Category Archives: Planning

by | August 30, 2024 · 11:50 am

Teaching math: competencies over content

Mathematics has been known as one of the subjects that focus on content, and consequently, the procedures to achieve the right answer, rather than on competencies, or in other words, on the understanding of the procedure followed by students. However, these two ways should not be seen as irreconcilable!

As the National Research Council discussed in the book Adding it UP! Helping children learn mathematics, mathematics fluency is achieved through the development of five strands:

  • conceptual understanding: comprehension of mathematical concepts, operations, and relations
  • procedural fluency: skill in carrying out procedures flexibly, accurately, efficiently, and appropriately
  • strategic competence: the ability to formulate, represent, and solve mathematical problems
  • adaptive reasoning: capacity for logical thought, reflection, explanation, and justification
  • productive disposition: the habitual inclination to see mathematics as
    sensible, useful, and worthwhile, coupled with a belief in diligence and one’s
    own efficacy.

Source: Adding it UP! Helping children learn mathematics

Therefore, both math content and competence are essential to achieve mathematics proficiency. Teaching math through competencies emphasizes how important conceptual understanding is to advance to high-level math. It also shows that content and procedures are used to build up understanding and not as isolated goals in the process of learning math.

The following video discusses some of the benefits of teaching math by focusing on competencies. In the video, the teachers highlight that math competencies allow lessons based on student-centered approaches and differentiation, giving space for students to learn at their own pace through pedagogical strategies.

 

Phil Stringer, in his BCTM Vector article “Deunitization in the Mathematics Classroom,” (pp. 38), suggests how teachers can design lessons based on competencies rather than content. He proposes that teachers should not plan their lessons strictly by dividing what students should learn into content units, such as fractions, multiplication, cardinal numbers, etc. He suggests teachers consider a list of competencies related to each content area and how they interconnect. In this sense, while planning learning goals, teachers can work with more flexibility between competencies and content.

By covering competencies and content, teachers have more flexibility to build learning progressions to support their students. As Phil describes from his experiences, students learn more deeply and tend not to forget the content since it scaffolds and is reviewed throughout the term or academic year rather than just for a short time while a specific content-based unit is been covered.

Regarding assessment, a great way to assess competency is to analyze students’ knowledge and skills in each competency. Competency trackers can be a helpful tool since they allow both teachers and students to map the learning goals already developed and the ones that need more focus.

Identifying specific competencies can build independence and confidence in students and support teachers’ planning. Teachers can use an Excel table or a more sophisticated platform that links students’ progression to real-time assignments.

Resources:

Open School BC and the Delta District develop many detailed resources for teachers to develop the following competencies in math:

Guest post by Peer Mentor Ariane Faria dos Santos (Ph.D. EDCP), Aug. 2024.

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by | August 7, 2024 · 8:57 am

Games for Language Learning

In a language learning classroom, a game “could be any activity that formalizes a technique into units that can be scored in some way” (Brown, 2001, p. 183). Additionally, a language learning game is an activity “which is entertaining and engaging”, which should be challenging in some way, and which often includes interaction and collaboration (Wright et al., 2006, p. 1). Games may or may not include competition – some students are motivated by competition and others are not. Overall, games should inspire students to participate, try their best, and practice the target language.

For more information about group work in general, visit this blog post!

Why incorporate Games?

Games can be a great way to get students communicating and increase engagement! Providing a variety of activities can help to engage diverse students (different learners enjoy different activities and learning styles). Furthermore, repetition is a key element of language learning and games can provide opportunities for repetition while keeping the material fresh. Wright et al. (2006, p.2) describe a few of the benefits of including games in language learning:

  • Games help and encourage many learners to sustain their interest and work
  • Games provide one way of helping the learners to experience language rather than merely study it
  • Many games… provide repeated occurrence and use of a particular language form
  • Games involve the emotions, and the meaning of language is thus more vividly experienced
  • Games provide the key features of a ‘drill’ with the added opportunity to sense the working of language as living communication

The Teacher’s Role

Games require that teachers become facilitators (or sometimes participants). Try not to correct grammar or mistakes unless it’s absolutely necessary – games can encourage participation and we want to make that participation positive and rewarding. Don’t forget, “errors are a ‘necessary’ manifestation of interlanguage development, and we do well not to become obsessed with their constant correction” (Brown, 2001, p. 181). Teachers can be engaged in formative assessment during games and note what may need to be reviewed or targeted later with students.

Wright et al. (2006, p. 4) suggest the following steps to introduce a new game:

  1. Explanation by the teacher to the class
  2. Demonstration of parts of the game by the teacher and one or two learners
  3. Trial by a group in front of the class
  4. Any key language and/or instructions written upon the board
  5. First ‘try out’ of the game, by groups
  6. Key language, etc., removed from the board
  7. The game continues

Icebreakers

Learning a new language can be intimidating for many students: it requires that they are open to communicate with others and take risks. Developing a sense of classroom community and shared experience can help to make students feel more comfortable and willing participate despite the potential mistakes, which could result in feelings of embarrassment and vulnerability. Teachers need to consider how they are building and developing relationships in the classroom and can check in with students by taking a class temperature.

Icebreaker games are a great way to get students “to feel comfortable with each other, confident in themselves and focused on the language lesson” (Wright et al., 2006, p. 11). Games can also help students get warmed up and ready to learn by activating prior knowledge (an activating strategy).

Here are some examples of Icebreaker games:

  • People Bingo – the teacher makes a bingo grid with questions to help students get to know each other. Students circulate asking questions to their classmates, trying to fill in their bingo cards.
  • What Makes You Unique – each student’s uniqueness benefits the class. Students (and the teacher) all come up with something they think makes them unique. As each person says their point, anyone who can say ‘me too’ raises their hand and says it. Then that person needs to think of a new unique point until every person has been able to share something where no one else can say ‘me too’ (if a student is struggling to think of something, you can return to them at the end to give them more time – I like to use a class list or seating plan and check off names as I go).
  • Two Truths & A Lie – each person secretly writes two truths about themselves and makes up one lie. Students need to circulate and see if they can guess the lie (this can be done as a class too). Note that some guidelines and trust may be needed for this game so that the truths and lies are school-appropriate.
  • Would You Rather? – teacher says or shows an image of two things and asks students which they would rather (ie. Would you rather ketchup or mustard?). Students can move to one side of the class or the other to show their picks or raise their hands. You can extend this activity be asking a few students ‘why?’ each round.
  • Temperature line or Four Corners – Similar to would you rather, the teacher (or a designated student) can pose a question and students respond by moving to one of four corners or by organizing themselves along a line based on the ‘degree’ of their response)

Examples of Games

Here are a few game ideas to get you started. Check out Wright et al.’s (2006) book, Games for Language Learning, for many more examples and suggestions.

Board Games Adapted for the Classroom

  • Scattegories – Divide the class into teams. The teacher prepares a list of 8-10 topics (ex. a verb, an animal, a food, a colour, a movie character, etc.), then randomly picks a letter of the alphabet. The teacher will set a timer and each group will work on generating word for each topic that starts with the selected letter. When the timer goes off, one at a time, groups will share what they wrote for each topic – they get a point if they wrote a word, starting with the correct letter, that no other group wrote (if another group wrote the same word, neither team gets the point). Subsequent rounds can be played with a new random letter.
  • Pictionary – In groups of four (two against two), students can use a vocabulary list and take turns selecting and drawing a word for their partner to guess. This can also be fun as a whole class game (with two teams), having students draw on a white board, projector, or document camera.
  • Concentration – teachers or students can build this game. Teachers should create a grid (so that all pieces are equal size and shape). Teachers or students create matching pieces (one piece with a word in the target language and one image/drawing). When all the pieces are complete, students flip over the pieces and mix them up. Then, students take turns selecting two pieces to turn over, if they have a match, they get to keep those two pieces. The students with the most pairs at the end wins. Card Sorts can be done digitally as well. See the ‘Whose Names are These’ blog post in the Scarfe Sandbox for an example.
  • Headbands – this game has students asking questions to guess which object or character they’ve been given. The teacher writes names or objects on small pieces of paper and while students are working at their desks on another task, the teacher can circulate and tape the papers to the backs of their students (make sure to tell students not to discuss them!) – in the boardgame version, players wear headbands for display. Students will stand up and circulate to ask yes/no questions to their classmates in order to guess who they are. For an added level of complexity, the people/objects can be designed as pairs that students then need to figure out and stand beside before the game is complete.
  • Bingo – teachers can create a blank bingo sheet (5×5 grid). Students can write or draw vocabulary words (creating the bingo sheet themselves also serves as a form of review!). The teacher calls out the words in the target language and students can use small pieces of paper as markers until a student gets 5 in a row (vertically, horizontally, or diagonally) and calls out “Bingo!”. I like to continue for a few rounds allowing more people to get a bingo before starting again. Students can easily keep these bingo sheets as a quick review later before a test or anytime throughout the year.
  • Jenga Builder – students create a design without showing their partner using Lego or coloured pieces of paper in different shapes/sizes (students should have two matching sets of whatever material they are using). Students will hide their design and verbally communicate to their partner(s) how to build the same design. This is an example of an unplugged coding activity where students practice procedural and directional language to develop their computational thinking skills (an important aspect of the Applied Design Skills and Technologies BC ADST Curriculum). Visit the Unplugged Coding blog post in the Scarfe Sandbox for more examples and resources.
  • Battleship – give students a simple grid and have them prop a binder between them so they can’t see each other’s sheets. Students hide their ships by colouring in boxes on the grid. Students communicate how they will identify the rows and columns on the gride and then take turns guessing boxes until all ships have been discovered. (This is another unplugged coding example)

Movement Games

  • Statues – one student is asked to leave the room. The students who remain in the room are all given a verb to act out (silently). The teacher yells ‘Freeze’ and the students all stop mid-motion as statues. The teacher calls back the student from the hall to guess what action the statues are frozen in.
  • Charades – students are given a prompt and must act (silently) while their teammates guess.
  • Simon Says – one person takes on the role of ‘Simon’ (or they can use their own name!). Anytime the leaders say, ‘Simon says…’ and then an action, all the students must do the action. If students do the incorrect action they sit down. If the leader doesn’t say, ‘Simon says…” before the action and students act, they sit down. Continue until you have one or two winners left standing.

Whole-Class Cooperative Games

  • Go, Go, Stop – Index cards work well for this activity. The teacher will create a set of cards (make sure that you have en

    Go Go Stop cards

    ough cards for all the students, if you have extras, some students can take two). Each card will contain an answer (to a question on another card) and a question (whose answer is on another card). The first card will have START at the top and the first question at the bottom, and the last card will have the last answer at the top and STOP at the bottom. Shuffle the deck and hand them all out randomly to students. Creating a master list for the teacher to use will make this game much easier to facilitate! The teacher starts the timer when the student with the start card begins and the goal is to get all the students to read their cards in the correct order (this requires that students listen carefully and consider what they should be listening for). The teacher stops the timer when the last student says stop. I like to discuss with the group how to improve, then reshuffle the deck, hand them all out again and try to get students to beat their time (for secondary teachers with more than one class, they can have classes compete against each other for best time). 

  • Teacher Vs. Student – you’ll need a projector or document camera for this activity. The teacher displays some images on the screen (10-12 works well), then points at an image and says the word in the target language. If the image matches the word, then the whole class must repeat the word after them. If the teacher points at an image and says the wrong word, everyone in the class must stay silent – if they do stay silent, the class gets a point, and if anyone makes a sound, the teacher gets a point. The teacher can go faster or slower depending on the level of the class. First to 10 points wins!

Competitive Games

  • Flyswatter – the class is divided into two teams. The teacher displays a screen of words and/or images (the teacher could also write words on a white board). Two students come to the front (one from each team) and using fly swatters (or yard sticks) point to the image/translated word after the teacher says a word in the target language. The first student to point at the image/word gets a point for their team.
  • The Amazing Race – the teacher divides the class in teams of 4-5 and creates a list of tasks (translating, conjugating, and drawing work well). Teams send up a representative from each team to get the first task (depending on the difficulty of the task, these could be shown to students or given as a slip of paper – make sure they can’t see the following tasks!), then take it back to their team to complete. Teams show the teacher their completed (and correct) task before getting the next task – this continues for the rest of the game. The first team through the entire list wins.
  • Design Challenges – These can be a great way to promote collaboration and communication (in the target language!).

Digital Games

  • Boukili (French) is a free website offering French books to read for a variety of reading levels. As students read, they unlock levels to travel virtually to new countries where they can change the avatar’s outfits and play games.
  • Jeopardy – Factile allows users to create a digital jeopardy game which can be projected onto a screen. One of the highlights is that the program keeps track of scores!
  • Blooket – This program allows teachers to create review games for students in a variety of game formats.
  • Word Games, like Boggle, Wordle, word searches and more, can be played online.

Board Game Ideas

If your school or department is looking to spend some money on board games for language learning, here are a few that would make excellent classroom resources:

  • Spot it – learn the vocabulary and race to spot matching pairs of images
  • Lion In My Way (AKA Obstacles) – creative problem solving and story-telling game using images
  • Dix It  – players use their imaginations to interpret images
  • Taboo – players try to communicate a word to their team without using any of the listed ‘taboo’ words
  • Scrabble – the classic word game can easily be used in classrooms
  • Bananagrams – similar to scrabble, but without the board
  • Guess Who – players take turns asking questions to try to figure out their partner’s mystery person

References

Brown, H. D. (2001). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy (2nd Ed.). Addison Wesley Longman.

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for language learning (3rd Ed.). Cambridge University Press.

Guest post by Peer Mentor Lindsay Cunningham (Ph.D. student, EDCP), July 2024.

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by | August 2, 2024 · 2:47 pm

Unit Planning: one teacher’s approach

Guest post by Ariane faria-dos santos, Peer Mentor, PHD student EDCP 2022

The BC curriculum presents some challenges for teachers to plan because it requires that teachers combine Big Ideas, Contents, and Competencies. The purpose is to create clear goals which will guide teachers to design assessments and activities to develop concepts and skills in their students.

However, given the multiple possibilities of combining Big Ideas, Contents, and Competencies, teachers or teacher candidates may feel overwhelmed while planning without understanding how to balance these three elements.

With this challenge in mind, I’ve tried to unpack the steps of planning and propose a possible teacher’s journey through an iterative process of design using the new BC curriculum.

This video titled: Know Do Understand Model provides a very brief overview of the initial stages of the approach noted below (thank you Lexie, peer mentor 2021-22, for included it)

Step 1: integrating Big Ideas, Contents, and Competencies

 

 

As a first step, one might be select a Big Idea that a teacher wants to develop with their students through this Unit Plan.

For example, if teachers want to develop the Big Idea that “Numbers to 20 represent quantities that can be decomposed into 10s and 1s” (first-graders Big Idea), teachers will need to choose the Content and Competencies aligned with that Big Idea. (Keep in mind, that Core Competencies wrap around this process and are selected for inclusion based on what is the most needed or appropriate for the context/activity)

The math example beside shows some first-grade Content and Competencies that teachers can choose to develop this Big Idea. In this sense, teachers can choose the contents of “numbers concepts to 20” and “ways to make 10”. Teachers can also choose several competencies that students will do to demonstrate that they have learned the Contents and Big Ideas of this unit planning.

In addition, it is essential to pay attention that any Content or Competence that does not help to develop this Big Idea should not be included to not generate a loss of focus on this lesson planning. For example, the Content “addition and subtraction to 20 (understanding of operation and process)” should not be included because it does not help to develop the big idea chosen as the main focus of the lesson planning.

Step 2: integrating other relevant principles, subjects, and purposes

As a next step, I like to consider other principles, subjects, and purposes that I might include to make this lesson planning richer and more interested to their students.

  • Are there any first peoples principles of learning that are aligned with step 1?
  • Are there any ADST skills that I can include in this lesson planning?
  • Are there other subjects that may be integrated into this lesson planning?
  • Are there any other important principles to me as a teacher that can be integrated and aligned into this plan?

The only caution is that teachers should pay attention if the other points chosen are coherent with step 1 or if they are changing the main focus of the lesson planning.

Step 3: understanding my students’ prior knowledge, needs, and curiousities

My third step is to understand what students already know about these Big Ideas, Content, and Competencies with the purpose to discover the entry point in planning a sequence of lesson briefs (or, one might call this a pathway).

For example, in the example above a teacher should understand (or learn) their students’ background knowledge related to number sequence, how they count, if they are able to skip and compare numbers, etc. This prior knowledge will be essential to teachers design the more appropriate sequence for students to learn the Big Ideas, Content, and Competencies of this lesson planning. For a teacher just meeting their learners, they will want to incorporate some prior learning assessment during the first few lessons in a given Unit.

As you plan assessment and lessons, it is invaluable  to consider the needs of students regarding learning. Teachers should think about the diverse learners in their classroom and plan to attend to their needs which can be related to ELL, modified programs, career, etc.  Universal Design (UDL) suggests incorporating multiple ways of communicating and allowing students to represent learning in varied, multi-modal forms.

Finally, I like to consider the particular interests and curiosities of my students, planning lessons that engage students in the teaching and learning process.

Step 4: designing the units of my lesson planning

Now that teachers know the point they should start (step 3) and what they want to achieve (step 1), teachers should divide their lesson planning into several units (step 4) to design a pedagogical path to students achieve the lessons’ goals.

There are many ways of answering these questions and teachers should consider what will more support their students’ learning process.

If you want some suggestions and ideas, you can visit the Learning Design Blog

Step 5: designing the assessments

The fifth step is related to designing all formative and summative assessments for this lesson planning. Teachers should plan when they need to understand if their students have learned and design assessments to collect pieces of evidence of learning. Teachers should also consider when to choose formative or summative assessments and the format of each of them (written, oral, in a group, etc).

  • How should I give feedback to my students regarding their learning process?
  • When do I need formative assessments throughout the lesson planning?
  • When do I need summative assessments throughout the lesson planning?
  • What format should they have?
  • Should I propose performance assessments?
  • Should I use technology to support my assessment practices?

If you want some suggestions and ideas, you can visit the Learning Design Blog

Step 6: designing the learning activities

My next step in pre-planning is to design an outline of the learning activities that will give opportunities for students to develop skills and knowledge. These activities will ‘lead’ students to proficiency on the final Big Idea, Contents, Competencies in the Unit.

  • How long do I have for each lesson (may vary depending on your schedule and how much this unit integrates across the curriculum)
  • What are my objectives for each lesson? How do these link back to the overall unit objectives?
  • How many activities will my students develop in each class? Should they work individually, peers, in a group? What resources or strategies might I include? What digital tools or other manipulatives/hands-on learning will I integrate?
  • What kind of assessment will I incorporate? Initially, Assessment as and for learning including formative assessment to help guide the teaching and learning.

Video Overview

Below you can see a wonderful example of Language and Art Unit Planning from the BC Curriculum designed by Janis Sawatzky, Langley School district:

Planning Templates:

There is no ‘one way’ – that said, here are a couple that some teacher candidates have found helpful

For more on Planning for BCs Curriculum include examples, templates and tips, please visit:

Designing Learning Blog, UBC, Teacher Ed

Guest post by Peer Tutor Ariane Faria dos Santos (Ph.D. EDCP), Dec. 2021; Edited by Yvonne Dawydiak, Learning Design Manager, Teacher Education

KDU image reference: BC Ministry of Education https://youtu.be/lXyyZql2PZQ

Modified image (shown above with curriculum filled in) courtesy A.F.S Template – BC Curriculum

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by | July 4, 2024 · 10:57 am

BC Curriculum: Core Competencies

Understanding the Core Competencies

Core competencies of Thinking, Personal and Social, Communication

from: https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/competencies

According to the Ministry of Education, there are some essential understandings related to the Core Competencies and how they are connected with the other parts of the BC Curriculum:

  1. “The Core Competencies are sets of intellectual, personal, and social and emotional proficiencies that all students need in order to engage in deep, lifelong learning”
  2. “Along with literacy and numeracy foundations, they are central to British Columbia’s K-12 curriculum and assessment system and directly support students in their growth as educated citizens”
  3. “Students develop Core Competencies when they are engaged in the ‘doing’ – the Curricular Competencies – within a learning area” and, therefore, are an integral part of the curriculum.
  4. Even though the Core Competencies manifest in different ways, they are interconnected and are foundational to all learning.
  5. Core competencies are developed throughout the whole students’ life (before, during, and after school graduation, both inside and outside school settings). For these reasons, schools should not only value and integrate students’ knowledge acquired outside school but also give opportunities to students to learn and/or improve these competencies.

The BC Curriculum has three Core Competencies:

Communication

These are the competencies that students should develop to establish healthier relationships with others. In this sense, students should develop two groups of communication competencies:

    1. Communicating: BC curriculum identifies three facets (skills) that students should develop to active a good communication:
      • Connecting and engaging with others
      • Focusing on intent and purpose
      • Acquiring and presenting information.
    2.  Collaborating: BC curriculum identifies three facets (skills) that students should develop to be able to collaborate with others:
      • Working collectively
      • Supporting group interactions
      • Determining common purposes

Thinking

These are the competencies that students should develop to improve their intellectual development and produce new understandings:

    1. Creative Thinking: BC curriculum identifies three facets (skills) that students should develop:
      1. Creating and innovating
      2. Generating and incubating
      3. Evaluating and developing
    2. Critical Thinking and Reflective Thinking: BC curriculum identifies four facets (skills) that students should develop:
      • Analyzing and critiquing
      • Questioning and investigating
      • Designing and developing
      • Reflecting and assessing

Personal and Social

These are the competencies that students should develop to help them understand their own identity in the world. There are three facets within personal and social:

    1. Personal Awareness and Responsibility
    2. Positive Personal and Cultural Identity
    3. Social Awareness and Responsibility

The BC Curriculum recognizes that Core Competencies are developed inside and outside of school. Consequently, students, teachers, and parents/ guardians have different responsibilities and roles in the process of developing Core Competencies.

To guide students, teachers, and parents/ guardians in understanding how students develop proficiency in the Core Competency, the Ministry of Education has articulated profiles, or levels in the progression of development of each one of the Core Competencies. See an example on the BC government website

How to assess Core Competencies?

Assessment is another big challenge related to the Core Competencies but essential to guarantee that each student is developing them. BC Curriculum suggests that students should self-assess their own Core Competencies, but teachers have an essential role in developing strategies and tools to support students in this task.

Several school districts have published resources to help teachers engage in articulating and helping students self-assess the core competencies:

The Provincial Outreach Program for the Early Years (Popey) has some resources including PPTs with assessment examples  to support teachers implementation in  primary and pre-primary contexts.

Teacher Kerri Hutchinson from Surrey Schools explains and gives many examples of how she has developed and supported her students to self-assess Core Competencies:

Additional resources:

If you are looking for suggestions of how to develop the Core Competencies in your classroom, the UBC Education Library has a Core Competency booklist to support teachers in this work.

References:

Ministry of Education (2022, February 25). BC Curriculum Core Competencies. https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/competencies

Guest post by Peer Tutor Ariane Faria dos Santos (Ph.D. EDCP), Feb. 2022.

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by | June 30, 2024 · 7:02 pm

Know Do Understand (KDU): a starting point in planning

section header - what is it?

The BC curriculum’s more concept and competency based curriculum, expects that teachers combine Big Ideas, Contents, and Competencies as they plan learning experiences for their students. The purpose is to create clear goals which will guide teachers to design assessments and activities to develop concepts and skills in their students.

section header - why is it relevant

The KDU Planning Model can provide a simple initial planning structure and can support planning with the end in mind (backwards planning). It allows you to consider the connection with and between areas of the curriculum. and how the core competencies ‘wrap’ around or are foundational to this learning. Think of it as a cycle – The big idea is what you want the students to ultimately understand as a result of their learning; The Know section is the curricular content… they need to know this in order to develop their understanding of the Big Idea; The DO section is what you want the students to be able to Do by the end of the unit (the skills they will practice throughout the Unit that help them learn the content and develop their understanding of the Big Idea(s)!) Wrapped around all of this are the Core Competencies (more about those in the video below and later posts)

 

The BC Ministry provides background on the KDU model in this “Starting Points in Planning” PDF. The video below, titled: KDU Model, was created by Lexie, UBC Teacher Ed Peer Mentor 2020-21, and provides a very brief overview of how to consider Know-Do-Understand as you plan for teaching and learning in your context.

Here is a blog post from Ariane, peer mentor Winter 2021-22, sharing her approach to planning as she learns more about our BC curriculum.

Planning Templates as starting points:

Below we offer a few templates that align with the KDU approach. Please remember, there is no ONE approach or specific template that is required when planning for your learners. Please feel free to use, modify, adapt & share. Additional samples can be found on the Teacher Education ‘Designing Learning’ blog.

The BC Ministry of Education provides some instructional samples including this overview or lesson brief of a primary Math Unit “Patterns and Circles” and this more elaborated lesson plan example “Collapse of a Society” for Middle Years learners.

 

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by | May 30, 2024 · 1:14 pm

Playdough for Everyone

Playdough is a tactile educational tool that can be used as a way to incorporate creativity and kinesthetic learning into lessons. It is inexpensive and easy to make using available kitchen ingredients (flour, salt, water & oil).

Playdough can be used throughout the curriculum for all ages: it can be an effective form of experiential learning from the development of fine motor skills in preschool children (Rukmini et al., 2022) all the way to post-secondary students learning neuroscience anatomy (Gopal & Bhooshan, 2021). Further, having students engage in hands-on learning increases engagement and can lead to improved outcomes.

Although playdough can be purchased, it is relatively cheap and easy to make, and can last several months in the sealed bag or container before being disposed of in the compost. Here are two of my favorite recipes:

Ideas for Elementary & Middle Years Teachers:

  • Sensory math activities (playdough can be used as a manipulative). For example, matching numbers with small balls of playdough or squishing playdough balls during counting
  • Using playdough to model and learn about 2D and 3D shapes
  • Exploring fractions and equations using fractions
  • Telling or re-telling a story using playdough.
  • Students might even create play
  • Building structures or engineering (you could include other resources, such as toothpicks to create more complex structures)
  • Colour theory – students can blend small balls of colored playdough to create a colour wheel.
  • Spelling words by molding letters or by using letter cookies cutters or alphabet stamps
  • Using playdough to explore patterns (ex. colour, shape, size, etc.)
  • Learning about Earth and the solar system
    • Modelling the phases of the moon or exploring the moon’s surface and craters
  • Telling time using playdough to make the hands of the clock

Ideas for Secondary Teachers:

Higher Tech Ideas for K12 and beyond:

  • With Squishy Circuits students can learn about and create complex circuits while expressing their creativity. Concepts including conductivity, resistance, simple circuits, parallel and series circuits, short circuits and switches. The Professor responsible for Squishy Circuits at the University of St. Thomas shares recipes for both conductive and non-conductive dough.
  • Use Playdough to construct a ‘MakeyMakey’ piano or game controller. MakeyMakey is a basic micro-controller appropriate for all ages.
  • Model and sculpt characters and setting to tell a digital story
    • Stop Motion Animation is an excellent way to incorporate digital tools with hand-building and creative expression. Tools like Stop Motion Studio or iMovie can be used as they have ‘auto timing’ features that make stop motion more efficient. The example below shows how a very effective movie can be created using simple techniques.

References:

Rukmini, R., Mustaji, M., & Mariono, A. (2022). Effectiveness of a playdough game in stimulating fine motor skills and cognitive skill: Early childhood education. The International Journal of Early Childhood Learning, 29(1), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.18848/2327-7939/CGP/v29i01/1-12

Gopal, V., & Bhooshan, L. (2021). The feasibility of using playdough and household materials as an educational tool for self-learning of neurosurgical anatomy during COVID-19 lockdown. Anatomical Sciences Journal, 18(2), 92-99.

Guest post by Peer Mentor Lindsay Cunningham (Ph.D. student, EDCP), May 2024.

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by | May 14, 2024 · 11:03 am

Decolonizing and Indigenizing our Practices

Whether you are new to the profession or a seasoned professional, teachers in BC are called to consider how they might decolonize their practices and include Indigenous perspectives including the First Peoples Principles of Learning (FPPL) into their classrooms and schools.  

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action and the BC curriculum requires teachers to consider and incorporate Indigenous voice, issues, resources and perspectives in our teaching. Jo Chrona provides a background of FPPL and Current Contexts on her blog:

In 2006/2007, The BC Ministry of Education partnered with the First Nations Education Steering Committee (FNESC) to create the English 12 First Peoples course. The development of this curriculum included significant input from Indigenous knowledge-keepers and educators from BC….to ensure that the course was able to authentically embody aspects of First Peoples’ values around teaching and learning.  

These voices were previously left out and systemically excluded from the current educational experience. Included in this process of course creation was the development of the FPPL so that First Peoples’ experiences, values, beliefs, and lived realities could be more authentically reflected in the course.  

Since then, the BC Ministry of Education has made an increased commitment to including Indigenous perspectives in education. According to Chrona, the initial integration of First Peoples’ content was first intended to support Indigenous learners “as the province and country continues on the path toward Reconciliation.” Now, more educators “are recognizing that the [FPPL] promote educational practices that are also powerfully effective for non-Indigenous learners…. that is replacing the post-industrial model of education” ; this is teaching that is “more responsive to the contexts and needs of learners, and the explicit inclusion of what are termed ‘Core Competencies’” (Chrona, 2024).

In 2019, Standard 9 was added to the Professional Standards for Educators requiring K12 teachers to actively contribute to truth, reconciliation, and healing, acknowledging the history and contributions of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis.

As you begin your work, please consider on whose traditional lands or territories you reside (worldwide on https://native-land.ca/https://native-land.ca/ Map of Indigenous territories from the first people's Map of BC

Read & View

The full text of Standard 9 on the PDF provided by the BC Teachers’ Council.

The video, Truth & Reconciliation Moving Forward Together is intended to “build awareness of the ninth Professional Standard for BC Educators and to encourage BC certified educators to embrace their professional responsibility. Examine your own biases, do your own learning, incorporate Indigenous perspectives into the curriculum, and develop respectful relationships with First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities.”

Watch:

    1. The introductory video, Continuing our Learning Journey: Indigenous Education provides an overview of Indigenous ed in BC and explores challenging common assumptions about Indigenous learners.
    2. In the second video, ways to use the First Peoples Principles of Learning (FPPL) to support and transform teaching are explored. You can also visit the FNESC website to download a copy of the FPPL and access additional resources including subject specific resources for secondary educators. 
    3. This third video discusses finding and using authentic First Peoples resources, as well as frequently asked questions with responses from B.C. educators.

    4. The concluding video in the series includes reflections from educators in BC and an invitation to all educators to contribute to inclusive education in BC.

      The videos shown above are a part of a more comprehensive set of resources available on an Indigenous Resources section of the BC Curriculum website. 

Reflect

  • How will you respond to the Calls to Action and Standard 9?
  • What are some ways you might incorporate Indigenous perspectives in your teaching?
  • What questions do you have moving forward?

Continue your Learning

For some additional resources to support integrating FPPL and connecting them to core competencies, please visit these blog posts:

 

References 

Chrona, J. (2024, April 10) Background of FPPL and Current Contexts. https://firstpeoplesprinciplesoflearning.wordpress.com/background-and-current-context/ 

 

adapted from a post by Greta Bartsch, Program Manager (Practicum- Secondary), 2024; editing & contributions by Yvonne Dawydiak, Learning Design Manager, Teacher Education.

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