4: Curiosity Caught the Pigeon
"Blessed are the curious for they shall have adventures."
There's a saying that curiosity killed the cat. In Kinder 2, this isn't quite true. The cat is very much alive, but curiosity caught the pigeon red-handed!
To blast off our first unit of inquiry under the theme How We Organize Ourselves, our mischievous pigeon friend sent the kindergarteners on a bird hunt across Rokko Island to stop it from causing a catastrophe!
You see, the pigeon said that it could drive the bus. It said it could drive, but we weren't sure if that was a good idea.
So Kinder 2 made it their mission to stop the pigeon from driving the bus -- at all costs!
But we had a sneaky pigeon on our hands. We almost caught it in the school bus, but it hid as soon as it heard us coming.
One missed chance will not stop our curious and determined kindergarteners though. They used their thinking skills and remembered that the pigeon loves things that go.
And luckily for the kindergarteners, the pigeon left some remarkable clues to guide them on their mission -- such as this letter they found in our classroom!
There was something peculiar about the letter, the kindergarteners observed. The pigeon left its footprints on the page! What's more curious about it is that they saw similar footprints in the hallway just outside the Early Years area!
So we put our detective hats on and followed the clues.
The clues led us to something more peculiar --- a map! It wasn't just any map, too. It was a top secret map for all the forms of transportation that the pigeon wanted to drive.
The kindergarteners are on to something BIG! Don't you think so?
We regrouped as a Kinder 2 team back in the classroom and came up with a plan: to follow the pigeon's trail and ensure that all the forms of transportation it plans to drive are safe and sound.
When we were ready, we went off on our next mission. We searched high and low on Rokko Island for traces of the forms of transportation that the pigeon was planning to hijack!
We found most of them -- except for two that the children saw on their way home. Whew, we were glad they were all safe -- and driven by people, too. No rogue pigeons on sight.
After a long day of detective work, I asked the children,
"Why is it not safe for the pigeon to drive different forms of transportation?"
The children answered, "Because a pigeon can't drive!"
"How do you think do they drive?" I asked.
The children showed me.
They said a pigeon drives in swirls, zigzags, and curves! That couldn't possibly be safe at all!
(Good thing the swirls, zigzags and curves are good for helping the children
in pre-writing! 😀)
Then, the children showed me how to drive safely.
We agreed that it's important to stop, look, and listen.
Turns out that children are better drivers than pigeons. Way to go, Kinder 2!
They even made their favorite forms of transportation using Lego blocks, which they counted piece by piece before building.
Since we haven't caught the pigeon yet, the kindergarteners brainstormed what possible routes it will take with the forms of transportation it will drive. We got our transportation toys in the classroom and painted the possible directions where the pigeon will go.
So many possible routes -- swirls, zigzags, and curves -- but we couldn't decide which one the pigeon will take. One thing is for sure though, we made a beautiful mess and had fun getting our hands dirty!
We even tried using the swirls, zigzags, and curves in making the longest railroad track in the classroom, too, just in case the pigeon fancies driving a train.
Just when we thought we were out of luck, another letter mysteriously appeared in the classroom.
The kindergarteners couldn't resist the kind offer of the pigeon to teach them a thing or two about the different forms transportation. They drew pictures of their questions or curiosities so that I can send them to the pigeon. They made me promise though that the pigeon will not replace me as the Kinder 2 teacher, and I gladly reassured them that that will not happen.
Check out what the kindergarteners are curious about:
I can't wait to find out the answers to the children's remarkable questions.
Personally, I am also curious about the pigeon's journey. Where exactly did it go, and what forms of transportation did it use? I guess the clues lie in the gifts that it brought back for the children from its adventures.
Thank you, pigeon, indeed.
And just as we thought we were about the end the week without completing our mission, our curiosity landed us back in our very own classroom.
A special guest was waiting for us.
"Bus kids, please line up!" it said.
Wait, is the pigeon really going to drive the bus?
"Nah. I'm just the assistant of the bus supervisor." it said. 😆
Our curiosity FINALLY caught the pigeon.
And on a happy note, our bird hunt ends...
...or does it? 😁
Your Kindergarten teacher,
Pam
P.S.
The children enjoyed a bit of sun and outdoor fun, too, while on the hunt!
Comments
Post a Comment