Part two of days reflections 30/10/17

Making a strong program is vital to make our transitioning children feel at home when they start their new school.

A day connecting ECE and the NE classroom 30/10/17

Main differences between ECE and primary class room?

The ratios of adults to children, the physical environment, a classroom is contained an ECE centre is open and children can come and go as they please. Small spaces are not working for a play based curriculum as the movement is not as fluid and cannot cater to the come and go needs of a child leaning their own play.  The journey is the focus in ECE and in the primary classroom the focus is much more on the destination and getting people to the finish rather than working though the journey. Early childhood is strength and interest based where as a primary class is looking at areas of weakness and how we can improve those. Our curriculums both state that we must focus on prior learning and strengths and so therefore we can use this as evidence to why we use play based learning and how important it is to highlight these strengths and use them as our base board for learning.


Play based learning is harder to show the achievements at an academic level as the learning is shown in key competencies and social growth.

How do we share knowledge between the two providers?

There is simply not enough shared knowledge as most of children arrive as unknown quantities and we have to try to figure this out during the transition visits. Big Question How can we make this knowledge more easily shared, what can we do to get this information clearly shared in a way that is honest and gives pertinent information.

We must look at what the learner sees as their strengths and use this learning as a platform for growth in the school environment. 

The visions of the two curriculums are very similar and provide a great base to grow confident, connected children of the future. Te Whariki appears to be more holistic and encompasses the whole child and their overall growth.

Curiosity is interwoven throughout Te Whariki, my planning in the primary setting needs to be informed by this to ensure that curiosity is a main focus. The key competencies really mirror Te Whariki and are so important to maintain as a focus in the junior classrooms. 

The above picture looks at how we can utilise the key comps as a growth progression from TW. This needs to come before and with any academic learning as its meeting a child's basic needs for the day in order for them to be ready to learn.

STP 2.3 &6.3

Minimising physical restraint Course. MOE 24/10/17

STP4:4
Notes From:

Guidance for NZ Schools on Behaviour Managment to Minimise Physical Restraint  Presented at TMCS 24/10/17

In all circumstances attempt to de escalate rather than restrain any child in your school.

As teachers we are not 'in charge' or loco parentis for the children in our care. The parents are still in charge of their child even when they are at school.

The policy dictates that in no circumstance are we, as teachers, able to restrain children. 

If a child is throwing chairs in a classroom, the rest of the class is removed from the class. The child throwing the chairs is left in the classroom without being restrained but the other children are made safe without any restraint occurring. 

However if a child was going to harm themselves by running on to the road it is ok stop a child from doing this.

There is acceptable physical contact this is along the lines of common sense ie holding hands if children want to, comforting children, helping with transitions up and down stairs etc.

Big questions? How does this new legislation impact on the emotional and physical safety of the rest of the children? What will happen to their self esteem when their work is destroyed by another child? How will they feel when they have witnessed violence in a classroom? How will this impact their learning when their education is disrupted by a fellow classmate on a regular basis?

Try to keep in mind that those children that need the most loving are often the most difficult to love.

With children with challenging behaviour always try to look for the 'Why' behind this behaviour. All behaviour is communication and it has a function and a purpose, we must strive to look for what the message is behind their behaviour. Are they trying to gain something or avoid something, working out which of these this is may help with our management of this behaviour. If the behaviour works then it will be used again and often escalated to make what they want happen even quicker. We need to be consistent and reasonable in our response to behaviour to affect change. If we wobble and are inconsistent then the behaviour is unlikely to change for the better.

Look at the iceberg and what's hidden beneath the tip of the iceberg which is the behaviour that we can see. What's going on beneath the surface at home?

To relate this to Preston.....when he needs attention take five and give him one to one attention if possible so he feels connected and less inclined to attract attention in negative ways.

When we start to understand the 'why' behind their behaviour we can start to adapt or teach a more acceptable, replacement behaviour. Reinforce what we want to see so their needs can be met in a positive way. 

Praise, praise, praise positive behaviour and what you want to see and you'll see more of it.

Make the program interesting to their particular desires and so they can then engage. 

Be aware of what triggers you or pushes your buttons and how you can manage your response to the child that you're working with. These particular areas are where we may fall down in our management of challenging behaviour as they are specially significant for us.

Manage our reactions by: personal calming, not taking it personally, make it about the process not the person.

Respond constructively: Build trust, maintain safety, retain dignity, build relationships, maintain professionalism.

Always work to preserve the mana and dignity of everyone involved.

Encouraging ready to learn behaviour: Our job as teachers is to balance managing safety with teaching. We also need to, as part of our key comps, to teach behaviour as well as curriculum.

For children to model from us we have to be consistent and calm so they can depend on us and base their response on our consistent and calm reactions.

How to build positive relationships with children?

-connect so they feel safe and comfortable. Make connections with their big world not just their school world.

-make students feel valued.

-students need to know we  want the best for them.

-understand that children have a back ground out of school and that what we are teaching them may conflict with the morals and values that they are taught at home.

-students believe that they are understood and their best interests are at the heart of the matter.

-school is predictable, they know the rules.

-help them with your physical posture, side stance, open escape routes, maintain personal space, appropriate eye contact.

-show support for the student with your manner, calm, in control, attentive, interested, empathetic.

-your language should: seperate you from the problem, makes a situation win/win, supportive language that shows you want to help.

Making a behaviour plan for a child that can be challenging.

The plan needs to be very specific, made by people who know the child very well with clear steps that prescribe how specific, stated behaviours should or could be managed.

At this stage of the presentation we were able to formulate a behaviour plan with our colleagues for one of our challenging children.

Notes from autism speaker, ideas hints and tips

STP 2.4

People with Autism.....


Present with three issues:
Social issues
Communication issues
Repetitive behaviours-focussed on one particular thing for a long period of times.

Mild presentation historically wasn't diagnosed as autism.
Severe stress exacerbates symptoms, symptoms with time and management can be hidden and people on the spectrum can function in society. Specially if their IQ is within normal range.

Unpredictable school setting can cause extra stress for ASD child, this can be managed by increasing predictably and explaining what is going to happen. Give advanced notice about relievers and expected transition to help child manage their expectations. Ten minute then five minute warnings to help anticipate transitions. All children on the spectrum have different needs, you cannot use a general strategy for managing all children with ASD.

Observe children and try to recognise how they respond to sensory stimulation such as light, sound and touch and then work our how they can lessen exposure or manage the way they cope with it.

Use social stories to help children manage stressful situations. Use a calendar, show them as much as you can before the event happens.

Steven Wiltshire of London the human camera

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