30: Oh, The Places We Go!

“Places tell stories, and these stories are adventures one must explore. Nature, the people, and the smell of a new land screams adventure. The world is humongous, and a lifetime wouldn’t be enough to explore it.”

A story always starts with a blank canvas -- an empty space of many possibilities. It comes to life when the storyteller fills it with wondrous worlds or foreign lands where the characters move and tell their narrative. It is a principal element of a story, one where the reader can escape to and take unprecedented adventures that only happen in one's imagination. 

This week, the kindergarteners learned about the setting of a story, and how it shapes the characters that move around it.

We started off with a quick brainstorm of what a story is. It's the perfect way to know what the children understand at this point to help drive the rest of the inquiry. 

These are what they said:

We read stories.

Stories can be found in books.

Stories have letters and words.

Stories have pictures and drawings.

Stories have people.

Some stories are about animals.

Some stories have volcanoes in them.

Stories are about "doing" something.

Something always happens in stories.

Stories make us feel happy or sad.

Some stories are scary.

Sometimes we make up stories.

Sometimes stories tell the truth about something.

Such insightful answers -- the Kinder 2 children are definitely a bunch 

of readers and storytellers!

The kindergarteners also had an opportunity to unlock the word 'setting' and to share some examples of their favorite places where stories happen. 

What I love about the places the children shared is how they come from their own experiences or the adventures that they want to take.

"Ms. Pam, the tulip field! We planted some tulips there. It's a nice place."

"I live beside a ropeway and I visit Nunobiki Garden a lot." 

"I went to a farm and saw some chickens!"

"I want to go to a jungle!"

"I really like Cinderella's house."

A lover of art, I shared with the children another medium that takes me to many worlds while staying exactly where I am. We took a pretend field trip to an imaginary museum that houses artworks from different renowned artists throughout time. I gave the children a chance to do what we could never do in real museums: to touch the paintings and use the places depicted to create their own stories within them. 

Have a look at their masterpieces:

Starry Night Over The Rhone by Vincent van Gogh

through the eyes of Sophia

These are Emily, Sophia, Mommy, and Eda. They were swimming in the sea

at night. They went under the water. They swam down. They saw a fish. 

The Scream by Edvard Munch

through the eyes of Emi

Dad is in the restaurant. We were eating breakfast in the morning.

It was yummy.

San Giorgio Maggiore at Dusk by Claude Monet

through the eyes of Mana

My sister and I have a star, a shuriken, and a heart. We saw a rainbow

fish in the water. The shuriken fell down the water. The heart fell, too. The fish saw

the shuriken and the heart. The fish ate them.

Wheatfield with Cypresses by Vincent van Gogh

through the eyes of Arisa

The tree and the clouds have eyes, then a lollipop came. I ate the lollipop

and then I changed into a beautiful flower. Then I changed into a princess

and Ms. Pam saw me and said, "wow!"

The landscape in The Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci

through the eyes of Jae Hee

There was a zoo before but it was not there anymore. People were in the zoo and chickens

were in the zoo, too. In the morning, the chicken was gone because it ran and ran. Something ate the chicken -- it was a dog! 

Poppy Field at Giverny by Claude Monet

through the eyes of Jinnosuke

I was playing with the slide. I went home and I drank some water.

Water Lilies and Japanese Bridge by Claude Monet

through the eyes of Ren

Mommy is taking a picture of the tree because she likes it. A rainbow and

a cloud came. I also saw a slide. It was fun. 

Landscape at Vetheuil by Claude Monet

through the eyes of Yanchen

Mommy, sister, and Yanchen were playing soccer outside. The

ball bumped on Yanchen's head. After, they went home. Yanchen was okay.

Cafe Terrace at Night by Vincent van Gogh

through the eyes of Rino

Three friends, Arisa, Mana, and Rino are having tea time. It got dark and 

it became night. They played under the stars. They ran outside the restaurant.

They saw some nice flowers. It was a good day.

Wheatfield with Crows by Vincent van Gogh

through the eyes of Atsuharu

There was a spaceship. It made 'bang' sound. The birds flew. 

The grass on the ground moved. A small alien ship flew from 

the big spaceship. It got bigger. The name of the alien is Happyset. 

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa by Hokusai

through the eyes of Diego

The shark ate the fish. Then the shark was going to eat the boat;

then he ate the two boats. Then the shark ate a rock. Then the wave crashed

and he ate the wave! 

The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh

through the eyes of Eimi

The teacher, Ms. Butterfly, told the children to go home. It was already

night. The children were happy. They went home and they ate their dinner.

Bedroom in Arles by Vincent van Gogh

through the eyes of Haruto

This is our house. These are Kento, Haruto, and Daddy. Kento and Haruto

played with Daddy in the room. They jumped on the bed like the 10 little monkeys.

Daddy fell. He laughed. He was okay so they played again.

Landscape Near Monte Carlo by Claude Monet

through the eyes of Eda

I went in the water to swim and I turned into a mermaid. I could breathe in the water.

Then Sophia and Emily came. We went under water.

What do you think would the artists think of the stories 

that took place in their paintings?

To make the children's imaginations come to life, we used the classroom as a space to 

create settings where stories happen. 

Invitation and provocation stations were abound in the classroom for the children 

to explore and manipulate:

A nighttime setting.

A garden setting.

A city setting.

A beach setting.

But what the children loved the most is that they get to decorate their own space in the classroom and turn it into their own imagined worlds. The kindergarteners were able to transform three different spaces and bring them to life.

Presenting the Princess Room:

Presenting the Mighty Jungle:

Presenting Outer Space (found under the table):

The children created a wonderland in the classroom. What stood out the most in this weeklong activity was the fun that the Kinder 2 children had in creating them, and the teamwork, collaboration and dedication they showed in putting together the spaces!

But of course, I wouldn't end the week without giving the children a challenge.

"You have created beautiful settings where stories happen. 

Now, what stories can you tell in these places?"

And tell stories they did. 

(This, for me, is a work of art. One that just makes me smile 

at how much all of them have grown.) 

Have a watch:

The Sleeping Princess

by Eda, Mana, Emi, Haruto, and Atsuharu

The Astronaut and the Aliens

by Arisa, Yanchen, and Jae Hee

The Hungry Monkey

by Sophia, Diego, Eimi, Jinnosuke, and Ren

Stories take us us to far off lands that we have never been to, or worlds that come only from our wildest imagination. The places we can visit are endless without ever leaving the comfort of our home.  This is the magic of stories.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone. 

May your adventures this week be spectacular.

Your Kindergarten teacher, 

Pam