Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Waiting for something and sitting for a long time, is hard for children. If
something is taking a long time, send a few of the children off to do something
else and come back. Let them get up and stretch.
Talk to children like they are children, not adults, and allow them the time to
learn a new skill. If their interaction with the activity seems to be dwindling, end
the activity.
When reading a book, make sure that it is one that you enjoy, is good quality, and
has a simple plot with a balance of picture and text. Read the book many times so
that you are familiar with it and look up any words that you do not know. Think
of ways to help children become interested in the story, by possibly bringing in a
prop. Evaluate how children responded to the story. Could things have been
done differently? Could activities from the story be used throughout the day?
When talking to children, get down to their level and have good eye contact.
Make sure that you are really listening to them and showing interest in what they
are saying. Tell children what to do not what not to do. Talk about that day,
not what happened yesterday or what is going to happen tomorrow. Be honest
with them but give them simple answers they can understand. Name objects,
things, and people, and continue to use those names over and over. Speak
correctly and clearly, so the child can understand you and learn good grammar
and ask lots of questions. Respect them, laugh with them, and encourage
children. Use statements, not questions, when you want children to do
something. And always think before you speak.
something new. Patience is very important. We have to realize that things aren't
going to go exactly as planned and to be prepared for those little surprises. In
order to build a trusting relationship with the parents and student, we need to be
ourselves while being professional. Ways we can show this is, learn from others,
listen to mentors, observe how they handle disruptive situations, watch how they
diffuse a tense situation, leave personal problems at home, maintain a clean, safe
environment, respect individuals, attend professional meetings, establish a
trusting relationship with partners, and make sure to be a good listener.
Practice caregiving routines as curriculum
By using the Blooms Taxonomy verbs and WMELS, we can plan appropriate
activities to help children learn the concepts and skills they need. Blooms verbs
help give us an idea at where the child is developmentally. Can they remember,
understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, and create. WMELS gives us the
foundations to implement our concepts and skills. It lists sample behaviors to
help us determine where the child is developmentally. By understanding the
difference between concepts (an understanding of an idea or thought) and skills
(the ability to physically complete a task) we can make more appropriate lesson
plans.
Analyze the guiding principles and the five developmental domains related to the
WI Early Learning Standards
Integrate the WI Early Learning Standards into the programs teaching cycle
(ongoing assessment, planning and curriculum goals, and implementation)
By having an ongoing assessment, we can better determine what works and what
doesnt. This can help us with the planning of our activities to help us to achieve
our goals. As I continue to learn more about WMELS, I am finding it easier to use
in planning my activities. By taking the time to carefully plan our activities, we
will have a better time implementing them. It is also important to plan activities
that will work for different class sizes.
Evaluate learning and assessment activities using the early learning standards for
each individual child
By following the early learning standards, we are able to observe many
components of the child. Since observation is key, we need to make sure that we
do it effectively. By planning activities that dont require much teacher
participation and setting areas up so that we can see and hear what is happening,
is great for observation. Also, making sure that we are documenting our
observations. Sharing our observations with parents can show the childs growth
and help parents realize that you know and understand their child. We can use
our observations to help plan our activities and make any adjustments to the
activity, if needed. I am struggling with my opinion about testing and
assessments. I think they can learn just as much through play, and to think of a 3
year old having to take a test is just baffling. Children need to time to be
children. Even if they arent in classroom sitting at a desk all day, they are still
learning vital life skills through playing. I think a lot of problems are because
people want children to grow up too fast. Let the kids be kids, because they can
never get their childhood back and they only have it for a short amount of time.
We also need to make sure that our environment is appropriate and it supports
our philosophy and curriculum. Children spend the majority of their days at
centers, so we need to make sure our centers fit the needs of all children. Making
sure our centers are rich in experience, play, teaching, exposure to other people,
and making sure that the children feel important and have a place that they can
feel welcome and comfortable in.
Our centers should provide multiple sources of stimulation to encourage the
development of physical, cognitive, emotional, and social skills. Providing
children with opportunities for a lot of developmentally appropriate physical
activities, hands-on activities, adding change and variety, and using the
appropriate color and dcor in the appropriate areas are all things we can do to
make the environment more inviting.
Its also important to have the correct equipment and materials. Children need
spaces that they can feel comfortable in and have that time to relax a bit. Sand,
water, grass, rugs and pillows, and the lap of a caregiver respond to a childs
needs. Flexible materials and equipment and simple, complex and super complex,
units are also good items to have to allow children to explore and create.
Its important that the areas in our room have enough space, like in the block
area. Children can easily get upset if another child accidentally bumps into their
creation, causing it to fall down. We also need private places for children to go to
and make sure that we are accommodating children with special needs.