Furniture fit for a fairy.

To challenge the girls thinking further regarding design, we invited them to each plan for and then create a piece of fairy furniture. Initially the girls worked with black on white to draw their plans and following on from this they worked to construct their furniture using the beautiful natural materials which we had collected from our own garden, as well as up at Mt St John.

Here are some of the completed pieces:

Fairy bunk bed: Sydney

Fairy beach umbrella: Victoria C

Fairy swing: Victoria H

Fairy bunk bed: Harriet

Fairy swing: Olivia

Dining table and five chairs: Ella

Fairy Christmas tree: Siena

Fairy ladder: Natalie

Fairy bunk bed: Priya

Fairy bunk bed: Ishani

Two fairy chairs: Mia

Fairy beach umbrella: Alice

Fairy bunk bed: McLane

Our finished designs.

Designed by the Foundation Class

  

  

  

Wonder and imagination.

'It's easy to believe in magic when you're young.  Anything you couldn't explain was magic then.  It didn't matter if it was science or a fairy tale.  Electricity and fairies were both infinitely mysterious and equally possible - fairies probably more so.' 

- Charles De Lint

Artist: Alice

Adding colour to our designs.

On Friday the girls were invited to add colour using dye, to their fairy house designs. The girls worked with such care adding colour to their work and were delighted with the way in which they turned out. Here are some images of the girls at work:

Be sure to check out their finished designs on display near our painting easel, and we'll add some photo's of these to the blog over the next week too!

Designs for fairy houses.

Next we asked the girls to reflect on their favourite aspects of their own homes and following on from this we invited the girls to create their very own design of a fairy home. We were blown away by the level of thought that went into designing the houses and the detail that was depicted in the images.

We invited the girls to share and explain their thinking, related to their designs and it was once again fascinating to hear what they had to say. Each aspect of their designs seemed to be carefully thought out and you could easily pinpoint what they were sharing, within their images.

Here are some of the girls initial designs:

Artist: Alice

Artist: Harriet

Artist: Siena

Artist: Ella

'Creativity is a great motivator because it makes people interested in what they are doing. Creativity gives hope that there can be a worthwhile idea. Creativity gives the possibility of some sort of achievement to everyone. Creativity makes life more fun and
more interesting.'

- Edward De Bono

'Fairies are very little you know' -Victoria

Recently on a visit to Mt St John, as we sat on a beautiful log in the shade of the trees, a fascinating conversation was had about fairies. The dialogue encompassed ideas such as size and scale, and the possibility of working to create not only houses for fairies, but also furniture and clothing. The girls began to theorize about the difference in size between people and fairies, and considered the natural materials which they could utilize to create fairy sized items.

“We could make the fairies some furniture...using all of the things of nature”
Priya explained.

Intrigued by the possibility of taking the girls interest in fairies in the direction of design, architecture and construction, utilizing natural resources, we caught hold of this idea. We came up with some questions to provoke the girls thinking and shared these during one of our morning meetings.

We asked the girls to share with us just how big they perceived fairies to be and there was a general consensus that they were indeed very small.

Too much fun!

The pants and laughter say it all. Thanks Ka Man for joining in the fun and challenge on Mt St John.

Climbing trees and rolling down hills.

On Wednesday we had our first walk up Mount St John of the term, which was so exciting and everyone seemed to have a wonderful time. It was fascinating to observe the girls who were encountering the mountain for the first time and to listen to the beautiful conversations which occurred. The girls always seem to truly embody the idea of what it means to be free when they visit the mountain, rolling down hills, climbing trees and running through fields. We are so lucky to have this rich natural resource so near to us!

Here are some images from our adventure:

"Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are all excellent educators, and teach some of us more than we can ever learn from books. - John Lubbock

 

Welcoming new friends.

On Monday we welcomed seven new girls and their families to the Foundation Class. We began with a meeting time where we each greeted one another in different languages. Following on from this the girls introduced their families to us all. Everyone was so brave! We also shared in some delicious cupcakes.

Here are some images from the morning:

We are so excited to have had some new friends join us, and we look forward to sharing the many wonderful experiences and encounters that we have with you all, here on our blog.

Our leaving ceremony.

We recently said goodbye to four of our very special friends; Elena, Charlotte, Demira and Alison as they moved on to their year 0 classroom with Mrs Burson. We shared in a beautiful ceremony where we sang together, shared stories and presented each of the girls with a red rose to symbolize love. When the girls first began in the Foundation Class they were presented with a yellow rose, symbolic of friendship.

It has been a pleasure to work and learn alongside these four girls and their families and we wish them all the very best for their future.

"Life is partly what we make it and partly what is made by the friends we embrace."

- Tennessee Williams