Clothing Project

Teacher

Michele Sera & Elizabeth Virella

Program

Murphy School

Age Group

3 - 5 year olds

Phase I

This topic was chosen because clothing is a unit of study for our curriculum, Creative Curriculum.  Clothing is something children interact with on a daily basis, so there is quite a bit of background knowledge, but the possibility to deepen knowledge in many related area.  There was not a focusing event to begin the project.  Before beginning the project, children did not represent their knowledge and experiences.  We used a class concept web to record understandings.  Students generated a list of questions related to the topic.  The class decided to investigate making and caring for clothes.  I expected the students to be curious, willing to investigate, and incorporate their understandings in their play.

The investigations that occurred were: weaving, wardrobe styling, laundromat, and sewing.  The field site visited was to Friendly Wash laundromat.  Experts interviewed at the laundromat included the owner, Mr. Kahan; Tim, a manager; Elvia, an employees; various customers.  In the classroom, the experts interviewed were Heather Bruno, a parent who is a wardrobe stylist and Michale Nuccio, a friend who sews. The investigations did not change or get re-directed by the experience.  The most valuable resources were books about taking care of clothing, books about different kinds of clothing, the internet, and our experts. Parents were involved throughout the experience, starting from the introduction to the project, the invitation to participate in class and on our field trip, a checklist of ways to support conversations and concepts at home, and the culminating event.

Phase II

Phase III

Our culminating event was a slide show presentation using the Haiku Deck application.  We used photos from the project.  Students narrated what was going on in the photos and we finished by doing the Bean bag Boogie with the bean bags the students made.  We practiced with our Learning Buddies as our audience. Children learned to observe and record their observations through observational drawings.  They learned to ask and record answers to questions, using tally marks to help keep track of quantities.  They learned to work together to create a product and negotiate adjustments along the way.  They learned that ideas and concepts are connected.  They learned to compare and contrast.  They learned to represent ideas with drawings, constructions, and words.  They learned how to ask unfamiliar adults questions.  Their disposition to make sense of experience was cultivated.

 

Teacher Reflection

“I learned that allowing students’ questions to guide our learning is meaningful. I tend to be on a rigid schedule, trying to fit everything in. The students continued to be interested after my interest waned. I had to adjust my thinking of project and units being synonymous. A project can continue even though you may move onto another unit; conversely, you may begin a project while a unit is in progress. The best way I can describe this is thinking of project work as a layer of what happens in the classroom.

I would definitely do this project again, but be more willing to take diversions. Students did show an interest in the vending machine at Friendly Wash, but I chose not to pursue that because we had so many other things happening. I also see how it would be beneficial to introduce tally marks, questioning, and observational drawing at the beginning of the school year so students are more familiar with those researching skills.

In the future, I would like to try doing a project with our Learning buddies. It would be interesting to have my students have an older student to help them explore their specific interests.”
 

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