General journal of the 2nd day N TP

During the second day of being in teaching practice, I have in general divided the time of teaching between me and my MST. We have also discussed about how we are going to work to gather this year where I, as a student teacher should know all about what is expected from me, and about what is expected from my MST to do in order to help me and guide me through this new school model.

After school time, when the students leave the school, I sit with my MST and she tried to help understand what they are teaching in their new curriculum and what she is doing at the main time with the students’ learning in both Numeracy and literacy. In other words, we were discussing about the children’s level at this time and when should we start getting deep in the aims. This was because the aims of the past weeks and this week are in very low level. For example, count instead of identify this number. This is based on the assessments that my MST have done with each child individually with Numbers and colors, from here she assess their levels and chose an equal aim to start teaching them also she assessed the children to differentiate their levels of learning ability.

At the end of our negotiation, I asked the teacher to allow me teach tomorrow so we have decided have the 30 min morning circle and the numeracy lesson after breakfast time.  

 

Difficulties in reading / searching for action research

I know that all of my college classmates are working on their action research and so I’m I but I don’t know if they are facing the same problems in reading and searching for specific useful information!  

Here are some of my problems with reading for the action research and if I got anyone to help and share ideas with me that’s will be grateful =)

           

First when I found difficulty searching about my topic I took the Map that we have posted and I let it be my guide in reading so I started looking for these answers!

While I’m reading I tried to find quotes that could support the information that I’m going to write about but what happened is that I should paraphrase the quotes while I need to have direct quotes from the same page that I have to reference !

Reading #3

Name:Asma Al KhuwaiterDate:28/9/2012 Source Number: 3

Reference (APA): Name of the book:A practical guide to activities for young children Author: Christine Hobart, Jill Frankel chapter 3 / Puzzle and table-top Activities  page :79 -83   (working on the reference)

Summary:  This chapter provides me information about what positive effect could puzzle and table top activities create for preschooler and what links to early learning goals. In other words, if a teacher provides those activities what could the child improve in his personal, social and emotional developments area and how? However, because I’m going to focus on math play, in this chapter I found small part that explains the mathematical development in early childhood education. It says that there are some activities that could help children identify the similarities and differences and encourage their memory quickness of thought which is the whole idea  in most of the KGs aims.

Evaluation:(connected to Questions 1 to 5 above) This chapter recommended for teachers who want to get specific ideas about specific games which develop main parts in the child social and cognitive development. It provide guideline of how each activity will help the child. Quotes are almost difficult to find but there is lots and it need just a way to organize it because it is not straightforward (you have to paraphrase it)

Notes (could include specific quotes)   Still working on..

Cross References   Engaging learning Clark N. Quinn

 

Reading # 2

Name:Asma Al KhuwaiterDate:28/9/2012 Source Number: 2

Reference (APA): Name of the book:A practical guide to activities for young children Author: Christine Hobart, Jill Frankel chapter 1 /the professional framework  page :2- 12   (working on the reference)

Summary: I think this book is very helpful for me to start doing  the action research with a good basic because it has the main answers that I was thinking of to build my knowledge about what is play for young children?  Moreover, it introduces the basic of learning through play. However, I have read the first Part /chapter and it explains the professional framework. In other words, the value of play and activities for young children, what play allows children to? And how does the teacher provides these activities? Furthermore, this chapter indicates examples of practical activities, what skills would the children improve doing those activities, the role of the teacher and different activities suggested for different age groups.

Evaluation:(connected to Questions 1 to 5 above)  I recommend this book for the teachers who are not using play in their classroom so they can see what difference can play make on their children’s development and learning. The book is easy to understand and read because it has the main points of everything that related to play in young children’s life.

Notes (could include specific quotes)   Still working on..

Cross References   Engaging learning Clark N. Quinn

1st day N TP

 

Al Shoa’a kindergarten is the school that I’m training in this year. It is kind of old model school but it has lots of advantages that cover the lack of ICT board system, where the children could interact with it like the other schools in Al Ain, also, the classroomsare small for the different corners.

 One of the advantages that the school is happy to have me there were they give me the freedom to apply what I have study in the college and they allow me to create anything could help the children’s learning improvement.

However, my first day in practice was full of observations, discussions and taking a tour around the school.  The first attitude was being comfortable because of the good treatment from the principle and other teachers there.

Interview

Interview

Name:                                  Date:                    Time: Interviewer:

1.      How often do you use play (games+ drama) to support learning in your classroom? Why?   2.      What kind of play do you use in Numeracy?   3.      What strategies do you apply? Why?   4.      Do you think play (games) have benefits on the children learning? How?     5.       Do you think using play (games) in teaching math have disadvantages? What they are? Why?     6.      What problems do you face in applying paly (games) with the children attitudes and reaction?

observatoin

Name:                           Observer:              Teacher: class:                                Date:                     Time:                                                                                 subject:

Aim: observe the teacher's techniques during the lesson structure while she is applying play in her classroom. How does she start it? How does she models it and explains it? How does she close it up?  (general observation to get an idea about how my topic is applied in the setting?)

Pre-task:

While-task:

Post-task:

Other comments:

 CRITICAL REFLECTION

Partial learning

 

Select:

(Math activity) Grape painting:

Aim: Join together two groups to show addition.

Using sponge’s grapes to create a grape with green and purple paints.

Provide picture instruction of how many green and purple grapes they need to print.

The teacher will go through each step with the low ability group. E.g. take the grape up put it in the red paint now lets print it in the paper here.

The low group will work on combination to 5 or 6.

1.      Use picture flash card of Handas to introduce the activity

2.      Use divided plate to separate two kinds of small plastic fruits. e.g. yellow and green.

3.      Ask the children to count the fruits in each part of the plate

4.      Ask the children to count how many fruits altogether?

5.      If the total number was from 1 to 5 or 6 ask the children to take a risk on trying to write the number.

 

Describe:

The student liked the activity but it was hard for them to understand what they have to do. In other words, they should follow the activity structures. Because

1.      I said all the instructions in one time the children take part of my instructions and left the other.

 

2.      I have not asked the children to count the two groups together so I did not achieved my learning out come because they were counting not adding .

 

Analyze:

1.      I should give them small part each time of instructions and let them apply it then I move to the next instruction.

 

             (I have broken the steps down and I asked them to apply each step before we move to the next step).

2.      I should ask the children how many green grapes and how many purple grapes and then count them altogether. To achieve the learning out comes one out of four. 

 

 

 

Transform:

The time needed more management especially when I have difficult activity like this one. Because I will lose the time trying to model and help the students understand and follow the right steps. So in the next time I will have simple activity that match the learning out comes and the children easily understand and spend the rest of the time doing it many times to understand the concept. 

 

 

Name: Asma Al Khuwaiter Date: 19/9/2012 Source Number: 1

Reference (APA): Name of the book: learning through play: babies, toddlers and the foundation years Autor: Tina Bruce chapter 8 /play is the highest form of learning in earlychildhood page :112 (need reference)

Summary: In this chapter I understand that play games help children to show their intelligence in highest level and develops their emotional, sense of self and make a relationships with others. According to this chapter play helps children to explore the world beyond what they are and what they know which is exactly the main reason for me to choose the topic of learning through games. I liked some points that were written in the same chapter such as: Games and play encourages imagination and creativity where the children understand themselves and others also, it develops abstract thinking. To sum up, play enlarge the child’s life , so that child makes more of it.

Evaluation: (connected to Questions 1 to 5 above) This book seems to be very helpful for student teacher like me because it designed to help shows how you can focus on learning through play and develop well planned play for children who are six years and beyond. The book also has chapters that explain why play is important for children and what it develops in the children.

Notes (could include specific quotes)

Cross References

If you are in the teaching practice for the first time its normal to feel that you are lost but here are some simple tips from my experiences might help you:

1.Be provisional by coming to the school on the time or before the time if you have lessons so you can prepare your activities.

2. When you feel that you are lost it is better to observe and take notes that make your understanding of the lesson structure and what is happening easy.

3. If you are teaching KG students try to make the activities as simple as you can with dividing the instructions in the steps where the children can follow step one and apply it then they follow step two and so on.

  4. Make your language in the appropriate level for the children to understand.

    5. Support your language with gestures, flash cards, actions and pictures.

  6. When you read a story use change your voice to fit with the different characters.

   7. Make sure that when you read a story that you are in good place where everyone can see the book.

  8. When you are explaining the next activity make sure that the students got the idea by asking one of them to say what they should do and ask another one so everyone understands.

9. Try to provide interactive activity where the children play in groups or peers.

10. Use different strategies to manage the students behavior such as smile faces.