Wednesday, March 16, 2022

"Those are beautiful materials."                  Frannie

Work on the fairy-like guardian for humans continued on Tuesday with Brigitte.  Frannie and her friends were happy to work on wings and a skirt for this lovely guardian.  As children began with the wings, there was some debate on which material to use on them.  Lily wanted shimmery silver, while Remy preferred a translucent material that created shiny rainbows.  They eventually decided they could use both.
   Lily - One was for the night time wing and one is for day time.
   Remy - The night doesn't have any clear on it; it doesn't have rainbows.
   Lily - the silver is the night wing and the clear is the day wing.

 
​ Next up was the skirt.  Frannie and Lily selected  material and cut it.  
     Lily - I helped make the skirt.  So we got some wire and put the fabric on it, over and over again.  And then it was done.  
    Remy - We sewed the wire in out, in out, in out.  It made ruffles.  
    Brigitte - That's big skirt!
    Remy - Because it's a big fairy!
 Later Lucas came over and sewed additional flower embellishments on the skirt.  
      

The Message Guardian

Children started by examining the work that has been done on the body of the guardian.  
    Frannie - He looks like “Clink.” (Frannie is referring to a book we have read about a robot named “Clink.”)
    Jade - I know what his name should be, “Goldfish.”
    Cate - Maybe his name should be “Messages.”
    Cape - (Noticing a dot of hot glue in the center of the body). That looks like his belly button
    Jill - So today, we can either work on the head or the legs.
    Several children - The head!
    Jill - You have selected this box for the head.  Last week, we were trying to decide if the head should be blue or yellow?     
    Cate - Can we vote?
    Jill - Sure.  
Children unanimously vote for blue.  They begin to think about the eyes.
      Wilder - Maybe buttons for the eyes.
  Jill - Can you think about why the eyes would be important for a guardian?
  Finlay - Because if a bad guy comes in and he (guardian) doesn’t have eyes, the bad guys would think it was just a decoration and keep walking.
    Cape - So he can see the bad guys coming.
    Jade - So he can see the really bad bad guys.
The children work on the eyes, choosing “O” stickers with google eyes in the middle.  
    Jade - Those eyes are pretty scary.
    Lucas - it will stop the bad guys by eating them and the scissors (arms) will be fore hurting them.
    Jill - I remember in Finlay’s drawing, the guardian had antennae. 
    Finlay - Yes!  Antennae!
The group decides that old marker caps would be the perfect antennae.  After reviewing all the marker cap possibilities, they begin gluing them on to the top of the head.

Check out these guardians!

Field Trip and Reflection

With such wonderful weather, we thought we would take a trip to see the transformers and reflect on our work thus far. Unbeknownst to the children, a third transformer has appeared. This one, which many friends think looks like Batman, sits on the roof greeting onlookers. It took some time, but we finally discovered him.

Finlay: He looks like Batman
Jill: You think because of the ears?
​Wilder: Yea!

Wilder: They have lots of sharp things on their bodies. There's lots of silver.

Jade: There's a key on the bottom. That's where you put the fuel in so they can move.

Cate: Look inside! There's another transformer inside (the house).

After rediscovering the transformers and our love for all things robotic, we headed over the the nearby park to enjoy the afternoon. Lily and Capers taught us a new game, "Stuck in the Mud." It works like "Freeze Tag." Other friends decided to draw the beautiful spring greenery. We came back to St. Johns tired but excited to Spring Break. Don't forget, Thursday and Friday are Spring Conference. KW friends, we will see  you March 28. Have a great break!