Grade 3/4 News

Our Island Home: Where Adventure Meets Imagination (and sometimes... Ducks)

This term in Integrated Studies, our classroom became a tropical melting pot of creativity, geography, and more than a few unusual animals. The unit, titled Our Island Home, gave students the chance to dive into the world of island life. And what a wild ride it’s been!

Each student group was tasked with researching a real climate zone and create their very own original island within that region. They had to consider important geographical factors like annual temperature, rainfall, and the environmental features of nearby countries. 

After some serious brainstorming and even more serious colouring-in, students confidently presented their island creations to the class. The creativity was off the charts, and so were the island names! 

We proudly explored:

• Adventure Island – where excitement never sleeps 
• Duck Ducktopia – possibly the most quack-tastic island of them all
• Chain Range – an island of many links.
•  Alnarugh Island – presumably named after it's creators.
• Scarr – equal parts spooky and sweet, and named after its three daring founders.
• Chrofeekoo Island – a tropical paradise with a flair for the fabulous.

These islands were not just dots on a map, they were teeming with wildlife, both plausible and… let’s just say unique. Our islands were home to butterflies, jellyfish, salamanders, ducks and even more ducks (obviously), turtles, axolotls, dolphins, flying foxes, bears (of course), and even piranhas.

The project also had strong ties to our mentor text, Nim’s Island. Students could apply their understanding of island life and transfer vocabulary from the text directly into their own presentations. Who knew learning about literacy, topography and climate zones could be so... thrilling?

What made this project especially heartwarming was the way students leaned into their creative sides. Every students got involved designing, building, drawing, planning, naming (sometimes very creatively), and presenting. They became geographers, environmentalists, and storytellers, all in one.

So next time your child mentions moving to Duck Ducktopia, do not be alarmed. Just know they have spent the term learning about the world and dreaming up a better (if slightly duck-heavy) version of it.

Thanks for taking this journey with us from Our Island Home!