Viper Fish on the Abyssal Plain

My son, James, has recently been fascinated by deep sea animals.  He's read books with us.  He's watched some of the BBC "Blue Planet" series.  He's gone to the aquarium.  But mostly, he's played.  A typical transcript:  "Mom, now you're the Momma Viper Fish and I'm you're baby.  It's night time now!  We have to go up to the twilight zone [the area between the sunlit upper sea and the pitch black deep sea that has a lot of the food for deep sea animals].  Quick.  Look at all this food. Shrimp!  Squid!  A football fish! (gulping noises).  I'm so full.  I have a stomach ache.  Uh oh.  Sunrise!  Back to the abyssal plane.  C'mon Mom."  I've come to believe it's because when he plays, these facts help him inhabit his world.  Conversely, the play helps him remember the facts by literally bringing them to life.

I've been watching the phenomenon unfold in the Elms this week.  On Monday, each child received  a Roman persona - a name, class, occupation, and family.  Throughout the week, we've been filling out the details of this person.  Where did they live? (there's been a lot of discussion about the benefits of various hills and neighborhoods)  What did they wear? ("Can my tunic have big purple stripes or just thin ones?")  What was their favorite food? (check out garum)  Who is their favorite god?  (S.C. wisely decided not to offend any gods by picking a favorite.)  We've taken a virtual tour of ancient Rome, trying to see the sites that are by our various homes.  Several students have begun writing diaries, sending letters to other Romans, or agitating for their freedom.  When we learn Roman numerals or greetings, kids exclaim, "Oh!  That's so useful!"

Why is it useful?  Because they are playing.  Children are so able to lose themselves in their imaginations and, as they become older, they are able to apply "reality" to that imaginary world, texturing it with facts and details they find in their research.  It's a symbiotic relationship.  Role play is a great way for children this age to learn in a deep and lasting way.

I've been wanting to see what fourth and fifth graders do with school blocks for a long time.  We have a group that likes to build anyway and I often come back from lunch to find pattern blocks used in amazing constructions.  This afternoon, we experimented with Google Earth's Ancient Rome layer (http://earth.google.com/rome/index.html) and then a group of kids and I brought up blocks from the basement.  I went back to get some more blocks as a few students began to build the Circus Maximus.  By the time I returned, Insula Tiberina (the island in the middle of the Tiber), Cirucs Maximus, the Coliseum, and several temples were erected.  By the time we  went to PE, just over a half hour from when we started downstairs to get the blocks, the Baths of Trajan were built, an aqueduct brought it water, and Pompey's theater had a stage that included a pulley for the "Deus ex Machina."  Students were working together, sharing ideas, gently critiquing ("that's a great front of the building -- let's build the inside, too"), and checking references for ideas.  S.H. was still exploring with Google Earth so he would offer ideas and details from time to time.

In their capable hands and minds, Rome came to life.  As they built, they explained their creations block by block, teaching each other more.  None of us was quite ready to leave The City of Seven Hills when the bus came.