Page 11 - 2019 - Altiora Vol 71 Sem 2

INNOVATION IN THE CLASSROOMS | 11

ARITHMATIC AL FRESCO
In November, students at the Preparatory
School enjoyed a day of outdoor learning as they
participated in Outdoor Classroom Day.
The students took all of their normal indoor classes
outside as well as making use of the outdoors for
some less conventional lessons.
Pre-Kindergarten had a wonderful time constructing
a gunyah, an indigenous shelter, from sticks and palm
fronds, doing some planting and working on their
early Numeracy skills by sorting leaves.

Kindergarten students made mathematical
estimations by comparing the mass of rocks and
leaves as well as getting up close and personal with
some insects in the garden when they went exploring
with their magnifying glasses.
The Stage 1 and 2 classes both took Reading Groups
and Mathematics lessons outside on the day.

CULTURES OF THINKING - THE JOURNEY CONTINUES
In August, the Bialik College in Melbourne
hosted the 7 Cultures of Thinking
th
Conference, and six members of BMGS
staff, representing all three campuses,
attended and were provided with a unique
opportunity to work with some of the
world’s leading educational thinkers. This
conference featured keynote speakers
Edward Clapp (Harvard University), Tiziana
Fillipini (Reggio Emilia, Italy), and Professor
Elanor Huntington (ANU College
of Engineering).
Miss Alicia Brace (Head of Preparatory School), Miss Laura
The throughlines for the conference Hall (Senior School Humanities teacher), Mrs. Danielle Mackin
included Systems Thinking, Willingness (Preparatory School Kindergarten teacher), Mrs. Bronwen
Knebel (Junior School Early Learning Co-ordinator), Mr. John
to Get Messy, Patterns of Curiosity and Forbes (Year 5/6 Performing Arts teacher) and Mr. Andrew
Transformational Landscapes. Beitsch (Head of Senior School).
The Cultures of Thinking Project, (Project Zero, Harvard Graduate School of Education) was
first introduced at BMGS in 2011. It aims to enhance learning, thinking and creativity in the arts,
together with humanistic and scientific disciplines. The CoT project focuses on further developing
a school-wide culture of thinking that supports both deep thinking and critical thinking, leading to a
deeper level of engagement and encouraging the students to become more flexible and energetic in
their thinking and learning.
Our teachers and Heads of School were provided with a unique opportunity of working with some
of the world’s leading educational thinkers on an ongoing basis over an extended period of time.
On their return to BMGS, they have been collaborating with their colleagues to ensure that the key
points and strategies continue to be applied School-wide for the benefit of all BMGS students.