My Reflection about my blog, by Mavis Gallagher.

May 2011

Technology is changing my life for the better all the time and it is a challenge for me that I enjoy.  I can educate children about something new and learn at the same time. By spending time observing, listening and watching children a teacher can get to know their likes and dislikes.  We can “challenge young children with tasks that seem impossible, says Copley (2008), we should give them the opportunity to show what they can do in the way they want” (p.2).  Working with the children on the learning story about the earthquakes that happened in Christchurch and Japan made me realise that children can get emotionally stressed out like adults about what they see and hear through technology.  The children had seen the devastation of the earthquakes and the tsunami on the television news with their families and whānau. I noticed that “despite negative life events and stress, states Breslin (2005), these situations seems adaptable to most children and they survive, displaying resilient behaviour throughout their active participation in the classroom” (p.48).  I still felt the children needed to communicate to others about the disasters, they showed lots of emotion on their faces as they talked about tumbling buildings and fire and the gushing sea.                                                                              Te Whāriki states that “adults, as well as children, need emotional support, some flexibility in their routines, and the opportunity to share and discuss their experiences in a comfortable setting” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.47). On reflection some children shouted while telling their views because it was very important to them, I could tell they felt empathy for the people that had lost their homes and people that were lost.  According to Smorti (1999), “there is an increasing awareness of the technology world that we live in: a world that people have created and changed through technology (p.5). On reflection an example of this is when mat time came we listened to a happy story using a cd in the radio and sang a song which brings me to the learning story and reflection about the jack in the box.                                                                     Te Whāriki suggests that “children should experience an environment where they learn strategies for active exploration, thinking, and reasoning. Giving children the ability to represent their discoveries, using creative and expressive media and the technology associated with them” (MoE, 1996, p.88).  We sing that lovely song because everyone gets involved and it grabs the children’s attention because of the actions.  Children are using their large motor skills to jump up and down, concentrating with their cognition skills, blinking their eyes and using small muscle groups, clapping and moving their fingers and arms.  On reflection getting the tempo/timing right with each other and keeping their balance without falling is a great effort for toddlers.  “Effort involves the combination of space and time, developing a force for which the movement is produced, and drawing attention to the dynamics or qualitative aspects of movement” say Wright (2003, p.315).  I have often noticed children singing when they are playing on their own, I believe that by teaching children to sing songs, their singing enhances their play. Wright (2003) claims that “children repeat each song several times until they can perform it well” (p.192).    My reflection about the little boy and the vacuum cleaner was encouraging for me, just to hear him speak out.  Letting him feel the suction and vacuum the mat enhanced a positive happening for him, as he didn’t speak much but he said ‘what’s that’ to me, I thought it was so funny I laughed because the little fellow firstly pointed at the full bag then he just didn’t seem to understand how a whole vacuum cleaner could be come two pieces.  I put the cleaner back together and we kept vacuuming. “These play experiences are very valuable for young investigators.

Through their play, they often consolidate and make deeper and more accurate sense of their experiences and related concepts” (Helm & Katz, 2001, p.56).  Children like to join in with teachers when it comes to cleaning the centre.  My fourth reflection about shadows in the sunlight was exciting for all of us because of using the camera to take photo’s and I believe that using Information, Communication and Technology, “taking photographs to construct text that the photographer, who cannot read and write in the conventional sense, can read and revisit” (Ministry of Education, 2004, p.6).  The children were experiencing something new and interesting; they all wanted to have a turn at finger shadowing and body shadowing and taking photos of their shadows, the giggles and enthusiasm is still with us when the sun shines low in the winter. Te Whāriki suggests that “Children should experience an environment where their play is valued and meaningful learning and the importance of spontaneous play is recognised” (MoE, 1996, p.84). Children have enquiring minds and need to try things out to be able to fulfil their curiosity and to explore the natural elements around them; the elements are important and valued ways of learning. “We have an increasing wealth of knowledge from research to assist us in understanding the development of children and can apply this to support our understanding of the child’s developing understanding of the scientific world” says Johnston (2005, p.21). On reflection, ICT has had a big impact on my blog, I have spent weekend’s sitting at the computer trying to work out how to place photos on my learning stories and trying to keep them in one place successfully and getting that perfect action photo with out showing the children’s identity wasn’t easy, then placing my words where I would like them to appear. Net safe states that “Early  childhood education providers are rapidly discovering the potential benefits technology such as the internet, email and digital photography bring to children’slearning” (http://www.netsaef.org.nz/)                                                                                                       On On reflection, I have gained more confidence and am looking into my classmate’s blogs and reading their learning stories, as Tsantis states “it is the teacher’s knowledge and skills about how to use the technology that makes the difference, not the technology itself” Tsantis, Bewick  & Thouvenelle (2003,p.4). I have received a lot of support, praise and feedback from Student/teachers in my class.  It is plain to see that my colleagues have read my learning stories about using technology in today’s world and enjoyed them as I have enjoyed reading theirs. Thanks Tamar, Elisapeta, Hester, Emily, Faith, Mindy, Amy, Rahana, Rosemoni and everyone else who reads and comment’s on my learning stories blog, you all (cyber citizen’s) have given me a wealth of perspectives, thankyou.  I have felt closer to my colleagues at MIT being able to look at their blogs and give them feedback and building this reciprocal, responsive, respectful relationship has given me a fresh sense of ‘Belonging, strand two’ Te Whāriki say’s “this strand is based particularly on the principles of Family and Community and of Relationships” (MoE,1996, p.54). I will be using my blog for learning stories at work, making links with our curriculum, children’s experiences and following their interest’s, all events with family and whānau, their cultures and the community.   I have read my classmates learning stories and they deserve a lot of praise, their stories are lovely to read and I will enjoy reading the new ones that they enter for many years to come.

References.

Breslin, D. (January 2005). Children’s capacity to develop resiliency: How to nurture it.  Young Children, 60 (1), 47-52

Copley, J. (2008). The Young Children and Mathematics. NAEYC: USA

Helm, J., & Katz, L. (2001).   Young investigators the project approach in early years. New York: Teachers College Press.

Johnston, J. (2005). Early Explorations in science: Exploring Primary Science and Technology Education (2^nd ed.). England: McGraw Hill.

Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He Whāriki mātaurangi mō ngā mōkopuna o Aotearoa.  Wellington: Learning Media.

Net safe workshop http://www.netsafe.org.nz/

Smorti, S. (1999) Technology on the Early Childhood. Early Education, No19 Autumn 1999.

Tsantis, L.A.,  Bewick , C. J., & Thouvenelle , S. (2003). Examining some common about computer use in the Early  Years. Young Children. Vol58 (1),pp.1-9.

Wright, S. The Arts (2003). Young Children and Learning. USA. Pearsons Education Inc.

This is my reflection about my blog, learning stories, and colleagues (input) comments and encouragement.

My Reflection about my blog, by Mavis Gallagher.

May 2011

Technology is changing my life for the better all the time and it is a challenge for me that I enjoy.  I can educate children about something new and learn at the same time. By spending time observing, listening and watching children a teacher can get to know their likes and dislikes.  We can “challenge young children with tasks that seem impossible, says Copley (2008), we should give them the opportunity to show what they can do in the way they want” (p.2).  Working with the children on the learning story about the earthquakes that happened in Christchurch and Japan made me realise that children can get emotionally stressed out like adults about what they see and hear through technology.  The children had seen the devastation of the earthquakes and the tsunami on the television news with their families and whānau. I noticed that “despite negative life events and stress, states Breslin (2005), these situations seems adaptable to most children and they survive, displaying resilient behaviour throughout their active participation in the classroom” (p.48).  I still felt the children needed to communicate to others about the disasters, they showed lots of emotion on their faces as they talked about tumbling buildings and fire and the gushing sea.                                                                                  Te Whāriki states that “adults, as well as children, need emotional support, some flexibility in their routines, and the opportunity to share and discuss their experiences in a comfortable setting” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.47). On reflection some children shouted while telling their views because it was very important to them, I could tell they felt empathy for the people that had lost their homes and people that were lost.  According to Smorti (1999), “there is an increasing awareness of the technology world that we live in: a world that people have created and changed through technology (p.5). On reflection an example of this is when mat time came we listened to a happy story using a cd in the radio and sang a song which brings me to the learning story and reflection about the jack in the box.                                                                     Te Whāriki suggests that “children should experience an environment where they learn strategies for active exploration, thinking, and reasoning. Giving children the ability to represent their discoveries, using creative and expressive media and the technology associated with them” (MoE, 1996, p.88).  We sing that lovely song because everyone gets involved and it grabs the children’s attention because of the actions.  Children are using their large motor skills to jump up and down, concentrating with their cognition skills, blinking their eyes and using small muscle groups, clapping and moving their fingers and arms.                                               On reflection getting the tempo/timing right with each other and keeping their balance without falling is a great effort for toddlers.  “Effort involves the combination of space and time, developing a force for which the movement is produced, and drawing attention to the dynamics or qualitative aspects of movement” say Wright (2003, p.315).  I have often noticed children singing when they are playing on their own, I believe that by teaching children to sing songs, their singing enhances their play. Wright (2003) claims that “children repeat each song several times until they can perform it well” (p.192).    My reflection about the little boy and the vacuum cleaner was encouraging for me, just to hear him speak out.  Letting him feel the suction and vacuum the mat enhanced a positive happening for him, as he didn’t speak much but he said ‘what’s that’ to me, I thought it was so funny I laughed because the little fellow firstly pointed at the full bag then he just didn’t seem to understand how a whole vacuum cleaner could be come two pieces.  I put the cleaner back together and we kept vacuuming. “These play experiences are very valuable for young investigators.

Through their play, they often consolidate and make deeper and more accurate sense of their experiences and related concepts” (Helm & Katz, 2001, p.56).  Children like to join in with teachers when it comes to cleaning the centre.  My fourth reflection about shadows in the sunlight was exciting for all of us because of using the camera to take photo’s and I believe that using Information, Communication and Technology, “taking photographs to construct text that the photographer, who cannot read and write in the conventional sense, can read and revisit” (Ministry of Education, 2004, p.6).  The children were experiencing something new and interesting; they all wanted to have a turn at finger shadowing and body shadowing and taking photos of their shadows, the giggles and enthusiasm is still with us when the sun shines low in the winter. Te Whāriki suggests that “Children should experience an environment where their play is valued and meaningful learning and the importance of spontaneous play is recognised” (MoE, 1996, p.84). Children have enquiring minds and need to try things out to be able to fulfil their curiosity and to explore the natural elements around them; the elements are important and valued ways of learning. “We have an increasing wealth of knowledge from research to assist us in understanding the development of children and can apply this to support our understanding of the child’s developing understanding of the scientific world” says Johnston (2005, p.21). On reflection, ICT has had a big impact on my blog, I have spent weekend’s sitting at the computer trying to work out how to place photos on my learning stories and trying to keep them in one place successfully and getting that perfect action photo with out showing the children’s identity wasn’t easy, then placing my words where I would like them to appear. Net safe states that “Early  childhood education providers are rapidly discovering the potential benefits technology such as the internet, email and digital photography bring to children’s  learning” (http://www.netsaef.org.nz/)                                                                                                       On On reflection, I have gained more confidence and am looking into my classmate’s blogs and reading their learning stories, as Tsantis states “it is the teacher’s knowledge and skills about how to use the technology that makes the difference, not the technology itself” Tsantis, Bewick  & Thouvenelle (2003,p.4). I have received a lot of support, praise and feedback from Student/teachers in my class.  It is plain to see that my colleagues have read my learning stories about using technology in today’s world and enjoyed them as I have enjoyed reading theirs. Thanks Tamar, Elisapeta, Hester, Emily, Faith, Mindy, Amy, Rahana, Rosemoni and everyone else who reads and comment’s on my learning stories blog, you all (cyber citizen’s) have given me a wealth of perspectives, thankyou.  I have felt closer to my colleagues at MIT being able to look at their blogs and give them feedback and building this reciprocal, responsive, respectful relationship has given me a fresh sense of ‘Belonging, strand two’ Te Whāriki say’s “this strand is based particularly on the principles of Family and Community and of Relationships” (MoE,1996, p.54). I will be using my blog for learning stories at work, making links with our curriculum, children’s experiences and following their interest’s, all events with family and whānau, their cultures and the community.   I have read my classmates learning stories and they deserve a lot of praise, their stories are lovely to read and I will enjoy reading the new ones that they enter for many years to come.

References.

Breslin, D. (January 2005). Children’s capacity to develop resiliency: How to nurture it.  Young Children, 60 (1), 47-52

Copley, J. (2008). The Young Children and Mathematics. NAEYC: USA

Helm, J., & Katz, L. (2001).   Young investigators the project approach in early years. New York: Teachers College Press.

Johnston, J. (2005). Early Explorations in science: Exploring Primary Science and Technology Education (2^nd ed.). England: McGraw Hill.

Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He Whāriki mātaurangi mō ngā mōkopuna o Aotearoa.  Wellington: Learning Media.

Net safe workshop http://www.netsafe.org.nz/

Smorti, S. (1999) Technology on the Early Childhood. Early Education, No19 Autumn 1999.

Tsantis, L.A.,  Bewick , C. J., & Thouvenelle , S. (2003). Examining some common about computer use in the Early  Years. Young Children. Vol58 (1),pp.1-9.

Wright, S. The Arts (2003). Young Children and Learning. USA. Pearsons Education Inc.

Earthquakes in Christchurch

                                              People, Places, Things and Events


Earthquakes are scary
                                                                                                                                                            During March we decided to have a sensitive chat to the children about the earthquakes in Christchurch and Japan, we cut and pasted newspaper photos of the events that occurred from the New Zealand herald newspaper.  I found the children wanted to talk about the earthquakes and they got quite worked up about it, talking loudly about the fires that the earthquake caused to peoples homes. The children mentioned that they saw the earthquake burning peoples houses down on television news and the people had no beds,or food, they told me that the people were sad and crying. The children said the buildings had tumbled down. They saw the stormy events in Japan on the television news and as they pasted the photos from the New Zealand herald it brought back into their minds what they had seen on television.  The children pasted photos of the tsunami  in Japan and we chatted about the water flooding the people and their houses and cars and bending the trees over.  Te Whaariki states that the "programme builds on passions and curiosity of each toddler,and that adults can talk with toddlers about differences in people, places, and things (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.69).  I felt surprized and happy because the children obviously needed someone to talk to outside their families and Whaanau, and to share and tell others about their feelings the children have learned that their friends watch the televion news just like them.  Information and Communication Technology has enhanced learning opportunities for the children, enableing the children to share the same concerns and interests from the television. Watching the television news has"broadened their horizons by exploring the wider world" (M o E, 2004, p.2).   ICT has taught the children to notice, recognise, listen and respond.

 My next step in extending news items will be about the Royal Wedding and how Prince William and Princess Kate get married at the Westminster Abbey. This experience will be a happy, colourful exciting time with story tale, romantic, news cuttings, and the children can role play and become royalty.  The children will see the wedding on television and it will become a big event for us.

References

Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He Whāriki mātaurangi mō ngā mōkopuna o Aotearoa.  Wellington: Learning Media.

Ministry of Education. (2004). Kei tua o pae: Assessment for learning: Early childhood exemplars. Wellington: Learning Media.

Jack in the box

                               

People, Places, Things and Events

Jack in the box  

                                                                                                                                                                         We  sing,                                                                    

J’ is for jack in the box.  “Jack in the box, Jack in the box, quiet and still, will he come out? Will he come out? Yes I will.  My eyes are blinking, blinking, blinking my eyes are blinking just like this.  At mat time, one of our favourite songs is Jack in the box.  The children like to squat and jump up, when we sing it, learning to be careful of other children.  One day we used a box outside and some children had turns in being Jack.  By following children’s interest in jumping, we can “encourage children to use their own words to describe concepts, such as gentle/peaceful, timid, or string/powerful/bold” (Wright.  2003, p.268).  While we were jumping outside we noticed our shadows and we thought about taking a photo of a Jack in the Box shadow.  The children were very curious about what their shadows would look like and I wondered if it was time to give them some responsibility to take photos as well.  Te Whāriki suggests that “children should experience an environment where they learn strategies for active exploration, thinking, and reasoning.  The ability to represent their discoveries, using creative and expressive media and the technology associated with them” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.88).  I wondered if I extend their interest and  scaffold the children,  teaching them how to use a camera, this would provide a new beginning for the children in their play and  they could continue to take photos of while following their interest. “Play provides a new context for children to practice newly acquired skills and also to function on the edge of their developing capacities to take on new social roles, attempt novel or challenging tasks, and solve complex problems that they would not (or could not) otherwise do”(Talay-Ongan, & Ap. 2005 p.132).  We will be extending this experience about shadows.

Reference

Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He Whāriki mātaurangi mō ngā   mōkopuna o Aotearoa.  Wellington: Learning Media.

Talay-Ongan, A., & Ap, E.A. (Eds.). (2005). Child development and teaching young children. Southbank , Victoria:Thompson Social Science Press

Wright., S, (2003). The Arts. Children and learning: USA. Pearsons Education.

What's that ?

People, Places, Things and events

 Keeping our centre nice and clean is a big job, we always send the children outside or to another room to play while we vacuum and mop the floors.  But I always seem to have a little helper who sneaks away from the rest of the children to give me a hand.  He watches me while I vacuum and mop the floor; he moves the bucket of warm soapy water around the room and often spills some over the top. He always helps me bring the bikes inside the door and he rides them in and parks them exactly where they are meant to be. He waits while I close the windows and we usually go outside to play again. He doesn’t speak much unless he wants to say something important or meaningful to others. The other day after I vacuumed I thought I would change the bag and when J saw the vacuum cleaner in two halves he pointed at it and said `look.’  He walked up and investigated the vacuum cleaner, “what’s that” he asked. That’s where all the mess goes when the vacuum cleaner sucks it up. J was surprised that the vacuum cleaner was in two pieces and he didn’t like the look of the full bag. At first he just stared at it and then he seemed a bit weary of it.  I told J `don’t worry it won’t bite you.’ He pointed at the vacuum cleaner again and said `look’ he didn’t like it being in two.  He watched me carefully when I took the full bag out and put a new bag in.  His friend D came over and asked me `what did you put in the vacuum cleaner Mavis,’ that’s a new bag to hold all the mess we make each day.’ After they had investigated the vacuum cleaner we turned it on to make sure it would start up, they were satified and D went away to play and J stayed to help me mop the floor.  I asked him `do you help mummy mop the floor’  he just looked up at me and grabed the mop. Te Whāriki, says “Adults should be are aware that all happenings have the potential for play and learning” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 85).  He laughed out loud, I showed him a stain on the floor and he mopped it.  `J’ does not speak as well as he could for his age and it was important to us to share experiences with him and to be able to observe and communicate with him “observing and listening in to Information, communication and Technology practices includes watching adults and other children using ICT for a range of purposes” Ministry of Education, 2004, p.5).                                 

 J enjoyed helping me and he smiled and laughed when I vacuumed the floor because he could see all the sand and bits of paper get sucked right up the pipe. When I let him have a turn I was empowering him, he felt good about himself and he felt positive about his relationship with me, although he wasn’t meant to be vacuuming.  “To empower children, staff must be committed to creating a more just social world through transferring power from more powerful groups to less powerful groups” mentions “MacNaughton & Williams, 2004, 279).  J has learned that the vacuum cleaner has suction and he knows how all the sand and other stuff get’s sucked inside to the bag.

“These play experiences are very valuable for young investigators. Through their play, they often consolidate and make deeper and more accurate sense of their experiences and related concepts” (Helm & Katz, 2001, p. 56).  Children like to join in with teachers when it comes to cleaning the centre.  We packed the vacuum cleaner away and extended our cleaning game with two brooms, and swept the sand back into the sand pit.

Reference.

Helm, J., & Katz, L. (2001).   Young investigators the project approach in early years. New York: Teachers College Press.

MacNaughton , G., & Williams, G. (2004). Techniques for teaching young children: Choices in theory and practice (2^nd ed.). Frenchs Forrest NSW:  Pearson Prentice Hall.

Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He Whāriki mātaurangi mō ngā   mōkopuna o Aotearoa.  Wellington: Learning Media.

Ministry of Education. (2004). Kei tua o pae: Assessment for learning: Early childhood exemplars. Wellington: Learning Media.

Shadows in the sunlight

People, Places,Things and Events.  Shadows in the Sunlight   Shadows in the Sunlight

                                                                                                        Teacher Mavis...`that is the shadow that the sun makes of your hand.

R, said `Look I can see my hand in the sun, look at my hand.   

`Look at my hand.’ said S.

Teacher Mavis …`yes I can see your shadow too, S.’                    

`Ha ha  ha  look at me too, my hand is there.’ said T.         

Teacher Mavis… `that is a good shadow T.’                                                                           Teacher Mavis… `that is a pretty shadow R, `well done.’  

 R. giggles,`the sun is still shining on  me. ’                                                                                    M… `ha ha ha  I can do it too.  Look at my hand in the sun.’                                                    Teacher Mavis… `this is fun and everyone has made good shadows, well done to you all.’

The children were experiencing something new and interesting; they all wanted to have a turn at finger shadowing. Te Whāriki suggests that “Children should experience an environment where their play is valued and meaningful learning and the importance of spontaneous play is recognised (Ministry of Education, 1996, pg.84).   Children need to try things out to be able to fulfil their curiosity and to explore the natural elements around them; the elements are important and valued ways of learning.  We decided to extend on our observations on the children making shadows and go out side and take photos together. 

                                                      

Using Information, Communication and Technology, by “taking photographs to construct text that the photographer, who cannot read and write in the conventional sense, can read and revisit” (Ministry of Education, 2004, p.6).  I found this great for providing documentation records of children’s progress of learning and development, and child initiated play information for their journals. Documentation taken on children’s work is evidence of the experiences they participate in and as Helm and Katz explain “comprehensive, good-quality documentation of a project can provide evidence of children’s learning in all areas of development; physical, emotional, social, and cognitive”(2001, p.66).  We will extend our experiences of light because light it is much more than the sun shinning, light is colour that the children use everyday when they paint and (role play) dress up.   Malaguzzi,(2006) States “there are children, even after they grow up and apart from a few fleeting personal sensations, who continue live immersed in light almost without being aware of it or seeing it”(p.61).  Colour makes up a great part of our lives and are elements to be enjoyed. 

References

Helm, J., & Katz, L. (2001).   Young investigators the project approach in early years. New York: Teachers College Press.

Malaguzzi, L., (2006). 1 CENTO LINGUAGGI DEI BAMBINI / THE HUNDRED LANGUAGES OF CHILDREN.  Italy:  REGGIO CHILDREN S.r.l.

Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He Whāriki mātaurangi mō ngā mōkopuna o Aotearoa.  Wellington: Learning Media.

Ministry of Education. (2004). Kei tua o pae: Assessment for learning: Early childhood exemplars. Wellington: Learning Media.

Blogspot is something special

I am quite excited to be on the blog, it's new to me and I am expecting big things. I hope you all feel the same way and don't hesitate to blog me any time.

ECE joys and interests.

Hello to you all. Today has been an interesting day at Mit.  We have meeting with Susie today to make sure our proposal is on time. Martin Horspool gave us another outlook into creative art and now we are puting our blog on the net. It just goes to show that there is a second use for everything.