Inquiry, Term 3, 2022

 Sharing My Learning

Background: New Zealand Wars. There were many wars in New Zealand. Some of these wars were; the Northern war, 1845–1846, Wellington and Whanganui wars, 1846–1848, North Taranaki war, 1860–1861, Waikato war: beginnings, Waikato war: major battles, and Gate Pā, Tauranga. New Zealand went to war in Turkey at Gallipoli. Today, The war at Gallipoli is known as ANZAC and an annual celebration takes place to commemorate the fallen soldiers and the return of service men and women. This unit plan is derived from the war at Gallipoli. The life of the New Zealand men and women who were fighting the Turkish prompted us to develop our unit plan for teaching and learning.

Previous Experiences: Our Inquiry Topic is ‘Me The Wayfinder’. In term one, the students researched and studied the unit plan lessons about ‘me, the learner’. In term two, students researched and studied the unit plan lessons about ‘Filling my kete’. The term 2 unit plan focused on the ANZAC war. Students researched the history of the ANZAC war and Life In The Trenches. These two focus areas formed the term two unit plan. Students discovered that” Individuals spent only a few days a month in a front-line trench. Daily life here was a mixture of routine and boredom – sentry duty, kit, and rifle inspections, and work assignments filling sandbags, repairing trenches, pumping out flooded sections, and digging latrines. Any free time was usually spent reading or writing letters or diaries, playing cards or trying to snatch a few moments of sleep”. Therefore to understand life in trenches better, students made three-dimensional models of trenches. They used materials that were available at no cost in the classroom and the cardboard borrowed from our school’s resource center.

Broad Understanding/s: (Teacher Directed) 

That the students can play a part in learning to be innovative developers

of products and systems

That the students can explain how the use of technology can help in making life easier in performing the tasks for which the technological design is intended.

Learning Question/s: While doing the research on ‘Life in the Trenches' students discovered that soldiers suffered from a long period of boredom, ‘Daily life here was a mixture of routine and boredom.

This information prompted the students to think about the question; ‘ What could have we done for our soldiers so that they could have occupied their time in a better way?’ Many ideas were proposed by the students to solve the problem

of boredom. One of the solutions that seemed very promising to the students was to make a ‘ Gutter ball board’ for the soldiers. Students generally admitted that soldiers can play Gutter ball board to pass time and keep their minds off the matters that made them stress out and cause depression.  Hence, the students have decided to make a Gutter ball board this term because the idea is innovative and creative.

Key Competencies: (This is an opportunity to link the key competencies to the student's

learning in

Technology – this is not for assessment purposes.) The students had

been exposed to the key competencies in the past and had input

into this planning.

The teacher and the students revisited the concepts often to make sure

that we were on track

Thinking: 

Thinking about how we will gather the information required to answer

our learning question.

Learners identify the different structures around them and their intended

purposes.

Thinking about how to solve problems associated with feeling bored,

stressed, feeling low and down, helpless and depressed.

Using language, symbols, and texts:

Understand the mathematical symbols such as mm and cm. Ability to

use the conversion factor used in measurements.

Understand the symbol used to represent angles such as ∠ for angle,

∟ for right angle 

Use the language of technology to enhance understanding of

technology.

Managing self: 

Utilize the time given to this unit of work effectively. 

Work independently when required. 

Understand the constraints of the work and how to be economic with

resources.

Relating to others: 

Work collaboratively and cooperatively in groups when required. 

Brainstorming of ideas together.

Learning through experts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3K-U8JU0h4 watch for step-by-step making Gutter ball board.

Use the internet to gain information:

https://www.kiwifamilies.co.nz/articles/make-gutter-board/ for How to Make a Gutter Board Game. 

Participating and contributing: 

Students understand that they can be valuable members of the

community and help others in the society and wider whanau group.

Students understand that they can make a difference by developing

a the solution that helps others to solve problems.

Values: Why Throwing and Catching Games are Great for Kids

Development?

Small ball skills are awesome for teaching children a whole range of

motor skills and brain development. Kid Activities says a whole range

of skills is improved by playing throwing games. They list these

4 broad kid’s development areas that throwing and catching

games improve:

Improves hand-eye coordination. Developing good hand-eye

coordination is an essential part of a child’s development. It allows

a child to direct and control their limbs, making it possible to

interact with objects in the physical world more easily.

Improves fine motor skills. Fine motor skills is the coordination

of small muscles, like those in the fingers and hands, with the eyes.

Developing fine motor skills gives children the dexterity necessary

to perform complex tasks like picking up and arranging small objects.

Improves gross motor skills. Gross motor skills involve whole body

movement and the engagement of larger muscles like those in the core.

Developing gross motor skills is essential for performing everyday t

asks like standing, walking, running, and jumping.

Improves timing and prediction. Many children struggle with

timing when they are learning to throw and catch balls.

Throwing games will help them quickly develop this skill.

They also learn the physical characteristics of balls, developing

an understanding of how they bounce and roll.

How to Make a Gutter Board Game?

 We will need:

1 x 1200mm long 150x40mm timber fence rail, or 150x20mm fence paling (ideally treated to H3.2)

3 x 75mm stainless steel self-taping decking screws

Sandpaper

Resene Quick-dry Primer

Resene test pots in Yowza, FX Fluoro Pink, and Funtasia

Paintbrush

A saucer, round plant pot, and a test-pot lid to trace around

Paper cups or jars to mix up paint

 

Youtube link

Watch the making of a Gutter ball board by clicking this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3K-U8JU0h4