Kindergarten Today

Spontaneous learning...

When I posted the photos of our table centers I mentioned independent exploration as one of the ways children learn. Yesterday was a great example. Earlier in the month I purchased ten calendars for ten cents each at a clearance sale. They’ve been sitting on top of the bookshelf in science center ever since. I’ve just failed to mention them.

Yesterday one of my girls asked me why they were there. I said, “Well, I just thought they would be fun to look at. You can treat them like a book- take one to your seat or sit on the rug with it.”

Within two minutes I overheard excited conversations all over the room.

“Look, here’s March just like our calendar on the board!”

“There’s my birthday!”

“Mrs. Maurer! Look! Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday! All of them!”

“I’m looking for November. That’s my birthday!”

On and on. I just listened and watched in amazement as my students “studied” excitedly for at least fifteen minutes.

Now I’m wondering what other teaching tools I’ve overlooked at the discount store!!

Busy Hands- Busy Minds

There is always a temptation in kindergarten to do more and more paperwork, especially in the spring when students are beginning to read independently. However, I still try to maintain a balance and let my children learn by experience and exploration. I hope you enjoy these new photos of my students during art and "table centers". You'll also notice that one of my students chose to "just read a book"- her words.

Picture Day

We had our group photos taken for the yearbook yesterday. The procedure is for the photographer to take one photo with a small digital camera that is connected to a printer. This photo is used for identification. (I look at it and fill out the names for captions.) Then there are two shots on the “big camera” that are developed later. Here is what happened with our class:

 “Oh, good, you have everyone sized from tallest to shortest! Okay, you first five stand in the back. No, you sweetie. Any you, you, you, and you. Not you. Just five.

Now this group needs to be on their knees. No, not your bottom. Your knees. No, up. Yes, stay like that.

Good, let me have the rest of you criss-cross on the front row. Oh, you have a dress. Well, sit with your legs to the side. The side. Like this. No, this foot over. Okay, don’t move. No you have to sit, you don’t have a dress. Okay, everyone stay like that. We’re going to take three photos.”

O f course in between instructions from the photographer I’m repeating most of what she says, but with the names, because she doesn’t know anyone. Of course as an “outsider” she doesn’t “get it” and still refers to the children without using their names, and of course they continue to ignore her. In case you are also an “outsider” reading this, the rule with little children is: If she doesn’t call me by name she MUST mean someone else! LOL

So we’re all in our places, with bright shiny faces…

“Okay, everybody say cheese. No, sweetie put your shirt down. You in the flowers…down. No back up on your knees. Thanks.  Okay, red, no, no… don’t put your hand on your nose. Everybody on the second row put your hands down. Back up on your knees. You in the back row, look at the camera not your friend. Okay, okay. Everybody say cheese. Right here. Look at me. Great!! Okay one more. Last one, promise. Oh, you guys were wonderful. Stay there while I print this for your teacher.

 Okay, Mrs. Maurer, just take this print and fill out the names, in capital letters please, and return it to me later.”

I turn to the class….

and suddenly there is another little body- a very late little body.

Good morning!

Start over.

“Okay, front row, back on the floor. No, just the front row…”

Embracing Technology

I recently attended a teachers meeting with an excellent speaker. Her topic was “engaging students in learning” and her focus was on preventing high school students from dropping out of school. The primary method for engaging students these days seems to be technology, and that is also the preferred method of our speaker. Classrooms from K-12 are installing computers, printers, cameras, smart boards, software, and even hand-held devices and laptops to integrate technology into the curriculum. Our speaker is in awe of the potential for student achievement in a future liberated by technological advances.

However, our speaker’s experience in front of our group was typical of the experiences most of us have had in our classrooms. Her first three attempts to connect her laptop to the school’s system failed and a tech advisor had to be called in to get everything integrated properly.  We waited far more patiently than a room full of young students would while he worked. Then half-way through her Power Point presentation, a link was broken for a video and she stopped and tried to find it on her original file, but instead somehow managed to shut down Windows. Again, we waited while that problem was solved.

I’m not faulting our speaker. I’m sure she is far more knowledgeable about technology than I am.  It is simply the nature of the beast- if there is a machine in the room, it will at some point fail- generally when you need it the most! In fact, I would have to say that out of all the Power Point presentations I’ve seen in the past five years, I can’t remember one, not ONE, which has gone from start to finish without a problem. Some were probably “operator error”, but many were just victims of the inherent glitches that go along with embracing technology.

The same things happen in the classroom. Teachers don’t get nearly enough training in technology and then they are expected to use computers and smart boards with ease and professionalism. If something goes wrong there is usually a long wait for a tech advisor. Or you might be in the middle of a lesson and there is a sudden announcement that due to “blah, blah, blah” (that has nothing to do with you or your classroom) the network will be down for a few hours. Then it’s on to plan B. And if you are embracing technology you’d better be sure you always have a “plan B”.

The other problem with technology is that few schools are properly equipped. The usual ratio of computers to students is one to twenty, except for lab time if you are lucky enough to have a lab. And if you do have a lab, then you have to be ready to handle any and all problems on twenty computers at once, unless you have a lab teacher. Or you might have as many as six computers to twenty students in your classroom, but that still involves planning and sharing. It also makes it difficult to engage the students who are not at the keyboards because they are watching those who are and anticipating their turn.

Computer learning is entertaining. It is engaging. It is beneficial in many situations. However, I can’t see that our students have made astonishing improvements in reading or reasoning because we now have more technology in our building. I don’t find them more informed or more interested in learning. In fact, I find some of our fourth graders a bit jaded. Some have the “been there, seen that” mentality. They’ve been on computers for most of their lives. They become impatient and bored if things don’t happen at the speed of DSL. They are no longer amazed by Discovery Channel or enthralled by the fact that they can visit with a classroom in New Zealand. They know that information is just a click away if they need it; what they want is to play games, watch You-Tube, email their friends, and visit My Space.  

Don’t think that I’m anti-technology, or just an old granny who is afraid of progress. I love my computer. I wish I had six or eight in my classroom. I wouldn’t turn down the offer of a smart board if someone wants to give me one! I suppose I just want to advise a bit of caution. As we embrace technology in our classrooms we need to realize that it only plays a part in the education of our children. We need to be careful that they are truly engaged in learning and not just entertained by the screen. They still need to be able to function independently and intelligently in a variety of situations. They need to know how to get along with people and establish real relationships. They need to be able to read and write and solve math problems. They need to be creative and innovative. They need to know how to think for themselves and solve problems without depending on chips and circuit boards.

If the electricity goes off I still know how to light a candle!