Week 12

What are my values and beliefs of education?

This week will be the last week of semester 1. Throughout this semester I have learnt many things as a pre-service teacher. I've faced some challenges along the way but managed to pick myself up and guide myself pass the difficulties. I believe that in the education society, everyone children should be a part of the classroom environment. I am passionate about the belief that every child is worthy of freedom and equality and that no one is better than the other. I think the most important thing as an early childhood teacher is to teach children how to learn and also giving them the opportunity for decision-making. It is an important aspect of learning because as a teacher we can incorporate children's interest into their learning in order to help them improve on their learning abilities.

I am excited to learn more things as the coming years are waiting for me to discover the world of teaching. So far it has been a great experience I've learnt how to interact with children through placement and I've learnt how to educate children through the work I've done which I'll be taking with me as I grow to becoming an educator in the future.

Week 11

What can I do better to anticipate place-thought into the next experience of placement?

This is week is the last week of placement. My placement group got moved to a temporary site in Sunshine Library because of some difficulties with our original site. Being able to come to a new site opened my mind on a lot of things that I saw. The way they enagaged children with place at their placement is a lot different to mine because we had limited of resources and restrictions. Though they weren't able to do the nature walk outside, they decided to collect mint leaves and bark to make a little rainforest in a cardboard box using the Bartja and mayila puppet set. I found this quite interesting because kids were able to smell and feel what its like to be out in a rainforest. I want to take upon this idea and broaden it in my next experience of placement by creating a mini rainforest with sounds of the rainforest in the background so it can really capture the experience children can of the rainforest and its surroundings. 

I wonder if there are any other ways that i can link place-thought to without having to go outside...

Week 10

Why is documenting important?

'Documenting refers to gathering and organizing information to provide a written or pictorial record of children's learning.' (MacNaughton & Williams 2009 p.296). As a pre-service teacher thinking back to my experiences at school I never knew what documents were for. I remember adding photos and writing about my experiences into a portfolio and I didn't know how this could help me with my learning. This weeks reading about 'Documenting' gave me a clear understanding on why it is important to implement it throughout learning.

Documents come in different forms such as a collection of children's work like a writing, drawing, painting etc. photographs, observations, mind maps as well as learning stories of children's play. Having documents helps make children's learning visible for educators as well as families. Children are also able to have the opportunity to revisit and reflect on their learning journey process. This helps educators to analyse children's understanding, dispositions and interests.

I think documentation is very important in the education system because it gives support to teaching and it also gives educators crucial information from which conceives goals, techniques and learning experiences for the children.

References:

MacNaughton, G & Williams, G 2009, Techniques for Teaching Young Children; Choices for Theory and Practice, 3^rd edn, Pearson Education Australia, NSW.

Week 9

What are some empowerment strategies I can do to help children?

The third week of placement had a much better vibe and organisation as more children came to the engaging with place program. Compared to the weeks before I notice the children are more confident to play with the toys and activities. They began to interact more with other children from different diversities. However, there was a little collision with two toddlers who didn't want to share their toys. One girl was playing with two toy cars and the other little girl took one off her. In this case the girl who originally had the toys threw a big tantrum because she didn't like sharing even if her mum tried to comfort her. I wondered to myself, if her mother cannot calm her down what can i do as a pre-service teacher to help her stop crying without making the other child upset?

'The aim when transferring power to children within a critical approach to education is to enable them to learn how to challenge and speak out against injustices in their own lives and the lives of others' (MacNaughton & Williams 2009, p.315).  I believe empowerment should be equal to every single child. I need to be able to help each child build the ability to have positive relationships with others as well as teaching them to problem-solve what is fair or not fair in their relationships with each other. In the event, I was able to think rapidly and gave the child that was crying another car toy. This helped her calm her down and I realised the solution to her tantrum was to give her another toy rather than just comforting her. I suppose that as a pre-service teacher I should encourage children to value eachother equally and give each child freedom and equality rather than enacting the empowerment on just one individual.

Week 7

What can I do to engage children to learning?

This week was the first week of my placement. There was quite a few challenges at the site i was placed in. Having it to be in a library and not a primary school, we were restricted to do a lot of things, however my group managed to work our way around the new model.

In the first lesson we spreaded out activities into different sections of the room. We had blocks at a corner, a table for kids to draw, wooden musical instruments, soft toy cooking utensils, books and puzzles spreaded on the floor for children and their parents to come in and participate in the learning. The blocks were really popular because it came in different colours and kids are able to explore and build things to their own interest. Some kids didn't like to play with blocks but they were engaged to the maracas as it made a lot of sound which i found quite interesting. There was a girl who found the maracas to be too noisy and she kept blocking her ears but she eventually warmed up to the cooking plush toys.

From observing the children, I noticed that every child is different and have different interests. I think lots of colours engages children to learn because it brightens up the room and catches their eye. Sound and music can also engage children to participate in activities because they can hear and incorporate the sound into their learning by singing or dancing which makes learning more fun.

Week 6

What are some strategies that I could use to co-construct learning with children?

Lesson plans are a major part of any teacher's attempt to manage time and effectiveness. Each day should be very well organised into assorted lessons and objectives for students to get through. Constructing a well planned schedule and planning ahead is important for a teacher because it enables them to teach the children in a stable and effective environment without any disruptions. I think creating a structure that involves unit plans, yearly plans and daily plans that all work together will help reach the teaching goal needed for children to succeed.

Teaching children how to express and share meaning with others is also part of co-constructing. Co-constructing entails teamwork between teacher and student. It is a good source for teachers and students to work together to run the lesson in order to help them with questions and support them individually. Teaching them that by giving a little to others, we can get some of what we want as well encourages students to share and acknowledge ideas of others to take into account of their own learning. It builds lots of opportunities for children to develop the skills and confidence to become effective independent learners.

I would like to explore more on co-constructing effective learning with children to help my future studies. Is planning ahead all there is to co-constructing learning with children?

Week 5

Why is it important to teach children about the Aboriginal Culture?

Visiting the Bunjilaka at the Melbourne Museum helped me learn so many things about the Aboriginal culture that I've never thought to myself before. 

Bunjil was an eagle and he created the world to nations, nations to country and from country to people. 'Bunjil' means creator aka soil or ground. It signifies land of Bunjil referring one of the main Ancestral beings of south eastern Australia who created the mountains, rivers, humans and animals. 

During my exploring in the museum I discovered the language map that represents the diversity of Aboriginal culture in Victoria. These languages are all part of larger language families, such as Eastern Kulin, Western Kulin, Gunditjmara or Gunaikurnai. There are 36 language families and those families speak a common language more similar than dissimilar.

The role of cultural identity identifies who you are and where you come from. It tells you where you come from, your connection to country and where your country is. Being able to know your language, history, culture, strengthens your identity and that applies to everyone in the world not just Aboriginal people. 

Aboriginal people were the first people to discover our country and therefore I believe it is very important for children to explore the Aboriginal Culture and relate it to place-thought because it explores the elements of how our land is created and how they are able to live in the world today. 

Week 4

How can you relate place thought to the exploration of the workshops on collecting?

In this week's task I got to explore different workshops in order to expand my thinking of teaching children the aspects of collecting. One of the workshops I looked at with my group was the 'Bowerbird & make a place collection'. I explored the library and found 2 books, in which I can use one for 2-year old children and the other for 8-year old children. I found this activity quite interesting because I was able to go around the campus to investigate place materials that can relate to the book and children's learning.

The first book 'The very hungry caterpillar' by Eric Carle I chose for 2-year olds because children at this age, they like to wonder around touching and exploring things. They can explore through the natural environment built on the idea of where the hungry caterpillar explored to find its food. Children can collect natural substances such as sticks, leaves, bark or food scraps which can show that they have an idea of what the caterpillar's life style is outside in its natural habitat. 'Collecting can help children how to sort, classify, match and organise their world' (MacNaughton G, & Williams G 2009, p.19). This is a useful way for children to learn how to sort the materials by its shape, sizes, texture, colours and smell like how the picture book had all the different colours and shapes in them.

The next book I chose as a group was for 8-year olds 'Banjo and Ruby Red' by Libby Gleeson and Freya Blackwood. This book linked to cultural diversity as the dog 'Banjo' and the chicken 'Ruby Red' are different animals but they are able to prosper and become friends in the end. Children can gather cultural things that are valuable to them and bring them into the classroom to share their diversity with each other. Doing this will help children explore different ethnic backgrounds that will help them learn and understand the world about them and others as well as accepting everyone's differences.  

References:
MacNaughton, G & Williams, G 2009, Techniques for teaching young children; choices for theory and practice, 3rd edn, Pearson Education Australia, NSW.

Week 3

What skills can be developed by collecting?

Reading Chapter 2 on 'Collecting' from Techniques for Teaching Young Children, MacNaughton, G & amp; Williams, G (2009), opened my mind to new ideas and theories that I've never thought about before. To me, collecting is gathering things you like such as objects to form a collection you can keep for display. I never knew that it can be a teaching technique to help children learn through the process of gathering things and how it can help them learn to sort, classify, organise and match things together.

When I was younger I remember collecting shells at the beach because it had the sound of the sea when i placed it against my ear. It never occurred to me that collecting these shells actually helped me to know how to compare the shapes and sizes. Reading this chapter, it made me realise how the collection of things really help a children's development. I only thought that collecting things was only because it sparked children's interest rather than benefiting their development and skills. What also didn't occur to me was that collections don't have to be just objects, it can be sounds or words as well which i found quite interesting. What I also found intriguing was that a collection can be used to build children's counting skills. Children can learn to count just by looking at a collection of objects rather than just counting numbers.

Collecting also helps children to determine shapes, size, colour, sound, smell and texture. It helps them learn how to organise, classify and sort out which category it belongs to. As a teacher, I can help children strengthen their collections by displaying them in a glass cabinet with their description next to their collection. This can help them identify and match the labels on the item to encourage them to take care of it. It can also helps them to classify the contrast and comparisons of things. This shows that collecting enhances numerous skills to support children's development.

week 2 wonders

How can you relate your past experiences to the placements of materials that affect the learning of children today?

When I was in kindergarten, I remember having stations for different activities. Some included painting, some were dress ups and some included nature. Reading about 'Positioning equipment and materials' I can relate to the children and how their social interaction is based on the learning environment. It was hard trying to find the stations as a kid because I remembered everything being bigger in size which made it hard to locate where I wanted to go. I started getting used to the stations day by day however, one day the areas was changed all of a sudden. I was completely worried and confused of where my usual stations were placed and I wondered around trying to figure out what to do. Looking back and reading the text made me wonder do kids find it difficult to remember at a young age? Or is it the way we set out things that make it difficult for them to remember? I believe that young kids need time to enrich and broaden their knowledge one step at a time rather than all at once because it may be overwhelming for them at such a young age with little familiarities. Taking on my experiences from the past, I think that change is good but not such a huge change that will puzzle the children. Just little change such as adding nature background noises in a station area full of leaves will punctual children's interests and can make their play more effective. Adding other materials in the painting section will get the kids to experiment with other art supplies rather than just paint will broaden their exploration and thinking. This will enhance their knowledge and stimulate their brain development as they take part on what we organise desirably for them from time to time so they can be open-minded to new things as they grow.