Treasure Hunting

Lots of new people today - welcome!

We started the day with remembering about maps and used this knowledge to create a map of where we meet, talking about areas we can and can't go in, and why.

Our picture book today was called 'A Beach Tail' by Karen Lynn Williams. The boy in the story was also given guidelines for where he could go on the beach and he used his imagination to discover many treasures in the sand.

The sun was shining and the tide was out, so off we went to the beach to discover our own treasures, collecting some and photographing others. Look at some things we discovered and did:

After lunch and a bit of tricky singing in rounds, we shared our beach treasures and had a chance to either draw them or create treasure maps of where we found them.

Finally, we were taught how to do wet felting. So relaxing and fun.

Ideas for home:

- What treasures do you have at home? Why are they special to you? Write a story about one, create a treasure map for it or sketch it.

- Why do people have things like rules or guidelines? What are some in your home and why are they important? What are some for New Zealand? Why are they important? Are there any rules or guidelines that you disagree with? Why? Do you think any more are needed in your home or New Zealand? Why?

- At the beach today, we found many treasures. We also found some litter and tagging. Why do you think people litter or tag? Is there anything we could do on Thursdays to help fix this problem? What about during the rest of the week? Bring any ideas to share with us next time we meet.

Coming up...

Depending on the weather, we have plans for activities with magnifying glasses, kites, paper planes and milk. Can't wait!

Mad about Maps!

Today we met for the first time and thought about maps. We read 'I know about Maps' by Chris Jaeggi after experimenting with mapping spaces for characters we had made out of dough, which we also made. 

 After that, we went exploring down the forest path to the beach reserve. There was a challenging hill to scramble in the forest and a delicate mushroom was discovered. I took the photo in case any of you would like to try and find out more about it.

Good maps show North, South, East and West. It's easy to find East in the morning because that's where the sun rises from, setting in the West at the end of the day. Could you figure out the direction points where you live? 

 A few people wanted to create their own maps of the walk we did and they were full of detail. Well done! 

This Google Map shows where we were. Can you see our route we took to the beach?

 In the afternoon, people could choose whether they wanted to keep mapping, paint rocks, free paint, play with the dough or participate in some music and drama challenges. 

Here are some ideas for home if you'd like to keep exploring the maps ideas: 

 - Create a map of your room or your home. Remember to show it in Bird's Eye View and include the compass points. You might want to create a legend or key to show what your symbols mean. 

 - See how many maps you can find at home. Explore with them. 

 - If you are allowed to use the Internet, have a look at your address on Google Maps, then slowly zoom out to explore Auckland, New Zealand and the world. Check out Satellite and Street View as well - it's like you are really there. 

 - Take a walk with your family and map it afterwards. Add as much detail as you can. 

 - For a real challenge, make a map to scale, using graph paper. One square might equal one square metre in real life. Create your own scale to use. 

 - Hide a 'treasure' and make a map to give someone to follow. Can they find the treasure? 

 - We noticed our shadows as we walked to the beach. Because the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, it is moving through the day. What does that mean for our shadows? Why not stand in the same spot outside at different times on a sunny day and see what happens? 

 - Challenge: Ancient cultures used the moving sun and shadows to tell the time. Find out more! 

 Have fun and see you next week! 

 - Shirley