Rainforest survey, videos & bottletop art - fast, furious and fun!

Rainforest Animal Savers Team Action Plan

Progress has been fast and furious this week - needs must as we have sports day, class assembly and assessment week ahead - all of which will impact on time available for our rainforest projects.  So yes, fast, furious and...fun, always, always fun!

Mindmaps
So this week children have discussing and mindmapping ideas for their projects.  After looking around a bit, I found iMindmap.  It's a great little app - the basic version is free though I decided it was worth the £9.99 so that we could, among other things, export the team maps.

Project Action Videos
The mindmaps provided the structure for children's team videos.  Children have had LOTS OF FUN and especially this week with their videos.  Very creative ideas from a planet saving character called Eco Boy (complete with eco costume!) battling a character called Polluto, to an Eco News Desk, jingles and animations - and that was from just one of the teams!

Our rainforest survey on Google forms

Taiwan, El Salvador & a Rainforest Survey with Google Forms!
We've also been exploring Google forms.  Over the last ten days or so, I've heard from Amy, a teacher in Taiwan, about a possible opportunity for our classes to connect.  Amy's school closes for the summer at the end of May, so with the end of the month fast approaching, we have been trying to remove the filtering  obstacles and find a time for our classes to virtually meet! I'm hopeful this will be possible and we're likely to use Google hangout.  But in the meantime, my class & I thought we'd put together a rainforest questionnaire.  Although Amy's class hasn't yet completed the survey,  through the GCT network, Jennifer from El Salvador kindly responded and we now have some survey results from a school in a country with rainforests.  My class are absolutely THRILLED and I hope that this will help children gain a real insight into the local impact of deforestation.   If you're reading this and have a class in a rainforest region, we'd love it if you'd take our survey also! 

Writing to influencers
Pupils have made a good start on their letter writing and I'll update here as these go out & the replies start to come back.  We received a postcard from Survival International this week thanking the children for their work on behalf of the Penan tribe of Borneo.  One rainforest team (the Rainforest Tribe Kidz) have chosen tribes as the focus for their project.  There's a real buzz in class about our projects - and there's an extra boost whenever we connect with others from beyond our classroom walls!

Map
It's also helping us to put all these places on the map!  Children began a rainforest map a couple of months ago.  They've posted information they found using their rainforest cryptonyms.  From the start of Year 4, every pupil in class is known online by their rainforest cryptonym (like Leaf Cutter Ant or Poison Dart Frog)  and we use these at times when we're online eg. when we're map making or using Voicethread.  We've haven't visited in a little while but do take a look if you have a moment!  

So...what's next?

Counting bottletops

So...what's next?  It's assessment week in school so this will affect how much we can do on our projects this week.  I'm still hoping to run a session in class on Google search. I'd also like children to use forms to gather some more information relating to their action projects. 

Creating bottletop designs

We've also collected a mini-mountain of plastic bottle tops with help from the school community.   Luke Perry, an absoluely FANTASTIC artist who has worked with us on two amazing local history/art projects, will be helping us to create a piece of rainforest inspired bottle top artwork for our playground.  Children were busily creating their designs on Friday!



 

Plan agreed...now it's mindmapping, videos & letter writing!

Last Thursday and Friday were inset days at school so I was able to spend some time with Bev, my Head Teacher talking through my Action Plan (a big thank you to Jo Badge & Mark Allen for reviewing!).  We shared lots of ideas for the project as well as thoughts about how the project might roll out and ways of using Google technology.  On my part, I shared a few nerves too!  These come with the territory of project based learning - the 'unknown' is built into this approach, it's a given.  If every aspect was nailed down at this point, there'd be zero scope for pupil choice and zero scope for a real context.  It'd way less fun too!

Fruits of the Rainforest by Year 4

Project Action Plans and Videos
So, this week teams are going to be working on their project action plans and videos.  I've created a document to share with teams highlighting what I'd like plans and videos to include.  Before you think it, I'll have to say it - the format is a bit - not child friendly at all!  So, having discovered iMindMap all of half an hour ago and being a fan already of Tony Buzan, I'm going to ask children to create a mindmap using our class iPod Touches.  I think the Buzan mindmaps look like pieces of art so, if we've time, I may ask children to draw their mindmaps too & then we can use Picasa to put the final touches.  In the meantime, if anyone can suggest another alternative let me know!

Letter writing
 Later on this week, I'd like teams to consider letter writing.  Persuasive writing and letters are part of the Year 4 curriculum so our projects will provide the all important real purpose!  As good writing is always boosted along by some good reading, we'll be starting by looking at some of the letters last year's pupils wrote concerning palm oil from sustainable sources.  Here's one example with some of the teaching points given in red.

Rainforest Enquiry
Our rainforest stakeholders' enquiry went well last Wednesday.  An hour in & with break time fast approaching, I reluctantly wound things down but pupils were really fired up for the discussion and every single person took part!  Quite a few children came along in rainforest inspired outfits which gave the whole thing a sense of occasion.  Becky, our visitor and a Reception teacher from a local school was enthusiastic too & hopes to start philosophy for children soon.  (I recommended Sara Stanley's excellent books especially for philosophy with very young children).

I'm hoping that somewhere along the way we'll be able to link with a school in a rainforest region of the world.  The children and I would love it!  There's a possibility of a link with a school in Taiwan.  If we are lucky enough to be able to do this, I'm sure it'll deepen the understanding of everyone involved in the project!  

Spot the difference?17 April & 30th April

Spot the difference...with a difference!
Lastly, a quick mention for Earthwatch. Over the last two weeks or so, children have been looking at a plot of land in Indonesia which is under threat from illegal logging.  We've signed up to watch and flag this area of rainforest if we spot any changes.  Local authorities are alerted if any plot of land is flagged and have pledged to investigate promptly.  A great use of satellite technology and a great way of pupils being involved in a vital rainforest saving effort!