March 03rd, 2020

Next Phase of Hopscotch: Transposing it onto Canvas

 The teachers have been doing some tinkering behind-the-scenes of the hopscotch project!  We have realized that in order to realistically give this gift, it has to be easily portable.  At meeting today, we proposed a solution to the children: a large canvas onto which we can re-create the hopscotch game with paint.
When we used the word "neighbors" in discussing Hyde-Addison, Grace was confused, insisting that they're not our actual neighbor since they're not next door (to our left or right).  Gigi gave her perspective: "Some neighbors are next to our house, and some are across the street."
​In the studio, we took Palmer's suggestion from last week: "Un-tape it."  Then we moved every single number onto the canvas.  It took one hour and six minutes to get every single number in the right order and correct pattern!  But we DID IT!

Melanie: How are we going to remember where the numbers go?
Palmer: We'll go in order! One, two, three...
Olivia:  We have numbers here to protect us.  And we could draw it on there.
Melanie: It’s starting to get confusing, isn’t it?  Lots of numbers over there.
Palmer: And they’re not putting it in the right order.  They’re putting three on one??
(He looks at the jumbled numbers)
Palmer: One, two... twelve, four, seven?? HAH!! 

Grace: (revisiting morning meeting) Now I understand why.  Gigi's plan is my plan.
Melanie: That they're our neighbors?
Grace: (nodding) But we don't know them.
Melanie: Right, we have to introduce ourselves.
Maren: They are still our neighbors but we do not know them.
Grace: (looking down at the numbers, still jumbled) That's not how hopscotch goes.

Grace and Maren repeatedly jump on the hopscotch game while counting 1,2,3, etc.  It becomes apparent putting numbers 11 through 19 is way harder than the single digit numbers.  This is completely age-appropriate, but it does put an obstacle in our way.  We'll have to get resourceful in order to complete sequence - we begin using a number line.

Melanie: Does 13 really come after 8?
Gigi: I think it comes after 14.
Grace: Eleven comes after nine.
Maren: But we have no more room!  (She independently shifts all numbers down to create more room)  What about this?
Melanie: (Reading it) One two three four five six seven eight nine ten eleven twelve ... fourteen?
Lane: ..... THIRTEEN.
Maren: Thirteen is a 2 and a 3.
Lane: It's a 1 and a 2. 
Emilia: It's this one.  (She picks up number 15)
Ellie:  It's a one and a five.
(We look at the number line)
Melanie: (pointing at phone screen while reading) Ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen.
Emilia: The 3 and 1? 
​(They leap into action)
​Maren: FOUND IT.
(We move onto 14, looking carefully at the number line)
Lane: FOUR AND A ONE, I FOUND IT.
(As we progress, new group members are continually joining while others leave for a new plan.  Fletcher and Evelyn arrive and help diagnose the problems in our numbers)
Fletcher: One two three four five six seven eight nine ten eleven twelve thirteen fourteen fifteen.... SIXTEEN!
(He's able to put the numbers in order without any problem, but forgets the pattern of two squares, one square.  Gigi notices the problem as she hops across three squares in a single column.)
Gigi: There's one, one, one.  I hopped for one, one, one.  One foot.
(Fletcher notices a similar problem as he hops)
Fletcher:  WAIT A MINUTE!  It's supposed to do 1, 2, 1, 2.  
Evelyn: WAIT A SECOND!  Uh ohhhhh.  Where is that silly number?
(Evelyn tries putting 13, 14, and 15 in a horizontal row.)
Gigi: There's one in the middle. 
Evelyn: I see the problem.  We need more numbers.
(We rearrange the pattern so that it's back to normal, but 15 still winds up in the wrong spot)
Fletcher:  No, that's not supposed to be it. 
He quickly rearranges the numbers into the correct order, maintaining the pattern!  It's finally finished.

ALSO: We have officially let Hyde-Addison know we want to meet up with them.  Children helped write the email!  (Ellie also helped but isn't pictured here!)

Hammers and Nails!
More on this to come soon.