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Engaging the Imagination
Spellbound, a first-grade class listens as their teacher introduces them to
Woozles, fanciful creatures she has encountered "in a dream." She shows them
drawings of the creatures, which happen to have a variety of characteristics
just perfect for sorting. The students sort the Woozles according to these
characteristics and then devise some attributes of their own, challenging
one another to discern the new sorting criteria. In doing these activities,
the students utilize observation, analysis, and classification--basic
processes that are at the core of the lower school curricular goals of
developing literacy and mathematical proficiency.
Knowing that her students are captivated by the Woozles, the teacher encourages
them to write about Woozles in their journals, to create stories about them,
and to debate their origins and authenticity. When students are engaged with
materials that stimulate their imaginations, learning is inevitable.
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