Speaking to Learn: Kat and Lucas Chats, Laughs, Problem-Solves, Negotiates, etc.!

The children had been assigned to write and illustrate a comic strip. Individually. 

It was the first session of our Creative Writing Class for Kids last April 11, 2015. But Kat and Lucas wanted to work together. And they got the go-signal to do so.

Are they disobedient? Disruptive? Of course not. They're creative!

But they were "noisy."  The other kids who were working individually and quietly were irritated. Solution? I told Kat and Lucas to work in another corner of the room. Not a solution; they were still "noisy."

Better solution? I asked someone to lift the kiddy table and take it just outside our classroom which has a glass door. 

So we all worked in peace. 

Kat and Lucas actually had a blast while working together. They chatted away, laughed, solved their little clashes and their characters' problems, negotiated, divided the work between them, and completed four frames with dialogue and color illustration!

Lesson Learned? Some young children's learning style is cooperative and interactive. They speak to learn.

The Fab Four Goes to the Zoo!

Sam, Kat, Bella and Lucas went to the zoo on Saturday, April 11, 2015.  The zoo is located at the Bernabe Ninja Headquarters.  They were expecting lots of fun but they got lost... They fell into a book, a BIIIIIIIIIIG bad book!

What happened to the children?  What did they do to get back home?

Simple.  They wrote a rescue appeal and drew a path back home to their waiting dads and moms.