Mirror of Erised

We have reached the part of Harry Potter where Harry gets a chance to look into the magical Mirror of Erised ("desire" spelled backwards) which shows the viewer their heart's desire. For Harry Potter, the reflection showed his parents and extended family whom he had never met. For his friend Ron Weasley, the mirror showed him outshining all of his older brothers by being Head Boy and Quidditch Captain. 

We asked the kids what they think they would see if they were to look into the Mirror of Erised. Some, like Harry, said they would see loved ones or beloved pets who had passed while others, like Ron, saw themselves as champion athletes, world rulers, superheroes, famous celebrities, or gold-medal Olympians. In addition to writing about their heart's desire, students drew the reflection they hoped they would see on special sparkly magical paper and then drew a fancy frame for their mirror. 

Check out the images below and ask you child to tell you about what they think they would see in the mirror! 

A Swarm of Artwork!

This week brought the final acts of our insect study. Our Town Forest insect walk  today was the culminating activity. Kids have learned a lot about this fascinating animal group. The key points we hope they take away are that all insects have three body parts (head, thorax, abdomen), six legs (that come out from the thorax), two antennae, an exoskeleton (hard shell on the outside), and sometimes wings (one or two pairs). 

Part of our learning has also touched on insects being, by far, the most populous animal group and that there are still new insects out there waiting to be discovered. We asked the kids to create their own insect inspired by features and parts from other admired creatures to develop their very own new species. They had to ensure that the insects they designed had six legs, two antennae, and three body parts but they could also have other interesting adaptations such as wings, stingers, pincers, burning acidic liquid (like the bombardier beetle), scorpion type tails, fangs and more. 

Check out the fascinating "new insect" artwork below. Our art teacher was very impressed with the size and beauty of these paintings.  Ask you child to tell you about theirs!