Paragon School, Term 2 2011

16 Nov:-
We had a good time today with a variety of activities to do. I had made a "Nativity" crib earlier on out of reclaimed wood. So from this example there was an evolution of ideas which the children copied, from boxes, post boxes, A4 in trays, a bird box and a few redesigned Nativity buildings. Others practised their cob skills and pop corn making skills.
Everyone was good at the sawing, but nailing was rather more difficult, with more practise needed! Popcorn cooking is an art that they are learning, again realising that the pan can get too hot and burn the contents.
Lots of learning opportunities and lines of enquiry followed...this kept us all very busy, totally ignoring the fact it was quite cold. When everyone had gone, a little robin came along to inspect and hopefully enjoyed pop corn too!!  (We were meant to be eating pheasant, but no butcher had any...anyone reading this know of a good source of them?)


9 Nov:-

dragging material

driving in wedges

close attention to detail

m mallows

action!

the workshop

shavehorse and chopping block

IMY's 

Jemima's

2 Nov:-

We had a great time working together making a slippery bank in the Paragon grounds much safer to walk on. In 2 teams we made spikers, weavers, steppers and worked quickly building our steps and walkway. Everyone got into the swing of the team ethos creating a much safer walkway for Paragon students and visitors. No doubt there would be more costly solutions, but this will work...and everyone in 3G is part of it!

 A marshmallow reward!!

You can see the basic steps and woven walk way. Better still, see if you can find it in the school and tell me!

A beautiful November morning; falling leaves, musty smells, humid, warm air.  A good morning to look around the Paragon grounds with the Year 5 class, check the steps we made with Year 3 last week, cut some material to work with and then enjoy the work shop. We practised sawing the fire wood on the saw horses and using vices. Some used the shave horses to make wedges for splitting a great log, others used the chisels to practise carving out their initials in wood. The brazier was kept going so we could cook popcorn and marshmallows. Everyone worked well together and I hope became more confident in using the various tools.