This week, Autahi have been exploring measurement. In particular, we have been building the vocabulary we need to talk about size (heavy, light, tall, small, short, wide and so on). This has also included ways to compare the relative size of objects, such as taller, taller or heavy, heavier. Our Autahi students have also had the chance to do some experiments with volume, estimating how many cubes a container will hold and then filling it up to test their ideas.
In The Great Water Challenge, they had to choose from a selection of containers. Which would hold the the most water and also keep the water safe so that they could transport it quickly from one bucket to the next?
This is a version of a challenge that our Senior students did recently, so we were lucky to have the help of some experts.
Creating opportunities for our older students to be big buddies for the younger ones is a win for all. This tuakana-teina relationship gives our younger students a chance to be mentored by older children who can share knowledge, model learning behaviours and offer encouragement and support. Meanwhile, our tuakana/big buddies embed previous understandings by teaching them to another person. And they get to dial up their Kindness, Leadership and positive coaching language.
All of this was in full force during our Great Water Challenge.
There was a lot of discussion to be had about which containers worked best to transport the water. While the syringe was safe (and squirty in a very fun way!), it didn't hold very much water. The measuring cup was very open, so prone to spillage. The mini purple wheelie bin was a surprise hit: having a lid, it minimised spillage meaning that our experimenters could run fast with it.
Thanks to our tuakana for helping us with this fun experiment.
