On Friday I spent the day with the teaching team at University and Community Early Learning Centre. Louise is the Centre Director and had contacted me before I left NZ to see if I could spend some time with their team to talk about curriculum, assessment, learning stories and planning. I thought that the material I had prepared for other presentations would be suitable, however as the time came closer I realised I had some new thinking to share and some reflections to make visible. I wanted to take the teachers into our world in NZ through photography and stories.
The day started well with a coffee from Starbucks....perfect beginning to a fun filled day and a message from their Board Chairperson that was stirring and empowering. How motivating is it when your chairperson sends an email to be read out at the beginning of the professional development day reminding the teachers of how important they are and how the committee see them as being the way to be the best early childhood service in Alberta? Have to confess I was moved by the tone of the email and support for the teachers.
We started in the library and moved to the classroom - that is what many early childhood spaces are called - 'classroom' - there is something in this as the space is recognised as a place where learning happens just because it is called the same thing a space is a school is called....food for thought.
We demonstrated our resourcefulness by making good use of a display board in the classroom for the projector.The teachers are interested in how learning stories and narrative assessment can strengthen their documentation and assessment. The teachers are very excited about some of the stories I was able to share with them from what we are doing in NZ. They like the Vortex too - seeing things as a connected system is helpful.
The day started well with a coffee from Starbucks....perfect beginning to a fun filled day and a message from their Board Chairperson that was stirring and empowering. How motivating is it when your chairperson sends an email to be read out at the beginning of the professional development day reminding the teachers of how important they are and how the committee see them as being the way to be the best early childhood service in Alberta? Have to confess I was moved by the tone of the email and support for the teachers.
We started in the library and moved to the classroom - that is what many early childhood spaces are called - 'classroom' - there is something in this as the space is recognised as a place where learning happens just because it is called the same thing a space is a school is called....food for thought.We demonstrated our resourcefulness by making good use of a display board in the classroom for the projector.The teachers are interested in how learning stories and narrative assessment can strengthen their documentation and assessment. The teachers are very excited about some of the stories I was able to share with them from what we are doing in NZ. They like the Vortex too - seeing things as a connected system is helpful.
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