The changing colors of leaves in the fall is one of the greatest sights and phenomenon Mother Nature has to offer.
Recently, the second grade WIN (What I Need) class studied fall leaves, integrating Science, Coding, Art and Nature.
By reading, observing and using chromatography, students learned that the color of leaves in the fall - - often a mixture of red, orange and yellow - - is actually hidden in normal, green leaves until the shortening of days’ causes chlorophyll levels to decrease. This gradual reduction leads to the beautiful kaleidoscope of colors we experience in the fall.
Students also learned about the environmental, site-specific art installations of Andy Goldsworthy, and used reverse engineering to figure out how the artist created some of his “trickier” natural sculptures. After, student teams collected leaves and other natural objects from outside and worked collaboratively to create their own site-specific, temporary artwork to photograph.
The leaf study culminated with a coding project on ScratchJr, with students using their photographed artwork as a background in a creative animation.
The second grade WIN class is designed to give enrolled students additional reinforcement of topics covered in the second grade curriculum. Lessons and activities are driven by student needs and interests.