Gabby’s Comments
Patrice’s Comments
Karlton’s Comments
Briar’s Comments
Thursday, 30 August 2012
Saturday, 25 August 2012
Today in my centre some of the children decided that they
would like to bake cupcakes. So I went into the kitchen and found all the
ingredients needed. We had a look at the recipe to see what we needed to do
first. Another teacher stopped to see what we were doing. I said that we were going through a
technological process. The New Zealand
Curriculum says that ‘technological areas include structural, control, food
and information and communications technology and biotechnology’ (Ministry of
Education, 2007, p.32) so food or baking is technology. She didn’t seem to
agree with this. The process of preparing something for baking or cooking is
indeed a technological process Smorti states that ‘…process cooking is a
technological activity or system, developed, used and adapted by early
childhood services to meet children’s learning needs’ (Smorti, 1999, p.6). The
process of baking such as the mixing, beating and the rising of the cupcakes is
all part of the technical process which occurs. Smorti says further that
children use their knowledge
about processes and problem solving (technology), science, reading,
mathematics. They use: physical skills (eg holding bowls and spoons, mixing),
social emotional skills, and language (they can describe what they are doing and
they talk to each other). They also use the resources provided (ingredients,
process cooking cards, and maybe educators as sources of information)
(Smorti, 1999,
p.6).
Through this experience children are able to interact with
one another, they discuss what ingredient goes next and how they will go about
adding it to the bowl. They are also encouraged in turn taking and sharing as
not everyone is able to mix the ingredients together at the same time Te Whāriki says that
‘children experience an environment where they are encourages to learn with and
alongside others’ (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.64). Children measure
quantity using measuring cups and measuring spoons. While adding ingredients
together they see which ingredients dissolve and others which sit on the
surface and don’t change form. Children are able to learn different terms
associated with baking such as creaming, whisking, beating, folding and mixing.
They also strengthen their fine motor skills by pouring and measuring. Mixing
and keeping ingredients inside the bowl is a concept which is learnt by
practise. By actually doing these processes they are able to have hands on
experience with these concepts. The process of preparing something to put into
the oven cannot be experienced by using a digital technology concept. This is
the only way which children are able to actively engage in the satisfaction of
making something which they are able to contribute to the process and then have
the satisfaction of eating it. I believe that these experiences are crucial for
children as they are taught the process of cooking or baking and in the future
they may not just rely on microwave meals and instant food. Some teachers and
parents may not think that baking is a essential experience for children to
have, but I believe it is, these are some of my main reasons why.
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They develop an interest in and
passion for baking at an early age is likely to last for life.
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Children see other people eating
something he or she has made can help to improve a child's self-esteem and
will provide a real sense of achievement.
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Children love to bake because they
get to use all of their senses: seeing, touching, tasting, feeling, smelling
and listening.
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Children are encouraged to be
creative and experiment, enabling them to learn through discovery.
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Children will improve their
understanding of food, how it is made and what goes into a recipe, and allows
you to talk about where the ingredients came from.
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They are able to see how food changes
with mixing, applying heat, adding liquid, etc. will help to improve an
understanding of science.
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They develop thinking skills which can
be seen through seeing cause and effect relationships in food preparation,
e.g. what happens if you add too much or not enough flour, water, etc.
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Baking helps children to develop
their motor neurone skills and can help with their concentration and
listening skills.
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Following recipes helps with reading
and arithmetic and improves an understanding of weights and measures.
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Reference List
Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum for
English-medium teaching and learning in years 1-13. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media
Limited.
Ministry
of Education. (1996). Te whāriki, he
whaariki mātauranga mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa : Early childhood curriculum.
Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
Smori, S. (1999)
Technology in Early Childhood. Early
Education, 19, 5-10.
Sunday, 19 August 2012
This morning I observed
some children really examining the lemon and orange tree outside at the centre.
They were talking about all the things they could see. Some of the children
were discussing the little buds and insects they could see if they looked really
closely on the tree. I went and got my camera to document it. As I got closer
to where the children were one of the girls came up to me and asked if she
could take photos of what she had seen. I agreed. She took the camera over to
the lemon tree first. There she spent an amount of time taking close up photos
and long range ones. She then moved onto the orange tree. When the children
went back inside I connected the camera to the television and I played the
photos that the little girl had taken. One of the teachers walked past and
assumed that I had taken the photos. When I told her that a child had taken
them she looked very surprised. She also made a comment along the lines on I
wouldn’t let a child touch my camera. I think this is where some teachers view
children as not being competent enough to use a piece of equipment. I often
give the children my camera as I want to see what they see. Their focus is
usually on something different, and they end to see ‘the smaller things’ in
life. Personally I find it refreshing when a child shows me a picture they have
taken of something that is important to them. While the photos were playing the
children were able to comment on them and extended on the picture from what
they could remember seeing. When children are able to view photos quickly
instead of having to have them developed first, means that the memory is still
fresh in the children’s minds when they view it. The New Zealand Curriculum says that
ICT and e-learning ‘will assist the making of connections by enabling students to enter and explore new
learning environments, overcoming barriers of distance and time’ (Ministry of
Education, 2007, p36). When children are
able to take their own photos and look at them they feel a sense of empowerment
and pride ‘the technologies
that benefit young children the greatest are those that are interactive and
allow the child to develop their curiosity, problem solving and independent
thinking skills’ (Kneas & Perry,
2011, p.1). I do not think there is necessarily I negative aspect
to children using digital cameras in the centre. If they are shown how to use
it correctly and they are able to respect it and use it for the right reasons
then I do not think that there is any reason why children should not use
digital cameras. Although I know that some teachers see a negative aspect of it
being that children do not know what they are doing or how to use a piece of
technology such as this. I know that some of the children at my centre use
cameras at home or when they go on holiday. Accepting that children are going
to be exposed to things like this is something that some of the teaching staff
at my centre may need to do. When children are disusing their photos, they use
new and nonsense words to describe what they see. Te Whāriki says
that ‘children develop an understanding that symbols can be “read” by other and
that thoughts, experiences, and ideas can be represented through worlds,
pictures, print numbers, sounds, shapes, models and photographs’ (Ministry of
Education, 1996, p.78). These interactions are important for children’s
language, social and emotional development the use of digital cameras support
these well within the early childhood setting.
Reference List
Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum for
English-medium teaching and learning in years 1-13. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media
Limited.
Ministry
of Education. (1996). Te whāriki, he
whaariki mātauranga mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa : Early childhood curriculum.
Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
Kneas,
K.M., & Perry, B.D. Using Technology
in the Early Childhood Classroom. Retrieved from http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/bruceperry/using_technology.htm
Thursday, 16 August 2012
Laptop Fun
Today some of the
children seemed very interested in new dinosaurs that we had introduced to the
animal box. The children were very interested in finding out more about the
dinosaurs. Some books around the centre consisted of some of the animals we
were looking for but many of them the children could not find and identify. One
of the children suggested that we look on Goggle. At first I was a bit
surprised by this request as the child was only 2 ½ years old. I questioned him
a bit about where I found Google. He was very quick in saying that Google was found on a computer and that you needed internet to access it. I then went
and got my laptop. I asked if he would like to find Google and start to find
the dinosaurs that we were looking for. With great confidence he sat down with
my laptop at the table and found the Google Chrome icon, he clicked on it and Google popped up. He then asked the other children what they wanted to know,
one of the boys said dinosaur names. I helped the boy enter the letters and he
pushed enter. He was able to use the touch pad on the laptop very well, he also
knew which key was the space bar and the enter key. I enjoyed watching him
during this experience. Sometimes in these situations teachers may look at some
children as be somewhat ‘incompetent’ as using digital technology. I am very
opened minded to children and the use of digital technology as I see it as a
great group or individual learning experience not only for the children, but
staff too. I think using technology in the centre, such as laptops and
computers is a good way for children to learn and find out more about their
interests. Van Scoter, Ellis & Railsback 2001 says the ‘studies
highlight the opportunities for language use and social interaction that technology
offers, along with increased motivation. Computers also make possible
experiences and representations that cannot take place in the real world,
providing new experiences and improved understanding’ (Van Scoter, Ellis &
Railsback, 2001, p.9). A negative aspect of children using too much technology
is that they become so used to the easy way out. Instead of using a book
first they could just go straight to the internet. Although in this situation a
book was used first and thereafter the internet was looked at as an option. I
think that the use of technology in this way is a great experience for children
if it is balanced out with other methods of researching. I still think that it
is important for children to have access to books, magazines and newspaper as
means of finding out information. I think children should be exposed to
technology as in today’s society it is all around us. Equipping them with these
experiences is beneficial and almost crucial for their futures. The New Zealand
Curriculum says ‘the aim is for students to develop a broad technological literacy
that will equip them to participate in society as informed citizens and give
them access to technology related careers’ (Ministry of Education, 2007, p.32).
Although this particular child was comfortable and confident with using a
laptop, other children may not be, this is where I think it is a great time for
ako and reciprocal learning. Allowing the child to be the teacher in teaching
their peers allows for confidence, even if it may in a specific area, as this
may be their strength. Te Whāriki says that ‘children gain experience in using
communication technologies such as crayons, paintbrushes, pencils, calculators,
books and computers’ (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.97). This shows that there
still needs to be that balance as to how and where technology is used in the
setting as non-digital aspects are still important.
Reference
List
Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum for
English-medium teaching and learning in years 1-13. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media
Limited.
Ministry
of Education. (1996). Te whāriki, he
whaariki mātauranga mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa : Early childhood curriculum.
Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
Van Scooter, J., Ellis, D.,
Railsback, J. (2001). Technology in early
childhood education: Finding the Balance. Northwest
Regional Education Laboratory: Portland Oregon.
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