Nadirchat

The Next Step Let's discuss the "So What" It is here that teacher's must think deeply about "what" will make the topic choice a rich and meaningful project. So many ideas float around in a day and its impossible to pursue them all. We must look for ones that will leave the children enriched. We look at what we hope the children will gain on the journey. If we can validate the choice then the topic is worth exploring. That is the so what.  Like the children, each time we encounter a topic we expand our knowledge base. The So What of the community project In order to thrive everyone must feel connected to other people.  Communities are part of life. More that just a place to live it is a place of people, voices, shared space, rituals and customs. Coming form the Latin term  meaning "with gifts" the term suggests a general sense of humanity, reciprocity and a shared practice of doing good for others that comes from working together for a joint purpose...

Over the course of the last few months, I've received many emails asking me to post the evolution of a class project. I'm sharing this one in hopes that it helps those who are struggling with finding their path. I must stress that this is only our way of working and it should be used as a guideline if it fits your practice. Most school years, project topics present themselves quite readily. However this year, there hasn't been much buzz about one particular area of interest. There are many smaller experiences floating about as well as our work on the changes in the season and all that it presents. We decided that a provocation was needed so we decided to see if we could somehow expand our inquiry into what makes each of us unique. The children had already made their portraits and addressed what makes them special.  We considered the possibility of inviting the children to consider how each of them fit into their community. Communities are made up of individuals all working ...