Module Five
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MODULE FIVE: PART ONE

LANGUAGE LEARNING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES

Resource: Constructing Meaning (2nd Edition)

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION TO LANGUAGE LEARNING

THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIVIST MODEL Social constructivism has its origins in the work of Vygotsky (1978), who theorized that the ways we think are learned primarily through social interactions and that the ways we learn language develop as a result of our use of language in social contexts. According to Vygotsky, children are active in their own development, but other people in their immediate social context also play an important role (p. 5). In my classroom, I like to see several types of interaction occur. I often tell my students that we are learning together as a group. I will facilitate discussions and encourage discussions, as long as they are relevant to the topics being discussed. We work collaboratively by negotiating and developing shared meaning. I think that it is important to make learning relevant for my students. I remember as an elementary student wondering why do I need to learn this? and when will I ever need this in my life? I believe that by discussing the relevance of the curriculum topics is important for my students. By educating them with meaningful examples and information, learning will become more enjoyable for them.

I recently finished teaching my Grade 8 students the Pythagorean Theorem. Many of them wondered why they needed to learn it. I explained to them why it was developed and why it is important to learn it today. We then explored its use in society. Overall, I believe that they gained something from the lessons, as opposed to teacher-directed discussion.

As a social constructivist, I am able to be aware of the many inequalities that may be present within my classroom. In addition, I can provide my students with knowledge that is negotiated as a class. By working collaboratively in the classroom, children develop a sense of ownership of both their knowledge and language (p. 23).

TALKING FOR LEARNING In the past, a quiet classroom was valued as a good classroom, and a teacher who managed a quiet class was respected and rewarded as an effective teacher. Today, we understand more fully the role of talking in learning and realize that effective classrooms often feature much focused talk (p. 7). I believe that talking is an important part of the learning process. Students need to interact with each other in order to learn about effective communication, in terms of listening and speaking skills. Talking for learning includes questioning, focusing attention, problem solving, brainstorming, and making understanding more precise and more retrievable (p. 8).

From my experience and understanding of teaching children, talking allows for the students to gain a better understanding of the concepts being addressed or taught. I have a loud classroom in comparison with some teachers. I strongly believe that it is necessary to interact verbally about new ideas. Most often, children need to talk about the issues being raised in class. By discussing them as a class or in small groups, the learning occurs at several levels.

I have been supply teaching for almost two years now. As a supply teacher, you are able to view how different classes interact. In one school that I taught at, I was able to witness that the teaching styles of the teachers were very traditional. The teachers gave the students information verbally and the students were expected to listen and complete assignments without any discussion. I found supply teaching there to be challenging because there was no verbal interaction amongst the students. I believe that children learn not only by us, as educators, but by each other.

One of the greatest concerns expressed by beginning teachers is loss of control in the classroom (p. 8). Talking is a valued aspect of my classroom. It demands respect from everyone. Once this is established, I have full control over the class. I often call it organized chaos. I suppose that my views for teaching are based on the social constructivist theory. I believe that it is important for the students to discover answers for themselves in a variety of ways. I believe that this allows my students to gain confidence in their abilities as learners and individual thinkers.

CHAPTER THREE: EMERGENT LITERACY - Primary Classroom Book Choices

Choice 1: BROWN BEAR, BROWN BEAR, WHAT DO YOU SEE?, written by Bill Martin and Eric Carle.

I choose this book, not only because it was highly recommended by the text book, but by a colleague of mine. She has been teaching JK/SK for a number of years and she said that it was her favourite picture book. This book is perfect for emergent readers. The language within the book is repetitive, rhythmic and predictable. The words in this book are simple and easy to follow. I really like how the young children are included at the end of the sentence. This picture book would be perfect in any primary class.

Choice 2: THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR, written by Eric Carle.

I choose this book because it contains beautiful illustrations. It follows a rhythmic and predictable pattern throughout the book. The language is also simple for emergent readers. The story is based on a caterpillar which goes through the stages of becoming a butterfly. This book would be perfect for a unit about how things change with time, the life cycle and perhaps about importance of healthy eating. This book would be perfect in any primary classroom.

CHAPTER FOUR: THE NATURE AND ASSESSMENT OF READING and CHAPTER SEVEN: THE PROCESS OF WRITING

THE PROCESS OF COMPOSING As they write they think, and as they think, and receive feedback, they revise, develop new ideas, begin new pieces, share old ones, and continue their development (p. 192).

I choose this statement because I believe that it expresses the stages of writing perfectly. I think that it is important for primary children to make a connection to the process of writing. Primary children should be encouraged to write what they feel and what they know. As they learn more, they are able to expand on their thoughts and previous knowledge. The writing process is spiral, as opposed to linear. Writers do not stay in the same place for long when they write (p. 192). I believe that children need to practice writing at the primary age. If they are not encouraged to write, then they might have difficulty in their future trying to express themselves on paper.

THE STUDENTS ROLE IN A WRITING WORKSHOP They do, however, need quiet time to write, assistance with the conventions of written language, and an opportunity to discuss their writing and their ideas with others (p.199).

I choose this statement because I believe that children at every grade level require quiet time to write. It allows them to individually think about a topic and write about it on their own. By providing the students with some guidelines for writing, they are able to focus their efforts towards accomplishing that goal.

I believe that it is important to assist our students with the conventions of writing. With my experience in the intermediate grades, I feel that our students are not getting the assistance they need. It seems like there is so much emphasis on the primary grades to teach the conventions of writing, but as they move into junior and intermediate grades, there is a lack of attention to it. I am aware of this with my own class right now. I have made it one of my goals to improving their current writing skills. If a student can not express themselves on paper correctly, then how are they suppose to succeed in high school or in the real world.

MODULE FIVE: PART TWO

MATHEMATICS IN THE PRIMARY GRADES

Students engage in problem solving in all strands of the mathematics curriculum, as well as in many others. Problems are central to the real world of our lives. I believe that problem solving is a means of drawing connections between the abstract and real life experiences. Primary children need to gain the skills in order to successfully understand how to solve problems as they arise. These children need plenty of opportunities to discuss and articulate their understandings of the world around them. They learn from viewing each other and from the adults in their lives. Problem solving is one way in which people work collaboratively or independently to reach a conclusion about an issue.

I believe that it is important to model several different strategies for solving problems to children at an early age. By doing so, they become familiar with the means to solve problems. If we encourage primary children to think about the whole issue at an early age, than they will be better equipped to practice on their own as they get older. I think that it is important to allow children to share and express their ideas. This will allow them to view several techniques used to solve problems.

These are the strategies that I have found most useful with my students.

Create a Table, chart or list

Look for patterns

Make diagrams

Break it down into smaller problems

Eliminate possibilities

Reach a conclucion

MODULE FIVE: PART FOUR

Assignment Number Two

Question: What curriculum expectations are met during the patterns of warm-up in the warm-up activity sequence?

WARM-UP ACTIVITY SEQUENCE

(Taken from the Physical Education in the Primary Grades video)

Grade Level: 2

This warm-up activity was teacher directed. In the video, the teacher told her students a story to go along with each movement. I thought that this was a great idea because then they could easily remember the steps.

ACTIVITY SEQUENCE

Normally, teachers ask the students to form a circle holding hands. In the video, the teacher had everyone gather in the middle of the gym. She then had them pretend to blow a bubble. Once the bubble popped. The students sat down.

Have the students stretch their arms up to the sky.

Have them hug themselves. Four times in total.

1. Hug themselves, and then stretch arms up in the air.

2. Repeat step one.

3. Hug to the back

4. Repeat step one and then hit the floor with your hands.

Have them teeter-totter, side to side.

Have them stretch out their legs and teeter-totter. Have them cross their legs and repeat.

Have them cross their legs and bend down, so that they try to touch their head to their knees. Then have them pop up to the sitting position.

Ask the students how they would talk on the phone. Have them raise one foot to their head. Remind them to whisper when talking on this phone. Repeat for the other foot. You could ask them to answer a second phone. Both feet are raised up to the head.

Have them stretch their phone cord to the air (legs go up and are stretched out)

Have them put their legs down and raise their arms. Arms are raised on one side of the body, over the head, to the other side of the body. In the video, the teacher called this the sun rising.

Have them raise their hands above their heads, then trickle down like the rain.

Have them lightly tap the ground. Try this in front of them and to the sides of their body.

Have them shake their legs

Have them bicycle ride. They may use their arms to steer with.

Have them get into the crab walk position and stretch out.

Try some sit ups

Try some push ups

EXPECTATIONS:

Fundamental Movement Skills:

Demonstrate the principles of movement (e.g., at various levels, in relationships to equipment, using different body parts) using locomotion/traveling, manipulation, and stability skills.

Balance on a variety of body parts, on and off equipment, while stationary and moving (e.g., balancing on a bench without moving, walking forward on a bench)

Transfer body weight over low equipment in a variety of ways (e.g., from feet to hands to feet).

When reviewing the curriculum expectations for primary grades, I found them to be very vague. The expectations that I chose can be achieved by any number of physical education activities.

Some interesting facts that I discovered while watching the video are as follows:

Children are now 40 % less active

Grade 1 children are required to have 6 minutes of continuous movement.

Grade 2 children are required to have 7 minutes of continuous movement.

Grade 3 children are required to have 8 minutes of continuous movement.

Sponges make an excellent manipulative for young children learning hand-eye coordination. It is also less noisy and inexpensive.

MODULE FIVE: PART FIVE

Curriculum Document: Social Studies

Social Studies Strand: Canada and World Connections

Grade Level: 1

WEB DIAGRAM

The web Diagram that I have created is based on what the grade one students will learn in this unit. I have also created a list of some of the activities that I plan on doing to teach the above.

Activities

Read stories about different types of people found in a community.

Invite some parents in to share their knowledge and experience in the community.

Take a walk around the school to view how the community is interacting.

Visit a local museum.

Role-play different people in the community.

Show a variety of pictures.

Draw a map of the community on a drawing computer program

Treasure Hunt around the school

Create an Ant Colony and leave it in the classroom.

Resources

Bullard, Lisa. (2003). My neighbourhood: places and faces. Minneapolis: PictureWindow Books.

Casely, Judith. (2002). On the town: a community adventure. New York: Harper Collins Publishers.

Hollenbeck, Kathleen. (2003). Exploring out world: Neighbourhoods and communities. Scholastic Canada.

Useful Web Site

Scholastic Canada On-line activity about different people in the community

http://teacher.scholastic.com/commclub/index.htm