Sturdy Structures

Budding Builders

The Cardinals enjoyed a visit from Carlito's Mom and Dad, Carlos and Marcia. Carlos is a builder who has a vast knowledge of working with wood, various tools, and other materials as he constructs houses and performs carpentry tasks. We welcomed Carlos' mom and dad and gathered on the rug as Carlos spoke about his job. He continued to spark our interest by showing us materials that he uses such as wood, wood glue, tape, nails, screws, hammers, and even power tools that require batteries and electricity to work. He showed us how he is able to attach wood pieces together using a combination of materials. He performed many demonstrations and set up four different experiments of attaching two pieces of wood together including to create stable structures that would last: 1. Glue and Tape, 2. Glue and Screw, 3. Glue and Nail, and 4. Glue and Pipe Clamp. He explained to us that we can check on these structures to measure their stability. After becoming more familiar with the routines, techniques and items involved in building and construction, each Cardinal received a pair of safety goggles an was sure to cover their eyes with this other important tool. Next, three centers were set up, one with wood and glue, one with hammers, nails and screws and one with power tools, hammers and screws. The children were invited to visit the centers to begin construction and exploring how to create structures with the assistance of Carlito's Mom, Dad and the teachers. Beautiful and elaborate structures were made as the children showed dedication, patience and persistence. Their impressive logic and reasoning shined through as they worked through problems with spacial relationships between different sized and shaped pieces and how to best fit them together. This was a strong community building morning where the Cardinals fully engaged with materials, teachers, families as they learned the roles and duties that a Carpenter or Construction Worker might have.

It's Our Turn...

A brief fire drill couldn't hold us back. We showed tremendous accountability and awareness as we lined up at the sound of the signal and followed the teachers outside to practice this important safety procedure in case of emergency. After a group count and safety check of the school, the Cardinals returned inside to continue  their work in the building centers. As an extension of our building, we invited Sam to visit our classroom for Art today. She arrived in our classroom, assisting us with building, attaching and figuring out how we wanted to create different structures. We loved working with the different items today and each shared some thoughts:

Alexander: "I liked building my boat. I used a little piece of wood and one big piece."

Carlos: "I built a surf board man with no hands and no head."

Chelsea: "I was screwing and I put glue with the wood."

Donny: "I liked watching Carlito's dad build."

Evan: "I liked the tools. I liked spending time with them and getting to say goodbye."

Hannah: "I like to build. I like to hammer."

Jacob: "I loved that we got to build with them and I love how my structure was made out of wood. I glued some parts and nailed some parts."

Kendall: "I liked when I was making the wood stick together."

Jayden: "I liked to get the drills and the hammer."

Kate: "I liked when they helped us build. Shannon helped me put the tape on."

Lilly: "I liked him drilling with us."

Radha: "I love to build with sticks. I made a boat. I liked the hammers."

Samuel: "I learned how to make a house."

Stella: "I loved that he played with me. He helped me drill and glue."

Trace: "I liked hammering."

Violet: "I loved hammering. She put a very small nail in and let me finish it up."

Wyatt: "I liked gluing the different parts on the wood and putting tape on it."

Thank you with all our hearts to Carlos and Marcia for sharing their time and knowledge with us. We enjoyed our building and construction experiences together and have developed deeper and meaningful connections with our work and what we can do with our hands! This was a great way to challenge our minds and bodies!