Connect Extend Challenge
YEAR 5
YEAR GROUP: 5
TASK: To provoke curiosity about plant adaptations students viewed a video and were asked to complete the thinking routine
COMMENT ON EVIDENCE OF THINKING: This was the first use of CEC and it was explained thoroughly. We used post it notes to document each phase. There are clear patterns of thinking that were surprising. Common threads and similar points of connection were established. The connect phase established areas of prior knowledge and areas that could be further explored. Students gained benefit from articulating the challenging aspects of the video. There is evidence that they returned to the content and ideas of the video and applied it to future understanding. This was encouraging to see.
APPROPRIATENESS FOR YEAR GROUP:
See Think Wonder can be introduced in Year 4, and consolidated through 5 & 6.
YEAR 6
TASK: Students participated in an Incursion in conjunction with our Unit of Inquiry. This was a hands-on science workshop where students investigate all manner of natural disasters.
APPROPRIATENESS FOR YEAR GROUP: CEC can be introduced in Year 4, and consolidated through 5 & 6.
YEAR GROUP: 1
TASK: Using literature to connect and progress thinking about the environment
COMMENT ON EVIDENCE OF THINKING:
At first I was a bit concerned about how this was going to go, and it did start slowly, but picked up as the girls become more familiar with the terminology. I think using this routine regularly throughout this unit will help them get more comfortable with the process and the thinking, and verbalising (which some of them struggled with). The thinking that eventuated, especially in the extension of their thinking really amazed me.
APPROPRIATENESS FOR YEAR GROUP:
I think that as a group activity this routine works well. It needs to be for relevant material that is suitable for the age group, but pushes their thinking. This is the biggest struggle in the infants school, to push them without overwhelming them.
YEAR GROUP: 2
TASK: Responding to topical literature - How humans interact with the environment
COMMENT ON EVIDENCE OF THINKING:
I felt this book may have been a little difficult for this age group, but the routine proved me wrong. The girls articulated great points from throughout the book. Their connections showed that they understood the connections that were being made between the literature in library and the units in the classroom. We struggled a little bit with the extension of their thinking, however interestingly some of the extensions had to do with action that could be taken (which is the desired outcome at the end of units and this was halfway through). Their challenges particularly emphasised their understanding that humans can do more to look after their environment, but also that the environment reflects on our ability to function.
APPROPRIATENESS FOR YEAR GROUP: we did this activity on individually and as a class, and I found that for this age group it worked much better as a class. This allowed me to articulate what each facet of the routine meant as the girls answered, and they also fed off each other’s ideas as we went through the routine.