Ms. Hartshorn’s Classroom News
April 15, 2010
Dear Families,
Here is some news from Mrs. Orr about writing and upcoming plans: We continue to read, paint, and write poems about types of weather. Last Wednesday we wrote poems about the cloud pictures we painted last week. We will be using similes in these poems. For example: Puffy clouds gallop like horses across the brilliant blue sky.
After vacation we will begin developing a collage story based upon a program by Beth Olshansky. This is such an engaging process for the children that I’d like to take the time to tell you a bit about it. Children will be creating special textured paint papers such as splatter paint, plastic wrap paint, and salt painting. As children dive into this irresistible invitation to explore with the paint, ideas about images are ignited by the color and texture. As soon as the first dabs of paint make their way onto the paper, their imaginations are set free. If ideas don’t come during the paint papermaking, the children do not experience inadequacy or pressure for they are completely engaged in the process of making the textured paint papers. Anxiety about artistic skill is also not an issue for the only requirement is that kids fill their papers with color and texture. They are free to delight in the pure exploration of color and texture. The images they discover in their textured paint papers come from what they know along with their rich imaginations. For example, the plastic wrap textured paint paper might remind students of frost on a window or ice crystals forming on a pond. Children are invited to practice free association when I hold up a textured paint paper and ask: “What does this paper remind you of?” Or “What do you see in this paper?” This allows the children to come up with a lot of interesting ideas to write about in a non-threatening engaging way. This is known as discovering images. Once they have the images in their mind, they are asked to weave a story about the images they have found in their paint papers. Children select paint papers with images and line them up in a row to talk through and develop their story lines. This visual story map gives children a concrete visual tool for “roughing out” a story line. As children place the textured paint papers in a row across the floor, they engage in a lengthy oral rehearsal process of their story. They are moving from visual thinking to verbal thinking. While these initial story lines are often sparse at first, they do provide a basic concrete visual framework from which to launch a story. With continued opportunities to rehearse and develop a story line, it is likely that a story will continue to evolve and gain details and elaboration. Once children rehearse their story orally while looking at the line of their paint papers, they will make a collage picture for each page of their story. They’ll cut these images out and make pictures to tell a story about the character. Almost everything in their picture will be made with their cut out paint papers. This is a process that author Eric Carle uses. For example, he uses paper to make the ground line, trees, mountains, birds, flowers, and other objects in his pictures. Selecting textured paint papers to use in building a collage picture requires the student to answer certain basic questions such as: What picture do I want the reader to see in this collage? What will the setting for this picture be? What time of day is it? If the picture depicts the outdoors, what is the weather like? What season is it? Within the image making process, the story actually takes shape through the act of cutting and pasting. Because pictures tell a story, the simplest choice of a piece of paper or minute adjustment of a shape on a page can stimulate a whole new train of thought. For example, gluing a ship onto the ocean so that it is horizontal gives the impression of smooth sailing. If by chance, the ship is accidentally tipped on the diagonal by the casual brushing of a hand, it suggests a very different story. Now the ship appears to be rocking out at sea, tossed by rough waves. At this point, the child has a choice as to whether to return the ship to its original position or go forward with this new vision of rough seas. This process is so dynamic that even so called mistakes in cutting tearing, or pasting shapes on the page can generate new ideas for the story. Each and every visual detail, whether planned or accidental, offers important information and presents the opportunity for expanded thinking. Once all collage pictures are made for the pages of the story, the child rehearses the story verbally again.
The next step in the image writing process is to match pictures with written words. Children write silver dollar describing words for elements in each collage picture. For example, children might write describing words for the weather, time of day, character, or place in the collage picture. Once describing words have been written, they are incorporated into written sentences that tell the story the child has been rehearsing since the beginning of this process. Then, the story is typed, bound, and possibly laminated into a treasured book. It is a long process, but well worth every step! The children and I will be very proud of their collage stories.
Visit to Moretown Public Library:
On Monday afternoon Polly Bentley shared many of the new books she has added to the Moretown Public Library. We even got to preview two of the books that will be on next year’s Red Clover list: Don’t Do Anything and a new version of Chicken Little that’s quite funny. We loved them both!
Slim Goodbody Visits Moretown School: Last week a presentation by Slim Goodbody also emphasized eating healthy foods and exercising. Another main point was that calories going in should balance calories going out. This presentation was scheduled by Mrs. Brown with wellness grant money she was able to secure for Moretown School. The school-wide assembly with Slim Goodbody supports the ongoing nutrition lessons that have been happening this year with Mrs. Brown in first and second grade. Thank you to Mrs. Brown!
More Visitors to Moretown School: This week we had the privilege of having some feathered visitors visit our school—raptors from Vermont Institute for Natural Science (VINS). I’m sure your child has told you all about the three birds we got to see up close and personal: Great Horned Owl, Barred Owl, and Turkey Vulture. We learned what these birds have in common so that they are all members of the Raptor family—strong beak for killing and tearing prey, eat meat, and have long pointy strong talons (except for the Turkey Vulture, since it survives on dead animals and has no need to grab and carry away live prey. Quite facinating!
The final upcoming Four Winds topics supporting year-long ecosystem theme are Stream Studies and Forest Birds. These dates are scheduled for and we will be investigating OUTSIDE on these days!
I need your help during pick up times after school. With the return of the nice weather, we will end our day on the playground before buses arrive. PLEASE make sure you check in with me to tell me that you’re leaving with your child. It could happen that a child is no longer on the playground, but has safely left with you. You might think I saw you, but I may not have realized that you were picking up your child if I hadn’t received a note.
Here is a blog address for my classroom newsletters: moretownschool.hartshorn@blogger.com
Dates to Remember:
April 19th: First day of school vacation
April 26th First day back to school after spring vacation J
May 17th: Primary Unit Field Trip to ECHO Museum in Burlington (all day
field trip and your child will need a snack, cold
lunch and drink in non-breakable container)
That’s it for this week. Hope you and your child enjoy the upcoming Spring vacation.
Peace~
Brenda
