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Showing posts with label learning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label learning. Show all posts
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
T-rex
After watching a variety of dinosaur documentaries lately, Remy & I agree that the head on this T-rex seems to be too small. It was fun to chisel it out of the clay, though. Dinosaur interests lately have been amplified by Fossil Fighters game play on the DS.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Investigations
Eddie investigating fruits
"Now we need to take them into the kitchen and make an apple smoothie".
Eddie decided to chop a large apple, using a rather dull table knife. Despite this handicap, he did a fine job. His first cut exposed a heart-shaped air pocket around the seeds in the core. As he was eager to continue chopping, I didn't capture it on camera.
The spikey fruit in the picture above (Kiwano, or African horned melon) didn't yield so easily to the butter knife. Here is what it looked like when we cut it with something sharper.
I thought it tasted flowery. A mild, sweet flavor. Viktor & Eddie also tasted, but declined to eat any. Nothing left but to add it to the smoothie.
Eddie's handiwork
Although somewhat gritty (that may have been the protein powder), we all enjoyed the watermelon-apple-kiwano smoothie. I thought the kiwano shell looked like a funny face after scooping out the pulp. The boys agreed, "sort-of".
Kiwano face
Friday, January 20, 2012
Vital endurance
Discussions yesterday led to the questions:
"What does vital mean?"
"What does endurance mean?"
"What is the opposite of endurance?" (This one stumped us.)
"Would delicacy be the opposite of endurance?" (Um, no.)
We settled on fragility as an antonym for endurance. At which point it became part of the title for a blueprint (plan drawing on white paper, although we have previously discussed why it might be blue) of a level design for Angry Birds Knock on Wood (which is made of plastic, not wood).
Today, while playing one of our recent favorite DS games, "Is stats short for statistics?"
Most anything can prompt our curiosity.
(Now where did the phrase knock on wood come from anyway?)
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile
"What does vital mean?"
"What does endurance mean?"
"What is the opposite of endurance?" (This one stumped us.)
"Would delicacy be the opposite of endurance?" (Um, no.)
We settled on fragility as an antonym for endurance. At which point it became part of the title for a blueprint (plan drawing on white paper, although we have previously discussed why it might be blue) of a level design for Angry Birds Knock on Wood (which is made of plastic, not wood).
Today, while playing one of our recent favorite DS games, "Is stats short for statistics?"
Most anything can prompt our curiosity.
(Now where did the phrase knock on wood come from anyway?)
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Video games and connections
I admit it. The boys spend a lot of time playing video games.
Sometimes they play "educational" games, and it is easy to imagine that they are learning important skills from the games. But many times the games they play are "just for fun", and it is easy to imagine that the boys are wasting. a lot. of time. After all, what could they learn from games like Legend of Zelda, or Jewel Quest, or Fossil Fighters, or Zoo Tycoon, besides hand-eye coordination and how to escape from the "real" world for, it seems like, days at a time?
"I will bet you quantities of cash that there are untold connections in your child's mind when he's watching his favorite shows and playing his favorite games. Just because an interest doesn't take off and take tangible form doesn't mean it's not real. Just because you're not seeing a physical manifestation of his intellectual life doesn't mean there's nothing going on." - Deb Lewis, as quoted at Radical Unschooling.
Connections. What do you mean connections? What kind of connections?
What I see, when I watch my boys play, is that they are learning. They are learning about maps, and how to use them to navigate a three-dimensional world. They are learning vocabulary and to recognize the spelling of words. They are learning how to solve problems - from "what strategy should I use to defeat this opponent?", to "how do I solve this puzzle?", to "what do I need to do next?". They are learning to help each other. They are learning to break complicated tasks down into manageable parts. They are learning about Greek mythology, and zoology, and paleontology. They are learning about story line and characterization and drama. They are learning about music, and how it can be employed to convey emotion.
These things they are learning will be used later, in conversation, or in analysis of a story, or in real- life navigation. They will have an idea how to approach difficult problems in real life, too, because they have practice solving difficult problems in games. They may recognize an image in a painting or in a photograph, or a word in different context. These are connections, connections which can reinforce concepts, or lead to further exploration. This is learning.
For more on video games and learning, check out this article by psychologist Peter Gray, or this book by author Mark Prensky.
Sometimes they play "educational" games, and it is easy to imagine that they are learning important skills from the games. But many times the games they play are "just for fun", and it is easy to imagine that the boys are wasting. a lot. of time. After all, what could they learn from games like Legend of Zelda, or Jewel Quest, or Fossil Fighters, or Zoo Tycoon, besides hand-eye coordination and how to escape from the "real" world for, it seems like, days at a time?
"I will bet you quantities of cash that there are untold connections in your child's mind when he's watching his favorite shows and playing his favorite games. Just because an interest doesn't take off and take tangible form doesn't mean it's not real. Just because you're not seeing a physical manifestation of his intellectual life doesn't mean there's nothing going on." - Deb Lewis, as quoted at Radical Unschooling.
Connections. What do you mean connections? What kind of connections?
What I see, when I watch my boys play, is that they are learning. They are learning about maps, and how to use them to navigate a three-dimensional world. They are learning vocabulary and to recognize the spelling of words. They are learning how to solve problems - from "what strategy should I use to defeat this opponent?", to "how do I solve this puzzle?", to "what do I need to do next?". They are learning to help each other. They are learning to break complicated tasks down into manageable parts. They are learning about Greek mythology, and zoology, and paleontology. They are learning about story line and characterization and drama. They are learning about music, and how it can be employed to convey emotion.
These things they are learning will be used later, in conversation, or in analysis of a story, or in real- life navigation. They will have an idea how to approach difficult problems in real life, too, because they have practice solving difficult problems in games. They may recognize an image in a painting or in a photograph, or a word in different context. These are connections, connections which can reinforce concepts, or lead to further exploration. This is learning.
For more on video games and learning, check out this article by psychologist Peter Gray, or this book by author Mark Prensky.
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