One main skill that all humans develop through their lives is the ability to think symbolically. We learn this basic skill in different areas such as languages and mathematics. There are many ways to express the number '5' - 'ห้า' - '五' The ability to think symbolically, will lay the foundation for abstract thinking.
Abstract thinking can help the student in problem solving, interpretation of new concepts, creativity, and empathy.
Here the Year 1 and Year 2 students are introduced to the new OISCA school logo as a way of flexing those abstract thinking muscles.
What do you see?
Tadashi: A banana.
Yuto: An ice cream.
Momoka: It looks like a candy.
Reito: Looks like the mountains.
Khobfah: Looks like a house made of water.
Movindu: I think it is a walking blue mountain.
Kavindi: A witch's hat.
Do you see any letters of the alphabet?
Yuto: No.
Reito: The candy is an 'O'
Khobfah: 'C' No others.
Momoka: The blue bit of the candy looks like 'L'
Tadashi: 'i'
Movindu: No.
Kavindi: No.
This exercise was a nice introduction for the kids to use their imaginations and their own insights into making sense of the abstract. In this case, there are no 'right answers' and students are encouraged to take risks in their opinions and thoughts. Hopefully most of those, land outside the box.
