digital technology can't do everything!

Don't expect computers to do everything for you! teachers remain the most important part of the process! both as educators discussing what is on the computer with children and accessing peripherals to maximize engagement, as participants in the decisions about what should be on the computer, and continuing to capture the teachable epiphany in the format most accessible to the learner, her peers, and her family. Here's the challenge!

One of our hundred languages?!

Kudos to Paremata Kindergarten for supplying this work..... and Cerys and her whanau for letting us post to the blog. The team are very clear that what happens on their two adjacent children's computers will reflect the planned programme - ero noted this particularly. Having a hearing challenged child with a very able teacher aide means that work in the programme reflecting this is also represented in the digital material easily accessed by children. Here's a clip of a child ( not the deaf child) accessing a clip showing us the sign for the national anthem that the teacher aide had participated in making. Way to offer opportunities to be inclusive! Great work Cerys in setting yourself a learning challenge and showing us mastery with practice of our national anthem in sign. The digital component allows her to practice to her hearts content and not just when a team member can support her. Maybe you'll teach it to me Cerys when I visit this week? I've included the clip that she was looking at too.....

How wonderful that the team recorded this and communicated it to her very appreciative family - a great way to collaborate on a learning journey the child has chosen for herself.... They used photostory so that the soundtrack of the clip she was looking at was part of the revisiting process for all the stakeholders in Cerys's learning journey. ka pai to mahi!

ICT to make learning more complex.....

here's a synopsis of some of the research results undertaken by the then team of Pukerua Bay Kindergarten into ICT, teaching and learning. These are the signposts the kindergarten identified as common behaviours in their learning stories showing some ICT inclusion in some part of each episode as contributing to better learning outcomes.... a result not to be sneezed at. Self review with qualitative data....

Kindergartens today....

Here's a very recent DVD that creates a thumbnail picture of Kindergarten - where we came from and in today's world... This is a case in point about the use of media to communicate your philosophy and wider programme to the learning communities you are working in partnership with- or potentially working with. On the same train of thought....It was interesting to read the latest book from Margaret Carr and Wendy Lee " Learning stories: Constructing Learner Identities in Early Education' referring time and time again to either DVD or the use of image or digital files and ways to cross boundaries between contexts.

Using ICT to communicate.... blogging.

children's voices......

This clip is a few years old now- but I uploaded it for a number of reasons. Chrissie was working with the Foundation for the blind and is an extremely talented educator to support visually impaired children and adults. She is very innovative and reflective about what works for the learners in question. The Kindergarten she talks about is one I know well ( having been there when she discovered voice thread) and we as a team rose to her challenge to use ICT to give the kindergarten child a voice as well as her extended family and support network. Not only did this child have a blog where all the players could view interpreted data and primary data and put their own lens of interest on it... but the voice thread tool let them articulate it with audio, video or text so the learner could be engaged. I wish I could show you the voice threads themselves but I don't have permission for this. Here's a demo of the tool to see what I mean about using it for multiple assessment opportunities..... if you want to take a peek click on the coloured text to check it out

Now here's a way to supplement your puzzles without clobbering the budget! a range of sites have puzzles where you can choose images and select levels of difficulty... a nice way to show a bit of progression. This is Jig Zone - but there are others. Be aware of being on line - policy dictates we don't leave children on line unsupervised and sometimes this sort of site has add pop ups that will take you away from where you meant to be....

The curriculum document for ICT

Foundations for Discovery Here is the ICT curriculum framework that we were all issued several years ago and is generally on our yearly administration checklist to find. In case you have mislaid your copy I have uploaded it for you. Its a fairly easy to read comprehensive outline of the Ministries vision and expectation of ICT in ECE. There is a longer version too if you are feeling particularly energetic in this field!

a little light reading.....

Prensky - Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants - Part1 This article is old now... .but the sentiments are still current ( mostly). a more recent view might realise that lots of immigrants over come their accents and adapt to their new environments!

Multiple ways of knowing....

I had occasion to hear Julia at an Auckland Conference a few years ago- she delivered a full day programme that was truly inspirational and has a lot to say about leadership. Here she has a lot to share about learning being trans-formative for teachers and children if they own it. This is of particular significance for us in our project - if there is only one or two teachers leading anything (ICT included)then the potential for it to fall over is significant. Team approaches rule! I also like her thoughts about ICT adding another way of knowing...... children express their interests and investigations in many ways if they can if our learning environment and routines timetable is conducive..

Yay! One of the few ece efellowes

microsoft research auto collage

this might be useful! auto collage is something that transforms a folder of pics to a collage. might be useful for quick displays! try it out - microsoft auto collage....

check out the digital learners in action! This is way pricey equipment.... unlikely in our budget.... but check out collaborative and confidente use of it!

Our learners need to be tech- ready it seems! check out this clip of a year 2 classroom using ipads!

Imagined possible selves...

http://www.core-ed.org/sites/efellows.org.nz/files/2006flipbook/carol.html

Try this link out- it takes you straight to an on line 'flip book' of some NZ ECE research done in a Kindergarten about the use of ICT to support and extend dramatic play. The researcher was Carol Marks  who was an ECE 'eFellow'. She was working with a team and children exploring this topic over an extended period of time. This book is easy to read  and supports the assertion that blending the tools in an everyday session helps children to plan, revisit and extend the play in a whole range of ways. Check it out!
 For the record.........I notice it ( just as this blog does) runs better if you are using Mozilla Firefox browser rather than internet explorer.

Here's the original article...... make it bigger by clicking on the bottom left button of the 'scribd' box.

Wonder Article