"This is my magic wand. It's broken. 'Cos I left it out in the rain"

. This was the news item that Billy chose when it was his turn to stand in front of his classmates as they sat expectantly on the mat. Other pupils had told us stuff like "I like my cat" and "I went shopping with my Granny". Billy's wand waved around majestically at them. This was his moment of glory, he had waited impatiently for his turn.
 "It's not broken" from Johnny.
 Billy retorted "It is broken. The light on the end can light up when you press this button, see, 'cept it's broken 'cos I left it in the rain". "What rain?" from Eliza. "The rain in my garden" from a rather irritated Billy. "Rain can't break things" from Eliza. "Yes it can, 'cos the light did light and now it is broken  'cos I left it out in the rain". A few more rounds of 'No it can't" and "Yes it can" followed, with various other pupils joining in the debate with comments on whether rain can break things. Eventually, with no prompting from me, Billy introduced the word 'battery'. The debate continued as to how rain can break a battery.

"'Cos my magic wand is full of water, and the battery won't work when it's full of water": Billy had started off his 'news' with short rather stammering sentences. All reticence is now forgotten. He is in full swing of an argument he understands himself, and wants to help his class mates to learn too. He is the teacher. He is teaching his classmates. They are learning the importance of asking the right questions.

I, their teacher, remain silent. Billy is teaching them at a level they can grasp. He is learning how to frame his words in ways they will understand. The magic wand was the catalyst. They are now embarked on a community of enquiry into the relationship between water and light, and how batteries fit into this relationship.

I really liked Samantha's question "Well if it's broken because it's full of water, why don't you just tip the water out?"