Learning is Messy...a Preschool Blog. (From a Very Tired Preschool Teacher).

  I am Generation X: I am a product of the 70’s.    I grew up with 6 television channels, a bike with banana seat and matching clothes with Garananimals.   Image: xtremeinn.com                                                            DeLaney-Personal Photo                                                                                                                                           Flicker.com I read books by Roald Dahl, roller skated and had to be home for ...

Active Learning-"Hands-on" Teaching... Source: Harper Collins Children's' Books What do I know about Active Learning?  As a preschool teacher, when I think of active learning, all I need to do is picture students in my classroom! A preschool classroom is a place where children learn by doing-learn by experience and learn by being "in the moment".  We see this in every corner of the room!   The classroom is divided into interest areas, which children get to explore during their fifty minutes of choice time.  Children can move from area to area, and explore, experience, and participate in a variety of activities.    The list of active learning benefits fits a preschool classroom like a glove: 1.  Increase cognitive and emotional development 2.  Students are independent in learning 3.  Children develop 21st Century Skills 4.  Increase the transfer of new information 5.  Increase in motivation These are the true benefits of teachin...

My Digital Space... pretty much what I thought.😊   I really enjoyed this project...because it helped me to reflect on my technology usage. Although I was not surprised by how my map turned out, I was surprised by my usage and some of the apps and websites that I visit more frequently than others.  Professional Resident This is the section that probably has changed the most in the last year.  My digital presence in my professional career has exploded!  I log onto my computer at work at 7 AM.  I check my email, open the five apps that I will need for the day, and check my drive for the daily lesson plan.  I am teaching in a hybrid model right now, so if I do not have students in front of me that morning, they will be on a Zoom call soon enough!  I have also become quite the expert on WeVideo-I record between two and five lessons or activities for my students a week. I have learned how to add transitions, titles, and closings. I can clip and edit t...

Blended Learning:  Rethinking Instruction Blended learning is something we are all familiar with at this point in our teaching careers. By circumstance, we have been invited into this arena. Blended learning is a new way of teaching our students when we cannot be face to face. Initially, “ The growth of blended learning is generally paced at the comfort of teachers as they expand their use of digital tools for teaching and learning" (1).  However, since March of 2020 that philosophy has shifted to the comfort of students in this new territory of learning.  The Basics Blended learning intertwines in-person learning with digital or virtual learning.  It is a complex mix-and must be approached and implemented with care. Teachers must take time and energy to design and plan the virtual pieces of the lesson. Teachers must also be ready to engage with students reteach, if necessary, and allow more advanced students to move forward with no delays. Students must “buy-...

  Jumping in with both feet.   A preschool teachers’ framework is different than the frameworks used by elementary and secondary educators. As I looked over the various framework options, I felt like I utilized a combination of two, the TPACK and the Triple E.   As I delved further, the TPACK framework kept coming back to light, especially after the last six months.   What is TPACK?   TPACK Schoology Exchange The TPACK framework provides more of a map for understanding how to integrate technology into the classroom effectively .   The three forms of knowledge intersect.   The pedagogy-the practice of teaching, the content-what we are teaching and the technology-how we teach or present it.   Each overlap creating subsets and, in the center, -the deepest level of understanding as an educator-the TPACK. My Journey so far… As an early childhood educator, I always felt like technology had a limited place in my classroom.   I a...