References

Armstrong, C. (2007). Stealing time: Are mat times really nessary? The first years:  

            Nga Tau Tautahi: New Zealand Journal of Infant and toddler Education, 9 (1), 29-30

Epstein, A. (2007). The intentional teacher: Choosing the best strategies for

            young children’s learning. Washington, DC: National Association for the

Education of Young Children.

Haugland, S. W. (1999). What role should technology play in young children's learning? 

            Part 1. Young Children, (November 1999), 26-30

MacNaughton, G., & Williams, G. (2000). Techniques for teaching young

 children. New South Wales, Australia: Longman.

Ministry of Education, (1996). Technology in the New Zealand Curriculum.

Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.

Ministry of Education, (1996). Te Whāriki, he whāriki mātauranga mo nga

mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.

Smorti, S. (1999). Technology in early childhood. 

            Early Education, No.19, Autumn.   

Tsantis, L. A., Bewick, C. J., and Thouvenelle, S. (2003). Examining some common

           myths about computer use in the early years. Beyond the Journal. Young Children on the Web. November

      

"Reflection of Learning"

In my role as an early childhood facilitator I am constantly reflecting on my practice. Creating this blog has challenged my technological abilities with the computer. We are extremely reliant on the Internet and the ability to have uninterrupted service. Something I have not been privy to for the last two months, since changing providers. Ohhhhh the lure of a cheaper service :)

"There is an increasing awareness of the technological world that we live in: a world that people have created and changed technology" (Smorti, 1999, p. 5).

Te Whariki identifies the importance of children developing their own perspectives of the world "as well as the capacity to continue acquirering new knowledge and skills" (p. 5). Therefor I must also be prepared to acquire new knowledge and skills in order to provide experiences that are beneficial towards our children's learning and development.

Linda, Tsantis, Bewick, and Thouvenelle suggest "it is the teachers knowledge and skills about how to use the technology that makes the difference, not the technology itself" (Linda, Tsantis, Bewick, and Thouvenelle, 2003, p. 4). 

The above quote prompts me to question the knowledge I bring with me when encouraging children to explore technology and the social sciences. My blogs have generally focused on relationships, interaction and environment which is a strong point of my teaching style. I believe relationships are the key to all learning, however knowledge is also a very important part and in order to provide experiences the deepen our learning around technology I also have to ensure I am fully informed with the knowledge and skills attached to providing such experiences.

The comments posted also reflect an understanding of the relationships we have built with the centre community, children, parents and staff.

EVENTS - "Wheels Day"

"Technology is a universal and age-old human activity. People have always adapted resources to meet their needs, from such fundamental, far-reaching innovation and invention as the development of the wheel" (Ministry of Education, 1995, p.6).

The motorbike visit was very popular with our children and triggered lots of conversations about the types of bikes they have at home.....So we decided we would have our very own

"WHEELS DAY".

Our children were encouraged to bring in anything with wheels and we closed off the car park for the day and our children were able to ride, slide, skate, roll, push drive their wheels.

Following on from our conversations about helmets, why we wear them and the safety they provide...we encouraged our children to wear their helmets if they had one. Most of the children were quite competent with putting their own helmets on and only needed a little bit of assistance with the buckle.

J is very happy to pose in her safety gear!

Along with our bikes, prams, scooters, skateboards, roller blades, trikes and more......came some of our parents. closing off our carpark meant we had the freedom of the whole carpark with the safety of closed gates.

Our children were all very excited about bringing in something from home to share with their friends and teachers. The opportunity to bring in their wheels for a day helps "children to develop connecting links between the early childhood setting and other settings that relate to 'our children', such as home" (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 56).

An interesting outcome I was able to witness today was how comfortable the children felt while riding their bikes, scooters or skateboards. The increased confidence in children that are normally very cautious was quite a delight to watch and gave an insight into the confidence children display when they are familiar with the environment. Te Whariki espouses the importance of children being able to bring things from home to the early childcare environment. I believe it is extremely important for children to be able to make and strengthen the links between home and centre and having familiar things that connect to both environments helps develop a sense of belonging.

Our children, parents and staff had a fantastic day together....lots of laughter, smiles and fun had by all!

THINGS-"Spiderman Bike is a BIG Hit"

We placed a notice on our white board offering parents the opportunity to bring in any form of transport they might have that our children could explore. The offer was overwhelming with parents offering to bring in the different types of transport they used for their work. We also had M and EJ's dad offer to bring in their bikes. We gladly accepted all offers and then created a diary so they all didn't turn up at once :)
First came the bikes and they were a huge success. EJ's dad has a brand new Harley and while the Harley was favoured by most of the teachers......our children only had eyes for SPIDERMAN!!!!!!!

Vrrrmmmmm! Vrmmmm! The noise of motorbikes growled through the centre and the children gathered eager to see them up close. There were 1-2-3. One was a Harley Davidson, there was a big black bike and last a small but very cool bike with Spiderman designs on it.

I-L was keen to hop on the Spiderman bike and the other children gathered round. She seemed very comfortable as she held onto the handle bars. The children were absolutely convinced that this was sideman's bike.

"We need to be sure that what we are doing in our centres, everything that we are doing, adds value to children's learning" (Armstrong, 2007, p. 30)

The visit of these bikes gave I-L the opportunity to find out what it felt like to sit on a bike and to appreciate their size and the need for balance. I asked her if she liked the helmet but she shook her head. Perhaps it was a bit too claustrophobic? But she loved touching the shiny metal and was happy to sit on the bike.



The bike visit gave us an opportunity to talk about helmets for safety. Some of the children wanted to try the helmets on and were happy to wear them, other children found them quite heavy and claustrophobic.

PLACES- "Our Place"

Boxes boxes everywhere! Today I placed the empty boxes from the kitchen into the playground for the children to add to their play. C climbed into one of the large boxes and started rocking back and forth. Then he lifted his box up onto the large blue box and squeezed it into the opening at the top of the slide. C climbed inside his box, but the box didn't move! "Nanny" C called out, expecting me to come over and give him a push. "How are you going to get down" I prompted. C began to move his body and wriggle, wriggle, wriggled until it began to move........all the way down to the bottom of the slide. “Teachers who intervene too quickly” rob children “of the chance to become competent, independent people” (Epstein, 2007, p. 18).

He looked a little bit unsure of the speed his box was travelling at, at first, but once he realised he was safe at the bottom he jumped up with a big smile on his face. "I went down Nannny" he called out to me very proudly. R looked on as C climbed up with his box again. This triggered more children to pick up an empty box and use it to slide down the slide.

Some children found it difficult to place their box in the top of the slide and needed support from their peers to hold it steady as they climbed inside. I watched on as the children engaged in this activity supporting their peers when needed and offering the odd push to get them started.

"Technology is about helping people and solving problems" (Smorti, 1999, p. 5).

The children remained engaged in their play all morning and the group of children and their boxes grew. When there were no boxes left the children independently took turns sliding down in the boxes that were available. Broken boxes became surf boards as the children laid down on them and slid to the bottom. Soon trains were being made with children joining onto and then holding onto the box in fount of them and sliding down.

"Technology is also a creative and purposeful activity aimed at meeting needs and opportunities through the development of products, systems or environments. Knowledge, skills and resources are combined to find solutions" (p. 6).

Who would of thought a few empty boxes could create so much fun in a world where technology seems to rule.

Working alongside their peers, helping, supporting and co-operating together to achieve a common goal encourages our children to "develop the confidence and ability to express their ideas and to assist others" (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 58).

PEOPLE-"Our Local Firemen and their Big Red Engine"

Our children's interest in transport prompted a visit from the local fire service. Leading up to their visit we have been looking at videos, pictures and dress-up.
The use of technology was extremely valuable in helping our children to gain prior knowledge of the role of the fire service. By downloading You tube videos that showed our children the role of the firefigthers helped develop an understanding of the role the fire service plays in our lives.
"Using computers with young children should be a process of exploration and discovery for both teacher and child" (Haugland, 1997, p.15).
In dramatic play our children began dressing up in firefighter hats and jackets and pretending to be firemen and women.

No fires today so our local firefighters were able to come to along with their truck and treat our children and teachers to a very exciting visit. The whole centre turned out, eager to have their turn exploring the firetruck. Happy faces eager to absorb everything the firefighters had to say. The fire men were very good at engaging the children and had them hanging onto their every word!

 First our firefighters gave us a tour of the truck, demonstrating all the different parts, tools and features found on the truck.

This was very exciting for the children and the teachers

The fireman explained how the cutters were used when they needed to gain access to a fire. "It's cuts the car" M told D quite proudly. Both boys looked up at the large cutters and agreed. they had seen a video where the firemen cut open a car to release a trapped person.

Inviting the fire service along to the centre helps children to make connections with events that happen in our centre such as our fire drills.

"Children develop an understanding of the links between the early childhood education setting and the known and familiar wider world" (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 56).  

Practising our fire drills is an important part of educating our children to keep them safe in the event of a fire. Visits from our local fire service help our children to understand and make links with the centre, home and community.

The children eagerly waited for the demonstration with the hose. This demonstration received the loudest cheer, especially when he turned around and sprayed the water over the crowd.

Next we needed a volunteer to get dressed into the protect wear firefigthers need to have on when they are fighting fires. 

 M our toddler teacher, volunteered eagerly. Our firemen explained each piece of uniform and equipment as it was placed on M. 

I was surprised how patient and attentive our children were during the visit. Technology is all around us and as teachers we are able to readily access all forms of technology to help support our children's learning.
Using technology helped our children tie together and make sense of their world. Because we have been showing videos, books, pictures and dress up relating to the fire service, our children were very keen and excited to view the real deal!