Kays blog: August 2012

Friday, 31 August 2012

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Tuesday, 21 August 2012

Reflection 3 - Using the camera

20^th August 2012

Reflection 3

Using the camera

Today I was taking a photo of a new child for the front cover of their portfolio when S approached me and asked me what I was doing? I explained to him and he asked if he could take some photos too. I gave him the camera and told him he needed to keep his hand through the handle attached to the camera in case the camera got dropped. S took a couple of photos and went to give the camera back to me. I told him he could keep the camera for a while and when he had had enough to bring it back to me. This seemed to please him as he had a big smile on his face and he took off quickly to start taking photos of his friends.

A short while later he returned the camera to me. He then asked if he could have a look at the photos. I asked the office lady if she could download them for me onto a USB stick. She did this and I plugged it into our digital photo frame. S stood and watched as his photos appeared. A group of children gathered around and he proudly told them “I took this” S began telling us about the photos and who was in them. I asked him if he wanted me to print them out. He said “yes” very eagerly. Once the photos were printed I asked him to tell me what was happening in them. I wrote down the story he told me. S was so excited by the pictures he raced off to show another teacher.

When S asked if he could use the camera I thought this was a great opportunity to let him take photos as the children always see us taking photos so why shouldn’t he be allowed too also. I was a bit concerned about him having the camera by himself but after ensuring the chord was wrapped around his hand I felt a lot better. I think by allowing him to go off by himself he was able to make decisions about what interested him without the interference of myself. Using ICT can increase the conventional ways of teaching and open up new and different ways of learning (Ministry of Education, 2007).

When S asked if he could look at the photos I was about to show him on the camera when I thought about using the digital photo frame instead. This was an ideal way for him to see the photos as well as sharing it with everyone else. I had never thought of doing this before but seeing the impact it had on all of the children and especially S I realised I had made the right decision. As the children gathered around and S began to tell his story I was delighted to see what learning was going on. Not only was S sharing with them his story but the other children were also contributing with their comments to him and one another. This showed me the use of social skills the group of children were using. Katz & McClellan (1999) state that social approach skills are central to social participation and success with young children, as these skills help peer acceptance and contributes to ongoing discussions amongst peers.

Printing the photos off and getting S to recall the story behind them while I wrote it down was a way for him to express himself and become creative about his photos. Recalling can reinforce a child’s ideas and help them review their own learning (McNaugton & Williams, 2009).

This learning experience has made me see another avenue of telling a story. Through the use of ICT technology the child has become the teacher. He has told a story about what was happening in the centre and what he had learnt.

Wednesday, 15 August 2012

Reflection 2 - Technology in the sandpit

Friday 10^th August 2012

Reflection 2

Technology in the sandpit

The boys were in the sandpit attaching plumbing pipes to the water tap. I watched as they worked together to make the pipes run into one another. E decided to grab a big spade and dig it into the sand and balance the pipe on top of the handle. I approached E and asked him what he was doing. He replied “I’m making it stay up” I asked the boys what they were doing with the pipe, L replied “we are making a dinosaur world” I continued to observe them for a short while as they dug in the ground and moved the pipes around. I saw a couple of the boys with the dinosaurs in their hands moving to a big puddle of water under the pipes. I asked them what was happening. L replied “This is the dinosaur river” I replied “oh, what are you using the pipes for?” “It’s the waterfall into the river for the dinosaurs” L responded.

A short time later J came over and he began to put a plastic bottle under the water coming out from the pipes. He then tipped the water into the nearby trough. He continued to do this for a while as he sung “I’m getting more water, more water”. M came along with a bucket and he too collected water from the pipes and tipped it into the trough. I asked the boys what was happening. J informed me they were making a Dinosaur pool. He then began digging sand and putting it into the water. After a short while the boys put the dinosaurs into the water and moved them around. They began to make the dinosaurs fight. M explained to me that his dinosaur had the big spikes on his head which would be able to stab into another dinosaur when they were fighting and that he would win.

When I first saw the boys using the pipes I was very intrigued with what they were doing. As I investigated more it soon dawned on me that this was technology at its best. The pipes were the technology that was helping them experiment and solve their problem. They were using the technology through fitting the pipes into one another to extend the flow of water. During this experience the boys developed the ability to represent their discoveries by being creative with the technology associated with them (Ministry of Education, 1996).

I thought the way they used the pipes was an excellent use of their imagination and experimentation. I enjoyed listening and being part of their discussion about how they were going to achieve their end result. Fostering possibility and problem solving helps children refine problems as well as solving them. Children become confident in themselves as explorers and meaning-makers (Craft, 2007).

When more children arrived and used the pipes in a different way I saw the plastic bottle being the source of technology behind transporting the water into the trough. The bottle became a way of solving their problem of how they were going to get the water from the pipe into the trough. The children used thought and experimenting to achieve an end result. Technology knowledge allows children to develop and understanding of how and why things work (Ministry of Education, 2007).

Before taking this class I would not have thought of this learning experience to have included technology I would have thought it was more about maths and science. However my views have now changed and a whole new world of technology has opened up before me. I understand now that technology is more than just electronic devices. As stated by Smorti (1999) technology combines knowledge, skills and resources to find solutions.

Becoming aware of what technology is has made me see things differently around my centre. I now see technology everywhere and I will continue to encourage children to embrace the different ways technology can be used in their experiences in the centre.

Wednesday, 8 August 2012

Reflection 1 – The use of a laptop

Today one of the teachers in my centre was working with a group of boys with the laptop. I was asked by the teacher if I could continue with what she was doing while she went on her lunch break. I soon discovered she was searching for pictures on the internet of Spiderman, The Hulk and Batman for the boys and printing them off. I did as requested and continued to do this. Once the pictures were printed the boys were running around with them showing other children what they had. One boy called out “I’m taking these home to show my brother” I encouraged them to think of another way they could use the pictures instead of taking them home just as they were. I used open ended questioning to help them come up with an idea. They decided to cut the pictures out and stick them on a variety of boxes from the collage area.

I do not think the use of the laptop in this situation was used wisely. I feel the teacher involved was merely using it as a tool to make her job easy and keep the children occupied instead of using it as a teaching tool. I felt rather frustrated when asked to continue on with this activity as this was not how I thought the internet should be used as a teaching tool. I decided to take charge of the situation and try and turn it into a more meaningful learning experience as I did not think that looking up cartoon characters and printing them off was teaching them anything educational. I used the teaching strategy of questioning. Through asking open ended questions I encouraged the boys to imagine and create as the possibilities of this were endless. This type of questioning helps the child express their beliefs, thoughts and feelings without the concern of it being right or wrong (McNaughton & Williams, 2009).

Through using technology in a creative way the boys were able to use their skills of cutting and imagination as they experimented with ideas to create an end result. Smorti (1999) states how technology can also be seen as a creative process through developing products that meet the needs of solving problems.

I believe computers have their place in early childhood but should be used wisely to encourage and further learning. Tsantis, Bewick & Thouvenelle (2003) discuss how misusing the computer can undermine the benefits and advantages of using them with children, therefore computers should be used as a positive tool in developing skills and extending learning experiences.

As educators the use of ICT technology with children should be encouraged as this is the way the world is moving. We need to help children gain these skills in becoming competent users of technology through extending their thinking and questioning so they become active agents of their own learning (Arthur, Beecher, Death, Dockett & Farmer, 2007).

This experience has made me stop and think about how laptops are being used in my centre. I believe as teachers we shouldn’t shy away from modern technology but embrace it to help us extend children’s knowledge. The key is in knowing how to do this. Next time I use the laptop in the centre I will ask myself what learning is happening and whether it will benefit the children. I think I need to encourage the other teachers to do so as well.