This week we had a chance to meet with Janice and revisit our goals. She shared with us the book Becoming a High Expectations Teacher by Christine Rubie-Davies. It really struck a chord with me as it encompasses alot of what I have been trying to achieve with in the classroom within my teaching as Inquiry such as -
* Growth Mindset - the belief that Intelligence is something the can be developed
- Focus on the journey, making mistakes and taking risks is something to be encouraged
- Ensuring children are supported with specific feedback, strategies to further learning
* Flexible groupings within writing sessions, focus on collaborating to form learning goals, peer editing - giving children the skills to provide constructive feedback in an empathetic manner
* Giving children agency over learning - ie Maths Must do's/Can do's/ Novel contracts - Providing them with opportunities to work in different peer groupings and setting high expectations for all students within those learning activities.
I came across this article by Professor Rubie-Davies which discusses the benefits of flexible groupings. A very valuable read and completely relevant to the changes I have made in my classroom.
http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Curriculum-resources/NZC-Online-blog/Raising-the-bar-with-flexible-grouping
I also found the following article which again related perfectly to what I have been trying to achieve within my classroom. It is a pertinent reminder that classroom environment is vital, a positive environment where children are engaged and valued. In Room 6 we have really worked hard to develop a collaborative approach - peer teaching and reflection, productive group work, meaningful teacher/learner collaboration, ensuring that everyone experiences success, taking our Year 6 leadership roles seriously and focusing on our own personal learning journey's.
http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Curriculum-resources/NZC-Online-blog/High-expectations-in-your-classroom
Tuesday, 31 October 2017
Sunday, 29 October 2017
ELL PD - Gaylene Price,
Gaylene Price From the Christchurch College of Education has been guiding us in the development of ELL policies and ideas for learners within the classroom.
Meeting Minutes
ELL Staff meeting- 30th October 2017
- Impact of teachers on children- we can under estimate our impact
- Update since last meeting with Gaylene. Set up a procedure document to be shared with staff and owned. Important to have consistency and check that we are all following procedures.
- For Mary’s teaching- she has a planning template, has vocab and overview of progressions, goal sheets for the groups and reporting back sheets to teacher to share with class or home.
- Assessment- how that will look and then have input. Especially oral language reporting- how do we do that? Jo and Hannah will come back to staff for feedback/ideas. Vocabulary learning and teaching.
- ESOL website has a cultural village for information on places children come from that may help when they come from another country.
- The English Language learning Progressions- getting to know how it works, what is in it.
- Matrix- look in it and identify where your children are.
- Lots of modelling of sentences, vocabulary.
- Grammar for Primary Teachers- Beverly Weanker.
- Asking parents that they reply in their own language- build that first language skill.
- Social english is easier than the cognitive english for them to learn- the cognitive/ formal structure we need to increase.
- Literacy plus- more explicit with vocab, visuals, language structures.
- Examples- placemats for students, vocabulary word map, vocabulary notebook- class book, let children write in their own language, speaking frames.
Monday, 16 October 2017
Art Gallery Visits with John Neumegen
As my role as Art Coordinator I have organised our trips to The Dunedin Art Gallery this year. ( Term 2 and 4) As a school these trips have been invaluable. John's insight, art ability and the way he ties the learning into our Inquiry Unit (and the fact it is free of charge!!) has been an excellent addition to our learning programme.
Kickstarting our Inquiry Unit with our Art Gallery visit was an awesome inspiration for the children. I was initially apprehensive about time out on the first day back of Term, but it actually worked very well.
It gave the children and the class as a whole several directions in which our Inquiry could head.
There are a couple of students in the class who can be very apprehensive about art, particularly painting. It was fantastic to see them viewing themselves as artists, taking the art out of the classroom to what they possibly viewed as a more "professional" art setting.
http://education.dunedin.art.museum/workshops/new-zealand/kiwiana/skytower-landscape
. 
Kickstarting our Inquiry Unit with our Art Gallery visit was an awesome inspiration for the children. I was initially apprehensive about time out on the first day back of Term, but it actually worked very well.
It gave the children and the class as a whole several directions in which our Inquiry could head.
There are a couple of students in the class who can be very apprehensive about art, particularly painting. It was fantastic to see them viewing themselves as artists, taking the art out of the classroom to what they possibly viewed as a more "professional" art setting.
http://education.dunedin.art.museum/workshops/new-zealand/kiwiana/skytower-landscape
. 
Staff Meeting Reflection - Anne Kennelly
Anne Kennelly (ICT) came and spoke to us yesterday regarding the further development of ICT within the school. She has undertaken PD within the school before however ICT development has stalled to a certain extent, for want of a better word. We completed a survey which gave an indepth reflection of the school ICT progress. It is hoped this will help give us future direction to allow ICT to continue to make progress. I personally feel that there is some very good work being done within the school with regard to ICT. Within my own classroom ICT is used daily, examples of how we document our learning with this is - Slideshows, I-movies, Googles Docs, Google Slides, Pic collage, Chapter Chat, Tweet sessions with other schools and children have a learning file in which their own digital work is stored.
I would like to work on children documenting their own learning more on our classroom blog (ie Art self reflections could have been blogged?) and incorporating our IT for more than just games within our Mathematics sessions.
Anne introduced the session with the below video, a thought provoking piece about Autistic children at a school in Hackney and how their environment plays a huge part in their learning development. As we have just been lucky enough to receive brand new furniture in Room 6 it was a timely reminder that the view to our outside learning space is also a powerful tool and that perhaps our space inside the classroom could also be restructured to further benefit the children. (Especially certain children - HL, HTP, PC)
Anne's presentation
Tuesday, 3 October 2017
Mathematics Symposium - 3rd October 2017
Annual Mathematics Symposium held at Logan Park, 3rd October, 2017
Workshop 1 - Cool Coders -Dave Waddell
http://bit.ly/symposium2017dave
Very useful workshop, particularly in relation to our Launch programme. Some very good ideas for beginning coding activities, would be good for our children who have found the concept of coding difficult.
Workshop 2: Maths as a Vehicle for Collaboration - Angie Malae
Workshop 3: Unlocking the Treasure Trove of Mathematical Language - Viv Thompson
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/15eea1d4f4f4e824?projector=1
Workshop 1 - Cool Coders -Dave Waddell
http://bit.ly/symposium2017dave
Very useful workshop, particularly in relation to our Launch programme. Some very good ideas for beginning coding activities, would be good for our children who have found the concept of coding difficult.
Workshop 2: Maths as a Vehicle for Collaboration - Angie Malae
Workshop 3: Unlocking the Treasure Trove of Mathematical Language - Viv Thompson
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/15eea1d4f4f4e824?projector=1
Monday, 18 September 2017
Colour Workshop - Waikari School 18th September
Hannah and I attended an Art workshop at Waikari School, presented by Anna Dixon.
It was a very practical approach to colour in the classroom and Anna had some fabulous ideas for all year levels. (Art activities could be modified to suit year levels).
Her Colour Theory prints were particularly interesting and her use of the gel plates for printing is something I think we should be incorporating in our Printmaking unit. I will look at purchasing a set and using next year.
It was a very practical approach to colour in the classroom and Anna had some fabulous ideas for all year levels. (Art activities could be modified to suit year levels).
Her Colour Theory prints were particularly interesting and her use of the gel plates for printing is something I think we should be incorporating in our Printmaking unit. I will look at purchasing a set and using next year.
Thursday, 17 August 2017
Stem PD - Phillipa Dick
Sarah, Paul, Jo and I attended a PD session at the Polytech with Phillipa Dick about implementing STEM sessions within our program for the Year 4, 5 and 6.
I organised our first session last week based around a Moon Landing, this tied in with our Inquiry topic. Children worked in groups to create a moon lander to safely land their "Aliens". They watched a Nasa video and discussed what shock absorbers were. They then had to use given equipment to make their lander.
Update - Our Stem session has been further refined in Term 3 with the development of our own Stem programme - Launch.
Cardboard Gears: https://tinkering.explo
Spinning tops: https://vimeo.com/162002
Paper Roller Coasters: http://paperrollerco
Dome Den: http://makercamp.com/proj
Paper Posables: http://www.paperposeables.com/
Electricity - Motors. LEDs etc.
Bots:
Scribble Bots:https://tinkering.explora
Nature Bots: https://vimeo.com/143891
Robotic Car: http://researchparent.com
Bristlebot: http://www.instruc
Other Circuits:
http://www.instructables.com/i
Makey Makeys:
Website for the Edison robots: www.meetedison.com
Equipment:
10mm LEDs (like the popsicle stick ones): https://www.aliexpress.
Monday, 27 March 2017
Profession Development Feedback 27/3/17
Sarah Peeters Professional development - Multiplicative thinking
Sunday, 26 March 2017
Sarah Peeters Professional Development Feedback
Improving Boys Literacy
* Emotional needs to be addressed before learning can occur.
*Disorganised attachment - Hunter, unable to process organisational requirements
*Language should be - I expect......., not have you done that, why haven't you done it etc
*Movement essential for boys in the classroom.... wriggle time, brain breaks - purposeful. Talk and walk break - ie walk around the room and engage in partner work, peer editing etc.
*Only hand in work that you are proud of.
*Hunting in Nambia- Ray Mears -World Survival -
Teacher plan
* Manage children's expectations before learning
*Engineer a class culture of self management- persistence
*Ask " How can I help you?"
- Language within the classroom - "Hey, you must have worked hard to get this result", instead of you are good at that.
Improving Boys Literacy
* Emotional needs to be addressed before learning can occur.
*Disorganised attachment - Hunter, unable to process organisational requirements
*Language should be - I expect......., not have you done that, why haven't you done it etc
*Movement essential for boys in the classroom.... wriggle time, brain breaks - purposeful. Talk and walk break - ie walk around the room and engage in partner work, peer editing etc.
*Only hand in work that you are proud of.
*Hunting in Nambia- Ray Mears -World Survival -
Teacher plan
* Manage children's expectations before learning
*Engineer a class culture of self management- persistence
*Ask " How can I help you?"
- Language within the classroom - "Hey, you must have worked hard to get this result", instead of you are good at that.
Thursday, 26 January 2017
Relationships with Learners.
https://www.ted.com/talks/rita_pierson_every_kid_needs_a_champion
In this TED talk Rita Pierson discusses the importance of having a healthy, respectful, culturally accepting relationship with every learner.
In my class I have 23 students who I have never taught before, fostering relationships at the beginning of the school year is vital in establishing a safe environment in which children feel they can succeed. It sets the foundation for them to take responsibility for their learning, challenge themselves and support and respect those around them.
Our principal, Jo set us the task of responding to these 3 questions.
*Do I really know my learner?
*What impact is my teaching having on student achievement?
*What changes do I need to make to help this child's progress?
In this TED talk Rita Pierson discusses the importance of having a healthy, respectful, culturally accepting relationship with every learner.
In my class I have 23 students who I have never taught before, fostering relationships at the beginning of the school year is vital in establishing a safe environment in which children feel they can succeed. It sets the foundation for them to take responsibility for their learning, challenge themselves and support and respect those around them.
Our principal, Jo set us the task of responding to these 3 questions.
*Do I really know my learner?
*What impact is my teaching having on student achievement?
*What changes do I need to make to help this child's progress?
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