Designing Early Childhood Australia

2012-03-13T05:34:00.002-07:00

Dinosaurs - our never ending interest!!

We have to have them in two places outside at the moment because we know:

they are popular
small gatherings work better
it's not always easy to wait for a turn.

Isn't our pond lovely - the children stand up in the garden bed to access their 'Land Before Time'.

Open ended questioning skills

2012-03-11T01:49:00.000-08:00

Questions are the creative acts of intelligence. Unknown

Open ended questioning can be difficult to master for teachers because it means letting go of the controls. For emergent curriculum to really work open ended questioning skills are essential.

Teachers who are good at this do a few things very well

they listen carefully to what the children say
they respond appropriately
they do not try to provide answers
they value children's opinions
they respect children and trust that they are capable of in depth discussions
they set ground rules for group discussions
they keep the discussion on track
they end the discussion on a positive note
they revisit topics
they reflect on their own questioning techniques

Good discussions can start with a question posed by the teacher or a child. Teachers who bring attention to good questions posed by children ensure that this becomes part of the classroom culture:

What an interesting question!
I love good questions, lets discuss that at our group time!

Teachers need to model the creation of a good question:
If a child brings in an Autumn leaf you could say: I wonder why they change colour?
When the children are playing Fireman games ask: Why do you like this game so much or, What is a hero?

Some of the big questions are:

What is love?
What is a friend?
What does it mean to be kind?
Is everybody different?
Are plants alive?

Further reading:

Oscar Brenifier

"Good and profound questions cannot be answered, and should not be answered. They can only be problematized, which for us means that we can initially analyze their content and appreciate them for what they bring, and in a second step start producing ideas as hints that can shed a light on different paths it can embark us upon. Questioning is a mind experiment, a tool allowing to explore the limits of knowledge and understanding. For this reason, it remains crucial that the adult, parent or teacher, admits to the child that a question cannot be answered, either because he does not know, or because he postulates and explains there is no definite answer to it."

http://www.brenifier.com/en/practical/philosophie-avec-les-enfants.html

Philosophy for Young Children - Just a beginning

2012-03-11T00:46:00.000-08:00

I was lucky enough to catch a wonderful documentary at last years French film festival called Ce n'est qu'un debut: Just a Beginning. JB Hi Fi (Australia) now have it on sale - a bargain for your centre's PD library at $12.98 with free shipping!!

Here is the JB HiFi blurb.

Just A Beginning follows a pre-school school class over two years-but this is a very unusual class as the children discover philosophy! Seated in a circle around a ritually lit candle, the children-aged three to five-approach the universal subjects of love, power, difference, growing up, even death. And their points of view are fresh, funny and sometimes merciless. Little by little the philosophy workshop becomes a privileged moment where the children reflect on each others' words, learn how to listen and to build a case. From now on they will be able to think for themselves! With their unusual expressions, their emotions and their contradictions, the children are the beneficiaries of an innovative experiment. Just A Beginning is the fabulous true story of a school with an eye on the future.

Purchase a copy here:
http://www.jbhifionline.com.au/dvd/dvd-genres/special-interest-documentary/just-a-beginning/650263

Mother Nature

2012-02-28T03:36:00.000-08:00

Fresh flowers are surely one of the most lovely ofprovocations - quite irresistible to many children and sunflowers seem to topthe list when it comes to children being able to portray them in a beautiful,unique and creative way. The children showed such pride in the representations.I like to get the children to work on their representational artwork over a fewsittings so they are fresh with their ideas and concentration and learn thevalue of taking their time, persisting and using paper carefully - we can addcolour next!!

Bring back the science table!!!
Shells, bones, nests, seeds, pods, insects, star fish, fossils, books, magnifying glasses, plants, things to smell, touch, feel - 100 opportunities to talk, discuss, learn new vocabulary, discover, ask questions, discover and wonder! We encourage the children to bring in their discoveries and share them with us all.

One of our lovely staff encourage the children to bring things from 'Mother Nature' to share and now the children all refer to beautiful natural things as precious things from 'Mother Nature' this has to be true evidence of the VEYLF Community outcomes :
• demonstrate an increasing knowledge of and respectfor natural and constructed environments
• showgrowing appreciation and care for natural and constructed environments

I really feel that the way we present these things is very important - the children can read what is important to us by how we model respect and reverence for it. We know our children read that these natural items are highly valued from the attention given to them and the care taken to present them well.

You tube videos for 3-5 year olds

2012-02-14T03:40:00.000-08:00

I have been trawling for short videos, songs and information to extend children's interests.

Have a look at what I found at: http://pinterest.com/designingeca/youtube-for-children/

Very Pinteresting!

2012-01-17T01:20:00.000-08:00

My new source of inspiration this holidays has beenPinterest, an online pinboard where you put links to everything you love on theweb. The images with links attached area one stop shop to store all your favourite ideas and images allowing you tofind where they came from at the touch of a link!

As a very visual person I am finding this so much easierthan my favourites menu – the visual helps me remember why I attached a link.

Have a look at my pinterest pinboards!

http://pinterest.com/designingeca/early-childhood-activities/

http://pinterest.com/designingeca/early-childhood-environments/

Partner Paintings

2011-12-21T04:34:00.000-08:00

Two of our boys placed 2 T-Rex's on the OHP and traced around their images, they then painted the scene.

I love introducing 'Partner Paintings' early in the 4 year old Kinder year. I tell the children that we have a very special activity where they have to learn all about collaborating and negotiating which can be hard to do but lots of fun. They need to find a partner and decide together what they will paint. The idea is to find something that they both agree on and decide who will do what. The children quickly realize that they can achieve greater things working together. The decision and discussion as to who will take the painting home provides another negotiation opportunity. The children can be very creative and also very kind in this very real problem solving situation. I encourage the children to return to the paintings over a couple of days to extend the activity.

Dollhouse Nativity

2011-12-18T04:48:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from our dollhouse stable - we put the Australian animals away at the end of the day but, they kept coming back to the stable! The children have loved playing here. They added owls to the roof and the camels have been blue tacked onto the rear of the stable.

The gift of Wonder...

2011-12-15T03:42:00.000-08:00

“If a child isto keep alive his inborn sense of wonder without any such gift from thefairies, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it,rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in”

I love this quote by Rachel Carson the founding mother ofthe environmental movement. Wonder isthe magical thing that sparks questions, motivates us to find out more, seekfurther knowledge and try to increasinglyunderstand our world. I know a fewwonderful older people who have managed to hold on to this sense of wonder andwith it they have found the fountain of youth. There is no generation gap between people who continue to learn andgrow.

“In times of change,it is the learners who will inherit the earth, while the learned will findthemselves beautifully equipped for a world that no longer exists.” Al Rogers

As a teacher I strive to be that adult companion Carsonmentions in her quote and I am blessed with reminders of the beauty and simplejoys of life and nature mirrored through a child’s experience. Through my travels to Cambodia this year Ihave also been reminded to be grateful for my blessed existence here inAustralia.

2011-12-03T04:15:00.000-08:00

I thought I would re-post these Chrissy ideas - I love ideas!!

We made these beautiful angels from sticks that my class had been collecting while out and about. We used wire, calico and some string to nip the waist in.
Carol singers made from bottles, corks, wire, calico and recycled card to make the carol book.

A bottle choir

Clay ornaments - we rolled out the clay with a rolling pin and cut it out using christmas cookie cutters. The children used a pointy wooden kebab stick to poke a hole through the top of the ornament. We used wool to make the ties after we had fired the clay.

Pretty birdies

More EYLF templates

2011-11-14T00:29:00.001-08:00

From some of the feedback it looks like people love EYLF planning templates so here is the link to some from the Queensland Government education website http://www.qsa.qld.edu.au/12974.html Some of these planning templates look good –I will adjust them to suit my needs though.

This website has a good set of training modules also!!

Performance for 3-5 year olds?

2011-11-11T15:52:00.001-08:00

We are at that time of year againwhere many teachers are busy rehearsing for their end of year Christmas performance. Throughout my carer I have worked in manydifferent schools who approach performance for 3-5’s in very differentways. Some very formal with childrenlearning lines and acting out plays and Nativity stories on a stage, toperformances that are very ‘child driven’ where the children make up a storybased on a project or special interest from the year and act/dance/sing or makemusic in the way that they want to with the teacher helping the children tomake the story ‘flow’. Some centres askthe parents along and they simply sing some Christmas songs. There are a lot of strong feelings aboutperformance from different staff members, some wanting formal performances and feeling that parents expect thisand that children enjoy it. Othersfeeling that it is a very stressful time where staff and children feel stressed. Throughout the years I have alwaysencountered some children who simply do not want to participate. I would love people to comment about their feelingsabout this on my facebook page to get a broader range of perspectives. When I think of the new curriculum I do feelthat performance needs to emerge from the children’s interest and that as weare the link between home and more formal learning that performance should notbe stressful.

Halloween designers

2011-10-28T15:20:00.000-07:00

Some of the children have been very interested in Halloween and scary things this year. They are enjoying playing mummy games and will be going trick or treating with their families over the weekend so we decided to create a scary space. We have a group of girls who have been designing and making clothes from all types of materials throughout the year so we decided to present the dress model and some silver foil to see if we could come up with a wicked dress!

The children decided the dress should be spikey so we rolled the foil into long cylinder shapes and moulded the ends into a point. The foil was such a wonderful material to work with. Easy to manipulate and to pin into place. Two of the boys thought the dress needed a necklace so they helped with the finishing flourish.

Emergent curriculum template idea

2011-10-22T00:38:00.000-07:00

With the EYLF in mind this year has been a year of learning reflecting and experimentation in terms of how to document the planning process.

I have just begun to use this format for observations or 'learning stories' which allows us to record observation, review the learning that has taken place and project 'What next" including activities and strategies to extend on the learning that has occured (you could cut and paste this into the weekly/fortnightly group planning document).

I created a word template to make the task more time efficient. I inserted photos so all you have to do is right click and add a picture removing the resizing task that can be so time consuming.The bottom section is a small table to reference the frameworks practices, principles and outcomes. I included a framework summary on the second page of the document to simply scroll down and cut and paste into the table.

It's working well for me at the moment and certainly saving time!!

IT for young children at home

2011-10-15T19:47:00.000-07:00

It is very importantthat young children are supervised while using the internet at all times andthat families have some type of child safely system in place.

As I believe that learning in earlychildhood emerges from children 's interests I encourage children to use IT to seek out information to answer their own questions and wonderings. I want children to view IT asprimarily a source to gather information and learn from. Through not always answering questions forchildren but helping them to develop the skills to find out for themselves we are beiginning to impart the value of self directed and motivated learning. Applications such as Google and YouTube are great sources to help find information, cameras and digital telescopes help children develop the idea that IT canhelp us to learn more, see things from different perspectives and reflect backupon what we have experienced. Try tohelp children to see that they need to discuss and reflect uponinformation to decide what seems like good information and what does not.

Sites such as BBC Cbebbies http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/ are great foronline animated stories, rhymes and games. Children can quickly learn tonavigate these stories. Games that allowchildren to be active in their own thinking and creative are of most value atthis age. Paint programs and Kids PIXDeluxe (available at Office works) allow children to think creatively, createartwork and animation. I don't condone games that involve shooting.

Children’s behaviour models the behaviours of adults around them. If children see adults using computers often they will very likely wantto use computers often themselves. Adultsneed to look at the behaviours they are modelling to theirchildren. It is important that childrenhave a balance to what they do. Parentsneed to limit the amount of time children use computers so that they areexperiencing a well rounded and ‘holistic’ life education. Young children should not exceed 2 hours total 'viewing time' - this is total TV, DVD and computer time per day.

There are concerns that many children are notexperiencing enough physically activity and that time spent with ‘hands on’play where children use their hands to manipulate and create isdecreasing. Children’s brains aredifferent to adults in that this ‘hands on’ experience helps to develop andreinforce connections in the brain and to develop symbolic thought. Many companies are now seeking to recruitpeople who not only did well in their studies but also had lots of hands onplay experiences in childhood as there is proof that these people are more likely to be good problem solvers and ‘bigpicture’ thinkers.

Reflecting - how to coach our way through the process.

2011-09-26T02:52:00.000-07:00

To be able to reflect takes a lot of courage – you have to be prepared to face yourself front on, with honesty and be prepared to take on new perspectives about yourself. Sometimes we learn things about ourselves that we might not like so much – the trick to looking at ourselves, our beliefs and our actions critically without feeling too confronted is to remember to do so with pride – we are courageous for being prepared to do this – more courageous than many, we are being honest with ourselves and trying to form a plan to change, grow, learn and improve. We are doing it for honourable reasons also – to become better educators and provide better education for young children.

When I read the attached article from the Oscar Brenifier Institute for Philosophical Practice, ‘How to avoid children’s questions’ I saw some aspects of myself in the article, it was enlightening and once an awareness is brought to a behaviour (in this case behaviours that stop me from hearing children’s questions) it is so much easier to identify when we are doing it and begin to alter the behaviour . Always remember: You don’t know what you don’t know.

http://www.brenifier.com/english/index.html#

Emergent curriculum - on excursion...

2011-09-26T01:33:00.000-07:00

After visiting the Ian Potter Gallery Australian Collection we asked the children to draw about what they liked the most. The above images are Paddy Jappaljarri Stewart's, Kangaroo Dreaming and a child's illustration and response to the work. We can see that the child holds a strong memory of the work and that he seemed to connect with the piece.

Child's comment: “This is the aboriginal art. There are kangaroo footprints and a kangaroo tail.”

In reflecting upon this activity I see I could have asked: Why did Paddy paint Kangaroo tracks in his work? Future plans will be to return to the documentation about this, ask this question to see where it leads in a small group and select other Aboriginal artworks to look at. I will also plan to read more Aboriginal stories and see where this leads.

The two ladies who presented our Kindergarten tours provided just the right mix of fun, action and learning. We only looked at 8 pieces and the children recalled the artworks and events of the day very well. It is so great when we have excursions where people understand the needs of young children.

Navigating the NQA

2011-09-07T19:29:00.000-07:00

Learning about the NQA seems confusing in many ways and my colleagues and I have come across some confusion in terms of information – I think having information coming from a state and national level is confusing.

The next Melbourne City NQA workshop is 14 November – scroll down on the link.

http://www.education.vic.gov.au/ecsmanagement/licensedchildservices/training/nqfworkshops.htm

Lady Gowrie have a customised training session where they come out and present a 2 hr NQA session at your service ($500 for up to 15 people). It deals with:

· Understanding the NQF

· Outlining the standards

· Strategies to implement

· The documentation process

· Communicating the NQA to parents

· Developing a quality improvement plan

http://www.gowrievictoria.org.au/Training/CustomisedTraining/tabid/89/language/en-AU/Default.aspx (03) 9349 2890

Gowrie also said that they can provide a consulting service. Speak with Maree Landsdowne – she was a wealth of knowledge.

Most of the Victorian information needed is available here: http://www.education.vic.gov.au/earlylearning/nqa.htm

Scroll down for a series of fact sheets.

To register your interest for receiving up to date information via email on the NQF, subscribe by emailing DEEWR at ececquality@deewr.gov.au

And from the National perspective:

http://www.deewr.gov.au/Earlychildhood/Policy_Agenda/Pages/DraftNQFRegDocs.aspx

The quality standards are:

1. Educational program and practice

2. Children’s health and safety

3. Physical environment

4. Staffing arrangements (including the number of staff looking after children)

5. Relationships with children

6. Collaborative partnerships with families and communities

7. Leadership and service management

For myself right now I am reading through the NQS and highlighting all policies that are required and ensuring that I have those policies up to date and understood by all staff. KPV sell a Sample policies disk that can be adapted. A copy of the NQS draft can be printed from here:

http://www.deewr.gov.au/Earlychildhood/Policy_Agenda/Documents/GuideNationalQualityStandard.pdf

I am also looking for any issues that stand out! I am setting up a folder with a section for each standard and putting in: staff meeting minutes, training certificates, newsletters and any information or documentation that relates to the principles.

Much of my self improvement plan for this year focused on the training we have done towards implementing the EYLF such as our Emergent Curriculum training through Gowrie which relates to practice principle number 1 of the NQF.

Tooth Fairy

2011-09-07T00:49:00.000-07:00

It was so great when one of our boys decided to make a fairy. It is a tooth fairy. He made a basket to carry all the teeth in the next day. Lots of other boys became interested after we brought attention to the great job he had done.

Rough and Tumble play – are you for or against?

2011-09-06T03:10:00.000-07:00

A fellow educator and friend of mine described two scenes, the first where she observed an argument between two children pretending to be evil witches – they were speaking in wicked voices and trying to pull a broom from each other. While my friend knew that these two children were immersed in role play and experimenting with being ‘really mean’ in a fantasy situation a colleague of hers who had not observed the play from the beginning entered the playground and insisted that the play stop immediately.

Stuart Brown MD says – “We adults are too quick to step in to stop such play. We see the potential for small hurts, hear the squeels and grunts that sound to us like loss of control and we force the wrestlers to stop. …by doing this we stop kids from learning on their own, and from each other.” (P190) Of course when it is clear there is risk of injury we need to act on our responsibilities of supervision.

In the second scene, two children were pulling at a short stick both trying to gain ownership of it. She knew the two children would probably be able to work it out and decided to watch from a distance so as not to alter the children’s pattern of behaviour. The children pulled one way then the other, then proceeded to call each other names. One child said that she would get the teacher and the other child said she didn’t care. One child poked her tongue out and then the other child joined in. The first child blew a raspberry sound and then the other child chimed in too. The two children then burst into fits of laughter, forgot the stick and continued trying to make each other laugh.

“The importance of R&T play in animals and humans, has been shown to be necessary for the development and maintenance of social awareness, cooperation, fairness and altruism. Its nature and importance are generally unappreciated, particularly by early (preschool) teachers, who often see normal rough and tumble play behavior such as hitting, diving, wrestling, (all done with a smile, between friends who stay friends), not as a state of play, but one of anarchy that must be controlled. A natural extension of the form - as it naturally diminishes with age - is lifelong involvement in games, sports and group activities that not only tolerate, but enjoy creative tension. Lack of experience with this pattern of play hampers the normal give and take necessary for social mastery, and has been linked to poor control of violent impulses in later life.”

http://nifplay.org/social_play_subsets.html#belonging

Research about Fathers shows that the way they razz children up (which can drive many mother’s and Pre-school teachers to distraction) helps children learn to manage stress levels. This type of exciting and rough play is actually beneficial to the central nervous system. I see it as a rehearsal for later life. I remember well the excited type of fear I felt when my Dad would chase my sisters and I and you knew that if you were caught there would likely be ‘tickle torture’ where you would laugh so hard you could hardly breathe. The high levels of excitement and the healthy amount of fear simulated levels of stress that may be experienced in later life and give a ‘trial run’ to learn about how to handle yourself in stressful situations.

How can you learn how to master something like self control and assertiveness in confronting situations if you are never allowed to experince them?

Storytelling

2011-08-25T02:47:00.000-07:00

I make up a lot of stories in our classroom. I want to model storytelling so that the children will learn to make up their own stories, plays, puppet shows and performances. The story in the photograph was about a dark, dark castle where a ghost came looking for a the witch who lived there to scare her but, her pet bat saw the ghost coming, warned the witch and the witch ended up scaring the ghost. It just popped into my head because the children have been into scary stuff lately.

When we provide the children with a provocation like this made up story they often take the props and copy the story or make up one of their own. Reenacting and creating stories shows us that children are developing an understanding of how stories work, (their structure) that they have a beginning, middle and end, that there needs to be an exciting part or a problem in the middle. The reenactment shows us that the children are understanding the plot – (comprehension).

When children come to write their own stories in the years ahead the idea of a plot and basic concept that a story has a structure is already there so they can focus on their handwriting formation or sounding out words etc. Children have more success if they are only working on one or two new concepts at a time just like all of us.

'Play' Stuart Brown MD

2011-08-23T05:42:00.000-07:00

I am loving Stuart Brown's book, 'Play'. 2010

He describes the properties of play:

Apparently purposeless (Done for it's own sake)
Voluntary
Inherent attraction
Freedom of time
Diminished consciousness of self
Improvisational potential
Continuation desire

Play "It is an activity connected with no material interest and no profit can be gained from it." (p20)

"The world needs play because it enables people to have a good life... a fulfilling life is one in which we live and grow in accord with our true core selves in harmony with our world. A successful life is one in which we are able to fulfil our own basic needs and give of ourselves to others. We are happy when we can live an expansive life, one in which we are aware that we are actively participating in something greater than ourselves: a part of a loving couple, a friendship, a family, an intellectual, social or spiritual community.

Play is what allows us to attain a higher level of existence, new levels of mastery, imagination and culture." (pp 201-202)

This would be great to use in the development or revision of a centre philosophy. Doesn't it describe (so beautifully) the person we wish all children had the opportunity to become?

'Kinder Couture'

2011-08-11T04:20:00.000-07:00

One of our parents donated a child sized dress model. Just look at the 'kinder couture.' The children have had so much fun pinning a variety of fabrics to achieve different effects. It was quite mesmerising to watch a group of children pinning, draping and twisting to create their designs.

Mini Worlds

2011-08-11T04:07:00.000-07:00

My TA Barb strikes again - she has such a wonderful knack of putting things together. Don't you just want to pitch a tent and move in to this mini world?

Reggio Bikes

2011-08-10T04:30:00.000-07:00

As you walk through the train station underground pass in Reggio Emilia you are surprised with the most wonderful exhibition of the children of the city's wonderful bike artwork. As I took these photo's while in Reggio last year I wondered 'Wouldn't it be 'frabjoyous' (to quote Lewis Carroll) if we celebrated our Melbournian children's artwork in such a respectful and spectacular fashion.' What a wonderful advertisement for the potential of children and their creativity it would be.

I wonder what theme we would choose? ...uh hem! I wonder what theme they would choose???

Wire

2011-08-10T03:57:00.000-07:00

I love wire for it's simplicity and beauty. The wires from Zart Art are so soft and pliable. I got our wire tools from Spotlight. The children bent the wire to fit their own dinosaur drawings. Some of our children are right into bikes so we will try wire bicycles next week!

Top Ten Children's Books

2011-08-09T01:44:00.000-07:00

My top ten Children’s books - the ones that children just cannot look away from…

· Lewis Carroll's ‘The Jaberwocky’ by Joel Stewart

· ‘Where the wild things are’ by Maurice Sendak

· ‘Don’t let the Pigeon drive the Bus’ by Mo Willems

· ‘Tigress’ by Helen Cowcher

· ‘The Fisherman and the Theefyspray’ by Paul Jennings

· ‘Meg and Mog’ by Helen Nicoll & Jan Pienkowski

· ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’

· ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ Dr Seuss

· ‘Are you my mother?’ By P. D. Eastman

· ''Wombat Stew by Mem Fox

Our class love our Jabberwocky story more than any other book. It's rich and language and themes of bravery are big drawcards. Of course you have to do the voices and the faces.

The Muppets do 'The Jabberwocky'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nm9o6DH_uzE

Mo Willems is a recent discovery for me - The books are brilliant!

'Don’t let the Pigeon Drive the Bus' YouTube animation

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V10jhsNIMI8&feature=related

Dinosaur activities

2011-08-01T06:05:00.000-07:00

My class loved this animation that explains fossilisation.

Dinosaur fossils in clay - press your toy dinosaurs feet, skin, teeth, body parts into clay buttons to make your own dino fossils. We played a game with this set last year where the children had to be a detective and guess what toy dinosaur the fossil came from - I've just remembered it and am going to try it again tomorrow.

Using the overhead projector for dino shaddow puppet plays is lots of fun too. Some children wanted to draw around the images to make their own painting - ideas are limitless!

Autumn House

2011-07-28T22:54:00.000-07:00

We began our Autumn house in Autumn but it took longer than we thought - one of the Dad's helped us to put the frame together and then the children helped to decorate it with twine, leaves and feathers collected in the park - fantastic! and thanks again to my inspired TA Barb - she collects great ideas - you've got to love ideas people..

Harvards Centre on the Developing Child

2011-07-24T00:21:00.000-07:00

was founded in 2006 on the belief that the vitality and sustainability of any society depend on the extent to which it provides opportunities early in life for all children to achieve their full potential and engage in responsible and productive citizenship. We view healthy child development as the foundation of economic prosperity, strong communities, and a just society, and our mission is to advance that vision by leveraging science to enhance child well-being through innovations in policy and practice.
Specifically, the Center is committed to

building a multi-disciplinary science of health, learning, and behavior to elucidate causal mechanisms that explain the early roots of lifelong impairments;
advancing our understanding of how to reduce preventable disparities in well-being through the design, implementation, and evaluation of innovative program and practice models;
catalyzing the formulation and implementation of effective, science-based policies through strategic relationships and enhanced capacity for knowledge transfer; and
preparing future and current leaders to make science-based policy decisions that advance the healthy development of children, families, and communities and bring high returns to all of society.

Repeating Kindergarten in Victoria - (a second year of funded Kindergarten)

2011-07-21T04:47:00.000-07:00

At this time of the year some parents begin to question whether their three or four year old should repeat their current kindergarten year. Centres also begin to make decisions about who will be offered places for the following year. I have attached a letter for parents of children who teachers believe are at risk of not performing well at school and should perhaps begin their kindergarten life in the following year. The letter could be used as a handout or as a 'cheat sheet' for discussing this issue with parents. For parents who want their children to have a second year of funded kindergarten there is a prosess for this but if their children do not meet the criteria they find themselves in a difficult situation. The decision is one that is best made as early as possible so it is important that parents have the facts before accepting a place.

Parent Letter

Your child may may be ‘at risk’ of not beginning school successfully. “The key areas of maturity and development are the Social and Emotional areas of development, contrary to what most people believe, reading writing and knowing colours or numbers are not readiness indicators.” (Kathy Walker)

Having another year of three or four year old kindergarten is a difficult process and there are firm government guidelines that assess if a child is eligible for a second year of funded kindergarten.

“In general the child must be identified as having delayed development in at least two of the five areas, to be eligible for a second year of funding.” (DEECD) The developmental areas are: Self Care, Receptive and/or expressive language, Cognitive Development, Social Development, Emotional Development.

“Given the difficulty in having two years of funded kindergarten in Victoria families are being encouraged to plan ahead in determining when they would like their child to commence school.” (Kathy Walker)

It is therefore important that parents carefully consider the year that they begin 3 y/o kindergarten. Parents need to make sure that they are happy with where the child sits in relation to the ages of their peer group.

It is not an acceptable practice to plan for your child to have three years of kindergarten. A crèche or playgroup can provide your young child’s socialisation/play needs before they begin Kindergarten.

It can be helpful to ask yourself, “Are there any siblings in our families who did not do as well at school because of their age in relation to their peer group?”

Further information can be found by visiting the following websites:

DEECD http://www.education.vic.gov.au/ecsmanagement/careankinder/funding/default.htm Information regarding the eligibility and criteria for a second year of funded kindergarten.

Kathy Walker http://earlylife.com.au/info/node/18 School readiness fact sheet

Cambodia

2011-07-19T04:47:00.000-07:00

I've just returned to work after a holiday in Cambodia. I provided some training for a group of teachers working in a few differernt early childhood services in Siem Reap and was priveledged to be able to follow up the training with visits to the centres. The staff are doing amazing things in the most difficult of situations and I have nothing but admiration for them. I had a wonderful organisation that coordinated the training 'Green Gecko' and I encourage you all to have a look at the wonderful work that Tania - a fellow Aussie is doing in her service which has provided a home for 70 bright amazing children (they were all begging on the streets 6 years ago) two of the children translated our training session for the local Khmer staff and did a brilliant job.

I will write more about what I have learned from being in this wonderful place where children who have been through so much trauma still have the capacity to expereince joy and laughter when given the opportunity to play and feel safe. For now I am still digesting all that I have seen and so very glad that we have some of the luckiest children on this earth in our very lucky 'Lucky Country.'

http://www.greengeckoproject.org/

ICT In the Early Childhood Classroom

2011-07-19T04:33:00.000-07:00

As we begin to have more access to multimedia with young children and see it’s value in terms of providing visual and auditory learning we need to assess what and how we use all that we have available to us. When using ICT I choose to focus on my educational values of Research, Provocation, Creativity, and Collaboration.

In terms of setting up an IT area for the Early Childhood classroom I have found that a large computer screen set up near the mat area or on the wall is a low cost alternative to IWB’s etc. With a computer attached it can double as your CD/DVD player, be used by individual children or for whole group experiences. A cordless keyboard and mouse are great for documentation and I often set up a word document with a large font so that I can move about the room and write up documentation as it happens. The research says that using computers should be a social process for young children so I always put two chairs in front of one computer.

Some resources and games provide closed experiences that give little choice and scope for creativity. I choose to use programs like Kids Pix and Paint. YouTube is great for children’s songs with a visual – when we were researching marble runs for a large project we found lots of great clips of marble runs that have been set up by children at home – we get lots of new ideas from these clips. Google images are great for provocations. The ABC and BBC’s cebeebies sites have animated stories and games online. Languages online has fun activities and songs to learn in a variety of languages that can be used as a small group or as a whole class.

It’s really sad how simple and basic most of the information provided for children is. As I looked for clips on animals all I could really find was simple animated clips naming and labelling the animals – isn’t it sad that many people believe that all children are capable of learning about is a basic name and that animation and bright colours always seem to be used for children. My class love to watch real life documentaries about animals, ‘Walking with the Dinosaurs’ is a favourite, indeed all of the BBC animal documentaries are fantastic and you can watch them in 10-20 minute sections.

Emergent Curriculum Plan

2011-06-23T00:44:00.000-07:00

I am always playing around with different ways to plan – I have developed this template as an emergent curriculum planning tool and have been enjoying using it.

Interests              We write about the children’s interests, both what they tell us and what we have observed they are drawn to, we also ask parents to write in what they have noticed their child has been interested in recently.

Planning              The activities and provocations we plan to provide in the program.

Evaluation          What we actually did – because we don’t always get through everything and   what happened.

Future Possibilities        Ideas for future planning that have arisen and things that did not get done but, are still relevant as an interest of the children.

Toxic Stress and The Child's Brain

2011-06-19T01:27:00.000-07:00

I am heading off to Asia for a holiday in a weeks time and I will be spending the last week helping to train local staff who work with the young children in an orphanage in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The focus of the training will be Play and Creativity and I have been researching Toixic Stress to understand more about the needs of the children. Toxic Stress occurs here in Australia as well - the documentary 'Lost Adventures of Childhood' shows that too much structure in children's lives is also leading to high stress levels in children.

"Scientists can now credibly say that the early childhood years – from birth to age 5 – lay the foundation for later economic productivity, responsible citizenship, and a lifetime of sound physical and mental health. Conversely, deep poverty, abuse, neglect, and exposure to violence in early childhood can all lead to toxic stress."

•http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/shonkoff1/English

Successful Working Relations

2011-06-19T00:02:00.000-07:00

I’m not sure how many people have experienced this and it feels a little controversial writing it but, working with another person in a classroom can be the hardest thing about teaching in Early Childhood. When a Teacher's and Teaching Assistant’s values and ideals are well matched it is a pure joy to work together, there is professionalism, a lot of talk about the children and a real feeling that you are providing a fantastic learning environment and helping children to achieve, you even have those magical times where you go into ‘flow’ in your classroom, where everyone is busy, happy and engaged. If you are matched with someone who doesn’t share your values or beliefs about good education it can be a minefield. Feeling compromised professionally, that you are not providing a good program for children and that your time with children is compromised through having to spend time managing a staff member is one of the most difficult and stressful things that can happen. Research has now proven that unstable Teacher/TA relationships have a huge impact on the quality of learning that occurs in the classroom.

Some advice I wish I had been given in regard to creating good working partnership’s is:

· Discuss in detail how you want to work together from the very beginning.

· Asking a TA to do something is not asking someone to personally do something for you. It is asking someone to do something for children. Ask for help, it takes a community to raise and to educate a child.

· Your work colleagues don’t have to be your friends.

· Don’t ask a colleague to do something you would not do.

· Be professional – everyone deserves to be treated with respect.

· Be fair but, you are the one in charge and you have the final say in decisions – you have a degree along with most of the responsibility.

· If someone is rude to you, or not following your direction or expectations tell them you don’t like it and why you don’t like it ASAP. E.g. “When you talk to the parent on duty for long periods, I feel stressed because I have to supervise the whole class and I can’t do any one on one or small group work and documentation.” “When you …I feel...because… “ This is an assertiveness technique and it really works – I used to write these out to practice them before I said them.

· For a staff member who is generally pessimistic and complaining a lot without looking for solutions– I always find a reason to walk away – there’s always a reason to go and help the children and we really need to focus on the positives to keep ourselves on track and feeling like we are making a difference.

· Spend a lot of time talking together about the children, the program and your educational values.

I would love readers to send me other ideas to add to this list as I really feel many beginning teachers struggle with managing staff and creating successful working relationships – I also feel that sorting out a difficult relationship can have a far greater impact on the learning that occurs in the classroom than anything else.

The Importance of Messy Play and Sensory Stimulation:

2011-06-11T19:02:00.000-07:00

Messy/sensory play has the power to help many children with sensory processing issues feel calm and it can also perks others up. Messy play is also very important for Kinaesthetic learners (a learning style in which learning takes place by the student actually carrying out a physical activity, it is how they take in information about their world). The EYLF stresses the fact that children are hands on learners. Modern living can deprive many children of the types of sensory play that used to be the norm. Working parents under pressure are sometimes less likely to provide messy experiences that take time to clean up. Computers and television can mean that children spend more time inside and a lack of space outdoors or apartment living can mean that sensory activities such as sand pits, mud patches, cooking and clay and finger-paint are offered or available less often. These are all very strong reasons why Kindergarten's must provide messy/sensory types of play for children. It is unfortunate that some people who work with young children will avoid messy play as they don’t like to clean up the mess. This mindset shows a lack of understanding of children’s developmental and educational needs. If there is no messy play happening in your classroom you need to ask yourself and your staff why.

The information below explains sensory processing disorders and it has a great checklist to prepare for an Occupational Therapist if you have concerns.

http://sensorysmarts.com/signs_of_spd.html

http://sensorysmarts.com/sensory-checklist.pdf

I read this book years ago when I was working with a wonderful and very challenging child who had autism. It helped me to develop an understanding of what it might be like to live in his reality. To tell you the truth the world I saw seemed very confusing and frightening and it helped me to empathise with him and his family.

EYLF A focus on holisic education - at last!

2011-06-04T05:24:00.000-07:00

Most people who work with young children need regular preventative measures such as massage to keep our backs healthy from all the bending and sitting on little chairs. I was at ‘Zhongs’ the fantastic Chinese walk in massage store today for a back massage when I overheard a man who stopped by ask about the price of a massage – he then preceded to ask if there was a ‘happy ending’ followed by ‘just joking’ and walked away quickly. I was just finishing up so he was gone before I got my wits about me. I felt furious. I talked to the lovely girl who had served me and said I was so sorry that the man had been so rude. I felt culturally ashamed. I know that some people grow up in families that are far from ideal and that they are not going to learn common decency and empathy within the home it then falling to schools to educate the morals and values of many children. From today’s incident followed by the news tonight that some ‘spotlighters’ had shot dead two Shetland ponies in a paddock (a tough target to be sure), it appears that the education system has been to date ill equipped to do this.

My saving grace is that Australia has been brave enough to take the pressure off early childhood educators in terms of designing a holistic and not prematurely academic approach with the EYLF. Bringing community awareness to how children learn and the significance of the early years in terms of brain development and the building of an individual’s life skills and value system are ground breaking steps towards us as a community taking on the responsibility of shaping the children who will be our future, a future where I am hopeful people will not act without thought or reflection upon how their comments or actions impact upon others. Where people and society nurture the ability to listen and actually hear and to live life with compassion.

'let the children play'

2011-05-30T03:29:00.000-07:00

Over on http://progressiveearlychildhoodeducation.blogspot.com/ Jenny has written a wonderful post on all the great 'Early Childhood blogging' happening in Australia. I just love teachers who are prepared to share their ideas and research benefiting all. Have a look at all her list and at her great ideas about play, natural materials and playspaces and progressive education. Thanks Jenny!!

Early Childhood Newsletters

2011-05-28T17:33:00.000-07:00

Subscribe to these Early Childhood themed Newsletters at the links below:

· Early Life Foundations - Kathy Walker

http://earlylife.com.au/info/newsletter

· EYLF Early Childhood Australia

http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/eylfplp/#signup

· Early Childhood News

http://www.edna.edu.au/edna/go/ece/ece_news/cache/offonce/pid/225;jsessionid=E49A328CD5843A327357B3AE4E487C4D

· NQF updates (National Quality Framework)

http://www.deewr.gov.au/Earlychildhood/Pages/RegisterNQF.aspx

· Voice - Early Childhood Australia

http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/voice_newsletter/about_voice.html

Sensory Diet

2011-05-28T16:39:00.000-07:00

I was talking to a teacher friend two weeks ago and then later in the week to a Speech Pathologist about some children who can find it difficult to sit still and focus during story time and they both mentioned 'Sensory Diet.' Although I don't feel it is necessary for all children to participate in the large group times at kindergarten I do want to help children to be able to participate in whole group activities, access the information we are talking about and develop their concentration spans. One of the websites I found to be most helpful is listed below - it gives some great information and ideas to help children to calm and focus. It has links to products too. I tried giving a piece of blue tac to one child and the child focussed on the story so well that I read another! I'm going to buy some of the 'fitball seating discs' for children to sit on.

http://sensorysmarts.com/sensory_diet_activities.html

The development of willpower in children...

2011-05-26T00:23:00.000-07:00

Many teachers may know that the ability to delay the gratification of needs or wants is one of the best indicators of future success but, how do we test this? I tried a social experiment with my class this week where a child had bought along Mickey Mouse lollypops to share with classmates after a trip to Disneyland. Before he handed them out at home time we talked about how these lollypops were to be taken home and eaten at home. I talked about how the other children in the playground might feel if they saw a group of children eating lollypops and how it is not ok to ask your parent if you can eat it as you are picked up after school because one adult has already asked you not to. One child asked if there was one for her brother and we talked about how her brother has his own class and that sometimes he would get a treat from someone in his own class and that she would not get it then. I checked outside after everyone had left the classroom. The parents milled about talking and I could not see one child eating their lollypop! I was very proud. I am going to remember this because I think that children need to practice delaying gratification to develop strong will power and I think that they need to be placed in situations where they get to practice this skill regularly.

Read the original ‘Marshmallow Test’ story in the New Yorker.

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/18/090518fa_fact_lehrer

Picture book Philosophy

2011-05-25T03:27:00.000-07:00

I have been researching 'Philosophy' with young children and have just found the most wonderful site which refers to a wide variety of children's picture story books and gives a run down on what types of philosophical theories are touched upon in the book along with ideas for questions to ask children about the book that best support philosophical inquiry.

http://www.teachingchildrenphilosophy.org/wiki/Main_Page

Dinosaur Educational Kits

2011-05-23T02:28:00.000-07:00

I visited Eumundi market a couple of years ago and picked up these fantastic 3D dinosaurs. The small dino's are $30 and the large ones $60 great value for a Kindergarten. Order them via fax or scan and email and they will pot them to you. Call/Fax Dinosaur Educational Kits (07) 5441 5424 Mobile 0417 009 208

Autumn

2011-05-23T02:17:00.000-07:00

Everyone needs to have a fabulous shopaholic, collectaholic, florist/stylist teaching assistant. Look at the amazing play space Barb came up with to celebrate all things Autumn!

Recycled Yabby

2011-05-19T20:57:00.000-07:00

A group of children helped to make our recycled Yabby using recycled plastic transparent containers.

We had a pet Yabby in the class and this activity has really helped the children to understand exo-skeletons!

Emergent curriculum

2011-05-15T02:59:00.000-07:00

I did a thinking task with my class where I asked them to draw about what they like to think about and what they want to learn about. They drew some fantastic ideas and we scribed for them as they talked about their illustrations. I have placed these ideas into a planning table with the headings below. This table is going to form a large part of our term plan – showing that the children’s interests are guiding our planning. We will ask parents to write down any other interests that they have noticed and recent experiences. This is a good way to prove the EYLF practice principals of following childrens interests, parent invovlement in program planning and emergent curriculum.

Child	Child’s Ideas/interests	Educator observations of interests	Parent comments – home interests/ recent experiences
Example	“Dinosaurs, How they got extinct. How your brain thinks. How dolphins swim.”	Blocks, inquiry, cause effect play, sorting, organising.
Example 2	Monsters and being brave. The Eiffel tower, how high is it? Whale sharks. A whale shark is as big as a bus.	Box art construction. Measurement, machines, how things work

Lady Gowrie have training sessions on Emergent Curriculum - there is one on 30 May - they also have a service where they will come out to your organisation and customise training to your needs - it can work out as a less expensive option to train all staff in a couple of after school sessions which cuts out the cost of getting relievers in.
http://www.gowrievictoria.org.au/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=f1WMYpg4EK0%3d&tabid=81&language=en-AU

Easter and Mother's Day ideas

2011-05-15T02:39:00.000-07:00

We taught the children to make clay pinch pots and they decorated them with natural materials collected from the playground - lovely Easter nests!

We recycled some old badges by covering them in pretty papers using PVA, then the children decorated them with buttons and recycled ribbons that one of the parents had donated.

Teaching Philosophy with Young Children

2011-05-15T02:21:00.000-07:00

	Since watching the French documentary 'Just a Beginning,' I have been thinking about introducing Philosophy with my class. I have found the book below which will hopefully help me along the way. But WHY? Developing philosophical thinking in the classroom (Teacher's Manual)
Author	Steve Bowkett Sara Stanley

The perfect introduction to philosophy for children, But WHY?
provides everything you need to introduce philosophy into your
classroom. And for those who are already doing philosophy for
children, it will provide a welcome source of fresh inspiration and
new ideas. The manual includes: information on running P4C
sessions, strategies that will lead to fruitful thinking, inspiring
case studies and examples, a bank of games and activities and
how to integrate philosophy into the school.

Available at Hawker Brownlow Education

http://www.hbe.com.au/functions/Dialogs/ItemDetails_holder.asp?ItemId=3241

Establishing a Constructivist Sociomoral Atmosphere

2011-04-26T04:43:00.000-07:00

I have found a fantastic article explaining Constructivist theory in a very practical and informative manner - The EYLF advocates for the relevance an use of constructivism in early childhood classrooms - it is a great article to refect upon.

http://tigger.uic.edu/~lnucci/MoralEd/articles/devrieschap4.html#top

EYLF Books and Resources

2011-04-22T05:48:00.001-07:00

Wow! Early Childhood Australia has the most comprehensive guide to books and articles – (many free to download). I’m going to start with this book:

The Early Years Learning Framework: Getting started
This book explores the central understanding upon which the Framework has been built, and looks at the why and how of educator's engagement with the ideas and understandings that can be found within it.

http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/resource_themes/eylf_early_years_learning_framework.html

EYLF Parent Education

2011-04-22T05:47:00.000-07:00

Educating parents on the EYLF can be a daunting task - for centres that are going to undergo a lot of changes to their current practice it will be a huge task to not only begin to reflect upon their own practice but also to educate parents about the changes they will observe. I have attached links to the EYLF Parent Guide which is a good starting place.

There are links to the document translated into a variety of languages at both of the links below.

Early Childhood Australia

http://www.deewr.gov.au/EarlyChildhood/Policy_Agenda/Quality/Documents/EYLFFamiliesGuide_A4_170909.pdf

Australian Government Department of Education

http://www.deewr.gov.au/earlychildhood/policy_agenda/quality/pages/earlyyearslearningframework.aspx

FAQ’s http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/earlyyears/faq.html#H2N100A2

The following information from the Government of South Australia provides some good information for parents also.

http://www.earlyyears.sa.edu.au/pages/EYLF/eylf_faq/?reFlag=1

What is the evidence base for the EYLF?

The Framework draws on conclusive international evidence that early childhood is a vital period in children's learning and development.

The reference list in the framework indicates a range of sources that cover evidence from research fields such as child development, neuroscience, early childhood learning and pedagogy, and policy studies. The references are sourced from international organisations such the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and local curriculum documents.
EYLF Background papers

How is the impact of neuroscience seen in the EYLF?

Neuroscience has reinforced the importance of learning and development in the early years especially the importance of the first 3 years of life. The importance of learning within consistent nurturing relationships is emphasised in the EYLF. The framework acknowledges babies' first attachments within their families and within other trusting relationships and encourages educators to build upon these relationships providing children with a secure base for exploration and learning.

How do you achieve the EYLF learning outcomes through a play based program and pedagogy?

Play provides a context for children to explore, expand and express theories, relationships, attributes of the world (people, places, objects) communication, and ways of being, belonging and becoming. Play leads to the expansion of children's repertoire of actions and provides opportunities for children to connect their thinking and actions leading to changes in their brain architecture, i.e. learning.

All play conveys messages about children's understandings and skills. It is critical that educators are articulate about the value of meaningful play and carefully observe, document and interpret children's learning that occurs through play to plan for further learning and report on children's learning.
Achievement of learning outcomes is planned for using the EYLF planning cycle where educators question, plan, and act and reflect, using the learning outcomes as their goals and play as an aspect of their learning context. Reflective educators question how the different types of play (see RESPECT REFLECT RELATE p50) support the planning for and recognition of learning in each of the EYLF learning outcomes.

Discipline and the development of Impulse Control

2011-04-10T00:08:00.000-07:00

"Teachers and Child Care workers will be charged up to $10,000 if found to be putting children into time out!"

I heard this on the radio the other morning and found this Kathy Walker article which provides some good information regarding disciplining children.

Kathy Walker has a great article regarding positive discipline techniques

http://earlylife.com.au/info/node/142

One thing that Kathy mentions is the importance of separating the child from their behaviour so that respect is demonstrated for the child, but their behaviour is not condoned – some adults find this difficult to word so I’m going to break down a typical conversation.

If a child hits, pushes or in any way intentionally hurts another child you can:

· Comfort the hurt child first to show that it is the hurt child that it always your priority.

· Reassure them that it is not fair and that no one is allowed to hurt another person.

· Ask onlookers to move on – these incidences are not a spectator sport and having onlookers can add insult to injury for children.

· ASAP say to the child who hit: I am very sad (upset, cross, concerned) that you have hit your friend because no-one is ever allowed to hurt any person at our Kindergarten and everyone deserves to feel safe. When you hit (child’s name) he felt unsafe and in pain and that is not fair.

· Ask the child to look at the upset friend.

· Talk the issue through, listen to the child’s reasons and if they have a point about how the incident was perhaps provoked it’s good to talk about it fairly looking at both parties perspectives.

· Restate that it is never ok to hurt someone and that you need to use words to talk about your problems, get some adult help or go and cool down for a while and come back when you are more ready.

· Always reassure the child that you always like/love them but that hurting people is never ok.

· It’s good to ask the child what they will do next time or perhaps have this discussion later in the day once some of the emotion has gone from the incident.

· A follow up chat a couple of days later is good too – indicating to them that you have noticed them managing things with more control (if that is the case).

· Praise all incidences where the child manages a difficult situation well.

Sometimes you need to look very carefully at your program if there is a lot of hitting/hurting others.

Is there enough energetic and outdoor play time?

Are the activities provided based around the interests of the children are they open ended and stimulating?

Are group times too long for the concentration span of many children – getting many negatives at group times may make children feel negatively about themselves.

Impulse control develops during the early childhood years. There is some of evidence that rough play with Father’s assists children to develop this self-control. Rough play elevates stress levels and children need to experience raised stress levels in controlled situations to learn self-control – Fathers can play until the play becomes too rough and there is a risk of getting hurt and then teach children to stop.

Some good information on helping children develop impulse control:

http://www.ocd.pitt.edu/Files/PDF/Parenting/RoughPlay.pdf

http://brightkids.wordpress.com/2007/08/01/learning-impulse-control/

http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/modules/module2/handout7.pdf

Lastly, role playing incidences like snatching, pushing, sharing and turn taking at group times can help children develop good strategies to deal with difficult situations – getting the class to brainstorm how to handle difficult situations is a positive activity.

'Just a Beginning' - teaching philosophy.

2011-03-27T19:41:00.000-07:00

I saw this film on Friday evening and it provided a wonderful insight into teaching Philosophy to young children - I am trying to work out how to purchase the film so if anyone finds out please post a comment.

Just a Beginning

Ce n’est qu’un début

Director: Jean-Pierre Pozzi & Pierre Barougier

VIEW TRAILER

In a Parisian suburb, children at a kindergarten form a circle once a month to discuss philosophy.

Seated in a circle around a ritually lit candle, the children, in a fresh, funny and sometimes merciless manner, approach the universal subjects of love, power, difference, growing up, death … Little by little the philosophy workshop becomes a privileged moment where each child reflects on the words of the other, learns how to listen and to build a discourse. Philosophy helps them draw their own conclusions, rather than being fed ready-made answers.

This innovative experiment was shot at the Jacques Prévert de Le Méesur-Seine school, in a special education zone in Seine-et-Marne, with their teacher Pascaline. This true story of a school with an eye on the future will warm your hearts.

It will run in Brisbane Perth and Adelaide – so check the times at the link below.

http://www.frenchfilmfestival.org/Films.aspx?articleId=4521

Natural disasters

2011-03-20T04:23:00.000-07:00

As a teacher of 4 year olds I feel that it is impossible to stop young children from learning about what is happening in the media and in the world. The morning after 9/11 I saw children smashing toy planes into block buildings that they had created. After the Victorian fires children began school bandaging up the feet of toy animals. After the floods the children talked about it and after the Christchurch earthquake the children have been very interested in what is under the ground and in Volcano’s. Some parents monitor their children’s access to all forms of media carefully and some do not. Children talk to each other and I feel that it is impossible to stop children from having an awareness of major world events. My approach to questions raised in the classroom is always an honest, gentle and reassuring response – I give as much reassurance as necessary that death and disasters are unusual events and not likely to occur. I feel that children can sense when someone is not being honest and this can cause distress or worse children learn that adults are not being honest with them and perhaps not to be trusted. If we want resilient and honest adults we need to give children the respect they deserve and model good communication, not burry our heads in the sand when it comes to difficult situations.

Inquiry about Eggs

2011-03-11T02:59:00.000-08:00

Inquiry about Eggs.

The children began the project by creating a dinosaur nest and progressed through classification activities about what creatures come from eggs. Finally we had ‘Living Eggs’ bring 10 eggs to hatch and stay for two weeks. The children were very excited and we began our inquiry by posing questions, asking “What do you wonder about the eggs?’ and developing hypotheses such as:

What will be in the eggs?

T: “I wonder how does the baby hatch out of the egg?”

L: “I wonder how the Pterodactyl learns to walk?”

How will the new creatures learn to walk?

We have had many discussions and the children are really beginning to listen to each other carefully building upon their knowledge together.

This discussion took place after a few chicks had hatched.

Teacher: What was our research question?

D: How does the baby get out of the egg?

B: The beak.

C: It made little spots with the beak and then they got bigger and bigger and then the chicken fell out.

T: He pushed out with his legs.

Teacher: Yes, it started with the pipping. What was this box called?

D: An incubator, it keeps them nice and warm so the baby can hatch.

B: It was wet.

T: Because it was wet in the egg.

M: Because my mummy said when they come out they will be wet.

C: He was wobbling and falling when he was trying to walk.

Teacher: How did it learn to walk?

D: By himself.

L: No, by the other baby chick.

M: Maybe when we were walking he learned.

Teacher: Can the chicks see us out here?

Many voices: No.

Teacher: What about the first one who came out and learned to walk?

B: By himself because no one was here!

T: I changed my mind they learn on their own.

L: They tried to walk by themselves. When they walked everywhere they could do it!

Units of Inquiry in the early years

2011-03-11T02:47:00.000-08:00

It’s my experience that projects where children are able to observe phenomenon, growth, change etc. closely over time provides one of the very best ‘authentic’ opportunities to develop a successful inquiry. Providing opportunities for observational drawing and recording children’s discussions and observations over time helps children to tune into the process or learning about something in a more in depth manner. Encouraging children to draw about the process before it happens and as it occurs while encouraging them to formulate their own “I wonder” questions can drive the inquiry.

I feel that the educational benefits of having the experiences below in the classroom over a period of time can far exceed the benefits of an excursion where children have only a couple of hours to take in information.

http://livingeggs.com.au/ Hatching Eggs is a wonderful opportunity to develop an

inquiry – the company delivers and collects the chicks after a 2 week stay.

http://www.insectfarm.com.au/pets.htm A variety of insects including the beautiful

stick insects can be posted and are relatively easy to care for– ‘Yes Posted!’

http://frogs.org.au/arc/ The Amphibian Research Centre in Werribee operates on an appointment only basis. If you would like to discuss your individual requirements or take advantage of any of our services please call us to arrange an appointment. (03) 9742 3764 Email: arc@frogs.org.au

EYLF Where to start.

2011-02-23T03:03:00.001-08:00

I spoke to a very helpful Children's Service's Advisor yesterday who said that the place to start is with the Principles and Practice section (pages 12-18 of the EYLF booklet) in terms of assessing where you are in relation to your program reflecting the new curriculum - it is a very good place to start. We will be looking at the few pages from the paper version in our next staff meeting and discussing where we believe we are and planning from there.

The advisor also let me know that the idea of developing 'Reflective Practices' is probably going to be the main vehicle for any changes that are needed to our current practice. I have been planning reflectively for the past 4 years and that along with studying my Post Grad Dip have helped me to prioritise my professional learning, feel in control in terms of dealing with the large amounts of information that are available, set professional learning goals and feel inspired about my chosen profession.

http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/resource_themes/eylf_early_years_learning_framework.html#EYLF_Principle_1_Secure_respectful_and_reciprocal_relationships

This web page has links to each of the principles and practice guidelines with suggested readings and books to read. Fantastic advice and information.

Inquiry based Projects

2011-02-20T03:52:00.000-08:00

Over on the 'Camp Creek Blog' they have some fantastic articles and links to help teachers learn about how to use the Project approach

http://www.whiteoakschool.com/camp-creek-blog/2007/10/7/project-based-learning-part-1.html

The links to online Professional learning are great.

Online workshop: Inquiry-Based Learning

The Inquiry Page

Inquiry Page: Definition of Inquiry

Exploratorium: A Description of Inquiry

Do Schools Kill Creativity?

2011-02-20T03:00:00.000-08:00

A great presentation and some food for thought about how education needs to start reflecting the current needs and values of our society. Thanks for the heads up on this one Ruthoir!!

The Early Foundations of Literacy - Reading

2011-02-20T02:55:00.000-08:00

Some parents feel a lot of pressure and anxiety about their children’s future – it’s a fast paced world that we live in and everyone wants the best for their children. Foundation literacy skills are the skills that children need to have before they can begin to read with success. These are the skills that we typically work towards developing during the Kindergarten years.

The following information has been sourced from: http://raisingchildren.net.au/articles/developing_literacy.html/context/238#Reading

Encouraging literacy development

The growth of literacy skills is a vital part of your child's overall development. It is central to her future success at school and later in the workplace.

Before your child learns to read and write, she needs to develop the foundations for literacy – the ability to speak, listen, understand, watch and draw.

With time, and your assistance, your child will also come to understand the connection between letters on a page and spoken words. For this to happen, she'll need plenty of experience with:

· pictures and objects – how you can use words to talk about them

· letters and words – their shapes, sounds and names

· sounds – how words can rhyme, begin and end with the same letters, be broken up into parts (for example, syllables), be formed by blending different sounds, and so on.

This will give her a great headstart when she reaches school and starts learning the more formal aspects of literacy.

You can help your child’s literacy development by communicating with her, reading with her and teaching her about sounds in ways that are fun for both of you.

Reading: its importance in literacy development

It’s important to read with your child often, from birth onwards. Children who have had experiences with language and print from an early age are more likely to develop a solid literacy foundation.

Reading with children:

· gives you enjoyable time with them – sharing in an activity, looking at pictures and playing with words

· helps them start to appreciate what books have to offer – that books can give both pleasure and information

· helps them learn the sounds of letters in spoken language

· helps them understand that stories are not coming from you but from the words on the page - this teaches them about how the printed word works

· helps them develop larger vocabularies, which increases their understanding, pleasure and interest in reading (books offer more unusual words than are used in everyday language or on television)

· Improves their thinking and problem-solving skills.

What you can do

· Read to your child from birth.

· When your child is old enough, encourage her to hold the book and turn the pages. This will help her start to understand that the book should be a certain way up, and that pages are always turned in the same direction.

· Guide your finger on the line as you read, pointing out each word. This indicates to your child that we always start on the left and move to the right, helping her to start to understand the rules of reading.

· Point out pictures and describe them.

· Make the sounds of animals or other objects in the book – have fun!

Rhyme: its importance in literacy development

Rhyming is a great way to teach children the connection between the sound of a word and how it’s written.

What you can do

· Play games that involve rhyming. Rhyming of words helps children appreciate beginning and ending sounds – cat, pat and mat. You can play them any time – in the car, while shopping and at the dinner table.

· Play games that involve the sound and rhythm of words. You could try ‘I Spy’ and tongue twisters such as ‘She sells seashells by the seashore’.

· Read rhyming books, such as ‘The Cat in the Hat’ or ‘Doodledum Dancing’.

For parents interested in further reading I suggest Mem Fox’s ‘Reading Magic.’

Planning with the Framework

2011-01-29T23:13:00.000-08:00

My planning seems to change each year – for the past 4 years I have put my main focus into my professional journal – I decided that writing a fortnightly plan that talked about what specific activities I put in the room and when I would change them had become obsolete as I would most often change an activity when the children were not engaged. The focus on self-selection of materials and tools and the open-endedness of most of the learning areas that I set up also means that many activities can occur in them the point being that I don’t know what the children will do with the materials – it is their decision.

Reflective planning/Professional journal: I set goals for my own professional learning at the beginning of the year which includes things that I want to learn about children aspects of Leadership and references to how I plan to incorporate my professional research – reading, conference information etc. into my practice.

VEYLDF Planning for the group: I have decided to break the framework up into focus outcome statements for each term. Focus Outcome statements are highlighted for the class using information known about the developmental stage of the children in the group, observations from staff and parent input.

The column beside the highlighted statements provides space to record planning and evaluation. Information such as routines, values and pedagogy, ( “ Pedagogy refers to art and science of teaching. More specifically, it refers to styles and methods of instruction used in the teaching profession.”) that is ongoing within the classroom can be recorded, as well as references to whole group portfolio tasks that focus on assessment and evaluation. It’s easy to make a master by cutting and pasting from the framework.

Class Meetings/group time: I write up a list of discussion topics to use as a jumping off point for our class morning meetings and share this with the parents also. I do not prescribe when each discussion will take place as I prefer to work with the idea that a ‘teachable moment’ usually presenting itself. “A teachable moment is an unplanned opportunity that arises in the classroom where a teacher has an ideal chance to offer insight to his or her students.”

Portfolio’s: The children’s portfolio’s make up much of my observations of the children. This year I plan to enlist parents helps us to document a piece of work (representation) or photograph with each child. Some weeks a whole class activity will be documented such as a self-portrait for comparison at a later date in the year or a sequencing task. Other weeks we will encourage children to choose what they want to document we will also ask children to work together to reflect upon and plan for projects.

The class Diary: is where transcripts of discussions, photographs, explanations of activities and project plans and progress are recorded. Parents have access to this in printed form but, another way to make this available is to publish it onto a blog – Confidentiality is important here and blogs can be made private by having them only accessible to members who need to sign in with a password. Relevant information from here is also printed and placed into individual children’s portfolios.

It might sound like a lot but, this has evolved over many years - starting with one or two elements may help!

Make play the driving force

2011-01-24T04:15:00.000-08:00

Watching the documentary on Play two weeks ago has given me some powerful fuel for reflection.

Now, as I prepare my new classroom and plan for the new children, families and the new year I am more determined than ever to let play be the driving force of my program.

“As soon as an activity has a definitive goal or structure, supervision or monitoring, it is not play”. Bill Fowder, The Lost Adventures of Childhood

Evolutionary speaking play has adaptational value - survival is about adaptability – play makes you nimble and adaptable, children learn about the world of objects and they learn social skills – how to get along with others.

Research shows that play leads directly to the maturation of the brain, there are more variables in play than in structured activities, and children have to process more information. Children need to make decisions, negotiate their point of view, solve problems, deal with other children and conflict and be creative. Play is how children learn.

From birth children have the desire to learn. They are capable of finding symbols and metaphors. Learning is a subjective personal process built up through interactions with others, building and rebuilding knowledge.

“The art of research already exists in the hands of children acutely sensitive to the pleasure of surprise. The pleasure of learning, of knowing, of understanding is one of the first fundamental sensations each human being expects from experiences faced alone or with others.“
Loris Malaguzzi

I will leave more time to leave children alone…

“In the classroom arrange yourself to listen and follow the curiosity and stimulation that comes as the children experience them. Documentation can become part of an educators professional growth – shared reflection with others allows this to occur. We are not pushing and not babysitting in many ways we are leaving children alone purposefully.” Reggio conference notes, 2010

I will take the time to watch and listen to children at play…

We also need to constantly remind ourselves to listen to the children and follow their lead in terms of what they are interested in and exactly how they are engaging with the topic. For example when we began a project on Elephants last year, I had pre conceived ideas of the children learning about Elephants as social animals with a sense of social responsibility for each other in order to work on teamwork and democratic values within the program, but the children made it very obvious through their enthusiasm that they were interested in the concept of the size of elephants and how to measure them.

I will play with the children, taking their lead if I am invited…

Lost Adventures of Childhood

2011-01-10T17:28:00.000-08:00

I watched this fantastic documentry on the latest research about childhood and intelligence - It describes time for play (that is, time to play creatively with no prescribed or pre determined outcomes) as being able to create more resilient children with better social skills and emotional intelligence. Too much structured activity time is not good for children.

The link to stream this documentary on the ABC has now expired but, they have the rights to screen it again and I will let you know if it is due to be broadcast in the future.

Portraits

2011-01-10T00:50:00.000-08:00

We began this project with the idea that by looking more closely at ourselves we can hone our powers of observation and begin to observe and represent more detail. We encouraged the children to return to draw portraits a few times. Also by looking at other artists we can transform ourselves and see ourselves again. We worked closely with the children bringing their attention to the shape of the face, position and shape of features. We kept the discussion going as they drew while looking in the mirrors at themselves.

M 1st drawing M 2nd drawing C

M: “The first one was that one by myself, because I did two it

was funny because I did two eyes.”

C: “Was it four eyes?”

M: Yes.

C: I did lots of hair and did the fringe

M: I didn’t have a fringe. First I did the circle and then I did the

eyes in the middle of the face. It makes it different. I look more like someone else.

We looked at ourselves in the mirror and talked about the colours of our skin, our hair, our eyes and lips. We took photocopies of the portraits so that we could use them to represent ourselves in different ways. The girls used the colour mixing skills that they learned early in the term to match tones. “I learned how to make green, um put blue in, into the yellow, you mix it.” L

We read 'Pigcasso and Mootise' and the children used bright pastels to complete a Picasso inspired portrait. The children used the skills they had learned to complete a portrait ofd their mother from a photograph.

Beginning the year well

2010-12-22T16:43:00.000-08:00

At the start of the year I see the very first whole group meeting with children and staff as the most important meeting of the year as it sets the scene regarding the expectation for communication.

In my beginning is my end. T.S. ELIOT, "East Coker," Four Quartets

Developing a code of conduct for group discussions

I ask the children for their input in terms of how we should communicate– when children help to create their own code of conduct they tend to own it and respect it more.

I like Clinton Golding’s “Foundation rules for a thinking classroom…”

• No hassles or putdowns…

• Listening carefully to what others think…

• Proper consideration of all ideas…

• Respectful challenging is essential…

• Building on Ideas

I ask children not to put up their hands as this can slow things down and it can also stop the flow and banter of a good discussion. My aim is not to dominate the discussions and for children to question and probe each other – it is also best to sit in a circle formation so that everyone can see the person who is talking. One last thing that I like to introduce early on is the notion of ‘friendly reminders’, where children can remind their friends of our code and also remind them not to invade other people’s space or bring objects that are distracting to the meeting.

I like to begin each day with a morning meeting where we can discuss anything new or interesting or exciting that will affect the class. Children are encouraged to discuss subjects that have relevance and importance to the group as a whole and this is not a ‘show and tell’ session. I consider times when the group comes together to be precious.

I find that it is often when we disagree that we learn the most because we are challenged. I always stress that we need to disagree respectfully and model this to the children. The culture of the Reggio schools supports ‘cognitive conflict’ however the predominant culture of Australia (and by this I mean our tendency to portray everything as OK even when it is not) means that conflict is most often avoided. “Intellectual conflict is understood as the engine of all growth in Reggio. Therefore, teachers seek to bring out, rather than suppress, conflicts of viewpoints between children. Similarly among themselves they readily accept disagreement and expect extended discussion and constructive criticism: this is seen as the best way to advance. The teachers’ pleasure in teamwork and acceptance of disagreement provides a model for children and parents.” (Edwards 1998, p191)

A group of staff and children who can engage in lively debate has many benefits. People feel heard and respected. The ‘group intelligence’ which is greater than that of one person is accessed by all and democratic values are upheld.

RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms

2010-12-21T18:13:00.000-08:00

Over on Leaves and Branches, Trunks and Roots I saw this YouTube link where Sir Ken Robinson talks about schooling including the history of Education as we know it today and how it needs to change. It was very interesting but, not surprising that Kindergarten children scored very highly in Divergent thinking tasks and that this score reduces as children progress through the school system.

Project Selection

2010-12-17T20:45:00.000-08:00

This year I decided to investigate how a project is chosen and what makes them relevant? My research and my own values led me to develop the following five questions to ask at the beginning of a project.

• What type of concepts can be learned from the idea and are these worthwhile concepts to be worked upon?

• What are the individual and group needs that can be met through the project?

• Is the project likely to cover curriculum content?

• Does it derive from the children's interests and can it maintain their interest over time?

• What do I hope to learn about children through the project?

I asked the class to take 2 minutes to quietly think about what topic they would like to research in their major project. The children then drew about their ideas and we scribed their explanations and research questions for them.

Here are some of the comments:

I want to learn about Mysteries because I really love to solve mysteries and I want to know about being brave.

Why do dinosaurs get angry? Why do they be happy? Why can’t you find one that’s alive? I really think they died and got killed by a big rock that came from the sky.

I want to know about how to plant flowers and how do they grow?

We got some great results and the subsequent discussions where we worked through the ideas and made a final decision was a richer experience for many children who may not have put forward their ideas without being given the time to consolidate them first. The final decision to research Dinosaurs, the mystery of what happened to them and what the weather, flora and fauna of the world was like in their time was a great illustration of democracy in action.

Dinosaur Project

2010-12-16T02:11:00.000-08:00

The children used the projector to enlarge the image of a Stegasaurus skeleton that we found on Google images. We made up some salt dough and the children rolled and shaped the dough to fit each bone. It took about two weeks for the dough to dry out, meanwhile the children roller painted a large canvas, approx 90cm by 1.2m, black. We worked together to transfer and glue (PVA) each piece down carefully.

Christmas ideas

2010-12-16T01:58:00.000-08:00

I thought I would re-post these Chrissy ideas - I love ideas!!

We made these beautiful angels from sticks that my class had been collecting while out and about. We used wire, calico and some string to nip the waist in.
Carol singers made from bottles, corks, wire, calico and recycled card to make the carol book.
Clay ornaments - we rolled out the clay with a rolling pin and cut it out using christmas cookie cutters. The children used a pointy wooden kebab stick to poke a hole through the top of the ornament. We used wool to make the ties after we had fired the clay.

Pretty birdies - cut from recycled paper and some special asian style paper for the beak, wings and legs. Attach string to the back with tape so they hang

Values

2010-12-15T23:04:00.001-08:00

Values

More and more I believe that it is the values that I hold about life and about Education that influence the children in my class the most. Children take a message away from every interaction that we have with them, over time these messages help to consolidate each child’s view as to what is important to you as a teacher and this influences their attitude towards learning. The message that children take away is not always the message that we thought that we gave. Children read more than just words. I believe that they read between the lines to see the level of importance you place upon the message you are passing on through your level of sincerity. Body language is also something that children read. Values are being transmitted through the way we set up the classroom and activities and in how we establish routines also.

The Reggio view of school is as the place of values education. That is “That school, for us, is a place where, first and foremost, values are transmitted, discussed and constructed. The term education is therefore closely correlated with the concept of values, where “to educate” also means- and in certain respects primarily means- to educate the intrinsic values of each individual and each culture, in order to make these values extrinsic, visible, conscious and sharable.” (Rinaldi, 2001 p38)

My Educational Values

The value of listening outlines a set of key values that influence the learning process. Listening can be seen as: a way of identifying the patterns that connect, an attitude of openness and sensitivity, an awareness that people express themselves in many ways not just verbally, the idea of grasping the thoughts, emotions and ideas behind the words and, listening as being open to, and truly valuing difference. It is when we make the deliberate effort to listen to children and parents that we learn about them and connect with them.

The value of difference is a marked move away from concepts such as tolerance which can entail negative connotations of ‘putting up with’ something. “In order to educate ourselves we must try to understand the differences rather than having any pretentions to eliminate them. This means approaching each individual with great sensitivity in terms of his or her particular background and personal history. It means “listening” to the differences…. but also listening to and accepting the changes that take place within us which are generated by our relationships and particularly by our interactions with others. It means letting go of any truths which we consider to be absolute and being open to doubt, giving value to negotiation as a ‘strategy of the possible.” (Rinaldi, 2001 pp41-42) In seeking to truly understand the perceptions of others our thoughts, ideas and concepts will be influenced.

The value of learning in that the construction and co construction of knowledge can take place at any time and at any place. The value of learning “means being open to the complex, conflictual and unpredictable nature of human learning wherever it takes place, both inside and outside the institutional contexts directly involved in education and formation. (Rinaldi, 2001 p43)

The value of play, fun, emotions, and feelings. To value play, fun and emotions is to recognise that without these aspects engagement is less likely, interest may not be generated and motivations cannot be understood. It also recognises Bruner’s ideas on ‘learning by doing’, or the tendency of children to need hands on involvement to derive meaning from an experience.

The value of Perspectives – everyone’s ideas and opinions are worthy of respect. New perspectives enrich our decision making processes as they give up an opportunity to step out of ourselves and away from our background and look at something through a different set of eyes.

The value of Democracy – We are all citizens with the right to have an input into the decisions that affect us. Voting is an integral part of how we make class decisions.

Provocations...

2010-12-15T04:09:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I find it inspiring to have some images that I find beautiful around me just to inspire further creativity. This holidays I am going to be looking out for images, shop window displays, postcards, walpaper designs, magazines and the list goes on that serve to provoke creativity and ideas within me.
I am going to set up a mood board in my new office next year and set up a mood board in the classroom for the children to add their own images to also.

When setting up activities for children I try to remember to ask - Does it look appealing to me? Are there a variety of possibilities that can emerge from this area?

Learning about the Framework

2010-12-14T20:55:00.000-08:00

I have spent a bit of time researching the resources available online that provide information on the Framework and the good news is that there is a lot around. Here is what I have come up with…

The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority has a number of great resources including:

The Early Years Exchange: an online newsletter designed to help early childhood professionals get started with the Framework. It includes snapshots and video interviews with a range of early childhood professionals. http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/earlyyears/eye/index.html

This Early Years Exchange is the first in a series of publications to familiarise early years professionals with the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework. It also has a selection of online PD modules including:

Module 1. Leading the Way: Reflecting on the Frameworks

Module 2. Working Together: Collaborative Practice Principles

Module 3. Decision Making: Effective Practice Principles

Module 4. Documenting and Assessing: Engaging with the Outcomes.

http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/earlyyears/profdev/index.html

A new website Early Childhood Education and Care http://www.ecceleadership.org.au/

Has a number of online modules aimed at staff and Educational Leaders. Just click on the modules tab for modules such as ; Leadership, Image of the Child, Philosophy, Pedagogue of listening and Play and Child Centeredness.

DEECD Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework Professional Support Program The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) has contracted Community Child Care’s Resource and Development Unit (RDU) as the Professional Support Coordinator for Victoria, to develop and deliver a professional development program for early childhood professionals working with children from birth to eight years on the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework.
Early Childhood staff can register for 2011 in-service training sessions and access the online modules provided from the link below – scroll down for links to modules and to register.
http://www.cccvic.org.au/content.cfm?content=107

Lady Gowrie also has a couple of introduction videos relating to the Framework on YouTube
National Early Years Learning Framework - Gowrie Victoria Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vS5VO9C-ICk&feature=related
National Early Years Learning Framework - Gowrie Victoria Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjJI27myTDA&feature=related

TEDxHouston - Brené Brown

2010-12-12T15:37:00.000-08:00

I suppose that the long Christmas holidays provide us with the time to contemplate our year and reflect on what we have learned and how we will apply that learning to the following year in a productive manner.
I loved this YouTube clip that I accessed from a blog this year and I found it applicable to both my personal and professional life - It is about Brene's research into Connection, Shame (the fear of disconnection) and Vulnerability. It describes that the most happy and fulfilled people (wholehearted people) are those who are willing to be vulnerable within their personal relationships and it shares strong links with the Frameworks principal of Belonging. Have a look at the clip. It's about 15 minutes but well worth it.

An introduction.

2010-11-23T03:25:00.000-08:00

I came up with the idea of creating a blog that provides an insight into my planning process and provokes Early Childhood educators in terms of inspiration for creative and stylish learning experiences for young children. l am a firm believer in children's right to a beautiful environments that creates a calm atmosphere and inspires wonder and creativity. Philosophically I am inspired by the schools of Reggio Emilia and the idea of ‘the environment as the third teacher’. I also believe that our unique ‘Australian perspective’ brings something fresh and new to blogging at this point in time. In my first posts I will introduce some ideas for activities and how I will begin to plan for the new year ahead (2011) using the new Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework which I will call the VEYLDF because it is quite a mouthfull.

I have found some great websites with online training that helps teachers to understand how to get their head around the type of program that the VEYLDF is advocating for. Modules include Image of the Child, Philosophy and Pedagogy of listening and they could be used as a staff PD series. http://www.ecceleadership.org.au/ I will be working my way through the modules over the holidays. To me this availability of good information and the introduction of the Framework means that we are finally getting the resources and recognition that we as professionals deserve. Hooray!

As well as looking at programming for next year, over the holidays I am going to look back over the various projects that I have worked on with children and share some of the ideas.

We made there clay Christmas ornaments with the children and displayed them in the classroom in vases filled with the sticks that the children had regularly collected outside throughout the year. We used cookie cutters and a kebab stick to poke a hole through the top so we could add the wool to hang them once they were fired.