Inquiry and observation in the classroom

If you had a chance to visit our first grade classroom lately you probably saw quite a bit of observations and inquiry in action.
First grade students are learning about the life cycle of butterflies and are taking care of their very own group of hungry caterpillars. While they know quite a bit about this topic, they also have a lot of questions! Frau Wester facilitates learning by guiding students through observation periods and documentation of what they see in a journal. For some students this might be still with a focus on drawings and fewer words, while other students are eager to expand their writing skills further.

By making connections to the students' life, learning becomes more meaningful and fun. While the butterfly topic is fairly easy to connect with, we will continue to challenge ourselves to make increasingly meaningful connections between everyday learning and our students' experience outside the classroom.
All classroom teachers are currently in the process to plan our first IB units for early in the 2014/15 school year. These are exciting changes to come our way and I feel honored to be part of this journey and to learn together with you!