Kei Tua o te Pae

This is an exemplar of learning that is distributed across or “stretched” over people, places, and things: the teacher, the place (in this case the photograph of a place), and the things (the blocks). Jak appears to be exploring how three-dimensional objects can be fitted together and moved in space, also ways in which spatial information can be represented in photographs and used as a guide for building. Jak uses analogy (it’s like a skeleton) to make sense of the teacher’s explanation. This ex…

Group learning storyOctoberAfter reading the story about Hinemoa and Tūtānekai, we talked about the carvings in the whare of Tūtānekai and what each part of the wharenui was called in te reo Māori. We talked about how they could have been made.

Grayson said, “Special carvers made them with hammers and knives.” The other children agreed.

Azia asked if she could make a whare. I said, “Sure. What do you think you could use to make it?”

Grayson said, “You could use the ice block sticks like I did…

8 NovemberIt is so hard to believe for all of us that our beloved marae has been burnt down. The children are constantly talking about it. Many drive past it each day to come to kindergarten. The teaching team has engaged in much dialogue with the children and together they have come up with a plan. Not just some ordinary plan, a marvellous plan indeed.

This is what has been decided at our morning meetings with children. Whaea Taini has lost so many precious things and so why not make her somet…

This domain of Contribution/Mana Tangata is about children’s growing capacity to develop relationships with other people who are different from them in diverse ways. Relationships between teachers and children, and between teachers, provide models for the social skills and attitudes that support this capacity.

In her book You Can’t Say You Can’t Play, Vivian Gussin Paley begins by discussing children in the process of developing an understanding of relationships and of dealing with rejection:…

Black and Wiliam comment that:

What is needed is a culture of success, backed by a belief that all can achieve.26

A culture of success should be promoted where every student can make achievements by building on their previous performance, rather than by being compared with others. Such a culture is promoted by informing students about the strengths and weaknesses demonstrated in their work and by giving feedback about what their next steps should be.27

Such a culture avoids the idea that the…

Child: Aimee

Teacher: Chrissy

Aimee brought her “Peter Rabbit” book to kindergarten. I began reading the first page and the names Flopsy and Mopsy caught Aimee’s attention.

“Those rhyme!” she exclaimed.

I wrote the words “Flopsy” and “Mopsy” on a piece of paper.

“Which one do you think says “Flopsy?” I asked.

Aimee thought for a moment and pointed to the word and then she said, “And that must be Mopsy!”

I asked her to think of other words that could rhyme with these names. Aimee took grea…

The “te kākano” diagram lists a number of purposeful activities for developing and understanding mathematical symbol systems and tools. This diagram has proved useful for exploring the mathematics programme in early childhood settings. Using mathematical symbols, tools, and practices for a purpose includes:

setting and solving problems that use mathematical symbols and systems (as in the exemplar “Measuring the play dough”, where Tom uses a ruler and centimetres to compare the lengths of dough…

27 JuneGeorge took an interest in music today after I encouraged him to join in. He sat on my knee and gripped a stick puppet of a cow while we sang “Old McDonald”. He chewed on the cow’s leg and smiled at me. He really enjoyed it when I said “Moo, moo” quickly and loudly in a deep voice.

28 JuneGeorge became more involved in music today and danced to The Wiggles while standing and holding onto my hand. Previously, George has preferred to continue in solitary play during our music sessions, exp…

Using ICT for a purpose includes:

faxing and emailing family and others beyond the early childhood setting to communicate, strengthen reciprocal and responsive relationships, and seek information from experts;
making copies of work and text so that it can be taken home and shared with family and others;
making copies of drawings in order to tell a story. ICT that includes visual images and sometimes dictated text and/or music is a valuable tool for storytelling;
using the computer for social ne…

Child’s voiceChild: Olivia

3 September

Teacher: Judy

Olivia has just moved into a new home, which the family has been building up to for a few months. Olivia sat down next to me on the edge of the sandpit and told me all about her new house. After a while, she looked at me and said thoughtfully, “I know, you could write all this down!”

I went inside to get paper, pen, and clipboard. On my return, Olivia continued her story: “I’ve got one bed in my room and it is all white, and Tim has got tw…

Working theories is another name for knowledge, and the term reflects the dynamic nature of children’s exploration. Jane Gilbert writes about new ways to think of knowledge and learning.11 She suggests that significant knowledge is often important for what it can do, that is, for its usefulness. Working theories are exactly that: they are useful for solving problems or making sense of the world, and when they become less useful, they can be changed.

The world outside education is increasingly v…

Rangiātea, the 146 year-old historic church in Ōtaki, burned down in October 1995. The community was devastated.

The rebuilding has been a major undertaking that has touched the lives of many of the kindergarten children.

We took the children in small groups to visit Rangiātea. Whānau came with us. Many stories were told that we would not otherwise have heard.

One child’s great-grandfather’s carpentry tools were used – the planes were just like the ones used in the original.
Another child had…

3 MayToday the children experienced a sensory activity using paint. They first created pictures using the stamps and then, later on, they used the roller brushes on large pieces of paper. Some of the children wanted to experience the paint on their skin so they painted their hands, and those with bare feet walked through the paint making foot prints.



Tuesday 10 AugustWe have had a busy time inside today. We have had lots of sensory activities for the children. The play dough was out. Lat…

Learning storiesChild: Alexandra

Date: 30 November

Teacher: Helen

 
 

A Learning Story

Belonging

Mana whenua
Taking an Interest

Alex brought her portfolio to me and asked if we could look at it together. She had rushed off to get it after observing me checking through Corey's portfolio, which he was taking home with him today after celebrating his fifth birthday.

We turned to the first page, and Alex pointed out her name in a learning story and then ran her finger in a straight line…

28 February

Ezra wanted to be really tall today. He was walking around with the sawhorse held up high over his head. Later I noticed him under the tree house positioning the sawhorse in different ways, trying to reach the bottom ledge.

He tried standing on both the bottom and top of the sawhorse.

The sawhorse is upside down with its legs standing up.
Ezra works out how to reach the ledge more easily.

Then with intense concentration he walked around the playground. “I’m going to reach that tr…

Teacher: Glynis

Date: May

Suelisa's Pictorial Learning Story 

Today Suelisa came to the woodwork area, a part of the kindergarten that she hasn’t spent much time in until today. She watched some children using the glue guns and decided that she would like to make something too!

 

She chose two pieces of wood and proceeded to glue them together being very careful where she placed the glue. When she finished doing that I suggested she look in the baskets on the shelves to see what else s…

Learning story9 September

Teacher: Justine

Haere mai, Sam, and welcome to the Lincoln University Early Childhood Centre.

Sam appeared tired after Mum and Dad left, so I wrapped him in his blanket from home, and he fell asleep in my arms around 8.45 and slept until 9.30. He woke and gave us a few smiles as I held him, but he appeared quite drowsy and drifted in and out of sleep over the next hour. He fell back to sleep at 10.30, and I popped him back in his bed. He woke again at 11.15, complet…

Introducing Fe‘ao 

Learning story30 September Teacher: Karen

The children were all inside today as it was a rainy and windy day. When I came across Fe‘ao and Fatai, they had set up their own card game and were deep in concentration, taking turns to put their cards in the middle. They had found some dinosaur matching cards in the science area and were using these to play their game. When they ran out of cards in their piles, they would deal them out again.

Short-term reviewFe‘ao and his friend…

Child: Jak

25 June

Observer: Maya

Jak approached me in the back room and asked if I could help him build something. We sat down together and talked about what he would like to build. Jak started to put a base down. “What could this be, Maya?” Jak asked me. “I'm not sure, but maybe it's the floor of a building,” I replied. “Look around you, Jak. What could this be?”

Jak carefully looked at the pictures on the wall.

“I know, it can be a Māori house,” he said.

“Do you mean a wharenu…

Teacher: Jo

We have a new primary caregiver within the centre.

Welcome to Issy. Issy’s new role is taking responsibility for our young friend Jimmy who is five months old. Sitting comfortably in his chair, he had not long had his bottle when he began growling with a windy tummy. Issy heard this and went over to see if he was okay. She lent a hand by rocking his small chair back and forth and he soon smiled at her. She’d noticed he’d had a spill. Issy moved towards the kitchen sink, grabbing a…