During this half of the term, Tamar class have been answering the big question ʻwhat would it be like to live in the rainforest?ʼ
For this, they researched the life of tribes that live in the rainforest and used this information to create their own ʻstop-motionʼ films, which were set in the rainforest. This involved them creating a storyboard and mini-set, as well as filming and editing their films using an app called StickBot.
Teacher’s Reflection
“I enjoyed this project as it allowed the students to learn a new skill and demonstrate their creativity through a different creative media. The students loved making and editing their films and it was wonderful to see how proud they were of their work when their families came to the exhibition. This was the first project where parents came to see the exhibition and the students loved this. If I did the project again I would ensure that more time was spent at the start of the project exploring how life is different in the rainforest.
What was the best thing about the project?
— Students having ownership over how they produced their work (e.g., poster, presentations, videos).
— Students having the opportunity to learn the skill of filmmaking.
— Hosting the awards ceremony as the exhibition of the project.
What did I find challenging?
— Supporting students in making their own films without taking the ownership and agency away from them.
— Films were not focused enough on the big question.
— Found it challenging to refer to the big question throughout lessons and for students to understand how life would be different. This was most likely due to the fact that we were unable to do the trip due to the lack of time.”
— Sam Dexter
Student Reflection
“I think it went great. It was hard to come up with the idea but even harder to create! I learned that people cut down rainforests to get wood to build houses, tables, paper, chairs, but it endangers animals.”
– Noah
“Best project ever because we made our own films and got to show them off to parents at the Gradu-Oscars.”
– Yitzi
