The Lunar New Year and our amazing campus provided the perfect opportunity for our EY2 little ones to tune into our new Unit of Inquiry: Sharing the Planet, with a focus on animals!

Exploring the animals of the Chinese Zodiac gave our children their first chance to do some “research”—one of the skills we’re focusing on in this UOI—as they went around the school interviewing adults and asking, “What’s your Chinese Zodiac sign?” The children noticed that they had seen several horses featured in the New Year celebrations and decided this must be the Year of the Horse!

Another skill we’re developing in this UOI is thinking skills, so the children have been exploring thinking routines. One of these routines is See, Think, Wonder. EY2 went on an animal hunt around our campus. First, they drew what they could see. Later, they shared their thoughts and questions about animals!

This sparked a host of new questionsthat will fuel our ongoing inquiry: What do the animals need? Where will the pig and cow sleep? What happens if they wander off again? How can we keep them on the farm? With this curiosity in mind, the children's journey of exploring animals continues, allowing them to grow gradually through thinking and discovery.