29/09/2008 (Monday)
a) Singing and movement
l They took their plastic bags and flew like aeroplanes.
l They sang the song as to reinforce on the second paragraph.
l They were divided into 2 groups. The girls and boys. The girls sang better than the boys while the boys were more active and creative at flying.
b) Propeller Seed
l Yun Zhe and Yun Wen picked some “seeds” that looked like helicopter propeller. As we were unsure of the name, we call it as the “Propeller Seed”.
l We went out to the garden to fall it from a higher point. It looked the the spinning propeller.
l The kids recalled how Doraemon flew with the Propeller on its head.
l They decided to make a “Propeller Hat”. That would be our coming activity.
l In the classroom, the kids elarnt that some seeds are big and could not fly in the wind. Example: durian seeds.
c) Different Ways of Flying.
l The kids shared about their homework. They had to help the tortoise fly from Mountain “A” to Mountain “B”. Finally, we had 22 different methods.
l Yun Zhe: Use the hairdryer to blow the tortoise in a plastic bag. (like a hot air balloon). He also drew a dolphin that can dive fast and swim fast. He also suggested “flying fish”.
l Eugene said the flying aeroplane. He also drew a flying carpet.
l Le Xin drew a bird.
l Jin Nan drew a flying Propeller as the experiment we did in the morning.
l Wen Yue drew a flying hero.
l Other methods included: flying fish, parachute (Justin), balloons (Jin Shan), rocket and wings pasted to the tortoise body.
Our Pomegranate friends！
Monday, September 29, 2008
The Moon and Spaceship
30/09/2008 (Tuesday)
a) The Spaceship Rocket
l Justin shared with the class his 3-D assembled model. He said that the other 2 missile shuttles will fall after the launching of the Spaceship Rocket.
l Asking why, the kids said that it would be lighter and the rocket could speed faster in the air.
l How does it fly? Wind factor?
l They said it relied on engine and the fuel.
l In the afternoon, we watched the countdown of the latest Chinese Rocket launching.
b) Discussion: Possible future
T : Why do we need to fly into the space?
Class: To check if there are aliens.
T : Also to search for the possible resources.
T : Do you think there are traffic jams everywhere. Wouldn’t you like traveling in the space with no jams?
Class : Haaa……impossible. It will not happen teacher.
T : Would you like to visit your favourite Planets….or Chang Er as claimed to be in the moon?
Class : No, we will not travel in the space.
l Nevertheless, the kids enjoyed the game of boarding into our Hot Air Balloon Toy. We used the umbrella as the Hot Air balloon. A Huge Umbrella!!
l So, we flew to the space. We hopped at the moon. W floated there like astronauts.
c) The Moon Motion
l The Moon was the first planet that astronauts ever landed on.
l They could find only sand and rocks.
l However, the Moon motion is really interesting as it tells us about the Earth and Moon’s rotation.
l We used Zi Jun’s “The Moon’ book to guide us through.
l Then, we compared some of the kids’ homework of “The Moon” which they drew throughout that one week of “Lantern Festival”. Amongst, we analysed Jin Nan, Zi Jun, Eugenen and Song Chuan’s book.
d) The Moon Motion Flip cards.
* Smilar to the old days, this is the way cartoons are made.
* The kids were given 16 picture of motions. Then they cut them carefully and arranged in ascending. They were independent. Le Xin and Jian Wei needed little guidance.
* They were happy to own their cartoon flip cards…haaaa!
a) The Spaceship Rocket
l Justin shared with the class his 3-D assembled model. He said that the other 2 missile shuttles will fall after the launching of the Spaceship Rocket.
l Asking why, the kids said that it would be lighter and the rocket could speed faster in the air.
l How does it fly? Wind factor?
l They said it relied on engine and the fuel.
l In the afternoon, we watched the countdown of the latest Chinese Rocket launching.
b) Discussion: Possible future
T : Why do we need to fly into the space?
Class: To check if there are aliens.
T : Also to search for the possible resources.
T : Do you think there are traffic jams everywhere. Wouldn’t you like traveling in the space with no jams?
Class : Haaa……impossible. It will not happen teacher.
T : Would you like to visit your favourite Planets….or Chang Er as claimed to be in the moon?
Class : No, we will not travel in the space.
l Nevertheless, the kids enjoyed the game of boarding into our Hot Air Balloon Toy. We used the umbrella as the Hot Air balloon. A Huge Umbrella!!
l So, we flew to the space. We hopped at the moon. W floated there like astronauts.
c) The Moon Motion
l The Moon was the first planet that astronauts ever landed on.
l They could find only sand and rocks.
l However, the Moon motion is really interesting as it tells us about the Earth and Moon’s rotation.
l We used Zi Jun’s “The Moon’ book to guide us through.
l Then, we compared some of the kids’ homework of “The Moon” which they drew throughout that one week of “Lantern Festival”. Amongst, we analysed Jin Nan, Zi Jun, Eugenen and Song Chuan’s book.
d) The Moon Motion Flip cards.
* Smilar to the old days, this is the way cartoons are made.
* The kids were given 16 picture of motions. Then they cut them carefully and arranged in ascending. They were independent. Le Xin and Jian Wei needed little guidance.
* They were happy to own their cartoon flip cards…haaaa!
The Spinning Propeller
29/09/2008 (Monday)
a) Singing and movement
l They took their plastic bags and flew like aeroplanes.
l They sang the song as to reinforce on the second paragraph.
l They were divided into 2 groups. The girls and boys. The girls sang better than the boys while the boys were more active and creative at flying.
b) Propeller Seed
l Yun Zhe and Yun Wen picked some “seeds” that looked like helicopter propeller. As we were unsure of the name, we call it as the “Propeller Seed”.
l We went out to the garden to fall it from a higher point. It looked the the spinning propeller.
l The kids recalled how Doraemon flew with the Propeller on its head.
l They decided to make a “Propeller Hat”. That would be our coming activity.
l In the classroom, the kids elarnt that some seeds are big and could not fly in the wind. Example: durian seeds.
c) Different Ways of Flying.
l The kids shared about their homework. They had to help the tortoise fly from Mountain “A” to Mountain “B”. Finally, we had 22 different methods.
l Yun Zhe: Use the hairdryer to blow the tortoise in a plastic bag. (like a hot air balloon). He also drew a dolphin that can dive fast and swim fast. He also suggested “flying fish”.
l Eugene said the flying aeroplane. He also drew a flying carpet.
l Le Xin drew a bird.
l Jin Nan drew a flying Propeller as the experiment we did in the morning.
l Wen Yue drew a flying hero.
l Other methods included: flying fish, parachute (Justin), balloons (Jin Shan), rocket and wings pasted to the tortoise body.
a) Singing and movement
l They took their plastic bags and flew like aeroplanes.
l They sang the song as to reinforce on the second paragraph.
l They were divided into 2 groups. The girls and boys. The girls sang better than the boys while the boys were more active and creative at flying.
b) Propeller Seed
l Yun Zhe and Yun Wen picked some “seeds” that looked like helicopter propeller. As we were unsure of the name, we call it as the “Propeller Seed”.
l We went out to the garden to fall it from a higher point. It looked the the spinning propeller.
l The kids recalled how Doraemon flew with the Propeller on its head.
l They decided to make a “Propeller Hat”. That would be our coming activity.
l In the classroom, the kids elarnt that some seeds are big and could not fly in the wind. Example: durian seeds.
c) Different Ways of Flying.
l The kids shared about their homework. They had to help the tortoise fly from Mountain “A” to Mountain “B”. Finally, we had 22 different methods.
l Yun Zhe: Use the hairdryer to blow the tortoise in a plastic bag. (like a hot air balloon). He also drew a dolphin that can dive fast and swim fast. He also suggested “flying fish”.
l Eugene said the flying aeroplane. He also drew a flying carpet.
l Le Xin drew a bird.
l Jin Nan drew a flying Propeller as the experiment we did in the morning.
l Wen Yue drew a flying hero.
l Other methods included: flying fish, parachute (Justin), balloons (Jin Shan), rocket and wings pasted to the tortoise body.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
A respectable guest
25/09/2008 (Thursday)
a) Song Reinforcement: Airplane
* We read through the words.Questions were asked to check their understanding. They sang the song with movements.
* We had 2 mountains and a cloud in the classroom. The kids flew around while singing and were very careful not to hit anything! They loved it!
b) A guest
* They attended Jin Nan's grandmother's little sharing, She,Teacher Xie taught the 2 5-year-old classesto do some simple but very good Tai Chi techniques.
* Most kids could do very well......great observation and motor skills.
* About 15 minutes later,somecomplaint of tired legs. They sat for a while. Others continuedpersistently.
* Next,Teacher Xie introducedChinese Calligraphy. Thekids learnt the correct way ofholding the brush and the proper Chinese strokes.
* They also saw how Teacher Xie painted somebeautiful pictures.
c) Audience of traditional “ Shadow puppet”
* The kids watched their friends from the other 5-*year-old class performed short stories. They were happy and excited.
* An inspiration for another drama....perhaps.
* We thankedTeacher Xie for her valuable time.
Experiment 3: Hot Air Balloon
24/09/2008 (Wednesday)
a) Home items.
* WY was excited to show his Ben Ten round wheel which has little films. He shared with the class saying that one needs the watch to operate. So everyone took turns looking at it.
* YZ and YW brought some aeroplane toys. So the kids guessed the different functions and names. This was just a brief introduction. The teachers would go into more details about it. They were very excited to touch and play with them.
b) We continued with the second version.
First version
Well, I'm a little airplane nyow,
I'm a little airplane nyow nyow,
I'm a little airplane nyow,
I'm a little airplane nyow nyow,
And wangity-wang wangity-wang.
Second version
I'm a little airplane now,
I fly in the dark, over baseball park,
Well, I fly late at night,
I got my little red light,
And wangity-wang wangity-wang .
c) Video Clips
(1) Song: I’m a Little Airplane
They laughed at the ticklish music tune (it sounded like Beatles……haaaa!). The second round, they laughed at the kids’ movement on video clip. The third and fourth round, we sang together wit the clip……..Parents, get your kid to sing for you .
(2) Video clip: Making a hot air balloon
We talked about our unsuccessful Hot Air Balloon. The kids summarized that the plastic bag was too big. Yun Zhe said we need a long time to do this experiment. So, I thought this video clip would help everyone……which it did!!
The kids saw the steps and related to our yesterday’s experiment.
d) Experiment 3: Hot Air Balloon
We arranged for the things needed. Garbage plastic bag,candles, 2 bamboo sticks,matches cellophane.
We took turns to construct it. YZ said we had to hurry as it takes along time for the plastic bag to inflate.
We lit the candles. Surprisingly, it bloated up and could stand by itself. It was almost ready when one candle went off. Then,it became slower. However, we still hopedfor a miracle. However, it was accidentally touched by someone and the plastic bag got melted. The hole would not keep the air hot. At the same time,the plastic bag looked too thin to be used. We had to think of alternatives. Some kids were very curious!
a) Home items.
* WY was excited to show his Ben Ten round wheel which has little films. He shared with the class saying that one needs the watch to operate. So everyone took turns looking at it.
* YZ and YW brought some aeroplane toys. So the kids guessed the different functions and names. This was just a brief introduction. The teachers would go into more details about it. They were very excited to touch and play with them.
b) We continued with the second version.
First version
Well, I'm a little airplane nyow,
I'm a little airplane nyow nyow,
I'm a little airplane nyow,
I'm a little airplane nyow nyow,
And wangity-wang wangity-wang.
Second version
I'm a little airplane now,
I fly in the dark, over baseball park,
Well, I fly late at night,
I got my little red light,
And wangity-wang wangity-wang .
c) Video Clips
(1) Song: I’m a Little Airplane
They laughed at the ticklish music tune (it sounded like Beatles……haaaa!). The second round, they laughed at the kids’ movement on video clip. The third and fourth round, we sang together wit the clip……..Parents, get your kid to sing for you .
(2) Video clip: Making a hot air balloon
We talked about our unsuccessful Hot Air Balloon. The kids summarized that the plastic bag was too big. Yun Zhe said we need a long time to do this experiment. So, I thought this video clip would help everyone……which it did!!
The kids saw the steps and related to our yesterday’s experiment.
d) Experiment 3: Hot Air Balloon
We arranged for the things needed. Garbage plastic bag,candles, 2 bamboo sticks,matches cellophane.
We took turns to construct it. YZ said we had to hurry as it takes along time for the plastic bag to inflate.
We lit the candles. Surprisingly, it bloated up and could stand by itself. It was almost ready when one candle went off. Then,it became slower. However, we still hopedfor a miracle. However, it was accidentally touched by someone and the plastic bag got melted. The hole would not keep the air hot. At the same time,the plastic bag looked too thin to be used. We had to think of alternatives. Some kids were very curious!
Monday, September 22, 2008
Hot Air Balloon: Experiment 2
22/09/2008 (Monday)
a) The balloon shrunk!
Yes......! That balloon shrunk.......its actual size was as big as the tamborine which we measured that day. Ze Yan immediately took the tamborine for me to re-measure.
JS : Why......?
Only Ze Yan said because there was a hole below and the air got out from there.
Everyone tried feeling the wind from that part but untrue. It was just the tying knot of a balloon.
T : Why do you sweat after playing at the playground? Where did the sweat come from?
Eugene : The water we drink.
T : Good.......because everyone has millions of tiny pores or holes on our skin.
The kids learnt that balloons have tiny holes too. No wonder, it got shrunk!
b) Poem
We recited the poem again for reinforcement.
This time, we held hands together forming a circle. We pretended being a hot air balloon. Initially, we were very small. Then we inflated and became really big!
We recited the poem while doing body movements.
Down Below
Each tree looks as small,
as a weed in the grass,
down below, down below.
Each river is just
like a silver of glass,
down below, down below.
Each cow in the field
seems as small as a bee,
down below, down below.
c) Jin Shan's birthday and young helpers!
* We wished him “Happy Birthday” and sang him birthday songs of 3 languages....haaa! He was
shy. Anyway, thank you Mrs. Chan for the lovely party packs...the kids were so excited!
* Yun Zhe and Wen Yue were absent last Friday. Thus, I asked the kids to explain about our experiment on last Friday.
* Eugene, Zi Yang, Ze Yan and Jin Nan were the main helpers.
We heat up air because hot air is lighter and that is why a hot air balloon can fly.
d) Hot Air Balloon: Second Try
We recalled on the necessary tools for the experiment. Today, our extra tool is a hair dryer from Eugene. So, altogether we had 2 hair dryers. I was really glad because the kids held to their words remembering what they promised to bring......especially at the weekends! Thank you parents!
I blew up the plastic bag with 1 hair dryer so that the kids could recall their memories.
This time, the kids took turn to hold the plastic bag vertically. They took turns to stand on the chair. I handled the hair dryer. Yes........it was better. We could see the bag collecting more hot air. As we let go the plastic bag together, it could only fly a little.
Eugene: Teacher, use 2 hair dryers.
So, I got Song Chuan to help me with the less powerful hair dryer while I handle the other one. Together, we blew hot air into the plastic bag.
Wow.......! It was really inflating! We flew it but it landed on the fan. The kids laughed like thunders!
T : Kids, why can't the balloon fly up smoothly. If it flies smoothly, it will not land on the fan!
I suggested the kids to narrow the mouth of the plastic bag.
We worked together to cut a cardboard. We rolled it to form a circle. Then, we pasted it to the plastic bag mouth.
Then, we tried with 2 hair dryers. Yes........much better. It flew higher and smoother.
e) Analysing and Recording
T : Why can't this plastic bag fly as high as a real hot air balloon?
Class : You must have fire inside.
T : Do you think it's clever to place a hair dryer in the basket below hot air balloon?
Song Chuan: Too heavy.
T : Le Xin brought some candles for us. Shall we try out with candles?
Class : Yes!!
* However, we would do this tomorrow. The kids had to jot down their observation in their little green notebook. It was interesting seeing them drawing hair dryers. They are really good artists!
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Experiment: Hot Air balloon
19/09/2008 (Friday)
a) Which is stronger?
* The wind or the sun?
JN, LX, J : The wind.
Others : The sun.
JN : It makes us feel cold……..like today.
ZYg : The hot sun will make us feel very hot…… and dark too!
* We read a story about “The Sun and The Wind”.
* These two good friends decided to play and see who is stronger.
* They experimented a man.
* The wind blew with all its might…..and the man was chilling and shivering.
* When it was the sun’s turn, the man had to fold his sleeves and took off his jacket. The sun used all his might and finally the man had to jumped into a river for a bath.
T : So, for hot air balloon, which do we need……..hot air or only wind?
Class: hot air.
* They learnt that a slight blow of wind would help to smoothen the hot air balloon’s flight. Stong wind will be dangerous for it.
b) Poem: The Wind
I can’t see you Mr. Wind,
But I know you are there,
You are bending the trees,
And blowing my hair.
* We recited and had various body movements. At this stage, the kids could understand without Chinese translation.
c) ZY’s encyclopedia
* LX brought a medium-sized hot air balloon lantern to school similar to mine. She was very excited about it. They have 4 threads connecting the balloon to the basket.
* However, actual balloon requires different number of ropes to connect its parts.
* They learnt that the hot air will make the balloon float. When they want to go higher, they increase the burner’s flame. To board down, the pilot can pull a rope to open the top part of the balloon to discharge some hot air. Otherwise, he can reduce the flame. With this knowledge, we started our experiment.
d) Experiment: hot air balloon
* materials needed: plastic bag, some threads, cellophanetape, a hairdryer.
* We wanted to do at the garden but withdrew due to the wet weather.
* Kids were divided to 3 groups.
* they tied the 4 threads onto the open part of the plastic bag. Thus, it would be easier for them to hold onto the flying plastic bag later.
* Next, I switched on the hairdryer and blew them. They were in joy to fell the blowing hot air.
* I blew the cool air in the plastic bag. The plastic bloated and just floated and was really messy.
*Max suggested we use a basket to hold the plastic bag. Thus the threads were tied to the basket.
* This time, it bloated more nicely. We were not satisfied.
* We looked at our hot air balloon lantern sample. There is a hole thus it definitely can’t fly. Zy said we closed the hole.
* We used some plastic to cover the hole.
* It flew a little bit only…….Why?
JN : Too heavy.
EG : We should use more hairdryers.
T : Okay, only Le Xin brought a hairdryer. Next week, we will try again with more
hairdryers.
* The class agreed.
a) Which is stronger?
* The wind or the sun?
JN, LX, J : The wind.
Others : The sun.
JN : It makes us feel cold……..like today.
ZYg : The hot sun will make us feel very hot…… and dark too!
* We read a story about “The Sun and The Wind”.
* These two good friends decided to play and see who is stronger.
* They experimented a man.
* The wind blew with all its might…..and the man was chilling and shivering.
* When it was the sun’s turn, the man had to fold his sleeves and took off his jacket. The sun used all his might and finally the man had to jumped into a river for a bath.
T : So, for hot air balloon, which do we need……..hot air or only wind?
Class: hot air.
* They learnt that a slight blow of wind would help to smoothen the hot air balloon’s flight. Stong wind will be dangerous for it.
b) Poem: The Wind
I can’t see you Mr. Wind,
But I know you are there,
You are bending the trees,
And blowing my hair.
* We recited and had various body movements. At this stage, the kids could understand without Chinese translation.
c) ZY’s encyclopedia
* LX brought a medium-sized hot air balloon lantern to school similar to mine. She was very excited about it. They have 4 threads connecting the balloon to the basket.
* However, actual balloon requires different number of ropes to connect its parts.
* They learnt that the hot air will make the balloon float. When they want to go higher, they increase the burner’s flame. To board down, the pilot can pull a rope to open the top part of the balloon to discharge some hot air. Otherwise, he can reduce the flame. With this knowledge, we started our experiment.
d) Experiment: hot air balloon
* materials needed: plastic bag, some threads, cellophanetape, a hairdryer.
* We wanted to do at the garden but withdrew due to the wet weather.
* Kids were divided to 3 groups.
* they tied the 4 threads onto the open part of the plastic bag. Thus, it would be easier for them to hold onto the flying plastic bag later.
* Next, I switched on the hairdryer and blew them. They were in joy to fell the blowing hot air.
* I blew the cool air in the plastic bag. The plastic bloated and just floated and was really messy.
*Max suggested we use a basket to hold the plastic bag. Thus the threads were tied to the basket.
* This time, it bloated more nicely. We were not satisfied.
* We looked at our hot air balloon lantern sample. There is a hole thus it definitely can’t fly. Zy said we closed the hole.
* We used some plastic to cover the hole.
* It flew a little bit only…….Why?
JN : Too heavy.
EG : We should use more hairdryers.
T : Okay, only Le Xin brought a hairdryer. Next week, we will try again with more
hairdryers.
* The class agreed.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
We flew a helicopter!
18/09/2008 (Thursday)
a) A shrunk balloon?
* The kids were happy to see the big silver balloon which was in the class since Monday.
* But hey……why has it been smaller?
* ZY said there’s a small hole which was supported by ZYg.
* I traced the balloon’s size on the board. We agreed to see if it would even be smaller tomorrow or next Monday. They have to figure the answer….”Why”???
b) A riddle
* Eg was smiling all the way because he was the one who brought this flying toy……thank you Mr. and Mrs. Gan.
* It can fly,
It has propellers,
It can carry a few people,
It is a transport,………What is it?
* Various answers: aeroplane, rocket, a flying motorbike, helicopter and even a flying Doraemon.
* They learnt propellers which act like wings of birds.
* It’s a helicopter.
c) A brief demonstration
* Eg briefed the class on how to play. He said we had to pull the thread fast as the spring function will force the helicopter to fly above.
* We tried a few times and finally caught hold of the momentum. The kids queued up to try it out.
Analyzing session
* Scientists always analysed and asked questions.
T : Why do we need to fly?
JN : They want to see the moon.
ZY : To see the space.
ZYg : To go places.
T : Can you recall how can machines fly?
Class : fire, engine and wind.
JH : What about wings?
M : The aeroplane has false wings…..that can fly.
T : Do you think some wind is good for the machines.
Class: Yes……
T : What about strong wind?
Some said yes…..some NO……Obviously, machines can’t fly under strong wind condition.
d) Flying a helicopter
The kids waited patiently for their turn to fly Eugene's toy helicopter.
We flew at the garden. They had to hold it above their shoulders so as to fly higher.
The wind helped it to fly higher and longer. It was a challenge as the kids had to pull and let go the thread as fast as possible. JH was afraid but after encouragement, he finally tried.
e) Hot air balloon video clip.
The kids observed how the powerful burner or gas tube inflated the balloon. The hot air actually made it solid and stand. ZY and EG said that hot air is lighter. Then, the pilot and two helpers got into its basket.
JN asked what was the other girl doing outside. She would wait for the return of the balloon and helped pulling down the rope from the balloon.
f) The bloated plastic bag.
In the class, we did an experiment. We took a small cardboard and rooled it into a trianle shape. A plastic bag was pasted over it.
Next, we placed the plastic and cardboard over the kettle's spout / mouth. Then especially at its boiling peak time, the plastic bag started bloating.
We discussed other heaters to be used to heat the cool air.
JS : Go to the kitchen when aunty is cooking,
M : We can light many cigarettes.
ZY : Build a big fire.....
T : That is dangerous. Remember when JS burnt the spiral paper over the lighted candle......?
they laughed and were scared at the same time.
* We decided to use something lighter. The kids would try out with a hairdryer tomorrow. Let's see what happens tomorrow.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Analysing hot air
16/09/08 (Tuesday)
a) Poem: Down below.
* They analysed the hot air balloon lantern which I brought (as promised yesterday). It’s amusing that some even sniffed it…haaaa!
* As they recited the poem, they imagined that the hot air balloon lantern is the real one.
* Then, they had to explain the meaning.
Each tree looks as small
as a weed in the grass,
down below, down below.
Each river is just
Like a silver of glass,
Down below, down below.
Beneath my balloon,
I can swing, I can fly!
I can fly, see me fly!
b) Questions, questions, questions!
T : Can we fly?
Class : No!
T : Why can’t we fly?
ZY : We don’t have wings.
ZJ : We don’t have feathers.
JN : W are big and heavy.
Max : We don’t have fire.
T : Let’s jump. Why are falling down again?
ZYg : Because of gravity!
T : Why do we want to fly?
Class : To travel……to carry things.
T : Name the things that can fly.
M : balloons JS : rocket. J : jet. ZY : birds.
SC : insects. ZJ : bubbles. YZ : kite JN : fairy
WY : aeroplane JS : Ultraman JH : hot air balloon
* Then we analysed how each of these fly. Some use wind, some use fire while some use engine.
They chose to start the lesson with hot air balloon.
c) Storybook : The Montgolfiers’ brothers.
* The Wright brothers who earlier manufactured bicycles were the first flight inventor.
* However, the Montgolfiers’ brothers were the balloons inventors.
* Joseph first witnessed how his clothes hung above the burning fire were flying. The hot air would inflate a balloon. So, they made a big bag and inflated it using the burning fire. It flew into the sky. Later, people modified using gas. The hot air balloons were first invented to transport animals. Today, they could transport people. It could also be used in sports activities and entertainment.
d) Experiment and Analysing.
* Eugene and ZJ blew a balloon. Everyone bounced it. They then watched how I release the balloon. They laughed!
T : is air powerful?
Class : Yes!
T : Why hot air enables balloon to fly?
Class : quiet.
* We did an experiment. We use a lighted candle. Then, I cut a spiral paper. I placed the spiral paper above the candle. The children could see how the spiral paper turned around.
* They gave me a box. I cut a small hole and placed the candle in the box. This time, the fire was more focused at a spot. The kids were able to see how the spiral paper spun faster.
T : Be careful not to do this experiment alone. If need to, do with an adult.
* The kids took turn to hold the spiral paper above the fire. However, during JS’s turn, the paper caught fire. Of course, the kids panicked and I quickly tried putting out the little fire. They learnt that hot air is lighter and so it could fly!
T : Is hot air balloon dangerous?
M : Yes.
T : Sometimes when you don’t know how to handle it. What other energy sources can be sued besides candle?
SC : The kitchen cooking smoke.
ZY : Mosquito coil.
Max : Cigarette.
YW : A hair dryer.
T : Asked your parents on ideas to make a hot air balloon.
a) Poem: Down below.
* They analysed the hot air balloon lantern which I brought (as promised yesterday). It’s amusing that some even sniffed it…haaaa!
* As they recited the poem, they imagined that the hot air balloon lantern is the real one.
* Then, they had to explain the meaning.
Each tree looks as small
as a weed in the grass,
down below, down below.
Each river is just
Like a silver of glass,
Down below, down below.
Beneath my balloon,
I can swing, I can fly!
I can fly, see me fly!
b) Questions, questions, questions!
T : Can we fly?
Class : No!
T : Why can’t we fly?
ZY : We don’t have wings.
ZJ : We don’t have feathers.
JN : W are big and heavy.
Max : We don’t have fire.
T : Let’s jump. Why are falling down again?
ZYg : Because of gravity!
T : Why do we want to fly?
Class : To travel……to carry things.
T : Name the things that can fly.
M : balloons JS : rocket. J : jet. ZY : birds.
SC : insects. ZJ : bubbles. YZ : kite JN : fairy
WY : aeroplane JS : Ultraman JH : hot air balloon
* Then we analysed how each of these fly. Some use wind, some use fire while some use engine.
They chose to start the lesson with hot air balloon.
c) Storybook : The Montgolfiers’ brothers.
* The Wright brothers who earlier manufactured bicycles were the first flight inventor.
* However, the Montgolfiers’ brothers were the balloons inventors.
* Joseph first witnessed how his clothes hung above the burning fire were flying. The hot air would inflate a balloon. So, they made a big bag and inflated it using the burning fire. It flew into the sky. Later, people modified using gas. The hot air balloons were first invented to transport animals. Today, they could transport people. It could also be used in sports activities and entertainment.
d) Experiment and Analysing.
* Eugene and ZJ blew a balloon. Everyone bounced it. They then watched how I release the balloon. They laughed!
T : is air powerful?
Class : Yes!
T : Why hot air enables balloon to fly?
Class : quiet.
* We did an experiment. We use a lighted candle. Then, I cut a spiral paper. I placed the spiral paper above the candle. The children could see how the spiral paper turned around.
* They gave me a box. I cut a small hole and placed the candle in the box. This time, the fire was more focused at a spot. The kids were able to see how the spiral paper spun faster.
T : Be careful not to do this experiment alone. If need to, do with an adult.
* The kids took turn to hold the spiral paper above the fire. However, during JS’s turn, the paper caught fire. Of course, the kids panicked and I quickly tried putting out the little fire. They learnt that hot air is lighter and so it could fly!
T : Is hot air balloon dangerous?
M : Yes.
T : Sometimes when you don’t know how to handle it. What other energy sources can be sued besides candle?
SC : The kitchen cooking smoke.
ZY : Mosquito coil.
Max : Cigarette.
YW : A hair dryer.
T : Asked your parents on ideas to make a hot air balloon.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
A Moon Cake Baker
11/09/2008 (Thursday)
a)Decorating Moon cake box
* The kids learnt to make the soft wire flowers. They used the pencils to twine the wire and then tied knots before opening the petals.
* Next, they chose their favourite colouring sheets which were related to Chang Er’s story. Then, they cut and pasted to their plain boxes.
b)Making Snow skin Moon Cakes.
* Together with the other 5-year-old class, we made mooncake.
* Teacher Huang hosted while the teachers assisted her.
* Ingredients: Red Bean Paste or Tao Yong paste, icing and some cake powder.
* Mixed the icing, powder and water. Until it becomes a big dough.
* The kids queued up to take some and measured for 40gram. They learnt to read the
weighing scale.
* Then, they chose either paste to measure for 50gram.
* Then flattened the dough as to wrap the paste. Then, they queued up to put into the mould.
* Next, they searched for their plastic bag with their name on it. These were then put into the
refrigerator to be chilled.
* They were excited that they would put their self-made Moon Cake into their handmade box.
a)Decorating Moon cake box
* The kids learnt to make the soft wire flowers. They used the pencils to twine the wire and then tied knots before opening the petals.
* Next, they chose their favourite colouring sheets which were related to Chang Er’s story. Then, they cut and pasted to their plain boxes.
b)Making Snow skin Moon Cakes.
* Together with the other 5-year-old class, we made mooncake.
* Teacher Huang hosted while the teachers assisted her.
* Ingredients: Red Bean Paste or Tao Yong paste, icing and some cake powder.
* Mixed the icing, powder and water. Until it becomes a big dough.
* The kids queued up to take some and measured for 40gram. They learnt to read the
weighing scale.
* Then, they chose either paste to measure for 50gram.
* Then flattened the dough as to wrap the paste. Then, they queued up to put into the mould.
* Next, they searched for their plastic bag with their name on it. These were then put into the
refrigerator to be chilled.
* They were excited that they would put their self-made Moon Cake into their handmade box.
Making Moon Cake Boxes
10/09/2008 (Wednesday)
a) I can tell a story!
* Today’s story-teller was Jin Shan and also Zi Yang.
* Jin Shan shared the story of “The Hunter and The Bear”. It was about 2 supposedly good friends who went hunting rabbits. One was smaller size compared to the other one. Suddenly a bear appeared and the bigger friend left his friend alone by climbing the tree! The smaller sized man pretended to die by lying on the ground. The bear got tricked and left him alone. This story taught us to be truthful to our friends.
* Zi Yang shared his story of “Does a kangaroo have a mother?” Basically, the mother and baby kangaroos were afraid of some animals including lions, elephants and bears. Their friends included swans, sheep and also monkeys. The kds learnt the different animals’ names and their features.
b)Folding boxes.
* The kids wanted to have their own Moon Cake boxes to store their desserts. They analysed that the nicer the box, the more expensive will the moon cake be.
* They identified the rectangle shape. They learnt to cut it into a square. Then they folded into a triangle and then into another smaller triangle.
* They must fold it hard so that they could see the creased line easily.
* The challenging part was the final folding to tuck the sides. Basically, SC and JN were faster and more independent at doing this. They even assisted their friends.
a) I can tell a story!
* Today’s story-teller was Jin Shan and also Zi Yang.
* Jin Shan shared the story of “The Hunter and The Bear”. It was about 2 supposedly good friends who went hunting rabbits. One was smaller size compared to the other one. Suddenly a bear appeared and the bigger friend left his friend alone by climbing the tree! The smaller sized man pretended to die by lying on the ground. The bear got tricked and left him alone. This story taught us to be truthful to our friends.
* Zi Yang shared his story of “Does a kangaroo have a mother?” Basically, the mother and baby kangaroos were afraid of some animals including lions, elephants and bears. Their friends included swans, sheep and also monkeys. The kds learnt the different animals’ names and their features.
b)Folding boxes.
* The kids wanted to have their own Moon Cake boxes to store their desserts. They analysed that the nicer the box, the more expensive will the moon cake be.
* They identified the rectangle shape. They learnt to cut it into a square. Then they folded into a triangle and then into another smaller triangle.
* They must fold it hard so that they could see the creased line easily.
* The challenging part was the final folding to tuck the sides. Basically, SC and JN were faster and more independent at doing this. They even assisted their friends.
Monday, September 8, 2008
The Moon Festival
09/09/08 (Tuesday)
a)Poem: The Moon
* We recited the poem together, interpreting it.
“ I saw the moon
Full and bright
Through the trees
In the night
What a beautiful sight
That moon gave to me
Thank you My Love
My bright and beautiful moon”
EG : We can still see the moon in the daylight.
JN : The moon is very beautiful at night.
ZY : If no moon, we cannot see at night.
T : How do you think we can get to the moon?
All sorts of answers. Aeroplane, rocket, helicopter, sit on Pteranodon, sit on a big bird, tie yourself to many balloons, get Superman's help or even Ultraman.......interesting!
T : Whta's the shape of a moon?
Class : Circle.
T : Are you sure?
So, their homework is to track the moon's motion movement from today until this Sunday; the actual Moon Festival day.
b) Toy sharing.
YW and YZ brought some balloons to share with their friends. They said their mother bought those balloons from a Book Fair. Then, they learnt to make the various shapes together.
These included a motorcycle, a butterfly, a dragonfly and some flowers.
The kids took turns to hold to the balloons.
T : Why can some balloons fly while some cannot?
The kids had to find this out as they had earlier suggested that we could fly to the moon using balloons.
Next, Max shared his Ben Ten's toy. It had 3 coins in it which could spin and fly when shot. The kids then had a new idea saying that this too could fly them to the moon.
c)The Moon Festival
T : Why do we celebrate The Moon Festival?
Kids : Because we want to eat mooncakes.......No, we want to play with lanterns....
Zyg : No, because of the King.
ZY : Because of Chang Er.
* The class was very attentive. I guided them with pictures and they told me the story. As and when they got stuck, I came in to assist.
* They learnt how Hou Yi, the great archer shot down the 9 suns and got the Elixir Pill from the Emperor. Then, his beautiful wife, Chang Er swallowed it and flew to the moon when Hou Yi tried chasing her. She reached the moon and met the Jade Rabbit. They became good friends and until today, the Jade Rabbit is still tring to make the elixir pill so that it can help Chang Er to fly back to meet her husband, Hou Yi. Eventually, Hou Yi becmae the Sun God while Chang Er became the Moon Goddess. They will meet on every 15th day of the month. Their love is the greatest on the 8th month as it shines the brightest on that particular night.
c)Body movements.
We acted the possible movements of each character. As we performed, we said the lines using our imagination. The kids enjoyed this especially when using different vocal voice for different character!
Example:
Emperor: Hou Yi, shoot down the 9 suns!
Hou Yi : You swallowed my elixir pill. Come down here!
Chang Er: Dear Jade Rabbit, we must make the elixir pill.
a)Poem: The Moon
* We recited the poem together, interpreting it.
“ I saw the moon
Full and bright
Through the trees
In the night
What a beautiful sight
That moon gave to me
Thank you My Love
My bright and beautiful moon”
EG : We can still see the moon in the daylight.
JN : The moon is very beautiful at night.
ZY : If no moon, we cannot see at night.
T : How do you think we can get to the moon?
All sorts of answers. Aeroplane, rocket, helicopter, sit on Pteranodon, sit on a big bird, tie yourself to many balloons, get Superman's help or even Ultraman.......interesting!
T : Whta's the shape of a moon?
Class : Circle.
T : Are you sure?
So, their homework is to track the moon's motion movement from today until this Sunday; the actual Moon Festival day.
b) Toy sharing.
YW and YZ brought some balloons to share with their friends. They said their mother bought those balloons from a Book Fair. Then, they learnt to make the various shapes together.
These included a motorcycle, a butterfly, a dragonfly and some flowers.
The kids took turns to hold to the balloons.
T : Why can some balloons fly while some cannot?
The kids had to find this out as they had earlier suggested that we could fly to the moon using balloons.
Next, Max shared his Ben Ten's toy. It had 3 coins in it which could spin and fly when shot. The kids then had a new idea saying that this too could fly them to the moon.
c)The Moon Festival
T : Why do we celebrate The Moon Festival?
Kids : Because we want to eat mooncakes.......No, we want to play with lanterns....
Zyg : No, because of the King.
ZY : Because of Chang Er.
* The class was very attentive. I guided them with pictures and they told me the story. As and when they got stuck, I came in to assist.
* They learnt how Hou Yi, the great archer shot down the 9 suns and got the Elixir Pill from the Emperor. Then, his beautiful wife, Chang Er swallowed it and flew to the moon when Hou Yi tried chasing her. She reached the moon and met the Jade Rabbit. They became good friends and until today, the Jade Rabbit is still tring to make the elixir pill so that it can help Chang Er to fly back to meet her husband, Hou Yi. Eventually, Hou Yi becmae the Sun God while Chang Er became the Moon Goddess. They will meet on every 15th day of the month. Their love is the greatest on the 8th month as it shines the brightest on that particular night.
c)Body movements.
We acted the possible movements of each character. As we performed, we said the lines using our imagination. The kids enjoyed this especially when using different vocal voice for different character!
Example:
Emperor: Hou Yi, shoot down the 9 suns!
Hou Yi : You swallowed my elixir pill. Come down here!
Chang Er: Dear Jade Rabbit, we must make the elixir pill.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Our Indian Guest
Our Indian Guest
04092008 (Thursday)
a) Brainstorming questions
* We discussed about questions for Teacher Karen, our Hindu teacher. She was very happy to receive the Invitation Card yesterday.
* JN : Ask her about the different colour dots on the forehead.
* ZY : Ask her about their food. Do they use hands to eat.
* ZYg : Ask about her language.
b) Teacher Karen
* They were very happy to have her in the class. The kids asked her the questions.
TK : These dots are called “pottu”. Red pottus are for married people. Unmarried people put on black pottus. White pottus are for prayers.
JN : What is prayer?
TK : When you go to the kuil to pray. Look at this picture. You can see the Indian people married in the kuil.
ZY : How do you eat?
TK : Traditionally, we use hands. Our food including tose and roti canai.
ZJ : I can see roti canai at a restaurant.
TK : Put your hands and say “Vanakam”. It means, “Hello, how are you?” Nandri means “Thank
you”.
TJ : Some children like saying “Ampu ne neh”. Is that good?
TK : Oh, no! That is a very bad word. It means “bad” like…..”stupid”.
* The kids waited to be fed by Teacher Karen tose. They enjoyed it except JH who did not want.
c) Baking roti canai
* We talked over the ingredients to bake roti canai.
* Flour, water, salt, sugar, margarine, eggs.
* Each of them took turns to assist me. Cut the packet of flour, carry the bowls, pour the water, break the eggs, knead the dough.
* They enjoyed kneading the dough. They saw how the flour transformed into a big dough ball.
* They learnt that warm water can dissolve the salt and sugar better. Otherwise, the roti canai will turn into a roti pasir…they laughed…haaaaaa!
* We took about 30 minutes to knead the dough. We would be toasting them in the afternoon.
04092008 (Thursday)
a) Brainstorming questions
* We discussed about questions for Teacher Karen, our Hindu teacher. She was very happy to receive the Invitation Card yesterday.
* JN : Ask her about the different colour dots on the forehead.
* ZY : Ask her about their food. Do they use hands to eat.
* ZYg : Ask about her language.
b) Teacher Karen
* They were very happy to have her in the class. The kids asked her the questions.
TK : These dots are called “pottu”. Red pottus are for married people. Unmarried people put on black pottus. White pottus are for prayers.
JN : What is prayer?
TK : When you go to the kuil to pray. Look at this picture. You can see the Indian people married in the kuil.
ZY : How do you eat?
TK : Traditionally, we use hands. Our food including tose and roti canai.
ZJ : I can see roti canai at a restaurant.
TK : Put your hands and say “Vanakam”. It means, “Hello, how are you?” Nandri means “Thank
you”.
TJ : Some children like saying “Ampu ne neh”. Is that good?
TK : Oh, no! That is a very bad word. It means “bad” like…..”stupid”.
* The kids waited to be fed by Teacher Karen tose. They enjoyed it except JH who did not want.
c) Baking roti canai
* We talked over the ingredients to bake roti canai.
* Flour, water, salt, sugar, margarine, eggs.
* Each of them took turns to assist me. Cut the packet of flour, carry the bowls, pour the water, break the eggs, knead the dough.
* They enjoyed kneading the dough. They saw how the flour transformed into a big dough ball.
* They learnt that warm water can dissolve the salt and sugar better. Otherwise, the roti canai will turn into a roti pasir…they laughed…haaaaaa!
* We took about 30 minutes to knead the dough. We would be toasting them in the afternoon.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Merdeka and Hari Raya
02/09/2008 (Tuesday)
a) Sharing of Storybook
* Jn volunteered to tell her story: “the three silly Goats”. However, she was unable to start. So, I prompted her with questions and she found her confidence.
* The lesson she learnt was “We should not quarrel or fight. We will lose out. We should tolerate our friends.
b) Sharing of MERDEKA!
* Half of the class watched the MERDEKA countdown. They shared their experience.
JH : I watched TV8 on Merdeka.
ZY : I saw them performing the Hibiscus, red flower
JN : I saw the flags.
JS : There were many people.
ZYg : There were also aeroplanes and helicopters.
LX : I saw Datuk Lee waving at the King. He played at the Olympics.
JN : The king and Queen were wearing yellow suits.
c) English Reciting Poem
* My story: As I cycled down the seaside, I wanted to sketch a scenery. Suddenly I was attracted to a brown bird, butterfly and the dancing leaves
* We recited together.
* Next, the kids divided themselves into 3 groups to represent the brown bird, the butterfly and the sea waves.
* They enjoyed making the movements as the poem was recited.
d) Selamat Hari Raya
T : Did you ask you parents what fasting is about?
JS : cannot eat.
T : Good but why?
YZ : So that they can feel the lives of the poor people.
T : Correct, the unfortunate ones…….
* They got to know about the Ramadhan market that sells all types of desserts and food.
* After one month, they will celebrate ‘Selamat hari Raya”. What’s that.
ZY, YZ : Its their Chinese New Year……..
T : haaa…….it’s actually Malay New Year.
Video clip
* They had to observe the clip besides listening to the song called “Suasana Hari Raya”.
* They mumble among themselves what they saw.
* In the class, they drew the pictures they saw from the clip. Marks were awarded.
* ZYg drew “lemang”, the bamboo rice. JN drew flowers. YZ drew a house. ZY drew the happy people greeting one another.
* I added the lights used for decoration. In Malay, its called, “pelita”.
T : Why did they light the pelite?
ZY, JN : To scare away the thieves.
T : Haaa……Today, they are more for decorations. In the past, they were used to invite their ancestors to join them for Hari Raya Celebration.
a) Sharing of Storybook
* Jn volunteered to tell her story: “the three silly Goats”. However, she was unable to start. So, I prompted her with questions and she found her confidence.
* The lesson she learnt was “We should not quarrel or fight. We will lose out. We should tolerate our friends.
b) Sharing of MERDEKA!
* Half of the class watched the MERDEKA countdown. They shared their experience.
JH : I watched TV8 on Merdeka.
ZY : I saw them performing the Hibiscus, red flower
JN : I saw the flags.
JS : There were many people.
ZYg : There were also aeroplanes and helicopters.
LX : I saw Datuk Lee waving at the King. He played at the Olympics.
JN : The king and Queen were wearing yellow suits.
c) English Reciting Poem
* My story: As I cycled down the seaside, I wanted to sketch a scenery. Suddenly I was attracted to a brown bird, butterfly and the dancing leaves
* We recited together.
* Next, the kids divided themselves into 3 groups to represent the brown bird, the butterfly and the sea waves.
* They enjoyed making the movements as the poem was recited.
d) Selamat Hari Raya
T : Did you ask you parents what fasting is about?
JS : cannot eat.
T : Good but why?
YZ : So that they can feel the lives of the poor people.
T : Correct, the unfortunate ones…….
* They got to know about the Ramadhan market that sells all types of desserts and food.
* After one month, they will celebrate ‘Selamat hari Raya”. What’s that.
ZY, YZ : Its their Chinese New Year……..
T : haaa…….it’s actually Malay New Year.
Video clip
* They had to observe the clip besides listening to the song called “Suasana Hari Raya”.
* They mumble among themselves what they saw.
* In the class, they drew the pictures they saw from the clip. Marks were awarded.
* ZYg drew “lemang”, the bamboo rice. JN drew flowers. YZ drew a house. ZY drew the happy people greeting one another.
* I added the lights used for decoration. In Malay, its called, “pelita”.
T : Why did they light the pelite?
ZY, JN : To scare away the thieves.
T : Haaa……Today, they are more for decorations. In the past, they were used to invite their ancestors to join them for Hari Raya Celebration.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)