After a very restful holiday break during which I read not one but TWO novels , I am still finding myself unmotivated to sit down at the end of the day and post. So to respect my instincts, I'm going to be taking a hiatus from bakers and astronauts - definitely not forever, but a hiatus. I might pop in from time to time with something I need to get off my chest - something beautiful, something fascinating, something interesting - but in general, I won't be around much. I'll be teaching and studying and preparing for our move back to the States in June.
I hope that, if you're just finding us here, and you want to comment, you will. No one says the conversation needs to stop. And if you would like to keep in touch, please feel free to email me at alliepasquiergmail.com. I don't know how speedy my response will be, but you'll get one.
Happy New Year!
06 January 2011
13 December 2010
another post where I apologize for not posting, but now I ask for help.
I wonder what it is about reflection that seems to come and go for me. For two years, this blog has been the perfect place for me to reflect; but in the past few months there have only been a few posts here and there, with most of them being photographs. Those are good ways to communicate what is happening in the classroom, but without a series of photos that tells a specific story, I am not reflecting on (or sharing with you) the exploration and words of the children in the classroom. There are often things I find in other places that I want to share with you, but that is not the whole purpose of the blg, either.
This autumn, I made a larger commitment to a class blog that is for parents and children. It has been successful for sharing our learning with parents and it is worth the daily work. That has been a very positive part of this semester, but one that has taken away from this work. Between the classroom work, my Master's degree, and continuing to try to improve my classroom practice, the moments of rest have been few and far between. I am about to have a 2 week break from teaching and my work as a student, and I am looking forward to that. I also feel that it is time for me to revisit my work on this blog - what am I sharing? Why am I doing it? Who is reading it? Why are people continuing to read the blog? What more would people like to see/read?
I hope that you will help to answer these questions so that I can come into the new year with new ideas that are both for me and for you. Would you help me with that? Let's figure out how to make this best for all of us.
I'll pop in for conversation in thecomments between now and 2011, and perhaps a post. But let's all have a rest, enjoy the holidays (however you may celebrate) and think back on a fantastic year.
This autumn, I made a larger commitment to a class blog that is for parents and children. It has been successful for sharing our learning with parents and it is worth the daily work. That has been a very positive part of this semester, but one that has taken away from this work. Between the classroom work, my Master's degree, and continuing to try to improve my classroom practice, the moments of rest have been few and far between. I am about to have a 2 week break from teaching and my work as a student, and I am looking forward to that. I also feel that it is time for me to revisit my work on this blog - what am I sharing? Why am I doing it? Who is reading it? Why are people continuing to read the blog? What more would people like to see/read?
I hope that you will help to answer these questions so that I can come into the new year with new ideas that are both for me and for you. Would you help me with that? Let's figure out how to make this best for all of us.
I'll pop in for conversation in thecomments between now and 2011, and perhaps a post. But let's all have a rest, enjoy the holidays (however you may celebrate) and think back on a fantastic year.
12 December 2010
04 December 2010
27 November 2010
It looks like a mess at first glance. But after taking a moment to listen, it is anything but that. Phones meant for, well, talking, become price scanners. Markers and jars become the goods being sold at a toy shop. The two girls become the shop keepers. And a drawing/writing table becomes a place for pretend.
26 November 2010
Boy, am I busy. But I still get up each morning and spend the day with 16 amazing children. And Fridays are forest days - we spend the morning out in the trees and the mud. Sometimes I look back at photographs from August or May or June, and I think that those are my favorite times to be in the forest. But really, its the winter. Its cold, we can see our breath, there are no pesky leaves between us and the fantastic train viewing spot. On lucky days, it snows, and we stay out for as long as we can until our toes are almost frozen, then we go inside and watch a book on one more story and drink chamomile tea. Yes, I think winter might be the best.
18 November 2010
12 November 2010
moving forward, then turning around.
With the interest in construction in the classroom, our inquiry has been focused on pretend: what have the blocks become, and are we pretending to use the blocks for?
Before our November break, a large construction was made, and everyone agreed that it was a hotel. The children worked together to construct, then add details to, a large construction made out of the hollow blocks. There was even a preferred way of picking them up and moving them around.
We sat down and talked about hotels and found out what the children know about them: beds, pools, food, and car parks seemed to be the major themes. The children then sketched some basic ideas about what we might want our hotel to look like. As teachers, we saw the hotel they had already built as the rough sketch, and we wanted to give them the valuable experience of planning and drafting and collaborating, then building. They sketched on chalkboards.
We put the blocks away for the November break in preparation for a carpet cleaning. But when we returned from the week away, we used photo and video slideshows to reflect on the experience of creating the hotel to bring the children back into the mindset of hotel construction. But the spark just was not there anymore.
What was still happening, though, was construction with the big blocks. Structures were created and adjusted without specific ownership - the blocks and the structures becamse flexible constructions that are everyone's property. Multiple children would be in playing around the blocks, with some imaginging they were in a castle, and others pretending that same structure was a robot.
So our reflections on this behavior made us abandon the hotel. This group might enjoy a day of playing hotel after constructing it, but their fantasy play is so varied that it almost seems unfair to corner their play. I feel like this shift came from respect for the children's work and ideas. As teachers, we see our role as documenters and facilitators, especially during this inquiry. How can we help them go further? What else do they need? Who else can they be?
One way that we will be trying to share this documentation is through a large panel that spans a wall in the room. It will be a work in progress, documenting the progress and the story of their play and exploration of pretend. It is right at their level, too, so I hope it is used as a resource.
We're off to a funny start - going in one direction and turning around - but it seems like the best decision for this group. We're excited to see what they show us.
Before our November break, a large construction was made, and everyone agreed that it was a hotel. The children worked together to construct, then add details to, a large construction made out of the hollow blocks. There was even a preferred way of picking them up and moving them around.
We sat down and talked about hotels and found out what the children know about them: beds, pools, food, and car parks seemed to be the major themes. The children then sketched some basic ideas about what we might want our hotel to look like. As teachers, we saw the hotel they had already built as the rough sketch, and we wanted to give them the valuable experience of planning and drafting and collaborating, then building. They sketched on chalkboards.
We put the blocks away for the November break in preparation for a carpet cleaning. But when we returned from the week away, we used photo and video slideshows to reflect on the experience of creating the hotel to bring the children back into the mindset of hotel construction. But the spark just was not there anymore.
What was still happening, though, was construction with the big blocks. Structures were created and adjusted without specific ownership - the blocks and the structures becamse flexible constructions that are everyone's property. Multiple children would be in playing around the blocks, with some imaginging they were in a castle, and others pretending that same structure was a robot.
So our reflections on this behavior made us abandon the hotel. This group might enjoy a day of playing hotel after constructing it, but their fantasy play is so varied that it almost seems unfair to corner their play. I feel like this shift came from respect for the children's work and ideas. As teachers, we see our role as documenters and facilitators, especially during this inquiry. How can we help them go further? What else do they need? Who else can they be?
One way that we will be trying to share this documentation is through a large panel that spans a wall in the room. It will be a work in progress, documenting the progress and the story of their play and exploration of pretend. It is right at their level, too, so I hope it is used as a resource.
We're off to a funny start - going in one direction and turning around - but it seems like the best decision for this group. We're excited to see what they show us.
11 November 2010
07 November 2010
What Are Schools For?
I'd like to go to this conference on December 6th in London : What Are Schools For? Whole Education Conference 2010. Unfortunately it conflicts with my plans to go to TedxBrussels. What to do?
Whole Education is an interesting site - it is based in the UK, and their main goal is to have all children succeed - not just the ones who can afford to. School is more than academics - and having the skills to take on life, not just school.
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