Wednesday, 24 February 2016

supporting children's learning using ICT tools as 'glue' in the active process







Hi all... at Kindergarten the trained team are always ready to articulate curriculum planning decisions we make. ICT is one of these areas. here's a clip from a different kindergarten in the Whānau Manaaki association from 7 or 8 years ago. This Kindergarten was part of a pilot project in the area of supporting science learning using simple ICT tools such as occasional internet with a teacher, digital photography and integration of highly magnified information using microscopes and images to process and express what we've discovered. You may recognise the approaches and some of the tools as this Kindergarten shares personnel with ours! :)

Take a peek of the whys and possibilities for developing children's working theories.......

Monday, 22 February 2016

Vinnie .... Ako at Kindergarten!





Vinnie shares with us his passion around machines...... and tackles challenge to find an ever widening range of ways to express his ideas. How fab that he is taking on a learning risk in the learning pathway he is following... and a leadership role as he shares his work with others...kia kaha! Great work in our Kotahitanga and Manaakitanga project my friend!


Thursday, 18 February 2016

QUALITY EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION PISA RESULTS


QUALITY EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
PISA RESULTS
Early childhood education helps overcome the effects of poverty on maths results.
Children living in poverty in New Zealand are more than six times more likely to under achieve in maths than well-off children, a new report from the OECD says.
The report, "Low-Performing Students - Why They Fall Behind and How To Help Them Succeed" found the disadvantage of poverty was made even worse by a lack of early childhood education.
While poverty is the most significant factor in achieving in maths, the report says taking part in early childhood education for at least a year is also significant. Children who miss out on ECE are three times as likely to fail at maths.
The report is based on the results of tests of 15-year-olds known as PISA (the Programme for International Student Assessment).
New Zealand’s results were above average, but have fallen behind since the last assessment, and inequality had worsened.
The report said poor performers tended to do less homework, have less perseverance and motivation, and were more likely to skip classes than higher achievers.
New Zealand had stronger than average links between socio-economic status and low achievement, but it did not have more low-achievers than most other developed countries.
The report recommends that countries ensure schools were supportive but also demanding, and provide under-achievers with remedial teaching as soon as possible. Ensuring children from diverse backgrounds are attending the same schools helps lift lift achievement, the OECD's analysis shows.

Tuesday, 9 February 2016

kotahitanga and manaakitanga 2





Here's the start of a new project... displayed on the wall at Kindergarten..... keep up with the state of the nation as our new and older learners find ways to work and learn together......

poi







 Here's a more recent shorter project from last term... . feeding into this term........ what great poi and kapa haka work we have seen.........

cooking in the sand







for facebook fans...you'll be used to revisiting posts from the past.  This is from this time last year. what a lot of learning has happened since then!  You might enjoy revisiting our learners responses to the planned project... and the families contributions.  sand and sun and holiday experiences... it will lead in our children's minds to how ingredient mix together and what results. It's a great way to develop dramatic play scripts and to encourage thinking skills based on observations.