Topic 'our School'

[Guest Dee]

Hi All

 

Does anyone have any ideas for 'Our School' topic ? Its my first topic for the Autumn term and need to get some creative juices flowing!

[Guest]

How about, making models,drawing pictures,making collages of the school.

 

What would they change? Depending on age this could be a picture of how they want their classroom to look or a whole changing rooms type thing.

 

How about drawing pictures of their friends or teachers.

 

Draw a map of the school.

 

look at history of your school. invite previous pupils, did their parents attend what was it like, have a day where everyone dresses up in period costume from when the school was opened.

 

ummmmmm...

[AnonyMouse_8466]

How about a mini project on all the people who go to your school: how are they similar and different, do they come from different countries? What languages do they speak? You can broaden this out as much as you like, depending on the mix of children and adults who are in your school family.

 

Maz

[Guest Dee]

Thanks Those are all great ideas. The group in a young (average age of 4) reception class with lots of EAL learners, so the idea of finding out where each family comes from and the languages spoken at home would work well.

 

We could go on a tour of the school and as you suggested Maz then encourage the children to draw a map of how they think the school looks.

[Guest]

How about let the children take photographs of signs ( written or pictorial) that are in the school. Print off, laminate, then have a sign search, each child given a photo and see if they can find the sign.

 

or could be other photo's of aspects within the environment.

 

Make a display of the photos on a large map of the school on the classroom wall.

 

Peggy

[Guest]

I think Peggy's idea of where she photographed each of the children, laminated them and put them onto a roll was fantastic. Taking this on, there is a lot of work being done at the school and they are making loads of bannisters as they are erecting two mezzanine floors and the small off cuts of new wood (probably 2 x 2 if thats the technical term or maybe 1 x 1) makes an ideal stand for the pictures and the blocks can be used again and again. I am making a box to put them in so children can role play with their friends in a sort of box classroom. Why not do a simple map walking around the school with the children or even jsut try and do a map of the grounds with significant features they can fill in - flowers/trees, fences etc

 

Nikki

[AnonyMouse_7610]

When we had this topic last year, the children set off around the school with cameras and took photos of headteacher in her office, children doing PE in the hall etc then we used the pics to make a book with "This is Mrs A" etc. Made lots of book since then but on the last day when I asked them to choose a last book to share this was the one they chose! Will be sending it up to year 1 with them!

[AnonyMouse_4544]

We did the school walk to visit different people at "work" then the children wrote captions for pictures. The picture of the head had the following caption.

 

MR H plays on his computer ALL day.

[Guest]

 

I do too. ( or should I say ALL night, out of work hours at home )

 

Peggy

[Guest Dee]

Thanks for all the ideas. I will let you know what caption my class come up with for our head.

[AnonyMouse_5013]

We also did rubbings of different surfaces in and outside the school. Lots of role play opportunites too.

[AnonyMouse_4544]

I took close up digital photographs of features and patters outdoors and the children went on a "treasure hunt" to find the source.

We also look at shapes around school

Stride out the distance from the classroom to the hall or around the playground perimeter.

[AnonyMouse_4544]

The different materials used in the building

How many classrooms / steps/ teachers/etc

[Guest]

We became reporters and 'interviewed' school personal one a week after first brainstorming a set of questions.