaxed and happy. No, it doesn’t make pretest jitters totally disappear, but it does seem to help to shrink them a bit!

31/05/2023

Our group of learners were having a hard time understanding what carbohydrates actually are and which foods we can find them in. Today we designed an experiment in which they chose 5 different foods to test for the presence of starch (a carbohydrate) by using iodine. A change in color from red/orange to blue/black indicated that starch was in that food! This was such a cool way to see their science skills, cooking skills, and collaboration skills in action!

25/05/2023

We had such an awesome day at Freezy Cow today! Right now, we’re learning about food groups and nutrition in Science and reviewing measuring and fractions in Maths. Learning about how this business makes their ice cream and yoghurt and getting to try making it ourselves was a super cool way to see these skills and knowledge in action! Plus we got to taste test like 5 different ice cream flavours so what’s not to like about that…

07/05/2023

Anyone else find that their students/children sometimes show a lot of resistance to writing?Writing can feel really daunting for a lot of kids. I’ve been experimenting with how to get my students super engaged with the topic of the writing before they asked to produce writing themselves. This week, I used what we are learning about in History (crime and punishment in Ancient Rome) to lead us to some awesome writing.

First, we used a flow chart and scenario cards to explore different crime and punishment situations. Then, students picked one to elaborate on and act out together. After that, they took the scene they created and turned it into a piece of writing. They both were so engaged and happily wrote almost two full pages. Not only did they have loads of fun and got more familiar with history content, but their writing was more descriptive and they were proud of what they produced. Super fun day!

21/04/2023

We’ve been learning about Persuasive Writing in English this week. We focused on posters and how thinking about the purpose, layout, audience and language we use can help us design the best poster possible. Students were asked to design a poster about a cause they care about...

They both chose to design a poster persuading people to join our school group! I told them I would be sure to share on here so it can reach a larger audience.

If you know anyone with a year 5/year 6 level child looking for an awesome, small group learning experience, feel free to reach out! We are all ready for you 😊

16/04/2023

Learning about film scripts and play scripts was such a blast. After studying some published scripts and comparing their features, students got to experiment with writing their own scenes and choosing what camera angles and shots worked best. I was so impressed with their creativity.

And I learned that these students are incredibly motivated by any sort of acting or performance activity! I will be sure to fit that into our learning as much as possible in Term 3.

16/12/2022

I can highly recommend The Coconut Museum for a fun, educational activity with kids. I took my Year 5 homeschool group there today and the students had a blast!

The owner is really kind and gives a great tour. He can tell you all about the history of coconuts and their uses on Samui.

Then, you can use all the parts of their coconuts to cook Thai desserts in the traditional way. Super fun and affordable.

08/12/2022

Every time I take the skills we are learning in class and ask students to use these skills during a hands-on, real life activity, I see engagement and motivation go up ten fold! And isn't that the real point of learning anyways?! To collect skills we can take with us into the real world!

Students used their instruction-reading skills and knowledge of command verbs to bake cupcakes. Then, they practiced writing clear and concise instructions for their classmates on how to decorate these cupcakes.

Fun and messy and educational; what more can you ask for! 🧁

23/10/2022

One incredible thing about private, small group schooling is that we are able to take the skills we practice in the classroom out into the real world as often as possible! This week, the students used their Math skills to calculate the costs of a trip to Organic Farm & Cafe, as well as create the entire schedule for our day. In English, we've been learning about formal and informal language and studying interviews. The students did an amazing job writing their own trip proposals and permission slips, as well as conducting interviews with the manager of the farm after our tour. They were so engaged with every step of planning and carrying out this trip that it made it so enjoyable for everyone involved! ✨

17/10/2022

https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/09/study-shows-that-students-learn-more-when-taking-part-in-classrooms-that-employ-active-learning-strategies/

Such an interested article on active learning and how it is perceived by students. I am an active learning advocate all the way; it's been proven again and again that the more students participate in their learning, the deeper the learning becomes. However, being active in learning is hard work! This can be a tough transition for students to make if they are used to a lecture-style learning class.

I think it's super important to communicate learning styles to students, talk about your expectations, and support and encourage them whenever they show the initiative to participate in their learning.

What do you think?

A new Harvard study shows that, though students felt like they learned more from traditional lectures, they actually learned more when taking part in active-learning classrooms.

17/10/2022

Hi everyone!
I hope this page can be a space for parents and teachers to connect, share, and support each other for all things education! As a teacher, my passions lie with creating engaging core subject lessons (English, Math, Science) with as many links to real-life learning as possible. I'm also super interested in social and emotional learning, and how we can support our young learners in knowing and understanding themselves and others! You will see these interests of mine reflected in the materials I share and links I may post. I hope you join me in this journey of learning that we are all on together.

Much love,

Hands on Hearts Full