WonderHUT

Scaffolded Learning Blocks: 

 

• Fall Findings

• Signs of Spring

• Geology to Outer Space

• Human body and Evolution of Life on Earth

• Inventions

 

 

Fall Findings: Students create leaf and seed guides, act out the life cycle of  a tree, delineate between trees in age appropriate play/learning, and practice  classifying.  They begin to familiarize themselves with the local woodland animals and birds and their connection to seasonal changes through play, investigation of natural materials, and model and diagram making. In conclusion students are introduced to weather and meteorology through dramatic play, puppetry, diagram making,  basic chemistry and exploration of meteorology equipment.  The arcing concept is for students to begin to understand their place in the macrocosm through examination of the microcosm. 

 

1. Local leaves

2. Tree seeds

3. Woodland animals

4. Animal signs 

5. Birds and migrating

6. Weather/Water cycle

7. Wild weather

8. Snow

 

 

 

Signs of Spring: WonderHUT encourages all grades to loop Fall Findings with Signs of Spring each year. In this way students build on previous discoveries to develop a deep sense of wonder for the cycles of nature and their place within it....There is always something new to understand! Students examine insects and other small creatures, seeing the importance of composters, and connecting their work with fall and spring cycles. Students see the work of flowers and remember the tree seeds they examined in the fall. Examination reminds them of the beginning of life through eggs, which in turn reminds them of the migrations they studied in the fall. Students begin to see their place within the cycles of our world. 

 

1. Eggs

2. Seed dissection and planting 

3. Flower dissection and planting

4. Worms and composting 

5. Insects 

6. Bees and other pollinators

7. Insects and their friends

 

 

 

Geology to Outer Space: Students practice sorting and classifying while developing vocabulary for describing and examining geological specimens. They begin to understand the job of geologists while examining and handling 500 million year old  fossils and creating their own fossil models. Students learn  about dinosaur adaptations and use kitchen chemistry to erupt volcano models. They create diagrams and work from them to build  models, practicing science method through chemistry experiments. In conclusion they leave the earth to explore ideas about outer space, history and our solar system.  

 

1. Rocks

2. Fossils

3. Dinosaurs and fossils

4. Volcanoes

5. Earth models 

6. Land structures and mapping

7. Kitchen chemistry 

8. Outer space

9. The space race

10. Our solar system 

 

 

 

The Human Body and Evolution of Life on Earth: This complex subject is made comprehensible for young children  through storytelling. Young scientists first learn about the human body and the systems in their own bodies. Following this, instructors tell the story of life on earth in an organic way, asking questions such as why did fish grow legs and climb onto land? By teaching this way, classification becomes clear and the purpose of evolutionary changes becomes apparent. Through this animal study unit, students compare their own bodies to animals as they classify, model, diagram, and examine scientific artifacts to develop respect for the diversity of animal life on our planet. 

 

1. Human body 1

2. Human body 2

3. Senses 1

4. Senses 2

5. Teeth

6. Invertebrates then and now

7. Cambrian sea creatures

8. Seashore invertebrates

9. Insects and exoskeletons

10. Small land invertebrates

11. Fish evolution 1

12. Fish evolution 2

13. Amphibians then and now

14. Reptiles then and now

15. Dinosaur adaptations

16. Birds then and now

17. Local birds

18. Mammals 1

19. Mammals 2

 

 

 

Inventions: Students begin with the first inventions, learning about the Lascaux Cave and the inventions of the cave people. They continue on, traveling around the world in their imagination, building an understanding of  how our world changed from a natural environment to an the modern world with every fathomable invention. In this way they begin to understand how inventions inform our way of life.  Students learn about design and engineering using a variety of materials. They develop autonomy and resiliency through emotional work around problem solving and innovation. 

 

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1. Cave people and the first tools/Lascaux, France

2. Lenape inventions/New York then and now

3. The wheel/Egypt 

4. Wheel 2

5. Chemistry

6. The invention of writing

7. Simple machines/life sized 

8. Invention of houses/castles

9. Ancient Rome/Medieval times/simple machines

10. Invention of metal/Iran, Iraq, Fertile Crescent

11. Medieval celebration

12. Magnets

13. Static electricity

14. Current electricity 1

15. Current electricity 2

16. Flights and kites 1

17. Flights and kites 2

18. Floats and boats 1/carpentry

19. Floats and boats 2