Reading for your perusal

Afternoon Rebecca,

Below is a link that takes you to a cluster of readings on a web page called:
Teachers Work: growing through critical reflection and action.

Reading in '2011 - Volume Eight: Issue One that may be of interest to you include:

An-other Look at Assessment: Assessment in Learning KERRY EARL AND DAVID GILES
This article seeks to review understandings of educational assessment as revealed in the phrases teachers use (assessment of learning, assessment for learning and assessment as learning). We propose a reconsideration of what teachers might have taken for granted in these phrases and assessment practice. We suggest that along with assessment knowledge and skills, teachers need a way of ‘being in’ assessment ...
http://www.teacherswork.ac.nz/journal/volume8_issue1/earl.pdf


Professional Dialogue as Professional Learning ANNE GREY
This article discusses professional dialogue as an important aspect of professionalism for early childhood teachers. It draws on the experiences of four qualified early childhood teachers of one teaching team in an early childhood centre who engaged in extensive professional dialogue with each other. Dialogue focused on the values that underpinned and were reflected in their teaching practice. These values were discussed in order to explore the commonalities and differences in teaching philosophies amongst the team ...
http://www.teacherswork.ac.nz/journal/volume8_issue1/grey.pdf

Effective Educative Mentoring Skills: A Collaborative Effort LYN McDONALD AND ANNALINE FLINTTeacher induction programmes provide critical support for new teachers moving into teaching. The focus of this paper is to examine and identify the specific understandings, attitudes and skills educative mentors require in supporting Provisionally Registered Teachers’ (PRTs) learning .
http://www.teacherswork.ac.nz/journal/volume8_issue1/mcdonald.pdf

Happy reading-
Joann

December Teacher Registration Meeting.

Morena Rebecca,

Thank you for taking the time to sit and assess your progess so far, in working towards gaining your full Registration.
Rebecca, to date you have meet 2/3 of the goals, today have identified how you have or could further achieve and/or provide documentation that meets the rest of your goals. Those areas yet to be covered include:

• 3
• 5
• 8
• 9
• 15
• 18
• 22
• 26
• 27 &
• 28

Looking forward, we discussed that you feel that you need to be more consistant with your entries- rather than attacking it in 'bursts' as you currently do. I will be observing you before xmas, and trying to add a range of methods to capture you in practice such as videos, photos and formal observation.

Keep up the great work Rebecca, you are an inspirational teacher, who shows authentic empathy and passion for children.

kia Ora
Joann

Incident form

Within each class at Natural Steps, we keep records every day for nappy changes, sleep check sheets, food and bottles, and we also have accident/incident forms. At the beginning of each week (and every morning in the case of the sleep check sheet) I fill in the children's names on the new forms and file away the previous forms. These forms are kept in a folder on nursery one's shelf for three months, after which they are discarded. The accident forms however, are treated differently. Usually it is the head teacher of the room that handles these, but as this wasn't being done regularly, I offered to take on that responsibility. At the end of each calender month, the accident forms are collected and the totals of type and adult involved are tallied. If there is anything that requires attention, it is discussed with the office and staff members concerned. Otherwise these are filed in the office.
There was one incident that I came across that concerned me. I noticed that there were two copies of an incident involving a child during their nappy change, and neither had been signed by a parent of the child. I brought this up with the centre manager, and informed her that I would speak to the parent concerned. I thought just in case this needed to be discuss further she should know I would be speaking with A's parents. When I informed the parent in the morning, he seemed surprised and had no idea at all. All I could do was apologise, explain how the incident form process should work, and reassure that it wouldn't happen again. I also put a note in his daily diary just so we had it in writing.
I was really disappointed to see what I viewed as lack of respect for the child and their parents. Even if only a minor thing, parents should always be informed. We are caring for their children, and they expect nothing but the best from us - always. I did inform my head teacher when she returned to work the next day, letting her know that when I found the two forms, I spoke to the parents.

By taking on the role of tallying and filing the forms, I meeting dimension 18,Professional Relationships - maintains accurate records.
I am also meeting dimension 22, Professional Relationships - maintains confidentiality, trust and respect. By informing the parents that I had come across this incident form they hadn't seen, I am demonstrating my respect for them. I spoke privately with them, maintaining confidentiality, and explained what the correct procedure should have been. I am trying to build a trusting relationship between us.

Easy communication with parents

Because we have recently changed the carrier of our online profile books, as soon as we post an entry, the parents get an email informing them. When I wrote the farewell page for Isaac, I was really pleased to get a response from his mum. I found it up lifting, knowing that she does look at the entries put on. You can't help but wonder sometimes if all your hard work is even seen. Now I know - it is.

This is evidence of dimension #19. communicates with families, whanau and caregivers. It is also evidence of dimension #20. contributes to the life of the learning centre, as our centre functions best when there is communication that happens both ways between the parents and the staff - especially the primary caregiver.

Change of primary care for a transitioning child

One of my primary care children is transitioning to nursery 2. When he first began in nursery one, he was a very sensitive boy. He had trouble settling down to sleep, refused to eat, and unless I was with him, was very unsettled. During our time together he has grown in confidence, would call out to anyone just to get them to look at him so that he would laugh and wave at them. The changes in him were amazing.

Now that he has moved over to nursery 2, I can see those personality traits returning. I have discussed with his new primary caregiver how this young boy was when he first began with me, and techniques she could try with him, but above all, how much he requires patience, care, and to be listened to. When I went outside today (September 28th), I was able to model for her what I meant. She mentioned that she found it easier to just let him be and to give him space. I agreed that, yes, he does require space, but he also needs clear boundaries. An example of this was when he left the sandpit, he carried the spade with him and then began to walk inside with it. His new caregiver seemed as if she wasn't sure how she should respond to this behaviour. I repeated to her that as well as allowing him space, he does need to learn the expected boundaries. I then modelled to her my explaining to the young boy that the spade stays in the sand pit, and that he needed to take it back. This was happily done. I reminded my colleague that because I was the former primary caregiver, we had formed a friendship. All it would take was for her to be consistent, to listen to him, and just a little bit of time and she would have the same with him. And if she's ever not sure of what to do, to just listen to him and he would tell her in his own way. Through this interaction, I was demonstration how I lead and support other teachers, dimension #25.

Documenting planning

As a team, the nursery one staff discussed our planning wall and the next steps (and the possibility of changing our approach to displaying it). One suggestion I had made was to implement a new format to the way we documented our group activities. It was an example I had seen in action when I worked at a nursery school in London, and I felt that it worked really well for getting information and observational notes written down quickly and efficiently. At the top of the front page we could write what the intended learning outcome is, and at the bottom, we evaluate the session and write what the next step is. The form was designed in A4, and was four pages as it was intended to use over four sessions. This way, the activity was able to be either continued over four consecutive days, or else extended over the four days. I sometimes find that we set up an activity one day, but the next it has gone and something else has replaced it. I am of the opinion that if we introduce something (a resource, a set of skills required, a game, etc) then we also need to provide plenty of opportunities for those skills to be rehearsed over and over).

I will look through my storage boxes at home for an example of it, otherwise I will recreate the form to introduce to my team, see what they think, and alter it to best meet our needs.

Being with babies

An excert about interactions with babies-in particular the pikler and RIE approaches.

Babies have a marvelous affect on us. They enchant us. They touch us very profoundly.... And yet... many times it happens that in the important moments of being together we do not really pay attention to them, because we are preoccupied with the tasks relating to them: putting on their shirts, wiping their bottoms, adjusting their diapers. We touch them, move them around, and sometimes fail to notice the expectation in their gaze as they look at us." This view is expressed by Anna Tardos from the Pikler Institute in Budapest, Hungary, in her Exchange article, "Being with Babies." She continues...

"We don’t think about how happy they would be ‘to help’ if we had a discussion with them in the meantime, and if we told them what we were up to:

"'Now, I am going to take off your diaper to see if there is anything in it. I am going to wipe your skin, lift your bottom. Will you allow me to do that? Now, I am going to put this coat on you. You see how pretty it is? Your grandmother made it for you. First I am pulling up on one arm, then the other. I have to lift you up a little bit. It’s not very easy, but we have made it.'

"Would they help? Yes. The baby would pay attention to what we are doing, would relax his arms, and, at the age of only a few months, he would reach his arms towards us when we show him the shirt. A real conversation can be formed this way between the adult and the baby. In this way, the hasty and careless movements that often cast a shadow on the joint activity during times spent together could be avoided: legs lifted too high, too swiftly being turned on the side, the baby&rsqu o;s arm getting stuck in the sleeve, or legs stuck in the zippered (not very practical) overalls. This can be a very unpleasant experience for the baby. And it also happens that, instead of a rich and meaningful dialogue realized in the course of the pleasure of being together, the adult must dress a crying and protesting baby. At this time, the adult would try to calm the baby down: 'I can see that you are tired. Alright, I am going to hurry, and we’re going to be done real soon.' Meanwhile, the movements become even faster, and quite often overhasty, thus even more unpleasant for the child. It’s a shame. Why? Because the activity of getting dressed or changed, repeated several times a day, can also be a joyful encounter of being together!"


Joann