Communicating with Whanau

What: 

Running the New Entrant transition program requires a large component of communicating with Whanau, both to liaise and arrange the visits and then to ensure they feel informed and included as their child starts their school journey. I have numerous ways of doing this but it is predominantly by email and face to face contact. I understand that a parent leaving their child with me is like leaving part of themselves and sometimes this may be one of the first occasions that they've done this, thus making it a big transition for parent and child. 

I welcome both child and parent each time they come and explain the routines and expectations each week as building these routines comes through practise and continued exposure and gives everyone a chance to discuss anything that may have arisen during the week or at the previous visit. Again when the children are collected I try to have a quick chat about how the program has gone for that child and so the parents feel connected to what they're doing while at school and can ask any questions they may have. 

I frequently receive emails rom Parents with queries about different aspects of the school visits which I answer promptly. Further to this I take and email pictures of various activities throughout the morning to continue the connections between home and school and encourage the children to talk about what we do and share their experiences with their parents.

So What

The reason for moving from a standard, limited number of school visits to starting a transition to school program was to endeavour to provide the smoothest start for our tamariki and their families. Ensuring that there is clear communication and strong channels for feedback between home and school mean that we are all working together and clear in our expectations of our roles in these relationships. I ask parents, particularly when their child is leaving the transition program about their thoughts and ideas for future development and find this verbal feedback very helpful in developing and informing my practise. 

Now What

Perhaps I could formalise the feedback I get from the parents and provide feedback opportunities, by way of written evaluation forms, for all parents. This would ensure that everyone was given equal opportunity to have a voice in a non threatening way. Further to this I could seek more feedback from the learners themselves about their highs and lows and areas they feel could be further explored while they transitioned to school.

STP 2:5

STP 3:1

Collegial Learning- Daily 5

What:
Reflecting on my relationship with those teachers I work with I can identify the huge benefit I have in working across a number of classrooms and teaching programs designed by them for their learners. This challenges me to implement and understand the pedagogy behind the sequences they have planned. Working with the senior teacher from the junior syndicate has provided me with much food for thought and promoted growth in my practise.

Daily 5 is a literacy program she has implemented in her classroom to foster literacy independence and growth in her learners. Experiencing this as a release teacher I was amazed at the level of student agency and engagement in their learning through out the literacy learning block. Students have been specifically taught five different literacy rotations which they then chose from each session, these are not prescriptive and teacher directed like traditional 'follow up activities' that are seen during literacy blocks. They give the children a lot of choice over what they will read and write and when, where and how they will structure their literacy hour.

While teaching groups with Daily 5 as the background program I was able to solely focus working with reading groups and not managing student behaviour and engagement. Children settled quickly into their chosen literacy activity and remained focussed for the duration of the block, 7-10minutes. I could see a lot of prior teaching and practising this structure had been done to achieve this and so made it my goal to research this program and implement it in the classroom each week.

So What:
My first step to increasing my understanding of what this program is and why it was being used was engage in discussion with my colleague as I find dialogue and discussion an excellent way of learning, particularly when I can relate it to classroom practise that I've observed. The conversation involved an explanation of why a more traditional literacy 'centres' type system was not working for either the teacher, who was having to create a lot of follow up activities, or the students who were not particularly engaged in these teacher prescribed activities. The schools focus of increasing student agency was another trigger for change. The Daily 5 is a great reference with step by step instructions on how this can be implemented but more importantly why it would be used.

Reading this book has changed my way of thinking about what to do with the rest of the class during guided reading and given my ideas a new base which is grounded in children learning to love reading by doing LOTS of reading!

Now What
Implement all I've learnt from my reading and observation in the classroom during reading each week.

Continue to reflect and discuss the program with my colleagues to deepen my understanding and enhance the way I implement this in the classroom setting.

STP3.1

Tamsin

027 8691848

Tamahere Tupu: Tuakana - Teina

What:

A regular weekly feature of the transition to school program, Tamahere Tupu, that I established earlier this year is inviting a group of learners from the senior syndicate to come and meet our transition students and read and play with them. We start by introducing ourselves and sharing a 'fun fact' which serves to break the ice and provide an initial connection and point of interest between the two groups, further to this it provides and ideal oral language experience for our younger pupils, some of whom are still developing their skills in this area.

The children are then asked to choose books that interest them from a pile of readers and the senior students are paired with the younger ones to whom they read. They are asked to model basic pre reading skills and do this happily enjoying the chance to be a role model. When the reading has finished the children are encouraged to play with some of the open ended resources available to them and chat with each other. Sometimes I suggest topics like 'What's great about our School' but most commonly my intervention is not needed.

When we pack up I talk with the group, particularly focussing on the senior students about their role as part of a Tuakana/Teina relationship. They look forward to seeking out and supporting the school starters when they become pupils at school.

So What:

The reciprocal relationship started between our older students and students starting school provides both groups with so much in their learning journey. 

The school starters are given the opportunity to meet students from throughout the school and therefore have familiar points of contact when they start. They get a mini literacy experience at a level that is appropriate to them without any pressure to know how to read but helps them become familiar with school readers and some of the basic skills associated with reading. Their is a chance for open ended play and the associated dialogue that comes with this across the whole group. The starters have people to look out for them at break times, connect with them in the playground and help them as needed.

The senior students also gain from these positive interactions. They have a chance to provide gentle leadership in the school setting and be the experts about their own environment which they happily and proudly share with the younger students. They are able to 'teach' and share some of their skilled reader knowledge and ability which enables them to consider what their buddies might be interested in and need while they're reading and playing with them. It gives them a chance to be the Tuakana and guide and help someone through a time of change and transition and make this as positive as they can.

Now What:

Continue to provide opportunities during our Tamahere Tupu sessions for these connections to grow between different groups of students.

Discuss with our older students their ideas for these interactions and incorporate these ideas as appropriate.

Develop and inquiry around transistion to School programs and look at best practise and research around fostering relationships at school within this setting.

STP 5.5

STP6

Tamsin

027 8691848