Archaeology Simulation

Our second archeological simulation was around the dig process itself and its many challenges. Fifty pennies were scattered in one area of the outdoor classroom for kids to find. They were not buried per se, but their copper coloring blended perfectly into the mulch so you had to be looking carefully. Also, too much activity would actually bury the pennies further as kids kicked up mulch to cover what was previously sitting on top of the mulch. This was a fun exercise and an educational one too - we only found twenty of the pennies! There are many more still out there and many of our young archaeologists are planning to continue the search...

Maybe a future Lilja student will find them 100 years from now. Will they recognize a penny by then?

Archaeology 101

The 1-2s have been learning what archeologists do (and what makes them different from paleontologists). Our first practice was to "excavate" a trash can. The students knew it was from a room in the school but not which room. Mrs. M. carefully pulled each artifact from the trash can. At first, it was tough to tell from the evidence where exactly the trash can might have come from. An empty seltzer can and an empty staples box led us to believe it might be from the teacher's room. When a used band-aid was brought out, kids' thinking turned to Nurse Naser's office. Further inspection revealed a used tea bag and an empty yogurt container which seemed to point to a classroom. A final definitive clue - a post-it with the words "My Town Forest Group" followed by the names of some kids from 1-2A made our archeologists confident that this trash can had come from Mrs. A.'s classroom! This exercise helped the kids to see what tricky work archeology can be - how hard it is to learn about ancient civilizations when we only have things that were left behind. 

Our archaeological work has continued with examining artifacts and photographs of items found in an actual dig - that of Olynthus, Greece. We looked at a floorplan from a Greek house called The Villa of Good Fortune and saw photographs of the actual dig site. The students are very excited to see what we will learn about life in Ancient Greece.

Ask your child what was found in the Andron (men's socializing rooms) and the kitchen. 

Wet and Wild Forest Walk!

Spring has nearly sprung - as evidenced by our waterlogged walk today! The snowmelt made for extra wet conditions that sparked a lot of joy and fun among the 1-2 kids. From playing "Pooh Sticks" to finding mossy fairy grottos to mini waterfalls, there was much we found delight in! The sensory experience of water - particularly after our cold and frozen winter weather, was very welcome to our students. You will likely have your 1-2 child coming home with wet clothes ranging from boots and socks to pants and shirts. All were happy to have dry things to change into and we are already hearing requests from the kids to visit these areas again next time!

Other signs of an imminent spring include the sprouting of skunk cabbage by the streams (at this stage, it looks like green, red or purple dragon toes!), bird nests, green moss, fungus and we even heard there was a snake sighting! We also had a lucky visit from a handsome male cardinal who we could hear for much of our walk though he eluded us until it was nearly time to go. 

Check out the pictures below. We can't to see what's waiting in the woods next month!

Snow Challenge!

This week we made the most of the snow we have to do a STEM challenge. 

House Table groups were tasked with building the largest snow structure they could construct. Many different approaches were attempted. Some groups went for height by packing snow in a tall, narrow tower - these presented challenges as the height increased due to a lack of foundation stability and most teetered down to the side. Other groups amassed large amounts of packed snow by rolling snowballs which presented their own challenges due to the size and weight of the snowball when it came time to stack it on. Some of our budding engineers used long, slim sticks to attach their larger chunks of snow so that they would be less likely to waver as the tower got higher. This approach had some mixed results. The snowball strategy proved the most steady for structures, particularly when smaller bits of snow were packed into the crevices to solidify the structure. Our tallest structure was 77 inches tall! 

In the discussion afterwards, kids reflected and shared their thoughts on what made for effective collaboration and cooperation as well as what problems arose. They identified team communication as important to the success of the group in this endeavor so that each group member could effectively accomplish their part in the construction. Listening was another necessary tactic as there needed to be agreement on one plan around which their efforts could be consolidated. Finally, each member taking responsibility for their job in the project helped the whole group to be successful. 

A lot of fun took place as well as a lot of interpersonal skills learning. Enjoy the pictures below!