My Learning Journey Continues
I know my journey as a teacher will be an adventure and that there is much more that I will learn along the way. I am excited to carry on learning new things and improving upon my practice. There are many ways that I will continue my professional development.
Goal #1: Inquiry-Based Education
“Artistic learning should grow from kids doing things: not just imitating…”(Brandt, 1987, p.32).
This past year, I learned from others sharing their inquiry project experiences and was able to experience planning and implementing such a unit with another classroom teacher in our Kindergarten classroom. The project began with a change of location for our spring field trip from Stanley Park to Van Dussen Gardens. The theme of the trip was ‘pond peering.’ This change was presented to the class and the kids were all excited. On the field trip the children were introduced to various plants, insects, and other life in the pond. I took photos and documented what children were saying as we followed our guides through the garden.
The following weeks we worked with the children in stations to investigate the pond further. At one station the children looked through photographs from the trip and created drawings based on what they found interesting which provoked questions and conversations about facts they had learned. At a second station the children recreated a pond habitat using animal and insect figures, rocks and coloured gems, and wood pieces on a light table. At a third station the students used puppets and stuffed animals to create categories and organize them accordingly. The final station was where they looked through books and came up with an individual research question and worked with a teacher to find an answer.
In the final stage of our inquiry project, the students shared their knowledge with one another and the class. We started with in-class presentations where the child’s question was posed, the students gave ideas, and then the child who posed the question presented what they had learned in their research. We then presented to the school by posting photos, drawings, the children’s research, and a large mural of the pond habitat.
The children learned a lot through this experience. They learned to question, research, and present information in a variety of ways. Above all the students were engaged and excited each day we worked on our project! My goal is to continue engaging in inquiry projects and learning more through research and sharing experience with others.
Goal #2: Technology and Education
Title Image from Student Video.
“If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.” – John Dewey
Another area which I hope to grow in which will open my classroom to more choice and creativity is gaining more knowledge about technology. Technology is becoming increasingly present in schools and is important to the futures of our students. During my practicum I knew I needed to incorporate technology into some aspect of my units. I decided to use the iPads to create stop motion videos using iMovie with my young students to explore their author studies. I was amazed at the amount of knowledge the students had about using the iPads and what could be created. Throughout this process, I heard of different programs and technologies that could be used in this process.
In my more recent experience, I have been using iPads for documentation and the creation of learning stories. I have also begun to learn about Smartboard and excited to experiment and incorporate this into my lessons. I am curious to learn more and explore the opportunities that technology can bring into the classroom further.
Image from student video.
Goal #3: Assessment
About a year ago, I completed a diploma program focusing on early years education. Being a second teacher in a classroom this past year, I have had the opportunity to explore what I learned further. Assessment was one of the topics that I found we struggled with the most in our conversations in my cohort. We were given many examples of what we could do but it was hard to see the practicality of documentation, learning stories, and student self-assessment. I decided to take the opportunity of two teachers in a classroom to write learning stories. I found these stories very insightful and useful to share with other teachers and staff working with particular students. These snap shot moments were able to serve as evidence of understanding or skills where other tools could not. It also helped me focus on and understand the social and emotional development of individual students and provide ways to better support them both socially and academically. My goal this year is to create a learning story for each child in the class. I also hope to explore other assessment strategies.
Pedagogical documentation board displaying photos, drawings, class written poem, and students comments about our winter walk in the forest.
References
Brandt, R. (1987). On Assessment in the Arts: A Conversation with Howard Gardner. Educational Leadership, 45(5), 30-34. Retrieved from:http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_198712_brandt.pdf