Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
I think the idea of promoting links with dance clubs, sports clubs etc is a great idea. Fundraising isn’t necessarily a great option for our school as many families are struggling themselves but promoting links with community groups would be a good way of bringing people in the community together. The school could facilitate a community fair event where local groups could highlight their services.
I had an internet search for organisations in our community and it is hard to figure out to be honest. I know that if I was back at school, it would be easier to figure out as our school has a very diverse population and we have a number of Ukrainian children for example. I had a child arrive late into the school year and in order to help her settle in, we used a number of resources we had made including picture word cue cards with info such as toilet, lunch yard etc. There was another Ukrainian girl already in our class and she acted as a buddy to this child to help her settle and get used to the school routine etc. We had talked as a class about how we could help our new student settle in and the children took on various roles of guiding and support. We are working as a school to show that we are a diverse, multicultural population. We are exploring ways to show this in the environment with different flags and languages highlighted around the school.
I think it can be difficult to counter gender stereotypes as marketing of toys, stationary etc all tend towards a gender divide. Construction and engineering toys tend to be marketed more towards boys than girls. Where I might have seen gender stereotyping in the classroom tends to come from home rather than within. I had a children from the Travelling community tell me that the girls are just expected to mind younger children and they expect to get married and have children themselves . I also had a girl from a traditional Muslim family and they did not want their girl to sit beside a boy in class even though it was a mixed school. Learning about different approaches can open up a wider perspective to students about different options open to them.
I really like your idea on inviting guest speakers from diverse backgrounds to talk about their careers and experience. There is some truth in the saying “if you can see it, you can be it.” When I was a student I volunteered with a programme in schools in Belfast where many students had never had the opportunity to meet with people who had gone to third level. They didn’t typically consider university as an option for them. Same could apply to different career roles. It could help de-myth roles as being for one gender or another.
‘The Role of Global Citizens in Today’s World’ by Ehigie (2021) highlights the critical importance of Development Education in helping students to develop skills in becoming global citizens. DE supports students in understanding global issues, fosters empathy, and promotes responsible citizenship. This is essential for students to develop a sense of global responsibility and awareness in navigating today’s world.
I’ve integrated this topic in a number of ways including looking at the effects of climate change around the world, our carbon footprint and what climate justice is. We have looked at fast fashion and how that affects others and looked at ways of reducing our consumption through clothes swaps and book swaps. We have also promoted reducing the use of plastics across the school and our Dreamspace ambassadors used some helpful peer to peer info videos on recycling in our school.Part 1.
Prompt – Little Bow Peep has lost her sheep..or has she? She has spotted three of her sheep but they are the other side of a river. They aren’t brave enough to swim back so Boo Peep needs to build a raft that will carry her over and back with her lost sheep.
They have a large blue square as the river. The sheep are 3 Harribo fried eggs, Boo Peep is a lolly pop. They have blue tak, lolly pop sticks, card, markers and scissors. They need to work as a team to design a raft big enough for all of them and stable enough to move across the card to the other side!Part 2.
This article looks at the importance of introducing computational thinking into early childhood education. It looks at the benefits of computational thinking, how it can be integrated into the curriculum, the challenges it might pose and suggests some of the ways those obstacles may be overcome. The benefits are many; including peer to peer learning, problem solving, collaboration and fostering a Learn by doing approach.
In terms of integrating in ECE, CT goes beyond specific computer science fields. While there is a considerable overlap between CT and mathematical thinking in activities engaged in by the children, there are also opportunities for linking with literacy skills and STEAM where arts is included opens this up to allow for an integration of arts and crafts, literacy, music, and more with engineering and robotics.
The article also speaks to the importance of meaningful activities highlighting that research has shown that many of children’s best learning experiences come when they are engaged not simply in interacting with materials but in designing, creating, and inventing with them. This underlines the importance of inspiring children to become producers of their own creative, playful, and functional artefacts, rather than simply consumers of other people’s work.
Some of the challenges include gaps in teacher knowledge and the important of Initial teacher teaching plus CPD as professional development can help teachers better understand CT and how CT could be helpful in their classroom. It also talked of the ‘digital divide’ with prohibitive costs of some technology and lack of access with families from lower socio-economic backgrounds. They suggest a focus on unplugged CT curriculum in areas where the cost of other technologies is not feasible.
This is relevant in our school where access to technology is more limited for many families. However, CT can be integrated in many ways from basic robotics such as BeeBots or Sphero-Indy to Lego We do through to the many unplugged constructor challenges available as teaching resources. As play is fundamental to ECE, using CT fits within this with the emphasis on creating, communicating and collaborating.This is a lesson plan for a second class on constructing a new tower for Rapunzel and her Prince to live in. It has to be build from a limited amount of materials provided (card, elastic bands, straws). It is a group work activity with roles assigned. They are challenged with building it high enough to see the surrounding kingdom but strong enough to withstand passing giants stomping by or big bad wolves having a go at blowing it down. They will have a limited time to plan and another amount of time to work collaboratively on the construction and to test the stability and this task will include peer assessment.
Digital tools can create engaging and interactive learning experiences in a variety of ways. It allows for accessibility so all children can engage at some level. It facilitates differentiation. In our school we have moved towards improvements in our digital hardware. Students have access to chrome books during the week. These devices can be used collaboratively, with students engaged on group tasks. This improves their communication skills and has enhanced their skills in problem solving. These skills are critical to our students. We are a DEIS school so it is really important that our students get the opportunities to engage with technology so they are equipped with the skills they will need as they progress and into the future. Our school has a focus on problem solving in numeracy and digital technology provides many opportunities – for example with coding tasks for students to engage in computational learning. We share and present learning tasks which in turn helps with data collection and reporting on progress towards our SSE goals.
