Matariki - Maori new year celebrations
Wilford School celebrated Matariki last week. These are some of the kites they made.

Try out these websites for making kites
http://www.teara.govt.nz/EarthSeaAndSky/RecreationSeaAndSky/KitesAndManuTukutuku/2/ENZ-Resources/Standard/3/en

http://www.vientocero.com/kpb/pln_161/en.html

Teacher Reflections
Every now and then I record what teachers have to say about Discovery Time
This one is from Andrew - now on his OE (if you are reading this in the UK Andrew add a comment. We'd be very happy to do a work shop over there!!!!)

Discovery Time is really good for my enjoyment of teaching. I get to see the kids in a more relaxed environment and can just have fun instead of having to really get on top of them to do their work. In Discovery Time they just go for it.

It’s also a time for the children to knowingly reflect on their learning, to talk about what they did and link it back to the original key competency focus. The kids are now saying, I know I cooperated and shared because I did .....during discovery. They can give real examples of how they used the skill.

Giant bubbles

Aren't these fantastic!

Just imagine the fun your class could have and the questions that would be generated.

Can we make a stronger mixture?

Does it still work on a windy day?

Can you make other bubbles inside the big one?

Why does humidity make a difference?

The friend who sent the photos said..

"It was only 70% humidity, higher humidity gives better bubbles - we had trouble closing off the bubbles that day, without them popping."

Here is a link to the bubble book, and 'bubble thing', that we have - it's an ad for it on Amazon, and you can look at some of the inside pages. Might be useful. . . . http://www.amazon.com/Unbelievable-Bubble-Book-John-Cassidy/dp/0932592155/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1203286949&sr=8-1

If anyone else has ideas or photos of things they have tried please send us an email discoveryt@gmail.com and I'll put them up (just make sure you have permission for children's photos). We're always looking for new material so would love to hear from you.