Canoe

The class next to us at my main placement is building a canoe. The teacher has it all connected with the different subjects and it really fits nicely with his class. For example, before building the canoe, the teacher had the students do a close reading of the directions on how to build a canoe, so they were able to practice reading for a purpose. I observed him for a while, and while I was there he had the students divided into reading groups doing various tasks, he would call up one group at a time and have them cut along lines that they had made earlier. Every child had a chance to saw the wood, with a real hand saw, at least once, and many of them twice. The students really enjoyed it, and sawing provided a good challenge for the students. I think it is good to give kids a chance to do work with their hands, and this is especially good since he connects it well with the other subjects. This has got me thinking about other ways I can work this sort of task into my teaching,.