Transition session - Tuesday 11th December

Today was our final transition session with l'Alveare (1/2/3 downstairs).  We spent the morning in the hall together, playing some games and then participating in quite an unusual team challenge. In teams of 6, each of which had a combination of Prep, grade 1 and 2 students, the children transformed one of their team members into a made-up animal.

Some of the creatures were mythological, such as dragons or goblins.  Some were combinations of real animals like elephants and vampire bats, and some were in a new category all of their own, such as the 'elite' animal (we're still not sure exactly what this animal consisted of except that it seemed to have claws and an intense demeanor).

The children had to think carefully about what features their animal needed and how to make them. Attaching ears and whiskers was a particular challenge.

Once all the costumes were completed we had a parade to show off the new animals.

Butterfly Cat

Chop chop ninja

Goblin

Elephant Vampire Bat

Rhinoceros 

Goblin Unicorn

Our headlines
How we are feeling about the move up to grade 1 next year.

Going to grade 1

Sad and good

Awesome!

Ok

Sad because I miss my teachers

Happy because I'm going into grade 1

Happy because I'm one step closer being in high school (which is closer to being in university, when sometimes you can get days off)

We're growing up!

We're growing up more!

We're stepping into grade 1!

We're going to look taller than we were before

Who are the teachers going to be?

We're growing up!

There's only one more transition session left, which will be on Tuesday 11th December.  Here are some of our reflections on the transition program and feelings about going into 1/2/3 next year.

Here is a thinking routine that a small group of children did.

P What was really good about transition?	M What was challenging? What could have been better?	I What was interesting?	Q Do you have any questions about 1/2/3 that we could try to answer at our last transition?
“I liked playing snowball tiggy” “It was good because we got to learn more stuff, like what people like and what people do at play time” “The muddle up game where you had to mingle up and then get back out again without letting go of each other’s hands” Why is it helpful to have a transition program? “We can choose if we want to stay at the school or if we don’t want to” “We get to meet new people that we don’t know” “You get to know your new classroom just in case we’re going to be there next year. We don’t need a teacher to show us”	“I didn’t like how fast people went (ran) in snowball tiggy” “Only one of them were giving you exercise – none of the other activities were giving you exercise. You need to get exercise so you can get fast.”	“I noticed that people that have very long legs can run very fast” “It’s interesting because they have a stage” “It’s interesting because they have three tiered seating and we only have one” “It’s interesting how they have two boxes of lego”	“Why there were so many things at 1/2/3 like “Why do they have a stage?” “Why do they have two boxes of lego?” “I want to find out if they still have Project Time” “Is their writer’s workshop the same as ours?”

Transition

Our last 2 transition sessions have continued in the same groups as previous weeks.  We completed our last remaining activity, before we started a new round of activities.

Nerida ran more physical/sports activities. First we played Snowballs and Snow Creatures. One child held a tennis ball (snowball) to symbolise that he/she was a snow creature. The snow creature had to chase the children and touch them with their snowball (no throwing or the snowball would melt), which would turn them into a snow creature. That snow creature would go to the snow factory and get a snowball and convert more children! The last child remaining was declared the golden child with the power of the sun, and they then chased the snow creatures and melted them. Each child who melted had to put their snowball back in the snow factory and chase more snow creatures to melt them. After this fun warm up game, children got into groups (a prep and two grade ones or twos) and each group got some tennis balls. They worked together to create a show or performance. The aim was twofold: to get to know other children and work as a team; and to creatively use tennis balls. 

Genevieve has been running team work and get to know you and team work games.  First of all, we tried to untangle a human knot.  We arranged ourselves into groups of about 10, stood shoulder to shoulder in a circle, stretched our hands out and grabbed the hands of 2 other people.  Then we had to try and untangle ourselves so we ended up standing in a circle without letting go of our hands.  This involved a lot of listening, giving each other advice (and occasionally ignoring the advice), trial and error, and trying not to fall over in a big heap.

We also played a game called 2 truths.  Everyone thought of 2 things about themselves that the other people in the group didn't know about them, and also made up 1 thing about themselves that was not true.  Each person had a turn at telling their 3 things to the audience, who then had to figure out from their face and voice (and how well they know the person) which of their three things was not true.

Transition Session 3

Here are a few of the children's reflections on our last transition session:

Maths Menu with Mark

There were shapes like ours in a plastic bag and there was a paper and you had to try and make the shape with your shapes.  There was another one a little bit like that one except that it was cubes and it was building towers and stuff. 

We had to, there was a game that had to…One person was a dark colour and one person was a light colour and we had to try and get 3 in a row. It was connect 3. 

But the game, connect 3, it was on a sheet of paper and there were some little coloured blocks, there were light blocks and dark blocks and you could only move them up and down and sideways.

You couldn't do it diagonal

That's right, and you couldn't jump over.

Games with Nerida

I was with Nerida and we got to make up shows and we had to go with 3 or 4 kids. 

There was two 123 and two preps in each group.

Other Activities

We were doing things which we think we needed to learn next year.  We were drawing.   

Things that I'm going to need to have next year...well I came up with a globe book, interactive whiteboard,  ipad and a map   

I did painting of a self portrait of ourselves.  I also met two new friends.

Transition Session 2

In Nerida's group, we have been playing some inclusive games to get to know each other, work in teams and create a sense of being a ‘whole’.

- breathing and making sounds in harmony

- playing a name and memory game

- playing Builders and Bulldozers

In Genevieve's group, we have been playing a kind of get-to-know-you bingo, finding people in our group and things in the room that have things in common with us (e.g. have the same number of people in their family, play in the same places at playtime). We have also been running a quick community circle to conclude.  

Katie has been doing a simplified thinking routine called Compass Points that they use for philosophy.  The children are asked to write and draw a list of their 'worries' and 'excitements' (yes, it's a plural noun that has been invented) about next year.  Here is a sample of their worries and excitements about the move up to grade 1/2/3.

Mark has been doing maths menu with the children.  They have had the choice of a number activity, building 3D models with cubes and a tangram puzzle.

NB Whilst we are spending each transition session with the 1/2/3s downstairs, this is not necessarily where the Bicicletta children will be going next year. The decisions of groupings and LCs will happen later on in the year.