Week 8 Reading Blog

 

 

 What?

 

 

The two readings I selected for week eight were, ‘Maternal literacy practices and toddlers emergent literacy skills’ by Edwards (2012) and ‘Toddlers as mathematicians?’  by Lee (2012). After viewing a video in the tutorial this week on infants learning through interactions as text participants, I was interested in finding out more about how toddlers create meaning from being participants in their social, emotional and physical worlds and consequently how they express their learning through their thought processes and verbal and non verbal communication. Furthermore, this research directed my thinking to the broader question of, how can our interactions with toddlers (as well as infants and preschool children...) enhance literacy and numeracy learning?

So What?

 

The first article, by Edwards (2012), ‘Maternal literacy practices and toddlers emergent literacy skills’ outlines how interactions, with very young children under the age of three, can aid literacy development, with a focus on parental interactions rather than those in an educational setting. The points presented in this article, in relation to literacy learning, highlighted the importance of parents modelling literacy behaviours in the form of enjoyment, engaging with texts during everyday routines, exposure to a variety of texts, encouraging verbal and non-verbal expression and the joint construction of meaning through shared intentionality.  

The second article, by Lee (2012), ‘Toddlers as mathematicians?’, explored the development of numeracy from the perspective of an educator, and how very young children create mathematical meaning through the exploration of their immediate environments. The main points this article presents are that, spontaneous, child-led experiences create the most beneficial situations for numeracy development. Furthermore children are therefore able to represent their knowledge and form understandings in concrete ways through the navigation of physical spaces, incorporating mathematical ideas such as spatial awareness, length, height, patterning and shape; the use of numerical awareness through counting, organising and classifying; the manipulation of play objects to reflect aspects of volume, size and weight involved in measuring and quantifying.

Now What?

As educators we must be aware of the importance of the initial stages of experience and making meaning that provide the foundation of future learning. Therefore social interaction and environmental exploration that toddlers encounter provide the foundations for learning in the form of behavioural processes such as understanding, observing, imitating, communicating and remembering. Educators can enhance literacy and numeracy learning for toddlers (and older children) by:

- scaffolding play experiences
- guiding learning rather than directing
- modelling thought processes and emotional regulation
- exposing toddlers to a variety of exploratory, play-based experiences
- exposing toddlers to multimodal forms of text and written language
- integrating numeracy concepts into daily routines (for example, patterns, rhymes, shape, organising, classifying and counting)

 

References

 

Edwards, C. M. (2012). Maternal literacy practices and toddlers emergent literacy skills. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 0(0), 1-27.

 

 

Lee, S. (2012). Toddlers as mathematicians? Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 37(1), 30-37.

Outcome 2.3

(Sources further information; developing &/or collecting resources for literary & numerical teaching & learning)

 Week 7

An action plan: identify something you have heard of or are interested in learning more about, creating a plan of action to investigate it further

As I have been interested in using play to support learning during early childhood, I have recently heard of the ‘Play is the Way’ Program. I would therefore like to find out more about this program and how it supports play based learning within preschools, early learning centres and schools. I have learnt and observed that play is profoundly important for the development of early literacy and numeracy through exploration and interaction and would like to know about which programs and resources are available to support imaginative play, especially those that can be used within diverse contexts (for example between preschools and schools).

To enhance my learning and investigate this program and find resources I will follow these steps:
1. Research the ‘Play is the Way’ Program online via the website...    

                                                https://www.playistheway.com.au/

2. Note resources and information provided by the website...
- ‘Play is the Way’ is catered towards primary schools, where the program uses play based learning in the form of ‘games’ to encourage ‘social and emotional’ wellbeing and pro-social behaviours through the development of positive identities, creative thinking skills and team based learning processes (play is the way, 2013).
- Resources include free resources such as videos, articles, descriptions and program guides and resources that can be purchased such as booklets, manuals and posters.
Administrators Guide: https://www.playistheway.com.au/img/cms/PITW%20Admin%20Guide.pdf
3. Research preschool equivalents of adaptations:
- Since this is a more primary school aged program, is there anything similar for preschool and if not how could this program be adapted to suit the birth-4 age group?

Resources for further learning:
- Find definition for play and its importance: http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/every_child_magazine/every_child_index/why_play-based_learning.html
- Read about the development of social behaviours:
This book, 'Child’s Play: Revisiting Play in Early Childhood Settings’ by Elizabeth Dau (2001) explores child development through play and is available from the Flinders library. (Image from Google Images)

 

 

 

 - ‘Play is the Way’ professional development oppurtunities, Adelaide 19^th February 2014.
- Lady Gowrie centre professional development learning oppurtunities for further information on adapting using the elements of social behaviour development from ‘play is the way’ in preschool contexts:http://www.pscsa.org.au/cms/files/July%20-%20December%202013%20Training%20Calendar_0.pdf (Also helpful for identifying play and curriculum integration through the Early Years Learning Framework, and how to support a range of play experiences)

 References:

About Play is the Way. Retrieved September 16, 2013, from the Play is the Way Web site:
https://www.playistheway.com.au/

Play is the Way Administrators Guide. Retrieved September 16, 2013, from the Play is the Way Web site:
https://www.playistheway.com.au/img/cms/PITW%20Admin%20Guide.pdf

Why Play-Based Learning? Retrieved September 16, 2013, from the Early Childhood Australia Web site: http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/every_child_magazine/every_child_index/why_play-based_learning.html

July - December 2013 Training Calendar. Retrieved September 16, from the Lady Gowrie Child Centre SA web site: http://www.gowrie-adelaide.com.au/cms/

Week 7 Reading Blog

 What?

The two readings I used to support my learning this week were ‘Creating and using a mathematical environment’ by Tucker (2010) and ‘Learning to Read the World: Literacy in the first 3 years’ by Rosenkoetter & Knapp-Philo (2004). This week I was interested in looking into the learning environment and how we as educators can structure it best to allow for the most beneficial exploratory learning and also how our interactions with children can help guide learning and the relationship between the environment and intentional teaching. Therefore I felt these articles provided a comparison between these questions in the form of answering my broader question of, how do children make sense of their environment through literacy and numeracy?

So what?

The article by Tucker (2010) provided a comprehensive overview of the practical ways in which educators could support mathematical learning and the development of numeracy through the structure of the learning space and consequently how it effects a child’s ‘psychological’ and ‘physical’ learning attitudes (p.15).  Tucker (2010) outlined the importance of the environment on learning outcomes where the resources, organisation of physical space, and correspondence of inside and outside environments can enhance or limit learning in the form of encouraging multimodal and diverse ways of thinking, diversity of experience, self-confidence and autonomy, shared intentionality, individualised learning processes and enjoyment.

The second article by Rosenkoetter & Knapp-Philo (2004) explored how children develop early literacy in the form of everyday communication and interaction where:
- words and their corresponding concrete and implied symbols help form literal and applied understandings.
- Through the use of verbal, drawn and written and other multi-modal forms of communication children begin to realise their own autonomy
- Children gradually build a personal profile and repertoire of communication within family, cultural, social and community contexts by interacting, imitating, observing and creating using literacy
- With continuous exposure to words, books, speech, signs and symbols children learn to understand their world
- Successful literacy learning depends on the following relationships and the partnerships they create: (see diagram below)

                                                     

Now what?

Both articles illustrated the highly integrated nature of literacy and numeracy within every day, exploratory experience that centred on interaction within the social context. Children therefore make sense of their environment through literacy and numeracy as these skills give them the tools to be able to communicate, explore and form understandings. While much of the literacy and numeracy development comes from being a social, environmental and psychological participant within their world. From a more practical point of view, educators can structure the learning space for optimal engagement by utilising everyday materials and involving children in the creation and implementation of learning experiences by encouraging imaginative play, creative expression and shared thinking.

References

Rosenkoetter, S. & Knapp-Philo, J. (2004). Learning to read the world: Literacy in the first 3 years. Zero to Three, 25(1), 4-9

N) Tucker, K. (2010). Why play? & Creating and using a mathematical environment. Mathematics through play in the Early Years (pp. 5-14). London: SAGE Publications

Outcome 1.3

(Specifies the teaching approaches you’ll use & the learning environs you’ll create to support the social dimensions of early literacy/numeracy)

Week 6

A resource: select& present a resource you have found or developed, providing justification for its use when working on literacy or numeracy with very young children

I began my learning this week by viewing a professional learning video from the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership Limited website:

http://www.teacherstandards.aitsl.edu.au/Illustrations/ViewIOP/IOP00210/index.html

The video was called ‘Thinking Mathematically’, which focused on using inquiry based learning with concrete experiences through the strategy of storytelling (AITSL, 2013). This video was in the context of junior primary; however it reinforced the ideas from my reading blog this week about learning through creativity, using stories and the art of storytelling through different mediums as a basis for learning in the form of both literacy and numeracy. I also felt the techniques that were presented could be adapted to a preschool setting, for example using inquiry learning through play and extending the children’s interests and knowledge through strategic questioning, modelling thought processes while reading stories and scaffolding learning with real life experiences (Wang et al, 2009). Storytelling is therefore a good teaching strategy as it emphasises the social function of learning, taking place in a group environment but can also be utilised from an individual point of view. From viewing this video I learnt how stories can be used to teach multiple concepts at the same time. Following this I found a resource that could be used in a preschool setting on an interactive TV or whiteboard which I think promotes both literacy and numeracy learning. The resource is from the ‘ABC Splash’ Website and is an interactive story, featuring multicultural perspectives (ABC, 2013). The link for this resource is:

http://splash.abc.net.au/media/-/m/31932/just-like-me-rose-dawit-and-zeina?source=early-primary-English

Children are able to build personality profiles for each of the characters by selecting activities each character likes to do best, consequently helping children to begin to relate their identities to those of others, while much of the learning present involves literacy, numeracy could be integrated by the teacher using strategic questions, for example “how many activities do we need to choose? Let’s count them...” However, as this game is interactive where each child can have a go using it on the interactive whiteboard, the numeracy involved also relates to using hand eye coordination, spatial awareness, sequencing, organising, problem-solving as well fine motor skills and cognitive planning  that are associated with literacy. While the age level recommended for this activity is year 2, I think this resource could be used in a preschool setting well as all the text and instructions presented are read aloud and it would not be an activity that was child led, instead more teacher directed for the purposes of a group time.

 

References

 

Just like me: Rose, Dawit and Zeina. Retrieved September 9, 2013, from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) web site:http://splash.abc.net.au/media/-/m/31932/just-like-me-rose-dawit-and-zeina?source=early-primary-english

Thinking Mathematically. Retrieved September 9, 2013, from the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership Limited web site:
http://www.teacherstandards.aitsl.edu.au/Illustrations/ViewIOP/IOP00210/index.html

Wang, F. Kinzie, M.B., McGuire, P. & Pan, E. (2009) Applying Technology to Inquiry-Based Learning in Early Childhood Education. Early Childhood Education Journal, 37, 381-389.

 

 

 

 

 

Week 6 Reading Blog

What?

The two readings I selected for this week were ‘Telling stories in the 21^st Century’ by Neville Dwyer (2008) and ‘Mathematics Save the Day’ by Julie Clark (2007). I selected these readings as following the tutorial last week and my reading blogs on the integrated nature of literacy and numeracy in Early Childhood and how these skills correspond with play and the learning that occurs through everyday situations. Consequently this learning directed my thinking to the use of strategies to best incorporate imaginative and creative thought within literacy and numeracy learning. The question I particularly wanted to look further into was, how can the use of storytelling aid the development of literacy and numeracy within preschool contexts?

So what?

The first article, ‘Telling stories in the 21^st century’ by Dwyer (2008) focused on the implications of technology usage and how it can effect young children’s learning by engaging children in becoming the creator of their own narratives, based on everyday situations, helping them to develop critical thought processes by developing deeper interests in the world around them. Dwyer (2008) also evaluated the notion of children feeling in control of their literacy learning, with recording stories and narratives via technology enabling young children to become actively involved in the learning process through the use of digital media, for example using photography and drama to depict and relate to stories and ideas from their own environments.

The second article ‘Mathematics Save the Day’ by Clark (2007) described how stories can be used to enhance interest and engagement within the learning associated with numeracy. Children learn best through doing, existing in their interpersonal worlds, therefore using stories to teach numeracy concepts aids development as it allows children to view ideas represented in exciting, visual ways and relate them back to their everyday experience (Clark, 2007). The use of storytelling to teach numeric concepts is also socially inclusive as stories allow for a range of diverse learning needs by integrating everyday life with imagination (Clark, 2007).

Now what?

It is important for early childhood educators to implement a range of teaching strategies to enable young children to use the multiple thought processes associated with being literate and numerate and in a range of contexts. By utilising a mix of everyday, directed, imaginative and play based experiences educators can ensure that young children are able to explore literacy and numeracy in a range of contexts and begin to connect their learning back to experience and self-satisfaction within their explorations.

References

Clark, J. (2007). Mathematics Saves the Day. Australian Primary Mathematics Classroom, 12(2), 21-24. Retrieved September 9, 2013, from A+ Education Plus Text Informit

Dwyer, N. (2008). Telling Stories in the 21^st Century. Every Child, 14(2), 32-33. Retrieved September 9, 2013, from A+ Education Plus Text Informit

 

 

 

Outcome 1.2

Week 5

 An Experience: describe something you saw or were a part of & what you learnt as a result

 I was at a family gathering over the weekend and I was observing my second cousin (who I will call by the pseudonym of 'Sarah'), who is three and a half, engaged in play with a set of animal families and a train set. The way she assigned personalities to each animal figurine and how she connected the two worlds of the animal families to that of the train set, directed my thinking to how literacy is so interconnected in everything we do and experience. Imaginative play fascinates me, how during childhood we have the potential to create other realities, separating the reality of the present from the reality of the imagined, yet still exist and communicate within the two environments at the same time. Sarah continued to switch between communicating within the two different contexts quickly and effortlessly, whenever she was spoken to by an adult she would lift her head, reply to what they were saying and then go back to displaying the personality of the animal she was impersonating in her imaginative play.

I was amazed at how well she could modify her communication style to suit the context. This observation drew my attention to the point that Barratt-Pugh (2000) made in her article, how so much of the learning involved with literacy and becoming literate is embedded in our everyday social and cultural interactions and understandings. Where Sarah was demonstrating her understanding in a practical sense of what family meant, which social roles were required, how trains could be used for transport, how dialogue can be used to represent talking and communicating within situations and how social roles can be represented and recreated between contexts. Sarah was also able to process and make sense of what was happening in her external, physical world whilst being simultaneously engaged with her internal, cognitive world.


Relevance to Topic Outcome:

1.2 Explains how young children’s literacy & numeracy learning can be socially conveyed through their behaviour, feelings or approach

References:

Barratt-Pugh, C. (2000). The socio-cultural context of literacy learning. In C. Barratt-Pugh & M. Rohl (Eds.), Literacy learning in the early years (pp. 1-27). Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin

Week 5 Reading Blog

What?

The readings I selected for week 5 were, ‘Being numerate’ by Jenni Connor (2011) and ‘The socio-cultural context of literacy learning’ by Caroline Barratt-Pugh (2000). I chose these two articles in particular as I was interested in finding out how integrated literacy and numeracy skills are as tools for everyday, contextualized situations. These articles were interesting to read and helpful to be able to apply and reflect on the ways in which literacy and numeracy skills are taught and explore the practical implications of the way in which we view these concepts and how that affects the way we design learning activities.

So what?

Both the articles had similar main arguments, that is the interconnectedness of literacy and numeracy to everyday situations and in particular learning the skills associated with being numerate and literate involves simply, ‘doing’.

 The article by Connor (2011) explored the way in which we use numeracy to guide our behaviour and make sense of our world, how activities that children are exposed to on a regular basis are the foundation of numeracy learning, in doing so this article also questioned the way early educators perceive the meaning of numeracy and what it means to be numerate. Here Connor (2011) examines how we see such activities as ‘play’ involve many skills that are involved with numeracy, for example developing awareness of space and how to make sense of our physical environments, using cognitive processes that aid critical thinking  and consequently being able to process and talk about what we are doing or seeing.

Similarly in Barratt-Pugh’s (2000) article looked at the practical implications of the way we teach literacy and how literacy is context dependent and should be integrated with social and cultural understandings and philosophies. Therefore by simply interacting and existing within a variety of cultural and social contexts children are beginning to build their literacy through communicating, scaffolding diverse situations to create more meaning (Barratt-Pugh, 2000).

Now What?

The way we think of literacy and numeracy is vitally important for successful teaching of these skills. It is interesting to consider the effects of how our perceptions of the meanings of the words ‘literacy’ and ‘numeracy’ can change the way we structure activities to gain the most beneficial learning of these skills. During early childhood, by simply using everyday materials, situations and experiences we can enhance the way in which children develop their ability to be literate and numerate in a range of diverse situations.

References

 Barratt-Pugh, C. (2000). The socio-cultural context of literacy learning. In C. Barratt-Pugh & M. Rohl (Eds.), Literacy learning in the early years (pp. 1-27). Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin

Connor, J. (2011). Being numerate. The Early Years Learning Framework Professional Learning Program No. 22, Canberra: Early Childhood Australia & Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR)