New Unit of Inquiry: Sharing the Planet

  

This week, the K2 children began tuning into the new Unit of Inquiry- Sharing the Planet. All units are important in supporting children to understand and process the world around them, and the unit Sharing the Planet is especially opportune in providing children a foundation of which to appreciate and protect the ever changing natural world around them.

Here is key information for the unit:

Central idea: People are part of and can have an impact on the natural world.

Lines of inquiry:

• How people and animals function as part of the natural world (Function)
• How people bring about change in the natural world (Change)
• People's choice and their impact on the natural world (Responsibility)

Approaches to learning: Research (information literacy); Communication (exchanging information)

Learner profile attributes: Knowledgeable; Principled; Balanced

If you would like to learn more about the above information along with some concrete examples of what this might look like at the K2 level, below is a video of me talking through the details. Information on the unit and its learning outcomes is also available on your K2 class site (where the weekly distance learning timetable is displayed). 

I am a researcher!

A main focus of this unit is children developing their research skills by learning about and selecting sources of information. When we think of sources, while our minds might automatically jump to books, videos, and other types of media, the K2 children themselves will also be a source of information for their peers through their prior knowledge of the natural world, and from all the research they will be doing throughout the unit!

One of the best ways for us to support children in their process of research is to be curious alongside them, and to model questioning and wondering. When children state their own theories or facts, we can ask them "How do you know that?" or "Why do you think that?" to encourage them to reflect on their thinking. Here are some question prompts you may consider when having open-ended conversations with your child:

Happy inquiring! Thank you as always for your support as children carry on with distance learning. It is wonderful to see how they've continued to contribute to class discussions and how their sustained attention and stamina have supported their learning online. At the same time, we very much hope that in-school learning will be able to resume in the near future.