Stories
Our curriculum currently runs for two whole school years. These are just some of the highlights we have during a normal Arribada Club programme, for both our Year One and Year Two students.
NOVEMBER | X Y on the Classroom Floor!
Sometimes, the best way to get kids to learn is to get them moving. So, when it came to teaching Cartesian Coordinates, that’s just what we did. We silver-taped our two axes on the ground, X and Y, and drew a giant chalk grid on the floor. Then, it was time to play!
First, we got them familiarized with the X axis. “X, 4… Go!” In the beginning, they would look hesitantly while trying to figure out the line that they had been assigned. There were even false starts, with some students bolting in the wrong direction! But, as the game went on, they soon got the hang of it. “Coordinate -3. Run!” And, run they did, dashing to the line and then balancing on it while standing – and giggling –, shoulder to shoulder with their classmates.
After practicing the same exercise with the Y axis, it was time to bring both coordinates together. Now, our students had to figure out in what specific point the X and Y lines came together. “Let’s see… Go to: X 5, Y -2. Ok! Next student… Go to: X -2, Y 3!”And, off they went, one by one, plotting the Cartesian plane we had drawn in our classroom, until we had points all over the place.
Finally, there was even time for one final challenge with the quadrants, as in (+,+), (−,+), (−,−), and (+,−). “Positive, negative!”, we would cry, and the students would have to determine which quarter of the grid to stand on. “Now… Positive, positive!” Again, a little hesitant at first… But, just as before, in no time at all, our kids started confidently running to the assigned position – proving that you can, and should, learn and play at the same time.
They came out of this class budding experts on Cartesian Coordinates. Moreover, they had a lot of fun doing it!
