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Content Area Teaching Ideas - Assignment #3
Content Area Teaching Ideas - Assignment #3
Unit Rationale: Since the All About Me unit will be used at the beginning of the year, there are
three main areas of content: literature appreciation, building community, and encouraging
positive self-image. This unit will expose students to rich multicultural experiences and help
them come to the realization that they are important collaborators in our learning community.
We will share our ideas in many ways; including speaking, listening, illustrations, writing and
reading. We will be exploring the traits that make each child unique and a valued member of
our class, as well as building classroom citizenship.
for students to become aware of classroom procedures and appropriate ways to communication
with one another. Their anchor text is David Goes to School, by David Shannon. The lesson is
aimed at first grade children, yet it can be adapted for the Kindergarten classroom. This lesson
can be found at http://www.beaconlearningcenter.com/Lessons/2130.htm. The first clue that the
Bay District Schools focuses on the individual learner is within their standards; The student
knows how to use positive communication skills when expressing needs, wants, and feelings.
The student uses prior knowledge, illustrations, and text to make predictions. Within the first
few paragraphs you notice the importance of empowering each child to be able to express
themselves appropriately and that their past experiences are a valuable addition to the
classroom learning environment.
In Day 1 they explain the importance of establishing clear classroom routines and rules. They
dont begin formal instruction until Day 2 when they start with a morning circle time posing the
question to the class; What are manners? Do we need to use them in school? Why? They
ask the children open-ended questions to spur conversations and for the children to link prior
examples of how to best express their feelings. This lesson illustrates the importance of having
children involved in establishing what is a positive form of communication. It is expected that
children are involved in discussing why rules and routines are in place. Most practitioners no
longer go into a classroom stating these are the rules and you are going to follow them!
Teachers now ask children to help establish class rules and want the children to use reasoning
to explain why we should follow them. In the lesson, they go on to read the story David Goes to
School. During the reading teachers are again prompted to ask open-ended questions such as;
what is the problem here? Has that ever happened to you? This is a reminder to keep the
instruction focused on the children in the class and try to make it applicable to their own prior
experiences. They end the lesson with a game and ask the children to reflect on what is good
manners. Self-reflection is another key component to empowering students and establishing a
positive classroom environment all facets of being student centric. Since this lesson would be
presented within the first few days of class there was not much differentiation. Yet they did
include extension activities, such as writing a class book using David Goes to School, but with
David only using his best manners. Most of my children will come into school not being able to
write full sentences. So I would further differentiate this activity by giving the children the option
to draw pictures of themselves instead and then have them dictate to me why they think their
picture is a good representation of a polite child.
2. The next lesson plan I researched came from https://www.kinderplans.com/p/13/all-aboutme-activities. The website included various areas of content and age groups, I focused on the
section titled Preschool and Kindergarten Writing and Craft Lesson Plans. This site had some
great suggestions for PreK activities, which I plan on using in the fall. Each arts & craft activity
referenced a story that dealt with the All About Me theme and could be used to introduce the
activity. The activities were age-appropriate and focused on engaging tasks that could reach
individual learning styles. The arts & crafts activities allow each child to express their unique
creative abilities. There is quite a bit of artistic freedom in each activity which also personifies
the child as the driver of what their final product will look like.
One activity that I plan on using was called Craft Activity About Physical Difference - Who Lives
Here? This craft suggested introducing the subject using Dr. Seuss Eye Book as a discussion
point to compare differences such as hair or eye color. The next step would be coloring in a
paper house and pasting the childs picture inside the door flap. The childs eye color and hair
color would be illustrated on the roof as a clue to help other children guess who lives in the
house. I could also extend this activity to introduce the concept of kindness and acceptance of
others regardless of their skin color or nationality. This website did differentiate by stating that
some children would be able to do their own writing and others may need to dictate what could
be written by the teacher or TA. I did a similar activity last year, we made one big book with
each childs photo and the children loved it. It made them each feel like a valued member of the
class because they were showcased in the class book.
once we get to comparisons about the characters in the story, the ELL children can use the
puppets to help prompt or point out the differences they see.
great about this site, is that Taylor spent the time to respond to the parents who still didnt quite
understand the difference between traditional teaching and constructivism. In the end, she had
a lot of very happy parents, who were grateful that she spent the time to inform them of how
their child would learn. I would take this one step further by inviting the parents to come into
the school for a workshop where we could discuss the main points of student-centered learning,
but more importantly give parents ideas, model the vocabulary and provide them with relevant
examples on how to incorporate the practice at home. Because in the end, we arent trying to
make independent, critical thinkers who only have a voice in the classroom. The goal is to
inspire an empowered global citizen.
Lets revisit my first lesson source from above, http://www.beaconlearningcenter.com/
Lessons/2130.htm, which introduced the lesson on manners. When I delved further into their
extension activities they suggested a parental involvement exercise that is very relevant to the
trend of making parents part of the childs educational journey. They recommended making a
Beary Good Manners backpack, much like a literacy pack, for the students to bring home and
encourage families to discuss positive behavior. The idea is to have a stuffed bear who wears a
backpack filled with a notebook, pencils, crayons and a letter to the parent explaining that the
bear doesnt always use good manners and will need the childs help to learn how to be more
polite. The letter would include examples, such as, taking turns, saying please and thank you,
or helping with chores at home. It would also ask the parents to help the child write what good
manners are and to take pictures of the child putting good manners into action. The Beary
Good Manners backpack gives parents a specific activity to focus on and it also lets them be
apart of our All About Me Unit. This inclusion not only extends the childs learning of manners,
but it also allows the child to spend time with their parent connecting prior experiences and
building up their self-esteem at home.
Ask parents to help their child fill out a Getting to Know You form using pictures, quotes from
the children, or anecdotes from parents. The form would ask for some background
information on the child and to share of their favorites (book character, sports, season, etc).
Invite parents to come in to share their own knowledge with the class. Have children read
books in their native tongue, teach the children a cultural dance, or show the children how to
cook a traditional family recipe. Parents have so much knowledge that can be related to the
curriculum and is a chance for children to really engage with the concepts.
Let parents know how to reinforce learning at home by providing them with a weekly HomeLearning Activity.
Give children literacy backpacks to take home and share with parents.
Hold a beginning of the year meeting to introduce what it means to take a child-centered
approach and how they can support the strategy at home.
Without this parent engagement can we really call ourselves constructivists? The
student-centered approach is built on the belief that as teachers we show a genuine interest in
our students life experiences and interests. If we dont invite the parents to be active
participants in our learning community, we are not fully embracing who the child is. When we
create a home away from home the child is much more likely to take risks in their learning
because they know that their teacher supports them and truly cares about them as an individual.