Mixed Emotions (3 and 4 year olds)
Mixed Emotions
This blog post is going to be used to add a brief daily entry based on a different emotion in response to my current inquiry into learning and teaching with 3 and 4 year olds. Keeping the spirit of Ruby Tuesday, I will share a 'gem' I have noticed or discovered in each entry (how fitting that it is a Tuesday that I am starting this journalling!), and keeping the reference to the Rolling Stones, this series of entries will be collectively known as 'Mixed Emotions'.
Tuesday, June 25, 2024 - Enlightened
Belonging
I am in London on the first day of my summer holidays, and I have just seen a wonderful musical Standing at the Sky's Edge. A strong theme of the show is 'belonging' and it resonated with me so strongly as I thought about how many learners at the ages of 3 and 4 are faced with extended time away from their parents and carers and need to feel a sense of belonging to feel safe, be well and develop strong, trustful relationships. A book by Lisa Burman that I am looking forward to continuing to read is A Culture of Agency which unpacks the idea of belonging, alongside many others, in developing a culture of agency.
Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Grateful
Belonging
Catching up with Kath Murdoch in London today, I shared my connections to 'belonging' and Kath kindly shared this link to Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia with me. I am grateful to have a new resource to explore in the coming weeks.
Thursday, June 27, 2024 - Secure
Mathematics
Number sense is hugely important to help young learners develop as mathematicians. Karen Wilding has many resources and trainings that help educators to promote mathematical language, routines and thinking in scenarios relevant and authentic to 3 and 4 year olds (and beyond). Her website is here. I used many of Karen's ideas in Kindergarten such as subitising and 5- and 10-frames, and trust the guidance given to help children to gain a real sense of numbers 1 to 10 (initially).
Friday, June 28, 2024 - Reassured
Early Years Learning
I am lucky enough to be in Madrid and attend the IB workshop - Developing Your PYP Framework: Early Years. After the first day, I feel very reassured by the philosophy of the PYP and the specific graphics developed to highlight features in the Early Years. Although not new to me, these elements are hugely important and can also be unpacked in different ways, so it has been interesting to revisit each element and the way they support each other.
Saturday, June 29, 2024 - Energised
Symbolic exploration and expression
In the second day of the PYP workshop, we looked more closely at symbolic exploration and expression, and in groups, brainstormed examples of how children might engage with this feature. I was so pleased that our group highlighted connections between movement, sounds and storytelling as I want to be more intentional in encouraging children to explore and interpret these symbolic forms. I came away energised!
Collaboration
“Children are not born with prejudice, but they are born into a prejudiced world.”
“We know that stereotypes and bias are learned very early, so it’s never too early to start to talk about and challenge them.”
Tuesday, July 9, 2024 - Resourceful
Learning - Children learn to have a positive attitude towards being active. As humans, we have a natural tendency to move and young children learn to be comfortable and confident in their own bodies. Exposed to different spaces, materials and surfaces, children explore how to move in playful and creative ways and experience the joy and freedom of movement. They also learn to foster a strong connection to nature by spending time outdoors in different terrains in a variety of weather. Movement also gives children increased levels of attention and independence.
Learning about - Children learn to move! They develop different physical capacities such as coordination, flexibility, strength and balance to help them navigate and adapt to different indoor and outdoor environments. Children also learn fine and gross motor skills such as reaching, grasping and manipulating objects (opening, zipping, beading…) and throwing, running and kicking.
Learning through - Children move to learn! Children benefit from the connections between movement and emotional well-being and how movement facilitates cognitive development by transforming thoughts into actions. This might be through the manipulation of materials, participating in action stories or specific movements to participate in gardening, food preparation or cleaning. Linking movement to music, children learn about patterns and rhythm. In doing so, a child’s language develops alongside their understanding of abstract concepts.
Sunday, July 21, 2024 - Proud
It made me think of the learners in the classroom, their play, and the culture we model and value to nurture such an openness to and interest in celebrating difference, while also embracing togetherness through mutual respect.
This included tunnels, sandcastles, walled pools, mark making in the sand (written messages, symbols, patterns, drawings...) and holes. Instead of being 'tidied up' and 'put away', they invited possibilities to new players at the same time as nature working its wizardry.
Attempting to jump over waves; testing buoyancy; competing against the force of the current; enjoying the contrast of the cold, wet water; observing underwater with goggles and snorkels; filling and emptying buckets; treading water (and perhaps captivated by the sounds and rhythm of crashing waves); transforming water and sand into complex structures; storying; role playing characters; imagining becoming surfers riding waves and sea creatures navigating the water; swimming for enjoyment, fitness or to reach certain destinations; moving as gymnasts; playing games such as ping pong, volleyball and tag; rafting and paddle boarding; splashing...
Classrooms must be communities that embrace, celebrate and develop identities, where children can "be and become" - be themselves and become who they want to be. Young children already have years of personal experiences that have helped to form strong interests, preferences, opinions and self-awareness. Identities develop and can be shaped by people, interactions and experiences. This article discusses personal and social identity and the importance of play to nurture these.
I prefer to think of risk as a variable that might be increased or decreased in any play type. What "bad" might happen with risk? It could be a danger, a fear of failure and making mistakes or discomfort in facing the unknown. For young children, risk might include physical play (negotiating heights and speeds), exploratory and transformational play (using potentially 'dangerous' tools or materials) and dramatic play (first time using resources such as puppets or materials in role play). Other classifications can be found here.
The materials we offer young children can spark creativity and exploration. Beyond predictable (but important) materials such as paint, wooden blocks and Lego, we can look to broaden the choices children have. For example, giving access to wire, clay, sand, cardboard tubes, fabric, water and pebbles.
Sally is a passionate advocate for play and her website, Wunderled (formerly Fairy Dust Teaching) has many inspiring resources.
In the final day of our workshop, I feel very fortunate to have had a friend and colleague from school attend the same workshop and to have had conversations unique to our context, and to reap the benefits of her experience and expertise with 3-5 year olds. Moving from just theory, it was great to hear stories about real children, real families, real interactions and specific learning stories related to the learning spaces 3-5 year olds play and inquire in at our school.
Monday, July 1, 2024 - Appreciative
Self-regulation
Jo Fahey is a passionate and knowledgeable researcher and consultant for the Early Years. I just watched her most recent Masterclass on self-regulation. The recording is here and will be available for the next few months. I appreciate that Jo made explicit the importance of us as educators to take on a growth mindset when thinking about the difficulties young children might face, and embrace the idea that there are behaviours, attitudes and skills that they might not have developed YET! I connected to Jo's reference to Dr Stuart Shanker's thinking about us decreasing judgement and increasing curiosity.
Tuesday, July 2, 2024 - Confident
Learning environments
Fiona Symons is an experienced and reflective Early Years practitioner. She just shared this document from the UK on enabling environments. Alongside the physical space of indoors and outdoors learning environments, it recognises the importance of the emotional environment, linking back to relationships and belonging.
Wednesday, July 3, 2024 - Unaware
Visual motor integration
I came across this post recently about visual motor integration. I hadn't heard of this term before, but reading the examples given, I realised I was an advocate for such important skills. The ages given here are the 'average' age for a child to produce these lines, but the group adopt a strong developmental pedagogy. It's interesting to read as many systems are expecting children at a younger and younger age to start phonics, without thinking more carefully about the demands of such requirements, and often skipping important gross motor, fine motor and core strength skills. I want to be proactive in becoming even more aware of developmentally appropriate visual motor integration skills.
Thursday, July 4, 2024 - Amazed
Mark making
I continue to be amazed at the number of quality and free resources that the UK publish for the Early Years. Here is a link to Mark Making Matters which showcases (in photographs) young children making marks. It's great to see so many different media being explored hy the children.
Friday, July 5, 2024 - Torn
Mathematics
Another great free resource that promotes processes such as reasoning and problem solving in mathematics. Maths (like many disciplines) is often approached with an emphasis on a set of knowledge and skills as the 'content'. Alongside, the 'what' of discipline, there is the 'how' and I appreciate the spotlight placed on mathematical processes and the belief that 3 and 4 year olds are able to engage in reasoning and problem solving. Reading this document, and then many scope and sequence documents, I see an explicit focus on counting as part of number, and much less attention given to subitising. I just completed the online training TENS (Teaching Essential Number Sense) by Karen Wilding. Details for this paid training are here. Karen is clear that she is not against counting, but advocates for children to engage regularly with subitising to develop. number sense and understand important concepts as they do so. Tools to support subitising are 5- and 10-frames that Karen explains in this free YouTube video.
Saturday, July 6, 2024 - Inadequate
DEIJ
I have just finished reading "Challenging Gender Stereotypes in the Early Years" by Susie Heywood and Barbara Adzajlic. There were many examples of preventative and responsive practices that I felt I don't embed... yet! Two quotes that stood out to me that also give a global insight into the text are:
“Children are not born with prejudice, but they are born into a prejudiced world.”
“We know that stereotypes and bias are learned very early, so it’s never too early to start to talk about and challenge them.”
Sunday, July 7, 2024 - Intrigued
Schemas
I first saw this sketch on social media and then traced it back to its source at Education Scotland.
I was so taken by the visuals and became more intrigued to find out more about the schemas used by 3 and 4 year olds in my school. I was also intrigued to find out more about this organisation and found this link.
Monday, July 8, 2024 - Creative
Loose parts
Junk DNA by Clare Thompson arrived today. It's a wordless book that inspires children to be creative with loose parts, in this case, in developing characters and events to tell a story. Educators new to loose parts often ask how to introduce them to young children. I think the best way is to make them available and invite the children to play and see how they can be used. This book offers another starting point and possible invitation into thinking about the limitless possibilities loose parts offer.
Tuesday, July 9, 2024 - Resourceful
Loose parts
Yesterday, I was walking down a street close to where I live in central Paris. The colours on the ground caught my eye and tempted me into a small store alive with small, shaped materials ready to be transformed into jewelry. My mind, of course, went straight to loose parts and I bought multiple materials in a range of colours, shapes and sizes, including golden, hexagonal ring-like pieces and buttons with distinct and vibrant patterns and colours, keeping in mind sharp edges and size to be appropriate for 3 and 4-year olds. I also explained to the owner, these materials were for young children to be creative with and asked if he had any extra, unwanted pieces that the children might find interesting. He was kind enough to donate some interesting pieces. Keep an eye out in your local area! Be resourceful! If you are new to the idea and pedagogy of loose parts, here is a more detailed blog I wrote a few years ago.
Wednesday, July 10, 2024 - Curious
Inquiry
This week, I watched the live launch of Trevor Mackenzie's latest book 'Inquiry Mindset - Questions Edition' hosted by Becky Carlzon. The session (and book) promoted the power of curiosity and questions and their connection to motivated learners and authentic learning. I particularly appreciated the connection made between the cognitive side of asking questions and the mixed emotions that might accompany these acts - confidence, uncertainty, safety, being valued, satisfaction, frustration... I'm eager to get my own copy. In the meantime, I started to think (again) about the idea that questioning for 3- and 4-year olds may not actually be in the form of questions. Examples include play as young children's questioning, 'I wonder' utterances, a doubt, an uncertainty, a look in the eye, a body reaction, a tension, a confusion, a surprise, or a working theory. I'm curious to see these ways (and more) as 3- and 4-year olds question who, where and what they encounter.
Thursday, July 11, 2024 - Connected
Storytelling
Away in Amsterdam for a few days, last night I saw Patti Smith in concert at a legendary venue called Paradiso. It was wonderful to see, hear and feel the stories Patti shared through and in between songs. Her use of words, gestures and energy made me feel so connected to her and her stories. It was a wonderful reminder about the art and importance of storytelling. The raw, poetic and authentic nature of Patti's stories captured the attention of the crowd, and before our eyes, we were taken on a journey, making our own personal connections to themes such as relationships, memories and human rights. A beautiful reminder about the power of storytelling through music, poetry and movement, and inspiration for storytelling to go beyond asking 3 and 4-year olds to listen silently, cross-legged, to a story being told or read.
Concepts
Last year, J. Rafael Angel gave me a copy of his book 'From Inception to Fruition: Concept-Based Language Teaching and Learning'. Yesterday, I finally made time to read it! I was very encouraged to read concrete examples of how conceptual learning transferred to learning additional languages in Secondary Schools (the focus of the book).
It was also timely to revisit the Structure of Process by Dr Lois Lanning, building on the work of the Structure of Knowledge by Dr Lynn Erickson. Thinking about 3- and 4-year olds, I was drawn to the process of oral production and the concepts that can be drawn from this process. Eg. phonological awareness, articulation, clarity, word choice and vocabulary. Lanning is quoted as saying that beyond the ability to "do" the many skills associated with this process, learners develop an understanding of why they are doing what they are doing.
In his book, J Rafael Angel clearly advocates for language concepts and processes to be explicitly and intentionally planned for so that language isn't lost in the content of other disciplines and the busyness of everyday life.
In his book, J Rafael Angel clearly advocates for language concepts and processes to be explicitly and intentionally planned for so that language isn't lost in the content of other disciplines and the busyness of everyday life.
Saturday, July 13, 2024 - Fascinated
Learning environments
Yesterday, I visited the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam to see a temporary exhibition based on the work of performance artist Marina Abramović. I became fascinated with the themes in her work, one of them being 'presence and absence'. A piece that I kept returning to was the portal that marked the entrance to her 'environment'. I photographed a part of it here:
For the rest of the day, I was thinking about how the presence or absence of one thing can make another more or less noticeable, and how for this image, we could use 'the presence of darkness' or 'the absence of light' to describe the same thing.
This led me to think about the space in learning environments and how it is used. Reflecting on what we choose to be present and to be absent reveal so much about what we value. For example:
- the absence and presence of loose parts and toys
- the variety of colours featured in the space
- the range of materials at hand
- the absence and presence of centres and zones
- the amount and type of furniture including a teacher's desk
- the type of seating for the 3- and 4-year olds
- the absence/presence of fixed routines and structures that shape the day
This led me to think about the space in learning environments and how it is used. Reflecting on what we choose to be present and to be absent reveal so much about what we value. For example:
- the absence and presence of loose parts and toys
- the variety of colours featured in the space
- the range of materials at hand
- the absence and presence of centres and zones
- the amount and type of furniture including a teacher's desk
- the type of seating for the 3- and 4-year olds
- the absence/presence of fixed routines and structures that shape the day
Sunday, July 14, 2024 - Excited
Play
I am excited to continue to be part of PressPlay this coming school year. Its focus on play and playful learning continues to explore new threads and connections to deepen understanding and consider possibilities about these pedagogies with inspiration from many lead thinkers.
The next live event is with Sugata Mitra to investigate the connections between play and creativity. Being part of a community with such a clear and exciting direction helps to maintain focus and determine priorities when thinking about learning, teaching and assessment.
Monday, July 15, 2024 - Motivated
Movement
Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending a webinar hosted by Barbara Murphy about why movement matters for young children. Movement is something I am motivated to explore more explicitly and intentionally this coming school year alongside and beyond working with the PE teacher. As Barbara explained the benefits of movement, referring to her insights from the Montessori method, I was drawn to the big ideas and made sense of them using Halliday’s framework of learning, learning about and learning through. I also appreciated her stance about how movement itself is learning, not a break from it!
Learning - Children learn to have a positive attitude towards being active. As humans, we have a natural tendency to move and young children learn to be comfortable and confident in their own bodies. Exposed to different spaces, materials and surfaces, children explore how to move in playful and creative ways and experience the joy and freedom of movement. They also learn to foster a strong connection to nature by spending time outdoors in different terrains in a variety of weather. Movement also gives children increased levels of attention and independence.
Learning about - Children learn to move! They develop different physical capacities such as coordination, flexibility, strength and balance to help them navigate and adapt to different indoor and outdoor environments. Children also learn fine and gross motor skills such as reaching, grasping and manipulating objects (opening, zipping, beading…) and throwing, running and kicking.
Learning through - Children move to learn! Children benefit from the connections between movement and emotional well-being and how movement facilitates cognitive development by transforming thoughts into actions. This might be through the manipulation of materials, participating in action stories or specific movements to participate in gardening, food preparation or cleaning. Linking movement to music, children learn about patterns and rhythm. In doing so, a child’s language develops alongside their understanding of abstract concepts.
Tuesday, July 16, 2024 - Delighted
Emotions - Wellbeing
Yesterday, en route to Locarno, Switzerland (several train rides!) I read a book recommended to me a long time ago, and that I finally had time to look at properly - Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown. I was delighted to read the book for two main reasons:
1. It reinforced the importance of identifying and differentiating between feelings, and understanding how our feelings, thoughts and behaviours work together. I really appreciated the close analysis of pairs of words that are commonly used as synonyms for one another such as curiosity and interest, and awe and wonder. A wonderful reminder to talk about feelings and wellbeing with young children, and the importance of language to extend vocabulary beyond sad, happy and angry.
2. The explicit naming of different emotions has given me a bank of vocabulary I might be able to draw from or be inspired by in identifying the main emotion I feel when writing each daily post on this blog. I was delighted by this unexpected gift!
Wednesday, July 17, 2024 - Content
Slow pedagogy
Yesterday morning, I was reading about Alison Clark's research on 'Slow pedagogy'. I connected to the ideas of slowing down and being in the moment, paying close attention to what is happening there and then. This links to the pedagogies of listening, observation and documentation and for us as educators to be genuinely interested in children and their thinking.
As I read more, I was drawn to the term 'timefulness' - being mindful of time, understanding its importance, making the best use of the time available, and being intentional in how to use it. I smiled contentedly as I felt this word describes me, despite always arriving late!
Later in the day, I was sitting in a restaurant with this beautiful view. Instead of the normal Coke I would guzzle quite quickly, I chose to have a green tea. The hot water forced me to slow down, be in the moment and pay close attention to what was happening around me. I was content!
Thursday, July 18, 2024 - Joyful
Play
Yesterday, I watched the most joyful interview online between Michael Rosen and Kathy Brodie on Early Years TV. At the time of writing, there are five free videos to view, one of which is the Michael Rosen interview. Micheal Rosen is a British author, poet, presenter and academic. Some of his most famous texts are We're Going on a Bear Hunt and Chocolate Cake.
The focus of the interview was play, based on Rosen's Book of Play and his definition of free play: trial and error without fear of failure. Play is so difficult to define to capture its many facets, but Rosen's choice of words say so much about play as a process and the safe space it provides. He also provided many concrete examples of how cooking, gardening, daydreaming and word play could all be viewed as play.
Friday, July 19, 2024 - Guilty
Sensory play
I recently discovered the site for Shifting Schools. There are hundreds of free podcasts. From episode 342, there is a series on the power of play. Each episode starts with a myth about play. In episode 342, the myth was that when people first think about sensory play, they think about tactile play! Guilty! It was great to have movement so explicitly linked to the 8 senses, in particular the vestibular and proprioceptive systems.
Saturday, July 20, 2024 - Spellbound
Literature
Now in London, I visited Foyles bookstore, opposite the Phoenix Theatre where I was going to see the stage version of Stranger Things. In the children's section, I was spellbound by new titles, front covers, themes and the vivid action verbs that I could envisage 3- and 4-year olds moving, acting and responding to in all sorts of creative ways. There's something quite magical about turning the pages of physical books!
Sunday, July 21, 2024 - Proud
Concepts
I recently posted this chart about concepts on LinkedIn and educators seem to have really connected to its structure as a continuum. I trained with Dr Lynn Erickson and Dr Lois Lanning in the USA and I'm happy my experiences offer some insights and clarity into such an abstract and sometimes misunderstood part of pedagogy. I am also proud to apply the importance of conceptual learning and think about big ideas most relevant to 3- and 4-year olds such as belonging, movement, imagination, journeys, relationships and exploration.
Monday, July 22, 2024 - Nostalgic
Transdisciplinary learning
For the past 20 years the Vinyl Factory has been at the forefront of fostering pioneering collaborations between artists and musicians embracing new ideas and exploring new ways of merging art and sound."
This is taken from the welcome notes to Reverb, an exhibition I saw yesterday in Central London.
I felt nostalgic seeing examples of the interconnectedness between music and art such as album artwork, the aesthetics of vinyl, design elements used to package limited edition releases, imagery in videos and how soundscapes partnered with art.
The elements of art and music naturally complement one another, so this gave inspiration to explore these playfully with 3- and 4-year olds.
Tuesday, July 23, 2024 - Thrilled
Play
I am thrilled to come across new and creative ways to define or describe play. Teacher Tom blogs regularly about play and I read his thoughts yesterday about the parallels between play and dreaming. His post is here, in which he quotes Toomey:
"If dreaming is disembodied play, then play is perhaps embodied dreaming. If in dreaming we are playing without bodies, then perhaps in play we are using our bodies to dream."
Wednesday, July 24, 2024 - Fortunate
Numeracy and literacy
I am fortunate enough to be collaborating with Anne van Dam for a 4-week suite of online sessions through Chapters International to explore a day in the life of Kindergarten. Many ideas are guiding our planning such as agency, play, conceptual learning and the role of the teacher. Part of our time will explore how numeracy and literacy for young learners support all of these big ideas, but also consider the planning and assessment of more concrete skills and outcomes. The link for registration is here.
Thursday, July 25, 2024 - Celebratory
Community
Back in Paris, I watched Spain and Uzbekistan play football at Parc des Princes yesterday to kick off the 2024 Olympics in front of 50 000 spectators. So many different nationalities, languages, flags, interests and cultures, nestled alongside "hidden" beliefs, values and perspectives. Despite the differences, there was such a celebratory sense of community, joy and belonging. The Olympic rings on proud display symbolised the union of the 5 different continents.
Friday, July 26, 2024 - Captivated
Play
I have just discovered Miriam Beloglovsky's website. I was familiar with her work in advocating the use of loose parts, but there are many treasures here to discover. I was particularly interested in her graphic about play:
It is not the first time I have heard play being referred to as a 'state of mind'. If play is a state of mind, what are the implications for how we use time, space, materials and our own interactions?
Saturday, July 27, 2024 - Focused
Play
It is always interesting to see how play is described and interpreted from different cultural perspectives. I subscribe to updates from Play Wales and recently received an insight into their thoughts on playwork which can be seen here. "Playwork is unique and can be described as the art of working with playing children." I very much enjoy focusing in on select words and thinking about similarities and differences to other interpretations. I honed in on the word 'art' in this particular description.
Sunday, July 28, 2024 - Satisfied
Symbolic Exploration and Expression
Toddle is an online learning and teaching platform. It has a wealth of free professional development for early childhood centralised in this easy-to-access link. A resource I came across was 'Enabling Children's Voices: Exploring through the 100 languages' which gives many examples of symbolic exploration and expression in practice.
Monday, July 29, 2024 - Thankful
Working theories
Since working in early childhood, I am so thankful to Helen Hedges and her research into working theories. Her work pushes us all to think beyond children's interests as they play, and beyond just questions as acts of inquiry. The article (as a PDF) found in this link captures some of Helen's thinking about working theories. An idea she expanded on about working theories: They highlight the multimodal ways that children learn and express their developing understandings as they engage with others to make sense of and participate in their families, communities and culture.
Young children may be able to explain their theories, but often they are revealed in their play, actions, stories, drawings, creations and routines. It is important for us to notice and wonder about the children's theories, much in the same way we might document dispositions and skills. This links back to yesterday's post about 100 languages. Often, these explorations and expressions reveal working theories so clearly.
Tuesday, July 30, 2024 - Pleased
Observations
In this video clip, Stella Louis discusses the importance of observations, and understanding what we notice. I particularly appreciate the point about not simply observing for the indicators/outcomes that are set in our curriculum. These could then be seen as covered and "finished". Instead, observing children's actions, theories, wonders and dispositions bring rich evidence to then respond to.
Wednesday, July 31, 2024 - Absorbed
Play
Away in Saint-Malo for a few days, today I was struck by how one person's or one group's play (or remnants of it) at the beach became the starting point and inspiration for someone else's.
I began to think about the implications this has for tidying up routines and the involvement of young children in making choices about what does and does not get tidied up, as well as the potential of documenting the connections between play that is built upon someone else's ideas, explorations and creations.
Thursday, August 1, 2024 - Reflective
Loose parts
I just came across this great conversation between Suzanne Axelsson and Miriam Beloglovsky about loose parts. Of particular interest was the focus on how materials are used (and why). The same material may or may not be described as a loose part based on the interactions, possibilities and purpose. There was also an interesting perspective discussed about whether loose parts are or are not 'unscripted materials'.
Friday, August 2, 2024 - Observant
Play
Back at the beach, yesterday I found myself observing both adults and children engaged in a whole range of self-chosen play in and with water.
All possible because of freedom to choose, time, space and just one main material!
Saturday, August 3, 2024 - Elated
Loose parts
Back in Paris, I visited the area close to Marché Saint-Pierre to search for fabrics. I am elated to have acquired over 20 fabrics in a range of materials, textures, colours, patterns and sizes. Fabrics as loose parts offer endless possibilities and invite children to transform the materials in infinite ways. Those new to the theory of loose parts and the work of Simon Nicholson might want to read more here.
Sunday, August 4, 2024 - Admiration
Play
I was recently sent Anji Play's definition of play. I really admired the process they went through involving parents and connecting to personal play memories. For those new to the philosophy of Anji Play, here is their official site.
Monday, August 5, 2024 - Responsible
Community
Away in Sanary-sur-Mer with friends, community has been a theme of our holiday, making decisions collectively and adopting various roles and responsibilities. A concrete example of this has been food. Choices about what to eat and where, the logistics of ordering, collecting and shopping for food, and then the preparation, cooking and cleaning away being part of a small community. We are a group of six friends from Ireland, France, the UK and Portugal so connections to culture, choices, tradition, family, routines, relationships and preferences are strong.
It has reminded me of the importance of food in early childhood - not simply as a 'break' from learning and play, but shared opportunities for community members to be involved before, during and after eating. This post promotes the idea of food as a transdisciplinary language and the values of Reggio Emilia schools, including the importance of participation and learning about, from and through food as a community.
Tuesday, August 6, 2024 - Driven
Documentation
The pedagogy of documentation is based on so many values about learners and learning. This post offers so many worthwhile insights into the process of documentation.
Wednesday, August 7, 2024 - Supportive
Play
In the UK yesterday, it was Playday. A wonderful reminder about children having the right to play, and exploring the connections between play and culture.
Thursday, August 8, 2024 - Refreshed
Mathematics
Dr Helen J Williams' site is such a treasure trove of wonderful research, links and practical ideas to promote best practice for young mathematicians. Helen advocates playful ways for early learners to make sense of abstract mathematical ideas, always prioritising understanding over 'cute' and decontextualised activities.
Friday, August 9, 2024 - Convinced
Oral language
Early Childhood Investigations offer many free webinars on a variety of topics. This week's webinar was about the value of 'Rich Talk' - dialogue that is responsive to children's mood, motivation, interests, play, inquiries and working theories. Many practical strategies and sentence starters are shared. I especially appreciated the 'why' of such dialogue. Reasons shared included:
- Dialogue shows we as educators are genuinely interested
- Understanding is deepened
- Thinking aloud about complex ideas is modelled
- Relationships are built
- Flexible thinking is supported
- Imagination is expanded
Saturday, August 10, 2024 - Imaginative
Resources
Cosy has a range of free blog posts aimed for early childhood teachers, full of practical ideas such as ways to use tuff trays, loose parts, nature and sand. Sometimes seeing a photo or reading a simple idea can spark our own imagination to launch or position a resource, then ultimately allow young children to make choices about how they use materials.
Sunday, August 11, 2024 - Discouraged
Identity
Today, I arrived in Stavanger, Norway, and headed to a colourful street called Fargegaten in the old town. "This is the hippy street where you can be yourself!" announced a local who was showing some visitors around. While there was no bad intention at all, I was discouraged that for some people being yourself is restricted to certain places or times.
Monday, August 12, 2024 - Awe
Nature
Today, I did a 4-hour hike to and from Preikestolen. The views of the fjord were spectacular. As I walked, I was struck by the beauty of nature, not just a mere appreciation, but an overpowering sense of delight, wonder and awe of navigating such tremendous landscapes.
I chatted to a family whose 4-year old chose to do most of the hike independently, navigating rocks and stepping stones, coordinating his footing and balance, and reeling from the thrill of a new adventure, scaling heights, distances and never-before seen natural beauty.
Juliet Robertson (Creative Star) has curated a goldmine of blog posts related to nature that might spark play and playful learning.
Tuesday, August 13, 2024 - Glad
Phonological awareness
I re-read an old UK publication Letters and Sounds and was very glad to see the stance of Phase One based on phonological awareness. There are many creative and playful ways suggested that engage young learners in hearing, responding to and producing sounds. Seven aspects are included: environmental sounds, instrumental sounds, body percussion, rhythm and rhyme, alliteration, voice sounds and oral blending and segmenting.
Wednesday, August 14, 2024 - Fascinated
Concepts
Yesterday, I led a workshop on conceptual learning in Stavanger. As participants co-constructed meaning about what concepts are and a rationale for their role in curriculum design, I shared examples of practice from the early years. It's always fascinating to see educators grapple (at first) with seemingly contradictory messages - concrete experiences to make sense of abstract concepts. Concepts are indeed abstract as they are mental constructs that frame ideas. For young children to understand these abstract ideas, they need concrete experiences so they can use their senses, explore materials, and engage in sensorial play in different spaces.
Misty Paterson has creative ideas to marry conceptual learning with materials and experiences in her book Pop-Up Studio. She also has free resources to download from her site.
Thursday, August 15, 2024 - Clear
Learning environments
Reggio Emilia often refer to the learning environment itself as the third teacher. I recently came across this post that explains this idea and gives some practical tips for us to consider when designing learning environments, making it explicit that these spaces should evolve with children's play and ideas.
Friday, August 16, 2024 - Adrenalised
Adventurous (risky) play
Yesterday here in Geilo, I went zip lining and for an 11km walk around a lake. Although I love the adrenaline and speed of a zip line, I hate heights! The walk later had several obstacles to navigate including multiple choices of trails to navigate, some of which led to dead ends marked with an electric fence. I couldn't help think of what many call risky, courageous or adventurous play.
It is important to help children develop courage and confidence to be adventurous, try new things, set safe and realistic goals and develop a rational awareness of consequences. This way, they are more prepared to face new opportunities and unexpected challenges, aware also that they have the right to say no! This PDF differentiates between a risk and a hazard, and suggests reflective prompts for teams to use, including how we plan for adventurous play.
Saturday, August 17, 2024 - Prepared
Shared pedagogy
Thinking ahead to a new school year, I rewatched this webinar led by Anne van Dam. Anne encourages us to consider our shared beliefs and values about learning, play and the identities we give to children. Powerful prompts are shared to avoid assuming there is a shared pedagogy. The recording is housed in 4 Generations 4 Education's YouTube page which features many videos about learning in French, Arabic and English.
Sunday, August 18, 2024 - Intimidated
Play
It is always interesting to consider ideas from different perspectives. This site is curated by an occupational therapist about the power of play. It can sometimes be intimidating to be exposed to different terminology or a depth of thinking from such a specialised field, but having an open mind, a willingness to learn and making connections to your own understanding can bring a sense of calm, too.
Monday, August 19, 2024 - Inspired
Materials
This weekend in Oslo, I visited two different sculpture parks and noticed such magnificent expressions of emotions and ideas through the use of different materials.
The materials we offer young children can spark creativity and exploration. Beyond predictable (but important) materials such as paint, wooden blocks and Lego, we can look to broaden the choices children have. For example, giving access to wire, clay, sand, cardboard tubes, fabric, water and pebbles.
Louisa Penfold pushes our thinking about materials and writes, "I believe that art materials are not just a tool for self-expression or a thing for children to manipulate; they are an active and participatory force in the productions of learning and knowledge." To read more from Louisa, and be inspired by her thinking, here is a page on her site and a more comprehensive article.
Tuesday, August 20, 2024 - Introspective
Listening
Yesterday started the start of the new school year here in Paris for Middle Leaders. Our day was spent with Helen Morgan thinking about mentoring and coaching. One thread was the importance of listening, the difference between listening to understand and listening to respond, and the getting comfortable with silence. I can be a good listener, but I know that I interject too often and too quickly with my own personal connections to what I am hearing.
For young children, a pedagogy of listening is often referred to. This PDF has many powerful quotes from Rinaldi that link to this pedagogy.
Wednesday, August 21, 2024 - Embarrassed
Regulation
Last night I watched a webinar led by Sally Haughey entitled "Anatomy of a Meltdown". There are many useful insights and strategies, but a 'headline' for me was "Did you know that the thinking brain, the neocortex, can not work optimally until the limbic system - the feeling brain - is regulated?" In many ways, an obvious statement, but that is often not applied to how we might respond to children having emotional challenges. I watched slightly embarrassed about the number of times I have tried to use logic and reason with a child that was not emotionally ready to hear those words at that time.
Sally is a passionate advocate for play and her website, Wunderled (formerly Fairy Dust Teaching) has many inspiring resources.
Thursday, August 22, 2024 - Connected
Play
Recently, a colleague and friend Anita Brady invited me to read a chapter from David McKeown's Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less. The chapter was about play. A definition of play is offered: Anything we do simply for the joy of doing rather than as a means to an end. He also describes three ways that play fuels creativity and exploration:
- Broadening the range of options (Possibilities, connections, perspectives and ideas)
- An antidote to stress
- Positive effect on the executive function of the brain.
I particularly connected to the comment about both careful and carefree: "Play stimulates the parts of the brain involved in both careful, logical reasoning and carefree, unbound exploration."
Friday, August 23, 2024 - Playful
Playful learning
Alongside the complexity of play, another term that is 'thrown in', unpacked and interpreted is playful learning. I love the openness, possibility and creativity playfulness suggests to me, and the mindset and attitude that it conjures up in my mind. This PDF offers some perspectives on playful learning and its connections to play.
Saturday, August 24, 2024 - Aligned
Outdoor learning
I had lunch with the Head of PE (Anna J) today and something that came up in conversation was the culture of a school and its values and approaches towards being outdoors in different weather (specifically the cold, rain and snow) It reminded me of a quote by Alfred Wainwright: "There is no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing." This site advocates outdoor learning and offers some practical tips to do so.
Sunday, August 25, 2024 - Fortunate
Play personalities
The National Institute for Play's site is a treasure trove of resources about play, including an interesting section on play personalities. I feel I am the collector, the director, the explorer and the joker. This is interesting to think about for young children and ensuring there is time, space, materials and opportunities to develop these personalities.
Monday, August 26, 2024 - Charmed
Interactions
Dan Wuori regularly posts video clips of young children and then draws out insightful observations. This video featured on Dan's LinkedIn page is a beautiful interaction between a musician and a curious child. Dan points out a very simple, but sometimes overlooked, tip about interacting with children at their level.
Tuesday, August 27, 2024 - Supported
Play
The Lego Foundation is a great advocate for play and offers many practical and inspiring resources and ideas to promote play. Their site includes a section on research about play and the benefits it offers.
Wednesday, August 28, 2024 - Admiration
Writing
This blog intentionally explores ideas that are often met with strong and conflicting views from educators in the early years. One that was shared on LinkedIn today was about writing, and questioning the value of young children tracing letters. Here is a direct link. I admire people that take a strong stance in a debate and use logic and evidence to support their thinking.
Thursday, August 29, 2024 - Playful
Play
This famous TED Talk by Stuart Brown explores the idea: Play is more than just fun. It unpacks play in different ways including flow and a state of play.
Friday, August 30, 2024 - Zealous
Curiosity
Tania Lattanzio is a passionate advocate for conceptual inquiry and always presents and writes with such inspiring examples of practice. In her recent presentation for Toddle, she used a wonderful quote from Susan Engel (pictured below). Complexity might be something to shy away from with young children, trying to protect them because of their age. In doing so, we deny them the magic and excitement of novelty, being curious, not knowing, and being active in their own learning journey to make sense of the wonders around us. Tania's site (as part of IGE) has a wealth of resources including videos and free downloads, as well as a link to their excellent book "Taking the Complexity out of Concepts".
Saturday, August 31, 2024 - Relieved
Learning spaces
Setting up a learning space as part of a team of four educators has been the highlight of my week. Aesthetically, the space looks inviting and playful, but beyond this, the decision making process revealed so much about our own beliefs, values and priorities. Much to my relief, we are driven by shared goals.
- The choice to have an entire storage unit for children's creations (in process or 'finished') clear of adults' coffee cups, electronic devices and personal items so children's learning is showcased
- The choice to change storage containers and baskets so children could see resources more easily to support independence
- The choice to have a wide range of materials to foster creative thinking and curiosity
- The choice to have diverse resources inside and outdoors to promote different types of play such as physical, exploratory, transformational and dramatic play
- The choice to remove pieces of furniture to declutter and offer children multiple spaces and ways to play, be agentic and socialise together
- The choice to curate sets of the same material in different forms to play with possibility. Eg. Cardboard boxes in different shapes and sizes, alongside flat pieces of thin and thick cardboard and cardboard tubes of various sizes and thicknesses.
- The choice to have routines and systems in place to support self-management skills. Eg. Labelled trays for snacks and water bottles
- The choice to not put up displays to 'prettify' the classroom so that children's creations, inquiries, play and creativity could be showcased
- The choice to not shy away from materials with levels of complexity to invite exploration, research and inquiry. Eg. Puzzles, Makedo resources for construction, a range of art materials and loose parts
Sunday, September 1, 2024 - Joy
Music
Last night I DJ'd a wedding party on a boat on the River Seine. Music was played for 6 hours - from apéro music, a first dance, dinner music and a dance party. Specific song choices and overall moods for different parts of the evening prompted so many responses - joy, nostalgia, emotions, stories, connection, ambiance and a whole range of movement!
As an avid music fan, I am always surprised I haven't integrated music more naturally and intentionally into classroom life. With a focus on movement, I hope that music will be much more prominent in the classroom. I have started to curate a collection of songs to use.
Monday, September 2, 2024 - Astounded
Barriers to Learning
Last night, I watched in awe as teams played 5-a-side blind football as part of the Paralympics. So many accommodations were made to remove or reduce barriers to learning. For example, a ball with a sound inside, goalposts being tapped for penalty kicks and routines that involved touch to guide players to their teammates to celebrate each goal as a team.
This prompted to think about UDL (Universal Design for Learning). More information can be found here.
Tuesday, September 3, 2024 - Hopeful
Relationships
Yesterday, children and their families came to the classroom for the start of the new school year. In what we call 'Stay and Play', parents accompanied their children to the class and stayed while they played. Alongside observing children in their play and engaging in chats with them, teachers were able to sit for conversations with families for up to about 15 minutes to get to know more about family life and their children. This one-to-one time proved invaluable in listening to understand more about each child's unique context, sharing some key information and answering questions parents had.
I left school today so pleased to have made so many authentic connections with parents and hopeful that as the year continues, the two-way communication, trust and positive relationships continue so that we work in partnership.
Wednesday, September 4, 2024 - Connected
Relationships
As I connect to the students and start to build relationships, I am reminded of the importance of language. The tone of language, the type of language, the amount of language, the use of body language and visuals to support spoken language and home languages. I have a basic level of French so used this to converse with a couple of children, and I used Google Translate to say "I am happy you are at our school" in Korean. The reassurance that this gave the children was so powerful!
Thursday, September 5, 2024 - Valued
Relationships
Last night, parents were invited to learn more about our approach to play, learning and curriculum. We planned opportunities for the parents to be actively engaged, rather than passive participants, so they could 'live' an experience like their child. The invitation below prompted exploration and so much observation and curiosity, and revealed how much the parents have valued this first week at school to welcome them as parents and their children.
Friday, September 6, 2024 - Animated
Read alouds
As the first week with the children draws to a close, I have really enjoyed reading picture books aloud to the children. My aim has been for children to engage with text and enjoy stories rather than sit in a silent circle. The children naturally became animated as they noticed details in illustrations and made sense of what they were seeing and hearing. We also had great fun using movement, actions and sounds to bring words to life.
Saturday, September 7, 2024 - Supportive
Scaffolding
In getting to know the children, it has been great to see what children perceive they can and cannot do yet. There have been so many new experiences, opportunities and challenges for children to navigate, particularly related to self-management skills. For example, new items of clothing to put on or take off, and food wrappers and containers to open and close. To foster independence, scaffolding has been key. Modelling how things might be done or starting off the process for the children to complete and feel a sense of accomplishment. The photo shows new aprons for water play and painting and children helping each other to secure velcro.
Sunday, September 8, 2024 - Confused
Games
In Lyon for the weekend, I saw an adult last night draw out a hopscotch grid on the pavement and start to play. Games are an important part of play, but I am always confused when I see some spectrums/continua show games as a fixed point, and often towards teacher-led engagements. Given the right culture, young children are more than capable of adapting rules to games (playful learning) and often make up their own games (play). In Early Learners this week children saw some new games and were invited to think for themselves how the game might be played.
Monday, September 9, 2024 - Heartened
Persistance
Setting up a new classroom comes with the inevitable choices of what to keep, what to throw and what needs to be added. I came across many simple jigsaw puzzles - simple in the sense that there was not much thinking about how to complete a linear puzzle, and not very exciting in terms of the visuals of the actual puzzle. I purchased some new puzzles that are more like wooden versions of Tetris and tangrams, but kept some of the simpler puzzles, too, out of curiosity and to observe what children gravitated towards. It's been fascinating to see even in one week the number of times and the number of different children being drawn to the more complex puzzles, the language that comes out ('This is tricky!') and the conversations that have occurred about learning, effort and not giving up. It is only when more complex learning is offered in safe environments that children can feel the need for and talk about growth mindset authentically.
Tuesday, September 10, 2024 - Animated
Learning spaces
Novel use of learning spaces and the materials available supports the development of creativity, possibility and play. Being intentional with the positioning of resources can nurture curiosity and playful thinking. Many children had never used a vertical Duplo wall before and have been inspired to develop characters and settings, from which dialogue and plots have been developed collaboratively.
Wednesday, September 11, 2024 - Loved
Relationships
In these first few days of school, we have invested a lot of time and energy in relationships, connecting with children and their families, observing and responding to their play and engaging in conversations. A child began inquiring into how a stapler worked and was then inspired to use colour then pictures on the papers he had stapled. He then chose to add a post it note (pictured below). When I ask about the pictures he drew on it, he replied, "I am drawing a picture of happy families. This is me, mummy, daddy and you!"
Thursday, September 12, 2024 - Sad
Systems
Systems are in place to help things run efficiently. Yesterday, the classroom assistant was not in school and the dismissal system failed miserably for a couple of students who were overwhelmed with finding and then independently taking their coats and bags. Bags were hiding coats and coats were hiding bags! There were some children in tears and I was sad that the system allowed this to happen. Today we have a new system of only coats on hooks and bags sit on, in or under the bench system. Small changes and clarifications to systems have the potential to empower children with confidence and independence.
Friday, September 13, 2024 - Delighted
Outdoor learning
As another week draws to a close, I feel delighted at the opportunities Early Learners have to be outdoors. Each day, there is time outside in the morning, after lunch and in the afternoon, with access to two different playgrounds and a variety of loose parts and terrains. In addition, each Tuesday, we have over two hours of outdoor learning that will take place in different locations. This week, we walked to a local park and explored nature, played in the sand and explored the playground. Each Wednesday, we will also go out of school. This week, we walked to a nearby nature trail. Next week, we will go on our first trip using a bus and will visit an Eco-park for outdoor adventure learning. These are all part of the school's belief in 'Paris as a Classroom'. Over the years, I have heard some educators doubt if 3- and 4-year olds are ready for experiences like these. I am delighted to see this group of children thrive from such opportunities and already develop such important self-management and social skills in the process. What a delight to be part of a team that shares a belief in the importance of outdoor play!
Saturday, September 14, 2024 - Content
Stereotypes
While reading 'The Day The Crayons Quit' this week, most children agreed pink was a colour for girls. Yesterday, we looked more closely at the illustration and a photo of two of the children in the class I had taken (a boy and a girl both wearing pink). I also showed different photos of people wearing pink for sports, leisure and work. I then read 'Pink is for Boys' by Robb Pearlman. It was fascinating to see the children's thinking develop.
Sunday, September 15, 2024 - Fortunate
Single Subject Teachers/Specialists
In Early Learners, single subject teachers embrace play and playful learning keeping in mind the subjects they are passionate about. Children learn in the homeroom, outdoors, the gym, the library and the music room to maximise resources. As a homeroom teacher, I am always there at the start of each of these sessions as a constant for the children and to assist with transitions. The adults present are a mix of single subject teachers, assistants and homeroom teachers. One afternoon, for example, I am there with the French and Arts teacher so music and dance is done in both French and English. It is a wonderful opportunity for me to see how children engage with different adults and environments and also extend my own toolkit of learning routines, stories, songs, games and ideas to inspire children's play.
Monday, September 16, 2024 - Calm
Playground rules
I read something recently about playground rules and it stuck me that we haven't talked about 'rules'. We have school values including being aware and safe. As children have rolled objects downhill and experimented with loose parts to find those which they can go on the slide with, being aware has certainly been highlighted. Being outside is a pleasure to be in a calm, playful space, observing children at play, navigating space and risk responsibly, rather than constantly saying 'no' or reminding them of a long list of what they can't do on the playground!
Tuesday, September 17, 2024 - Imaginative
Loose Parts
Having access to loose parts is often not enough. There needs to be a pedagogy of play, agency and curiosity so children know they do need to seek permission to use the loose parts, and they understand that they can become anything they want them to be. I have been intentional in asking, 'What could we do with these?' to promote a culture of possibility. Yesterday, a couple of children chose to play with shells. Their close observations of patterns and colours drew in a few more children. One child then started listening to the shells and exclaimed, "I just heard a mermaid. The mermaid is talking!" I started singing the word 'imagination' playfully and there was a flurry of laughter and adventure and fantasy stories under the sea.
Wednesday, September 18, 2024 - Joy
Cross Grade-Level Field Trips
Yesterday, the PE team organised a field trip to an Eco-park just outside of Paris for all students from 3 to 7 year olds (Early Learners, Kindergarten and Grade 1). Homeroom teachers and classroom assistants attended the trip that fostered positive relationships within and across grade levels. A trip that meant three hours away from school and an authentic opportunity to showcase and develop many self-management skills. This collaborative adventure saw all learners as capable and was rooted in trusting all children as being able to make personal choices and navigate space and comfort level as they negotiated heights, trampolines, obstacle courses and slides. Children were part of a shared community event that modelled such a playful, positive energy and also exposed children to different physical skills, too. All with such excitement and laughter!
Thursday, September 19, 2024 - Awe
Noticing
Yesterday, I introduced the sentence stem "I notice..." in response to photographs of flags from the children's home country/countries. There were many noticings about colours and shapes and personal connections to when, where and how they have seen some of the flags. We then went on a walk on the streets surrounding school to see what flags we could notice. We found several different flags on buildings, but also car registration plates which then led us to noticing other symbols (numbers and letters), too. The children were particularly interested in noticing if the next car had the same or different symbols. This level of observation and taking the time to look closely was impressive.
Friday, September 20, 2024 - Anxious
Action
As is the case for young children, some are more anxious than others, and while accepting it is to be expected, I certainly have moments of being anxious. Yesterday, I asked the children how we could help a child that is having difficulty right now in settling into school and feeling as though he belongs. The children said they could play with the child, and eat together. Later in the day, one child encouraged the new child to play with Magna-Tiles and cars. It was wonderful to acknowledge this as action and share this documentation with the children, noticing and naming their action.
Saturday, September 21, 2024 - Perceptive
Inquiry Stance
Inquiry can be described in different ways including a pedagogy and a stance. However, a routine or strategy that might be more typical of the pedagogy of inquiry can be reduced to a 'task' with an inquiry stance. Likewise, a 'task' that might at first appear to not be aligned pedagogically with inquiry can spark, invite and provoke inquiry through the stance we bring. This week, I have sat with each child individually to have them colour in a template of a flag of a country they have a connection with. Not very inquiry-based, right? Being with each child for 5-30 minutes (depending on their interest and focus) unearthed stories, personal connections, noticings, wonderings and theories linked to countries, culture and belonging. Having this time was wonderful for relationship building and gaining more insights into each child's communication skills and process to tackle what was anything but a simple 'task'.
Sunday, September 22, 2024 - Centred
Reporting
We are currently reviewing our reporting processes here in Paris. As an early years team, we thought about what was important and play was clearly a feature. Rather than play being lost in other narratives or as part of evidencing learning skills or developing understanding, we are going to be more intentional in using the term 'play' and report on play explicitly (continuously through Seesaw, conferences and written reports)
Monday, September 23, 2024 - Upbeat
Play
I was away this weekend in London. I had fun venturing to parts of the city I had never explored, meeting friends, trying new restaurants, going to new music venues, and seeing some favourite singers and DJs. As I was approaching Kings Cross to take the Eurostar back to Paris, I passed a park with this large sign boasting 'Play'. I always feel upbeat seeing how play is part of my life and part of society beyond schools.
Tuesday, September 24, 2024 - Reassuring
Creativity
Yesterday, I was lucky enough to be part of an online conversation with Sugata Mitra as part of Press Play. In connecting play and creativity, Sugata used several key words:
- freedom
- exploration (rather than a focus on the end result)
- the importance of questions (and not just answers)
- facing the unknown
- long periods of time
It was reassuring to have someone with so much experience and wisdom to name so many aspects of my own beliefs and practice.
Wednesday, September 25, 2024 - Astonished
Wonder
The language of "I wonder..." is so powerful, yet can be quite abstract for young children without intentional and explicit modelling. For me, this phrase needs to be used in authentic situations to honour the world of inquiry it belongs to. Conferencing with children about flags they connect to, I have shared so many wonderings. I wonder why orange was used. I wonder why this animal was chosen. I wonder what the story is here in this part of the flag... Of course, the children are now starting to use this language. Thinking about her flag as she coloured it, after noticing different people have different flags in the class, a child shared, "I wonder why my flag chose me!"
Thursday, September 26, 2024 - Alert
Time
There is a finite amount of time in each day, so our choices reflect what we consider to be most important. The familiar mantra of 'less is more' offers an opportunity to explore ideas more deeply and broadly. Linked to our unit of inquiry on belonging, we started to think about belonging to our school, ISP. It was wonderful to have time to actually think about what ISP means, look at the shape of the letters, the sounds they make and the words they represent. We then spent an hour searching in different buildings, upstairs, downstairs, in areas the children may never have been (behind the receptionist's desk, the principal's office, classrooms of their siblings) and outside on the street looking for evidence of ISP. It was amazing to see children's observation skills and how they were able to scan for ISP. Now that we can recognise our logo, we will think about if we feel we belong to ISP and what makes us think that.
Friday, September 27, 2024 - Disappointed
Overload
I was so disappointed in myself yesterday. The children had done some amazing thinking from a read aloud linked to our unit of inquiry on belonging and relationships. In my excitement to have them visualise the emotions they discussed, I tried to have the children draw three different emotions at the end of the day! Chaos! It was important for me to realise that in my disappointment, it wasn't the thinking of the task, it was the timing and structure (or lack of!) that I set up that led to confusion. Luckily, today, early in the morning, we discussed just one of the emotions, the children drew their connections to that one emotion and told beautiful stories in response!
Saturday, September 28, 2024 - Discerning
Noticing
I have been modelling the language of noticing explicitly and intentionally for over a week now. I am also offering the sentence starter "I notice..." for children to structure their responses with. Yesterday, I used this specifically in the context of children drawing self-portraits with mirrors and looking at the collection of family photographs we have been displaying of the children's families. To encourage noticing across multiple photos, I asked children to look for similarities and differences they noticed. Taking the time to conference with children individually about their noticings is so revealing.
Sunday, September 29, 2024 - Playful
Number Sense
We have been working on subitising using number talks with dots, objects and magnets. To help children use their fingers as a way to represent small quantities (without counting), I played with the idea of "Give me 5" and extended it to "Give me 3", "Give me 2" or "Give me 4". We also noticed different possibilities that this could be done. Some children are experimenting with two hands, and fingers pointing in different directions.
Monday, September 30, 2024 - Whimsical
Laughter
It's been wonderful to see and hear the children laugh at so many different moments whether this be through their play, games, read alouds, another adult or child being 'silly' or a funny conversation. At the end of last week, the children were roaring with laughter as they listened to Novak's "The Book With No Pictures". A ritual that developed quite spontaneously at the start of the year was me spotting a child using their imagination, and singing the word "imagination" in a silly voice. The first time it happened, the children erupted in screams of giggles, and have done so ever since. Some of the children are starting to recognise when they or their friends are using their imagination and are starting to initiate singing the word, too!
Tuesday, October 1, 2024 - Inclusive
Home languages
Yesterday, building on our thinking of belonging to an international school, I invited the children to say hello in their home language(s). I know the children speak different languages, but I wanted the children to feel welcome and safe to use different languages with each other in our classroom. What was revealed was that some children didn't know the language(s) they spoke at home which presented a great opportunity to reconnect with parents to find out.
Wednesday, October 2, 2024 - Comforted
Routines
We have a simple morning routine which involves children discussing a question of the day with their parents, moving their name into a 5-frame to show attendance, organising their snack and water bottle, hanging up their coats and bags, and then sharing books on the carpet area. The routine promotes independence, gives predictability and provides time and space to interact with parents and children spontaneously and responsively. The classroom assistant was absent one day this week, yet all the children followed the routine without needing additional adult support!
Thursday, October 3, 2024 - Connected
Success Criteria
Our Head of PE who works with us in Early Learners recently came back from a workshop on evidencing learning, keen to help children develop as assessment capable learners. To visualise the success criteria for what "being ready" looks like each time we go outside and explore Paris as a classroom, the children told us what was needed, and we took a photograph of a child that evidences this, serving as a visual checklist of success criteria.
Friday, October 4, 2024 - Surprised
Questions
Looking again at each other's family photographs, I invited the children to ask questions about things that might like to know more about. What surprised me was that many of the children didn't understand what a question was, even though naturally in their play, they ask questions born out of curiosity. Yesterday, I gave children examples of questions they had asked and that I had documented, and we rapped with 5 fingers for who, where, what, when, why to give children some sentence starters to frame their questions.
Saturday, October 5, 2024 - Awe
Challenge
This week as the children were exploring a nearby nature trail, they came across a much high slope to climb. Some children were confident and able to climb independently, yet many were faced with the challenge of how to navigate the space. What was beautiful to see was the encouragement, creativity and resourcefulness of the children at the top to help their friends be successful, alongside the persistence and trust the climbers placed in those already at the top. Challenges can often be avoided and as teachers, we can intentionally avoid opportunities for children to face difficulties, yet it's situations like these that allow children to use and develop their problem solving skills collaboratively.
Sunday, October 6, 2024 - Fascinated
Writing
We have been very intentional in displaying, referring to and having children engage with environmental print. This includes images, symbols, numbers and words. The most common have been the name of the school (ISP) and their names. Their names are written next to their photographs so they can recognise their own name and their friends' names. We have also been intentional in having writing materials accessible in different parts of the classroom including paper, stapled books, clipboards and different pens, markers and pencils. One child decided to write a list of the names of the children in the class. It was fascinating to sit and observe her process, conference with her to see what she noticed and gain an insight into her thinking, and also determine what she was ready to be nudged towards in her learning (in this case it was the idea of finger spaces so each name could be read clearly).
Monday, October 7, 2024 - Informed
Co-regulation
I have had the pleasure to collaborate with Kym Scott as part of PressPlay for the past few years, but it is only this weekend I took the time to view some of her webinars related to the early years. Kym has so many insights from her vast experience with young learners. Her site has many opportunities for further professional development, including the chance to view some of her most recent webinars for free. A particular idea I tuned into was the importance of co-regulation for many children before we expect them to self-regulate.
Tuesday, October 8, 2024 - Aligned
Thinking
Thank you to Anne van Dam for introducing me to the name Ann Pelo. After learning about her work, I saw a clip online with Ann talking about thinking, and the importance of educators having faith in young learners to be creators (not consumers) of knowledge and believing in their capacity to think. This resonated so strongly with me, along with Ann's stance of connecting to children as humans, not "students". Ann spoke about a thinking lens/protocol that she has used to frame observations, documentation and how to respond to these. Here is a link.
Wednesday, October 9, 2024 - Magical
Small world play
Yesterday, a child took pegs (as loose parts) and started to construct a rabbit. He then went on to create a small world version of his brother using the same material. After a while, he started to have the characters interact and spontaneously break into dialogue. Yet again, it was amazing to see the potential of loose parts in supporting different aspects of play.
Thursday, October 10, 2024 - Insecure
Fine motor control
I have spent the past few days reflecting on the insights of Kim Griffin, an OT (Occupational Therapist) who has an abundance of ideas and resources related to fine motor control (and beyond). Through her site, you can subscribe to free email updates, view some posts and access some free video examples, as well as pay for fairly priced and high quality video examples.
It made me feel quite insecure in the depth of understanding I had about the complexity and breadth of fine motor control, and specific terminology and strategies to support children. However, I have made copious notes and have plenty of ideas to move forward, and now know how to tell the difference between left-handed and right-handed scissors!
Friday, October 11, 2024 - Connected
Personal connections
The children were invited to create something for the objects they bring in from home that they think would help the objects feel they belong in the classroom - feeling happy, love and safe. Belonging is an abstract concept, and it was so wonderful to see how children connected their personal feelings and understanding and applied their learning to create drawings of toys in special places, building a parking area for a bus to be safely parked and developing a home for a pair of turtles to be happy and comfortable.
The idea for this invitation developed from observing the children's play and listening to a child planning her play earlier in the week.
Saturday, October 12, 2024 - Contemplative
Metacognition
This week, I shared documentation in the form of photos and videos on the SmartBoard with the class. The children were invited to tell the story of the photo or video. The visuals helped the children to narrate the story of that moment with such clarity and reveal thinking that wasn't evident in the visual. To nudge additional thinking, I added the sentence starters "I learned about ___" and "I learned how to ___". The level of ownership children demonstrated was phenomenal as well as their natural connection to expand on the process of learning with specific vocabulary.
Sunday, October 13, 2024 - Resourceful
Role play
The environment and materials available can greatly influence and inspire the role play that children initiate. We made a telephone book, each with a different person's name, photo and telephone number and placed it next to the telephone. The pages include the children themselves, the adults that work with them and a range of fictional characters such as Elsa and Spiderman. Rather than this simply "covering" maths, the maths enhanced the play for the children that chose to play with the telephone and book. There was careful observation and discrimination between digits in the book and matching them to the corresponding digits on the telephone, but also thoughtful and imaginative planning about what would be said to those they were calling.
Monday, October 14, 2024 - Energized
Learning spaces
It is wonderful to be collaborating with Anne van Dam on a one-day workshop on responsive learning spaces that will take place in Berlin in January. Anne pushes my own thinking and has a beautiful ability to capture the essence of ideas and inspire educators with her wealth of experience, knowledge and insights. Concepts that will be explored in the workshop are belonging, responsiveness, agency, curiosity, curation, play, materials and documentation. More information (including registration) can be found here.
Tuesday, October 15, 2024 - Shocked
Child-centred learning
Julie Fisher is an experienced, passionate and well-respected educator and consultant, often referenced for her insights into how we engage with children and if we are interfering or interacting. I have just discovered this podcast to celebrate the launch of her most recent book. I am always quite shocked by the challenges early years educators can face because of systems in schools, education authorities or governments that clash with pedagogies that are centred on play and the child.
Wednesday, October 16, 2024 - Aware
Number
Yesterday, children were invited to look at a map of the Paris Metro. They noticed different coloured lines, places and numbers. We then went to the closest Metro station to notice how numbers were used in the station. I use the station each day, but through careful observation, I noticed new details and parts. Thinking about the analogy of windows and mirrors, alongside children having 'mirrors' to reflect what is familiar, it is wonderful to have 'windows' to offer new views, just like noticing and theorising about how the Metro works and the role of the different numbers they saw in the station.
Thursday, October 17, 2024 - Joyful
Documentation
We have been exploring subitising for a few weeks now and recently started playing a game "4 or not 4?" As the children saw a group of dots and reasoned their thinking about if the group was 4 or not 4, creative narratives started to be told. We documented their thinking and created a book that the children sometimes look at themselves or I read aloud with such joy and pride. Using the documentation of children's actual words in the form of a book, showed the children we value their thinking, and might also inspire some interest in bookmaking.
Friday, October 18, 2024 - Indebted
Conferences
Yesterday was conference day in Early Learners. Each family had a 1-hour time slot (at the same time as some other families) for a hybrid of a student-led and 3-way conference. The image below shows some of the ways children used their hands in their play choices which prompted a beautiful range of stories, creative thinking and metacognition. I am indebted to the team I work with for facilitating this type of conference, and of course the children and their families for engaging so wholeheartedly.
Saturday, October 19, 2024 - Appreciative
Professional learning
Away in Budapest for the IB Global Conference, yesterday I led a session on play and playful learning. Participants explored different materials collaboratively in response to a range of open-ended invitations. Many people there I had met in person or online before, or initiated a connection with that might spark future learning opportunities. It was a very concrete moment for me to appreciate the value of professional networking and having opportunities to engage in dialogue with others as professional learning. Finding others, reaching out, sharing practices, inspirations and aspirations as inquirers and playful practitioners is so enriching and something I am very appreciative of.
Sunday, October 20, 2024 - Moved
Concepts
Entering a prism, white light separates into 7 component colours, in the same way concepts can be viewed and described in a spectrum of ways. In the PYP, specified (formerly known as key) concepts are divided into 7 categories. Yesterday, I received a thoughtful gift of 7 crystals in response to a post I created on LinkedIn a few months ago. The crystals are alluring - inviting exploration, sparking curiosity and awakening stories - just like concepts themselves. The more they are investigated, the more that is noticed about each crystal's distinct characteristics. As I played with these beautiful crystals, new possibilities appeared conveying the openness and complexity of concepts. I felt very moved that a post could resonate so much with another educator and such a unique gift has provoked me to continue to think about this enchanting world of concepts!
Monday, October 21, 2024 - Playful
Playfulness
While there are different interpretations of play, there seems to be more agreement about playfulness as a disposition, a way of being that embraces creative possibilities. Dominic Wilcox describes playfulness as thinking of things like a puzzle and believes everything has potential. I often use the analogy of play being at the core of a child's world, but playfulness is like a magnetic force that can be diffused throughout a child's world, even that learning and those routines that are more structured and that the teacher initiates. I particularly enjoy reading stories aloud in.a playful way incorporating movement, sounds, surprises, silliness, humour and spontaneity, responding to what I notice from the children, paying attention to my own thinking and connections, understanding that anything could happen!
Tuesday, October 22, 2024 - Patient
Maps
Maximising the multiple opportunities we spend outdoors, we are continuing to look at ways to represent space and place. This morning, the children looked at a street map of the local area on Google Maps and were asked what they noticed. "It's a map, " replied the first child. When asked, "What makes you think it's a map?" the child answered, "It shows where to go." Another child went on to say, "Maybe it shows where you were on holiday!" I replied saying "maybe" was one of my favourite words. It was great to put a spotlight on the tentative nature of "maybe" and other children started to use the same word sharing their theories. Many children also made personal connections to maps, sharing stories about how people they know use maps on their telephones and in different countries. This led to some other stories about Disneyland and other tangents that I guided back patiently to the map on display. A comment was made about parks, which I used as a way to highlight how colours can represent different types of places. This led to conversations about water, parks and forests, and where we were on the map. We then walked to a nearby nature trail. At some point, a child said, "Now we don't know where we are, so it's real exploring." This is such an interesting idea that we can unpack together.
Wednesday, October 23, 2024 - Jubilant
Culture
Using the iceberg model for culture, it is sometimes misunderstood that we should not use the F's (such as flags, food, fashion, folklore, festivals, famous people, fairy tales...). Culture is an abstract idea, so children need concrete experiences to make sense of the concept. It is sometimes thought that young children can't understand complex ideas, yet through the use of their senses and reflecting on the how and why of sensorial experiences, they are able to make sense of these concepts in their own way. This week we had a shared lunch when parents brought food from their home countries for the children to eat. Our documentation of children's thinking revealed strong connections to culture and belonging.
"We were sharing food."
"They are eating different things."
"The foods are coming from different countries."
"Me and X come from the same country" (standing up and making use of the flags to illustrate)
"We are all eating together."
"We eat different food, we speak different languages, we have different mums and dads."
The children also named some of the foods they ate that are typical from different countries.
Thursday, October 24, 2024 - Fascinated
Symbols (Numbers and letters)
It's been fascinating to start to look at the symbols used to represent the numbers 0 to 9 and how they can be combined. Symbols can be so abstract to young children and many look similar to one another. After spending several weeks looking at numbers in the environment, including a brief calendar routine each morning, we have now started to play: Number or not a number? Children use thumbs up or down to show if what is shown is or is not a number. Examples of things shown that are not numbers include shapes, punctuation and letters. This led to a conversation about 0 and O and a child observing, "Your T-shirt has numbers and letters!"
Friday, October 25, 2024 - Liberated
Nature
We continue to offer outdoor learning opportunities for the 3- and 4-year olds in a variety of places. This week we ventured to a new part of a local nature trail and the children had over an hour to explore. Children's play ranged from dramatic play based on imaginary and real-life animals and characters, physical play including climbing and lifting heavy materials, exploratory play using rocks and plants, and transformational play combining and changing natural materials into structures. The children were also challenged to find things in nature that were beautiful and explain why they thought they were beautiful. Their reasoning included smell, shape, colour and "the bigness".
Saturday, October 26, 2024 - Amused
Rhyme
One lunchtime this week, I was sitting with the children and spontaneously started to make up rhymes using the children's names and then singing these rhymes. Although I love music, humour and playing with sounds, it's something that I've never really done before and it was so much fun! There were so many shared laughs, smiles and joy! The children loved it and wanted more and more musical rhymes about themselves and their friends. Although I'm not the first person to play with this simple idea, it was a first for me!
Sunday, October 27, 2024 - Nostalgic
Special places
Here in Vienna, a friend and I went to an amusement park and ran in excitement to the dodgems (bumper cars!) It made me think about the joy of the annual fairground that visited the town in England where I lived as a child and the exhilaration of the height, speed and colour of the rides. A magical place for me (and terror for others!) that made me think of the importance of children feeling joy in places that are and that become special to them.
Monday, October 28, 2024 - Oblivious
Understanding
I recently viewed a webinar led by Guy Claxton, entitled, "What science of learning?" Guy dismissed the idea of THE science of learning, emphasising the plurality of the sciences of learning, listing domains I was oblivious about. Despite this, he supported so many beliefs and values that shape my pedagogy. These include the importance of feelings and relationships being at the core of learning. He also unpacked worthwhile learning as competence, character and comprehension. This was timely as I have just finished leading a workshop in Vienna on "Learning and teaching for conceptual understanding." During both the workshop and the webinar, other approaches such as curiosity, constructivism, inquiry, exploration and play were supported wholeheartedly, as well as their connection to teaching for understanding. Guy ended saying, "Didactic teaching is good for short term retention of relatively superficial knowledge to be demonstrated on traditional exams." We will continue to unpack and deepen our understanding of belonging, identity and relationships as these ideas are far more enduring!
Tuesday, October 29, 2024 - Envious
Light
I watched several sessions of Wunderled's recent Power of Play Materials Summit. As Suzanne Cotton put a spotlight on light as a loose part, I was quite envious of the materials and spaces I saw. It was quite timely as the light was particularly striking in Dubrovnik where I was visiting this weekend. I caught myself attracted to the light, playing with shadows and reflections through the walled city. Light is certainly not a material I have thought too much about and is something to explore back in Paris (the City of Lights!) I want to purchase some new light sources, but also maximise the natural light we have in the classroom and take more notice of the light and shadows with the children as we explore outdoor spaces.
Wednesday, October 30, 2024 - Galvanized
Play
Professor Pasi Sahlberg has researched play for many years. Here is an interesting talk he did last year in Australia to unpack play, explain its benefits and advocate for children to have more time to play. For Pasi, play has three characteristics - it is intrinsically motivated, it involves active engagement and it is a joyful experience. Those of you who might not have time to view the whole 40 minutes, you might want to skip to 22:22 to see a powerful poem (with a twist!)
Thursday, October 31, 2024 - Comforted
Assessment Capability
Trevor Mackenzie kindly shared British Columbia's latest reporting policy through his LinkedIn profile. There is wonderful guidance about authentic assessment opportunities focused on evidencing learning in meaningful ways. Page 10 has specific reference to assessment in play-based learning opportunities.
Friday, November 1, 2024 - Ignorant
Translanguaging
This week I have been in Montenegro and just arrived in Kosovo. Yesterday was a day venturing beyond tourist places where English was spoken. Navigating local buses, it was easy to notice different languages written and spoken which sparked curiosity about alphabets, names of languages and dialects, but it also made me feel quite ignorant for not being proactive to find out more about the languages in previous days. On the 7-hour bus ride from Budva to Pristina, a local from Kosovo kept an eye on me, explaining the many stops and starts, the border crossings and tips on his home country. Between us, French, Albanian, English and Italian (with the occasional support of Google Translate) and a lot of gestures and drawing on the backs of bus seats were used to exchange ideas. Working between these languages (with a patient determination to communicate) was a timely reminder about the importance of language development.
Saturday, November 2, 2024 - Steady
Relational Pedagogies
Thanks to Jo Fahey and an email conversation and connection with another educator, I have read a few articles on relational pedagogies. Although those articles are not available freely online, this site offers a broad overview of the approach. Relationships have been key to working in early years, and the ideas I read were very affirming but the term "relational pedagogy" was a new one for me.
Sunday, November 3, 2024 - Astute
Storying
I have been thinking a lot about the connections between visuals, storying and symbolic exploration and expression. Inspired by the thinking of 'Story Workshop', untold stories live in visuals such as illustrations, photographs and objects. These stories can vary from literal interpretations of the visuals to more abstract and symbolic. As as viewing, exploring and interpreting the ideas of others, we have the opportunity to be creators and express our own ideas and stories. I am curious about trying 'not so obvious' visuals with the 3 and 4 year olds I teach as inspirations for storying (not guessing what the marks and colours actually are!)
Monday, November 4, 2024 - Clear
Scaffolding
Reading about interactions earlier this week, I was reminded of some clear, practical advice when it comes to scaffolding children's learning using an approach called STAIRS. We can aspire for children to become independent learners, but when we challenge children and nudge their learning beyond the competencies they already demonstrate, scaffolding is often needed.
Tuesday, November 5, 2024 - Disgruntled
Interactions
I decided to document how I interacted with children as they played this morning. I was with a group of children as they used blocks to build a racing track. Alongside taking the time to observe and say nothing, I am trying to be more intentional in using declarative language instead of relying so heavily on questions. I was quite disgruntled as I realised the questions came so naturally to me and I only used one declarative sentence: "I notice this ramp keeps falling down". Without using a question, the comment was an invitation the children could respond to if they chose to. They did respond and it prompted collaborative solving as the comment was linked to their overall goal they had set for themselves. For the declarative language to be more routine, I plan to be more intentional in the language I use and actually have some sentence starters as a tool kit to draw from. For example, I notice, I am wondering, Maybe and That makes me think of. These inquiry phrases are part of the language of the classroom, but I want to make them more explicit in interactions as I observe children play.
Wednesday, November 6, 2024 - Floored
Concepts
Each morning, the children respond to a question with their parents and place their name (with photo) to show their response. This week, we have been explicit in exploring and naming the concept of data. I explained we would be collecting data about ourselves and that data was a special word that means information. As I introduced the task of collecting data about if the children left Paris or not for their holidays, a child made the connection to the data we had on display in the classroom showing the flags of our home countries. The power of framing learning with concepts is that they are open for many possible connections and they do not place a limit on children's learning. Using conceptual language and exploring big ideas allows for thinking beyond the activity itself. Beautiful thinking that can amaze us beyond any expected connections.
Thursday, November 7, 2024 - Aligned
Play
Tina Bruce offers 12 features of play in this link from the Froebel Trust. I particularly connect to the idea of "wallowing in ideas" and the notion that play can be initiated by a child or an adult.
Friday, November 8, 2024 - Alert
Maps
We looked at a large world map today to see what we noticed and wondered. Maps continue to be a way to trigger curiosity. I felt alert and observant in watching where children's eyes and fingers were drawn to, not just the language that was spoken. Many children wanted to know where France is and where their home countries are. They also pointed to Antarctica and Russia and asked, "What is this?" They were also struck by the clocks on the border of the map so time is something we can explore together.
Saturday, November 9, 2024 - Candid
Reporting
As a school, we are now reporting on units of inquiry in real time rather than waiting to the end of a semester. Like any new initiative, it is important to be candid as one reflects. Here is what I most value about how we managed the shift:
- Children as part of the process, looking at documentation and telling their story
- Children having choice about how to actively demonstrate their thinking about the concepts of the unit
- Observing small groups of children in action and interacting with one another
- Conferencing with children using questions that were collaboratively planned to elicit thinking
- Publishing a written comment that was a synthesis of the above points, drawing on evidence from different dates, places and contexts
- Informing the parents about this progress report in advance and encouraging them to respond to the post on Seesaw. Many parents have already responded with extended comments, making connections to how this learning is evidenced at home.
Sunday, November 10, 2024 - Delighted
Play
I was invited to lead a workshop on the potential of play yestterday in Lausanne. I was delighted to weave in a thread about the connection between 'doing' and 'thinking'. A conceptual learning space can mistakenly be thought of as 'ideas only'. Play spaces might mistakenly be thought of as 'doing only'. Learning spaces that maximise the synergy of doing and thinking are more likely to harness the full potential of play.
Monday, November 11, 2024 - Relieved
Time
I was relieved to find such a simple solution to a problem I had noticed at the end of each day. We got relaxed about the time children tidied up the playground, which led to a rushed version of an important routine, and then a frazzled read aloud squeezed in before dismissal. Setting an alarm 5 minutes earlier has meant a calm and efficient tidy up and enough time to escape into a text at the end of the day.
Tuesday, November 12, 2024 - Revived
Learning Walls
Yesterday in Geneva I was reminded about the power of learning walls. Different in purpose than a display on the wall, learning walls document the process of learning with and for the learners. It was a timely reminder for me as I have prioritised documentation in the form of Google Slides and using these with the children, but once the screen is off, the documentation disappears. I won't stop with the Google Slides - they will become a powerful source to draw from to build a learning wall. Jessica Vance offers a lot of practical tips on learning walls on her site, including this blog.
Wednesday, November 13, 2024 - Immersed
Phonological awareness
Yesterday, we continued reading "Shifting the Balance" as part of a school-wide book study. We focused on the second shift of phonemic awareness as part of phonological awareness, without rushing into phonics. I connected these ideas to the thinking we have been doing about rhyme, syllables and initial sounds with children's names. What's interesting is that a few of the children are starting to make connections between words they see (Eg. November on the calendar and book titles), words inside these words, or letters in these words and linking these to a letter (or letters) in their own names.
Thursday, November 14, 2024 - Curious
Intelligent materials
I have been enjoying reading about 'intelligent materials' and their role in facilitating thinking. This is the latest article I read. Researchers and advocates of young children playing with materials use different terminology such as 'intelligent materials', 'unscripted materials' and 'loose parts'. I am wondering if there is a shared understanding how these terms differ and connect.
Friday, November 15, 2024 - Optimistic
Image of the child
We took the children today to a play centre that is zoned for different types of dramatic play including settings, equipment and clothing for supermarket shopping, piloting a plane, and firefighting. The children's routine was totally changed - an earlier snack, a later lunch, a 40 minute bus ride each way to and from the centre, an unfamiliar place... Yet, the children adapted beautifully to the changes, relishing the new opportunities the morning offered. Our high (but fair!) expectations, our positive image of the 3 and 4 year olds we teach and the values we hold about play and experiential learning unite to nurture a culture of agency and a spirit of "can do". I feel fortunate to not be in a team that considers such young children to not be ready for such exciting adventures!
Saturday, November 16, 2024 - Collaborative
Feedback
Away in Frankfurt, I have been leading a workshop on "Evidencing Learning" with a specific focus on helping students to become more assessment capable. With the Early Years team, there was a specific interest in helping children to engage in peer feedback. Some ideas that were developed collaboratively were:
- Starting with the language and mindset of valuing things in others' play and creations, using phrases such as "I like___ because___" and "You did well with ___"
- Being intentional and explicit about the feelings that might come with having other suggest ideas for improvement, understanding these are offers of help to support others achieve even more (and not mandates for others to follow)
- The importance of educators to model the language of specific, timely, actionable and respectful feedback (avoiding statements such as "That's lovely!")
- Using a combination of paired work, small groups and whole class circle times as opportunities for children to share artefacts they have created (or are creating), or that have been posted on digital portfolios.
- The use of artefacts that the children themselves didn't create to depersonalise the feedback (if needed). Eg. Reading a story/viewing a painting and responding to "If you could tell the author/artist what you like, what would you say?"
- Protocols such as TAG (Tell something you like about someone else's creation, Ask a question, Give a suggestion)
Sunday, November 17, 2024 - Attuned
Feedback
After yesterday's post on peer feedback, my wise friend and colleague Rukiya offered an additional opportunity - asking children for feedback on ourselves as teachers and/or the learning spaces we curate. Such a great connection!
Monday, November 18, 2024 - Convinced
Thinking
Ron Ritchart stated, "Learning is a consequence of thinking." There are many offerings out there to name different types of thinking, but more granular nuances could be lost with holistic categories. Roger Sutcliffe developed a set of 26 thinking 'moves' from A to Z to unpack convincingly the breadth, depth and complexity of thinking. This list is an adapted version to make the language more accessible for learners in the early years.
Tuesday, November 19, 2024 - Dynamic
Documentation
Documentation has many potential purposes beyond reporting on learning. I just planned tomorrow and possible ideas for the rest of the week, and key to these decisions was looking at documentation of children's play, intentionally using documentation with the children and planning for opportunities to document the children's responses to their own documentation. Understanding that documentation can invite, provoke, broaden, deepen and challenge children's thinking results in an inspiring and dynamic planning process.
Wednesday, November 20, 2024 - Spontaneous
Inquiry
Recently, the children noticed clocks on the world map. We revisited these yesterday to explore how time is later and earlier around the world. Connecting the map to a rotating globe, the children made many connections to planets - ones with different colours, ones that are big and small, ones that are hotter and colder than others, and some the children knew the names of. This wasn't part of "the plan" but an example of spontaneity in response to the children's interests and prior knowledge. It will be interesting to see if this is something that the class (or groups or individuals) want to inquire into further, or if it stops at being an interesting conversation one Tuesday afternoon. Not knowing might seem unsettling, but it's a natural part of inquiring into children's inquiries. Also interesting to note was that the children didn't actually pose any questions. Neither did I ask, "What are you wondering?" The inquiry was evident in the excitement, energy and awe of how the children responded to each other's ideas.
Thursday, November 21, 2024 - Jubilant
Action
Yesterday, a child brought a nonfiction book and a painting he had made at home about space to school as a result of the conversations the day before. It was wonderful to see a child be motivated enough to take action and share his pride with the class.
Friday, November 22, 2024 - Serendipitous
What if?
One of my favourite questions is 'What if...' It's such a playful way to entertain possibilities. This week, I planned to be intentional in using this question with the children and invite them to construct their own 'What if...?' questions about the concept of movement that we have started to explore. The same morning, a child asked 'What if we write a 1 after 10?' It was perfect timing to highlight the beauty of this question as well as find out what does happen when we write a 1 after 10. This authentic opportunity was much more successful than what I had planned.
Saturday, November 23, 2024 - Renewed
Documentation
I was invited to attend a photography workshop with some of my former Kindergarten students who are now in Grade 1. (Thank you, Maria!) Early on, the photographer stated, "The beauty of photography is that it's a universal language." Photographs have been an invaluable form of documentation to share back with 3 and 4 year olds, and for them to tell their stories in response to the images. The workshop highlighted the intentionality of framing a photo - what's included and excluded - from a creative and aesthetic stance, but also determining what the focus of the story is. There were also tips about the level from which you take photographs. It wasn't just the children who were inspired to take great photographs.
Sunday, November 24, 2024 - Shrewd
Assessment
Away in Amsterdam, I was working with a group of teachers yesterday on how children can be involved in co-constructing success criteria, goal setting and reflecting on their own learning. There was a recognition that these practices take time, but they are also wonderful assessment opportunities in and of themselves that can reveal invaluable insights into children's thinking that can then inform next steps.
Monday, November 25, 2024 - Zealous
Number
Last week, there was a beautifully simple moment of learning that I hadn't planned. As I was making sure children (individually) were able to access Seesaw, take a photo and upload it to the platform, I had the children unlock the iPad with the 4-digit password written on the wall. A great opportunity for children to read single digits, look at their shape and then find the matching shape on the keypad.
Tuesday, November 26, 2024 - Irritated
Working theories
As it snowed in Paris recently, some children wondered where snow came from. It was the perfect moment to ask children what their theories were. There were such varied working theories including snow coming from Neptune, Antarctica, ice dragons and huge machines. It was such a missed opportunity though not having children draw their theories so they could represent their ideas and help others to visualise how they 'saw' their own words. I was irritated with myself as it is not the first time I have missed this chance! Next time! (Maybe!)
Wednesday, November 27, 2024 - Reflective
Intentionality
It is impossible to introduce and maintain the endless strategies that support effective pedagogy. Some strategies become so embedded they happen intuitively. Others become phases, and others might stay as ideas to introduce somehow. I have a short list at the top of a Google Doc where I plan as reminders for me to be intentional and routine in these strategies so they are embedded for me as a teacher and also for the children. One of the routines is 'What if?" that I wrote about last week. I used it again this week with children looking back at documentation of their explorations of light. We created 'What if..." questions in response to each photograph. As I was observing the children's play later, one child intentionally used and verbalised two "What if..." statements in his inquiries. Other strategies on my list include: the language of 'theories' and 'maybe', and the use of statements in my interactions with children as they play.
Thursday, November 28, 2024 - Astute
Children as experts
Recognising children's expertise and experiences to inspire and explain to other children can often be under-utilised! We walked around school today in groups looking for examples of patterns. When we arrived in Kindergarten, we discovered they were also learning about patterns and had made a book of patterns. Two volunteers then shared their book to the younger children later that day.
Friday, November 29, 2024 - Resolute
Technique
Picasso is quoted as saying, "Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist." Yesterday, we had a workshop using Kapla (wooden rectangular blocks used to build structures). There is often confusion about whether or not skills, strategies, processes and techniques can be modelled and explained in inquiry-based classrooms. They certainly can, and they certainly should! Becoming proficient in a skill nurtures playfulness, instils confidence and invites further possibilities. After a very specific technique to build stable structures, the children are now equipped with a skillset to use as they design their own structures, understanding the WHY behind the skill.
Saturday, November 30, 2024 - Reminiscent
Childhood
This week in Paris, a friend and I went to an event that celebrated the 80s 90s and 00s through music, movies and games. Sharing stories about our childhood and reliving some of those memories by listening to some of those iconic songs, seeing promotional posters, playing arcade games and roller skating brought so much joy - a backbone to how childhood should be!
Sunday, December 1, 2024 - Heartened
Questioning
Each day, the children have been adding a picture to their "special space" in an effort to think more about their identities and those of their friends. This week, the children shared their pictures with each other. I then asked, "What does this tell us?" I got the most beautiful answer - A story! It wasn't the answer I was expecting. It reminded me about open-ended questioning. There are times when we ask open-ended questions to spark creative and divergent thinking. Other times - like my question - are through a particular lens or linked to a specific line of inquiry, but the importance of listening beyond the realm of answers we hope for!
Monday, December 2, 2024 - Authentic
Interactions
There are different views about the role of the adult in children's play - what, when, how and why we do what we do and what we might do. A 'lens' to help me judge the type of interaction I might make is how authentic the choice is and the potential of it enhancing the play. Last week, a child took opened cardboard boxes to make a plane. One interaction I had, based on observing his plan, was asking about the type of plane he was making and showing him different photographs using an image search. This led to noticing the shapes and numbers of wings. Another interaction was me modelling the screwdriver as part of the Makedo tools to see if he was interested in using this tool instead of scotch tape.
Tuesday, December 3, 2024 - Absorbed
Involvement
As part of PressPlay, I viewed a webinar with the inspiring and refreshingly honest Anna Ephgrave. She shared many gems including the importance of engagement and involvement in play. Two scales were shared that show how involvement might be mapped - the Leuven Scale and The Engagement Model. The webinar is part of a paid subscription, but a different video is here that gives an insight into Anna's philosophy about the Early Years.
Wednesday, December 4, 2024 - Rejuvenated
Outdoor Learning
It's been wonderful to maximise the opportunities outdoors to explore sound and movement. This week, we went to a park with different obstacles to move through, a tunnel to walk through to explore sound, using nature to think about sound and movement as we read "We're Going on a Bear Hunt" and moving with ribbons on the playground. We also brought boomwhackers which were previously used inside to the playground outside. Mixing up learning spaces and what is typically done in them breathes a new life into invitations.
Thursday, December 5, 2024 - Lucky
Play
I felt lucky to hear Stuart Brown being interviewed this week for Power Up Play. Stuart is the founder of the National Institute for Play and has influenced the thinking of so many over the years. He shared many insights, but a particularly interesting one was how time doesn't seem to pass the same way in play - a characteristic that can be seen in both children's and adults' play.
Friday, December 6, 2024 - Supportive
Scaffolds
Something I have been much more conscious about - and as a result more careful in noticing its impact - is offering children words as sentence starters to respond to open-ended questions that demand a high level of thinking and use complex challenge for 3 and 4 year olds.
Today, I was interested in what the children might want to explore as we inquire into sound and movement. I asked the children, "What could we do next?" and then offered "We could..." as a way to structure their thinking. Using words from the question helped the children to stay focused on the topic and allow them to actually think about possible responses without having language structures be barriers. Of course, most children chose to demonstrate their ideas in actions as well as language which offered scaffolds for other children to understand their friends' ideas. I have done the same for "What do you notice?", "What are you wondering?" and "What if...?"
Saturday, December 7, 2024 - Torn
Play
Teacher Tom is such an advocate for children's play. This post explores the ongoing challenges to find an agreed definition of play. He concludes with a beautiful quote from a child: Play is what I do when people aren't telling me what to do. I feel quite torn about not having my own succinct definition of play. On the one hand, it's exciting that this four letter word is so complex, it is difficult to use words to capture its breadth, depth and nuance, and not having it "figured out" sparks further inquiry. On the other hand, I feel quite vulnerable not having a succinct and "proven" definition.
Sunday, December 8, 2024 - Informed
Phonemic awareness
Yesterday, I was curating a slideshow about phonemic awareness for a short section in an upcoming staff meeting at my school. The process of reading a chapter again, cross-referencing different sources and using AI and search engines to create and find more information was so powerful to really capture the heart of this important aspect of language learning. Processing ideas so thoroughly and then planning how to explain ideas to others results in a whole new level of insight and a feeling of being well informed. Playful phonemic awareness is soon to be a more intentional feature for 3 and 4 year olds - articulating, blending, segmenting, identifying, discriminating and substituting phonemes.
Monday, December 9, 2024 - Invigorated
Learning
I am currently watching an interview with Kevin Bartlett who speaks and leads with such eloquence, wisdom and inspiration about the systematic shifts needed in education. In the first 30 seconds, he defines learning as "the extension and consolidation of conceptual understanding, competency and character". This applies to all ages including the Early Years. How wonderful to be aspirational and help our youngest learners explore ideas, develop skills and strategies and become good people!
Tuesday, December 10, 2024 - Defensive
Transfer
Julie Stern is a lead consultant for conceptual learning, highlighting the importance of children understanding big ideas and transferring them to new situations. This site offers resources linked to her book 'Learning that Transfers'. I am often reminded that not all educators believe 3 and 4 year olds have the capacity to apply their learning, but through play and conceptual units of inquiry, I see evidence each and every day of children making connections and transferring their learning from one context to another. It is wonderful to have actual evidence when feeling defensive, so it's not just opinions and feelings to support ideas.
Wednesday, December 11, 2024 - Joyous
Play
We spend a lot of time outdoors. Today, we were two hours outside in the morning which was a combination of exploring materials (hoops, balls, red noses...) before a trip to a circus later this week, and then walking to a nearby woods to explore. After lunch, the children were outside for another 45 minute session and a final 30 minute period before story time at the end of the day. In the woods, I was invited to play Hide and Seek and on the playground I was invited to be the monster to race after the children to catch them. It really is a feeling of joy to play alongside the children, following their lead, listening to their rules and their organisation, but most of all, to actually be invited to play!
Thursday, December 12, 2024 - Undecided
Lines of inquiry
In a PYP school, lines of inquiry are generally written by teachers to provide pathways and direction to uncover a complex enduring understanding over a period of time. The lines of inquiry align with identified concepts (broad specified concepts such as function and perspective, and additional concepts that give more depth). The system that I have inherited with the 3 and 4 year olds at my school is that the lines of inquiry come from the children honouring the children as agentic learners and natural inquirers. For the two units of inquiry so far this year, we haven't written the lines of inquiry until quite near the end of the units of inquiry which means little time for them to inform forwards planning. This practice also runs the risk of launching a unit and planning engagements that do not correlate to the concepts, skills and knowledge in scope and sequence documents. On the other hand, intentional and timely planning of invitations and provocations could mean alignment with non-negotiable aspects of curriculum and plan FOR inquiry and play, documenting the choices, interests, theories and wonderings of the children. This is clearly the rationale for the practice of not writing lines of inquiry in advance. I am left wondering though if, with so many other elements of curriculum decided in advance, it would be better to craft very open, investigative and conceptual lines of inquiry from the very start of a unit that position children as active researchers, explorers, inquirers, investigators and players.
Friday, December 13, 2024 - Astounded
Writing
With the holidays coming up and the tradition of cards being exchanged for a variety of celebrations, we looked at cards as a genre of writing, looking at the organisation of a front cover and words inside, alongside the use of envelopes. The children were invited to design their own paper cards or use an monotype printing technique on card, then use key words available on actual cards and on the wall to write a message to someone of their choice. Every child chose to do a card with the support of an adult to have conversations about letters, sounds, shapes, directions and words, all with an authentic purpose and audience. In the few minutes each child spent writing, there was great value to highlight pencil grip, letter formation, spacing, directionality and phonics, but even more exciting was the feeling of accomplishment and excitement the children had as writers that could never be achieved by colouring in pre-made cards and colouring sheets.
Saturday, December 14, 2024 - Clear
Rhyme
This week, I led part of a staff meeting on phonemic awareness as part of us reading "Shifting the Balance". One idea was 'onset-rime' which led to questions clarifying what it actually is and how 'rime' and 'rhyme' differ, and then lingering questions which were asked in smaller groups about why we might actually teach this. A beautiful reminder that in a culture of inquiry, the spark for curiosity might ignite from the least expected source. In the discussions, it helped me make sense with more clarity why some of the children I teach are playfully generating their own rhyming words as they play outside and walk through the hallways to go to the playground, and why others haven't cracked what rhyme is yet. I was playing around with a symbolic way to use colours to show the children two parts of rhyming words but hadn't made the connection I was actually coding onset and rime. In the process, I also thought it would be a stronger and more appealing representation if I used different colours of Magna Tiles. Let's see what happens! Exciting!
Sunday, December 15, 2024 - Empathetic
Separation anxiety
3 and 4 year olds may have separation anxiety as their parents leave them at school. We have a wonderful system of Stay and Play that encourages parents to stay in the learning spaces with their children initially. For some children, the separation anxiety can be expressed in tears and screams and can be upsetting for parents, educators, other children in the class and, of course, the child themselves. It has been wonderful to see some different strategies used in our team (affirmation, reassurance, calm voices, movement and patience). As I think about has worked for children (understanding each case be quite different) and what works for me, I think honesty is paramount. I tell the children the truth and don't pretend, don't make false promises and don't resort to reward to extrinsic motivators such as stickers and treats. I also try to tap into their interests (ones I may have observed or have learned from the parents). For one child this year, it was a set of small circular magnets; for another, it was their stuffed toy animals brought in from home. Relationships are of course paramount and these small exchanges and humour go so far in building trust. But for each new child that starts, it is a new inquiry for us as staff to explore what works and what does not work, always trying to show empathy for the child and the child's family. This post from a psychologist has some helpful ideas, too.
Monday, December 16, 2024 - Privileged
Relationships
Away in London this weekend, I was privileged enough to see two sets of friends I have known for over 20 years. It made me think of beyond establishing relationships, how we might maintain relationships - in and out of school. While nature works its magic to a certain degree, I think intentionality plays its part, too. Intentional listening, curiosity, questioning, empathy, storytelling, humour and time. I am going to be mindful of how intentional I am in using these with each child in my class.
Tuesday, December 17, 2024 - Challenged
Rhythm of Routines
The inspiring Fiona Zinn wrote this blog post earlier this year and it's one that you could keep revisiting and find new sources of inspiration and different lenses to reflect. It's a post that will never be "done" and "checked off" as so many aspects of pedagogy, beliefs and value are at play.
Wednesday, December 18, 2024 - Pleased
Literacy
We are having discussions about ways to integrate literacy in natural ways in our learning spaces to enhance children's play rather than stopping play to teach literacy. This week, we added many texts based on the children's interests and conversations that we have noticed. For example, there are non fiction books about racing cars next to the cars, books about bridges, tunnels and trains placed next to the train sets, books about dinosaurs next to the small world play, and 'how to' instructional books for how to draw dinosaurs, cars and people, all placed alongside mark making tools. Of course, the children are genuinely interested in viewing these texts.
Thursday, December 19, 2024 - Admiration
Challenge
It is wonderful to see at the end of this first term, we have a culture of thinking where children take their time to ponder on challenging questions and unpack complex ideas. Linked to "How we express ourselves", the children were looking at images of people making different sounds and movements. I asked. "Where do the ideas came from?" These capable 3 and 4 year olds took their time to think, weren't worried about a "right" or 'wrong" answer and felt safe to say what was on their minds. Theories included the place they were in, what they heard, their heads and what they had learned from others. The idea of "ideas" and the concept of inspiration are rich and transferable so will continue to think about these.
Friday, December 20, 2024 - Delighted
Learning spaces
Alongside the materials in learning spaces, we are being intentional in what other materials are placed nearby and how to use print, images and other media to inspire children's play. For example, a group of children often choose to use Magna Tiles to build. We took the time to notice the types of structures they were interested in and the shapes and techniques they were confident with. We then found some images of 2D and 3D patterns, designs and structures that would 'nudge' children's thinking and put these on display in the classroom. Yesterday, a group created a structure alternating rectangles and triangles in a way they had not explored before.
Saturday, December 21, 2024 - Committed
Authentic communication
Dr Jo Fahey recently led a free masterclass on authentic ways children communicate. This included practical examples and inspiring quotes linked to mark making and storytelling. I watched with the Early Learners team and we made a list of ideas to be more committed about including mark making outside (paints and chalks outside). A beautiful quote from Malaguzzi resonated with me: "Children have the right to imagine."
Sean! How I have loved reading through your journey of emotion and learning so far this year. I was particularly mesmerized by the video of the violinist and the young child. There is so much about the art of teaching in this one simple moment. Thank you for sharing your daily thoughts with us all!
ReplyDeleteHi Kath! Yes, that video is wonderful! I am enjoying the daily journalling, but need to think of a way to group/tag similar posts, if only for me to connect ideas! :)
DeleteHi Sean, I'm reading this from Toulouse and so many of your ideas, experiences, theories, connections etc. resonate strongly with me. I'll also be teaching this age group this year, well 3-5 yr olds, alongside my friend and colleague, Simon Gregg. We're not so far away from Paris here in Toulouse so hopefully one day we'll get to meet in person. Thank you Sean for sharing your thoughts and all the links to interesting resources (I have so many tabs open now!) Best, Estelle
ReplyDeleteHi Estelle! I just noticed this comment now. How exciting you and Simon are together with this age group. We have to cross paths in person soon!
DeleteAs always, Sean, your beautiful insights are so inspiring to me! And you are so intentional in finding the playful beauty in the everyday life of the classroom community. I’ve had a wonderful time reading about your own experiences and inquiries. What fortunate children your students are!
ReplyDelete