Hi there,
My name is Celine and having taught mainstream for almost 30 years I opted to move to SEN last year and will be there again this year. I am linked with the Junior Infants. Although I enjoyed the change, I missed using inquiry based activities to trigger the children’s curiosity about aspects of space, science and their environment.
A fact that I find fascinating is that when viewing Venus, it appears to spin backwards.
I have used some of Frances wonderful lessons previously at different class levels and both myself and the children have learnt so much from our explorations and wonderings. I have found the DPSM framework document invaluable in planning these lessons.
I am hoping that during this course I will find inspiration as to how I could use some inquiry based activities with Junior Infants in SEN. Last year I explored materials with one of my language groups- it was a simple grouping activity based on texture. I think that this year I might try the approach outlined in the Mighty Materials framework and use a more exploratory approach starting with a simple trigger questions based on a situation “Oops I’ve spilled my drink – I wonder which material would I use to mop it up?”
The DPSM promoting inclusion section will be helpful to focus me on how best to support the children.