Explore, Imitate, Hot Debate and Collaborate...
Explore
Jack has found two wooden plate holders in the classroom. He uses them to build. Other children notice this new idea and come over to watch, and some want to help. Jack accepts this help at first, but when too many hands and blocks are in the mix, Jack objects,
No no no no! I builded that.. I don’t want them to break it. It has to be like this. No! I want to make it get bigger.
Despite his pleas, Jack’s tower suffers an unintentional collapse. He is frustrated and walks away to have a moment alone in another part of the room.
Imitate
Jamie had been close by and intrigued by Jack’s use of materials and his creation. When Jack is no longer using them, Jamie carries these wooden pieces over to another shelf and tries to stack them in a different way.
Elliot approaches and adds two blocks to Jamie’s tower. Jamie accepts this help and Elliot’s contribution. Jamie then adds more blocks on top and then places a long block, by itself, on top of the shelf next to it. Then another. When he does it with a third block, as he puts it down, Jamie says, It says closed. He picks it up and puts it further down on the shelf, placing the block again, It says closed. There’s one cone.
Hot Debate
Jack is now playing again nearby. He picks up the block that Jamie has just put down and responds to Jamie,
Jack: It says no close. It says open (as he puts the block down on its side.)
Jamie: This is my cone.
Jack: That not a cone. That a block.
Jamie: That spells…it says closed. The sign says closed.
Feeling frustrated for a second time that morning, Jack begins to empty out all of the blocks from the shelf. Jamie and another child who is nearby, join Jack in this dumping of blocks. After they had emptied out two sections of blocks onto the floor, Diane stops them and asks,
What’s your plan with all of these blocks? What are we going to do with them?
Collaborate
Jamie: We’re going to make construction...four cones.
Jamie starts to pick up the longer blocks and put them on top of the shelves. Jack follows, picking up blocks and lining them up around the top of the shelves.
Jack: That says no closed…that says closed.
Jamie: The road is closed. This sign says closed.
Why is the road closed?
Jack: Cuz it’s closed over there too.
Jamie: Because there is some construction.
Jack: The road is closed. Never knock them down. The road is closed…no one knock them down, or else on the wall cuz its construction day. The road is closed. We’re building construction.
Jamie: The road is closed. There’s some cones. There’s some construction.
Jack: No coming! The road is closed! Don’t play with them. Never knock them down. I have construction but I’m not knocking them down.
Jamie: Here’s a long one. There’s a long one.
Ellie: Construction day!
Jamie: Look at that! It’s construction day!
Jack: That my house.
Jack begins to build with the bigger blocks on the rug.
Johann walks around with a block (a shorter one) and tries it out in different parts of the construction site. Ultimately, he decides not to add this block.
Johann: There’s a lot of stuff that you need to be a real construction site. (He begins to tell Mark) You need to go to high school…
You need to go to high school if you’re going to have a real construction site. What else do you need to do a real construction site?
Johann: And after you go to high school, then you go to a real construction.
Jamie: Look at that! It construction day! Mark! I want to ask you something…construction day!
Jack: That’s construction…look at! Big tall mountain. (Describing the house he is now building)
Jamie: Big tall mountain.
Jack: Tall mountain.
Jamie: I don’t want anyone to get hurt. Anyone to get hurt. I don’t want anyone that can get hurt, anyone can get hurt. I’m putting the block together. I don’t want anyone to get hurt.
After a busy construction day, there are many blocks to put away. Jamie and Ellie stay with the blocks during clean up time, working hard until almost every single block is put back on the shelf.
