Work Smarter, Not Harder

Week 2: How the World Works: Simple Machines

Children are born learners, with a natural curiosity to figure out how the world works. Curiosity is the desire to learn. It's an eagerness to explore, discover and figure things out.

I will quote this message from the article I read recently. "The more curious a child is, the more he learns. Nurturing your child's curiosity is one of the most important ways you can help your child become a lifelong learner."

Parents and I, myself as an educator shouldn't make our children curious or push them to learn. Research shows that it is a child's internal desire to learn (their curiosity), not external pressure, that motivates them to seek out new experiences and leads to greater success in school over the long term.

Children come into the world with a drive to understand how the world works. They are in love with life and thrilled by everything they see.

As we move on to the next unit, student's creativity and curiosity will be put in test.

Inquiry:

Simple machines are basic tools we use to make our work easier. As a second language learner, students need to learn new phrases and vocabularies.

In the first week of our Second Unit - How the World Works, students unlocked new vocabularies like pulley, lever, wedge, wheel and axle, inclined plane and screw known as the 6 Basic Simple Machines.

For the time being, they might not fully understand the phrase "Work smarter, not harder" but sooner or later they will get there and understand it eventually.

I showed them two photos of simple machines each day and gathered their thoughts and ideas about the picture. It's interesting how their minds work.

Masaki described the lever as a see-saw.

Improvised "pulley".

Fukuto - explaining how the wheel and axle work. When you turn the wheel, the water (he meant the bucket) will go up.

Accordingly, one man is pushing the container up. and the other is holding the container (they meant carrying). :)

Showing more of our improvised simple machines that they will use to explore and play next week.

They were all excited and it already drives their curiosity.

Showing them how to make the catapult.

For this age, it was quite challenging but it's a good exercise for their fine motor skills.

In the beginning, they struggled and asked for help, but eventually, they've found their way and managed to tie the rubber band into the popsicle sticks.

It's also a good exercise to work as a pair as each and every one of them helped their partners.