Starting the school year in our camp

Six full days into the school year, our nature explorers have been busy adjusting to the camp rules and routines, learning about how their brain works, and taking breaks with breathing, meditation and attention exercises.
We have started our number talks right after arriving to school. Our campers right away get their whiteboards ready, look at the smart board, and start thinking about the equations on the board. At first glance they look easy, 6 + 6, 6 + 5, 6 + 7, but once they get over the urge to solve them, what other patterns and relationships can they see in these equations? Are there ways in which numbers can be split apart to make adding easier? Can they find the hidden doubles in the equations? Can they make a 10 first? Can they use one equation to aid solve another one? All these questions have led the campers to interesting conversations, to think outside the box, and to understand that there is way more to numbers than what the eye can see. Take a look at the pictures to see the strategies that the students have come up with.

Also, during the week of inspirational math, our explorers have been learning about the importance of making mistakes, how the brain grows when we find challenges and believe that we have the capacity and skills to solve them, and learn from trying over and over, how depth is better than speed, and how real world mathematicians are in fact, really slow thinkers.
During our reading workshop block, we have started getting our book bags ready, finding our reading spots, how to read independently, how to read with a partner, and what the teacher will be doing while the students are reading independently. We have had a lot of fun modeling the wrong way of doing things, and then the right way, so the campers know what not to do! These campers are very good actors!

Finally, during our meditation period, we have been taking some relaxing breaks at the end of the day, taking deep breaths, stretching, and learning about attention. We have also learned about the Zones of Regulation, and what to do when we are not in the green zone. 
Phew! Sounds like it has been really busy in this camp! And we just got started! There will be more adventures coming, so check back with us soon!