“It means how big you are.” -Juliette

Journals School Events West Wing

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Yoli met with children interested in the problem of size in scale to things that work together.  After a lot of observation, the teachers discussed what they thought this group of children were trying to figure out when they worked in the Block Area. The children had drawn several sizes of fairies and built homes and told stories of fairies riding horses.  It was then they noticed that none of these elements were in scale with each other.

Yoli: “Here are the fairies some friends drew. Can they fit on the horses?”

Juliette: “They are too big!” She places one on a horse to demonstrate.

Asha assesses a fairy on a horse: “The first one I made is too big!”

Yoli: “What do you think scale means?”

Juliette: “It means how big you are.”

Michael G.: “I’m small. My mom and dad are big!” He gives an example of what he knows of scale.

Asha noticed a pink paperclip and starts putting it on the horse – showing estimation skills of size and proportion. Yoli took this cue and introduced a ruler.

Yoli: “You are trying to figure out the scale. Would you like to measure it with a ruler?”

Asha: “Michael, you measure it.”

Michael counts: “1,2, 3.” He and Deia repeat measuring the paperclip. Everyone wants to make a 2 or 3 inch fairy.

Michael makes a template: a 3 inch high box inside where the fairies can be drawn. The rest of the group continues to create 3 inch templates with the ruler and draw fairies to the scale of their horse.

Juliette's template based on a 3 inch measurement

Michael's template for a 3 inch fairy

Asha's 3 inch fairy!

This group has planned to meet again to explore the ruler and measurements, correlating the numbers to the physical world.

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