ICT in Early Childhood Education

Buying an iPad for Education?

2011-12-03T18:17:00.001-08:00

Technology fundamentals for Educators

I was recently providing ICT professional development to a cluster of kindergartens. I was inspired by their desire and passion to learn, and to approach technology in early childhood education in a new way. As a final summary we concluded the following:

1. ICT is a tool. Use it to engage children with yourselves, each other and learning opportunities.

2. Technology for a purpose. ICT should be used throughout the curriculum. Scatter technology (computers, laptops, cameras, ipads) where it will be used for a purpose - digital microscope near a collection of bugs, natural resources, science specimens or close to the outdoors. Laptops with typing programmes in an area promoting literacy, cameras where children can easily access, take a photo of their name, and download photos when returned.

3. Start with one thing and do it well. The latest technology on the block can be cool, exciting, trendy to start with (like the ipad) - consider its long term appeal. Choose the thing that you think you can move forward on and commit to it. Make sure its achieveable.

4. Technology is not a babysitter - its a tool that should encourage collaborative learning and teaching. Engage in technology WITH the children.

5. Encourage children/students to be the teacher. You can learn a lot from them. Technology shouldn't be stored until YOU have mastered it - open it with the children and learn together. Encourage children to push buttons. Its unlikely to blow up. Learn from their desire to explore.

National Standards: Assessment vs Education

2011-09-02T02:51:00.000-07:00

Need one say more:

Thanks to Karen Boyes for sharing this on Facebook. Facebook is a great way to share educational ideas, theories and practices and a brilliant way to advocate for children everyday.

Sir Ken Robinson - Changing Educational Paradigms

2011-07-05T14:08:00.000-07:00

How did the current education system develop?
Why do some thrive and some fail in this system?
How do we improve the current educational system?
How do we encourage all children to thrive?

Ken Robinson, illustrated by RSAnimate, answers...
(persevere thru the first 45sec - its well worth it)
Click the four arrows on the bottom right of the video to fill your screen with the illustrations.

Aspirations for children

2011-06-18T14:00:00.000-07:00

What is the most important thing you want your children to learn before going to school?
What skills and knowledge do you want them to gain through the school system?
What do you hope they will become when they are adults?

I'm sure you have thought of this many times. Watching desperately, making sure they don't fall behind their age group, that they pass their assignments, test and exams.

What do you want for your children?

You may wish for your child to graduate from high school, go to university, gain an impressive qualification and enter a well paying job - to be a doctor, a lawyer, an architect.

What do YOU want for your children?
IF they achieve the above -

Do you want them to love what they are doing?
Do you want them to be able to communicate well with bosses, colleagues, employees?
Do you want them to have friends?
Do you want them to be kind hearted?
Do you want them to be generous?
Do you want them to like themselves? To be fit and healthy?
Do you want them to continue to explore new ideas and initiatives?
Do you want them to be happy?

Taking care of ourselves. Having friends and good relationships with colleagues. Confidently contributing and communicating our ideas. Researching and learning, exploring new concepts and ways of doing things.

THESE are the building blocks of a great citizen, a confident healthy happy person.
THESE are the people we want to work and play with.
THESE are the skills that children FIRST need to learn. Without them 'academic achievement is a long hard lonely slog. With these skills children develop a passion for learning, communicating, sharing ideas.

The building blocks begin in our young children - fit and healthy, surrounded by friends, variety of communication skills, ability to contribute, and a desire and passion to explore and continue learning. These are the goals of the New Zealand Early Childhood Curriculum.

I suggest they be YOUR goals for your children.

We remind ourselves of these things for ourselves through romantic, heartwarming youtube videos. Watch this one, and remember to nurture these things for children too.

Santé et beauté pour tous!! The Meaning of Life !!

Making the Virtual - Real!! The iPad2

2011-06-16T03:33:00.000-07:00

One day - mark my words - One day it'll be true.

I have a Goal - I want to write ipad apps

2011-06-09T20:24:00.001-07:00

Ok - I thought I should just put this out there and see where it takes me.

I would like to write educational apps for young children.

I would like those apps to fit my teaching style and philosophy - so I figure, I should probably just write them. I have some programming skills. They are fairly old school programming skills, but I believe my skills are upgradable.

Where do I go to learn to write apps? Any advice welcome.

Free 2 B U - Caroline Casey

2011-06-09T19:52:00.000-07:00

This woman speaks to my heart. What a powerful personal story.

An inspirational talk by a woman my age, Caroline Casey. At the age of 17 she discovered she was, and had been since birth, legally blind. She didn't let that stop her. She wasn't about to admit it. She climbed to the top of her game. She wasn't going to let labels get in the way. Then 17 years on, it caught up with her, it smacked her in the face. And when she had to acknowledge it, she found she was released to be who she wanted to be...
Her continued success, different from her initial success is again the result of rejecting labels/barriers. Hear her story....

We should be free to acknowledge our hurdles and use them to conquer barriers, not build them. We ALL have hurdles. Those that are big are only big because of the way an individual sees and copes with their own hurdles. When we are free 2 b - we can be anything. Any policy I'm involved in writing, talks about differing abilities because we all have weaknesses and we all have strengths.

Thank you JakiGT for sharing this TED story on your podcasts.

iPad experiences with young children at Manaia Kindergarten

2011-06-04T02:57:00.000-07:00

At Manaia Kindergarten we bought out the ipad for the first time on Thursday to explore the universe and find the Matariki stars in the sun lit sky through the iris of the ipad. (See blogpost about SKYVIEW app). This was a little tricky with a group of 30 eager children. Each child wanted a closer look. The Sun and the planets proving a big hit over the small stars.

THE 1st QUESTION raised from my first experience of the ipad with young children is:

"How can I connect the ipad (with apps running such as SKYVIEW) to our digital projector?

A Boy's Experience

Later in the morning I noticed one of our quiet boys looking a little lost and struggling to connect with other children. As I talked to him he asked me if he could see the stars again. When I handed him the PRECIOUS ipad, he confidently took it from my hands and swung it up to the sky. We were sitting at outside tables, on a slab of concrete. I HELD MY BREATH, .... AND .... trusted him.

Immediately others came over to him and they began to talk about the stars, the sun and the planets - swinging the ipad above their heads as they talked.

They wanted to explore more!!

SMULE

So we tried out SMULE together. WOW - the music they played - tapping on the screen together, trying to catch the glowing green balls - then swirling the balls to make patterns in the music. I have been considering purchasing a MAC keyboard - but this was much more fun. SMULE combines music and art. It is all about process and experience, and not about an end product. GREAT!!

I really thought they would stick with the music - but we only had the one free song - Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (which btw we had learnt in Te Reo (Maori) that morning). However there was obviously only so much of that song and the art they could handle.

THE 2ND QUESTION:

What budget does a school/early childhood centre set for ipad apps? And how would you prevent children deleting them accidentally?

The Watermelon Dog

by an ipad Sculptor

SCULPTOR

The children wanted to explore more. By now J had one boy buddy and five girls hanging over his shoulders. But he was beaming with his new found magic and the ipad.

So he began his first role play as a SCULPTOR.

This app provides children with choices of wood or vegetables to sculp. They are probably American woods - it would be nice to apply different names and grains to the wood, to represent New Zealand indigenous woods - but hey - it is a start.

J choose to sculpt a watermelon. As he tapped he talked about the bit flying off the watermelon and it took a few moments for him to realise that by tapping he was changing the shape of the melon. He quickly learnt that by holding his finger down on the screen and moving it, he could rotate his sculpture in 3D. He did this regularly, seemingly assessing his work. Four other children created sculptures that morning. And it made me think.....

Questions no.3

WHY am I encouraging children to sculp in 3D on a virtual cold screen?

WHY am I not rather giving them a piece of REAL wood?

We do of course provide woodwork opportunities for children. WAS I today encouraging them to sculp on a screen rather than risk injury with REAL tools?

And then again....

I had fun sculpting on the screen - so WHY should I deprive children of that similiar experience?

AND more importantly top designers usually design on a screen first (these days) before investing time and money on real resources.

WHAT would this virtual experience do for young children's REAL life experiences?

The Great thing about the ipad

After the children had completed their virtual sculptures - we emailed the images straight from the SCULPTOR app to their parents. No cameras, no downloading, no uploading, no exporting or converting. I look forward to hearing their parents responses.

The Snow Princess

by an ipad SCULPTOR

The OTHER Great thing about the ipad.

It is a tool, integrated into a programme that provides children with a range of experiences.

ANSWER to QUESTIONs No3:

After two of the girls, who didn't really know eachother, had completed their virtual sculptures, chatted about their designs, giggled as they moved the image in 3D, and emailed their final images to their parents..... I saw them 10 minutes later - at the wood work table - earmuffs on, goggles over their eyes, drills rotating, and wood in their hands - SCULPTING!!!

And J made new friends today!!

In just one morning session - I see a whole lot of potential for this little screen.

ipad for Manaia Kindergarten

2011-05-27T23:34:00.000-07:00

Wow - thanks to all five people who responded to my last post. You all encouraged me to think and I DO intend to respond. Please watch this space.

In the meantime - we have bought an ipad for Manaia Kindergarten. I picked it up on Friday and am currently setting it up. I continue to advocate that technology - including the ipad - should be integrated into the kindergarten curriculum and not a 'study' on its own. I also believe that technology should help us to teach differently. In one comment from my latest post, it was suggested that 'real' flashcards provide the tactile real experience for young children. Well - I'm not really an advocate for flashcards be they 'real' or virtual. I believe in using experiences and opportunities, interests and strengths, to teach children about real life problem solving techniques, skills and knowledge.

My most FAVOURITE app for young children - Skyview
With the Skyview camera open, and capturing images of the environment around you - it also graphically shows you the placements of the planets, sun and star constellations, satelites, hubble telescope, and international spacestation. What amazing conversations this should encourage? What vastly different learning journey's this single app could take us on? (I will hopefully keep you up-dated). Information about each are recorded at the bottom of the screen and when you touch a planet, you are shown its trajectory. Children - even on cloudy days - can watch the rise and set of the sun and moon. For NZers - we can watch Matariki (pleiades) rise above the horizon - even though it is first viewable at a time when our Kindergarten children are fast asleep. They will be able to watch it on the ipad with their friends.

I look forward to sharing other inspirational,interactive, real learning opportunities that the ipad will offer the children at Manaia Kindergarten. If you have any apps that fit our purpose - please share in the comments below.

See other iPad experiences @ Manaia Kindergarten
iPad Apps @ Manaia

An ipad and Apps for Early Childhood Education

2011-02-18T00:07:00.001-08:00

Well wouldn't you know it!!. My modern brick phone DIED!!! Missing a few important dates as a result of an aging and unreliable battery, ensured its fate. If you read my post on Adaptable technologies & Global issues you will understand - I BOUGHT AN IPHONE!!

Yip I succumbed - with a spring in my step on the precipice of a new learning adventure.

What an adventure it has been. I have loved the iphone4's ability to record quality videos and to quickly and easily share these videos with family and friends. It was an excellent tool to record the birth of our puppies and invite the world to watch them grow. More exciting than that - my sister bought an iphone4 - and with WhatsApp has begun to share videos of my niece and nephew growing up on the other side of the world.

Sitting at work, the videos drop into my pocket, and I am able to share them with children and colleagues instantly.

Can I use my iphone in my Kindergarten?

No doubt about it. I haven't as yet. But that has more to do with personal issues - such as "I use and spend a lot of time and money on the kindergarten, when the kindergarten should purchase its own technologies". I am sure MANY other ECE teachers experience similar domestic discussions on the same topic.

So Manaia Kindergarten is filling in the paper work to justify the purchase of its own ipad. A bigger version of the iphone, I assume it provides similar benefits. I have searched iphone apps for Early Childhood education and been bombarded with Flash Card apps. SURELY there is more to this technology than perpetuating ancient learning techniques such as flash cards. I don't want to teach the Manaia Kindergarten children how to trace letters on the ipad with their fingers. And we have plenty of technologies that offer them games.

Kindergartens need more from iPad apps

So I am in the hunt for apps that will support children's explorations.
• Bug, plant, animal identification apps,
• Video recording
• Picture txting apps (using pics rather than text)
• Voice to text txting app
• Instant blogging apps
• Google Doc editing
• Fundamental movement apps - showing best practice for sport movements, and side by side photo comparisons for children to self assess.

Apps we should be using with young:

• Google maps on excursions
• Skype or Face-to-Face calls

What are your experiences of iphone/ipad Apps for young children?
What apps have you found that support 21C teaching and learning theories and skills?
Maybe some of the above already exist - if so please tell me in the comments.

I look forward to hearing your app reviews and to learning from your experiences.

Web2.0 is NOT the future of Education

2010-09-02T20:36:00.000-07:00

Jen from Ingenuity has set out this debate. Many teachers ARE excited about Web2.0. It is probably, rightly perceived, that teachers are saying "Web2.0 is the future of Education". It certainly offers education a whole new dimension of collaboration. As a teacher or parent, what are your thoughts about the hype surrounding Web2.0 as the future of education? Watch the video below and hear the argument. I respond below with my thoughts on the debate. Contribute your thoughts by clicking the COMMENTS button below this post.

Web2.0 certainly offers a number of benefits to education. Manaia Kindergarten has engaged the tools of Web2.0 over the past 3-4years with great success - we blog, connect with other educators and students around the country and the world, - we skype, chatting with family members and teachers in Whangarei, throughout New Zealand, and internationally. In my personal life I am active on Facebook (see the list on the right to view my personal involvement in Web2.0), and Facebook has connected me with friends and family around the world. I learn from them, debate with them, highlight online topics of interest to share with them, and engage them in my philosophy on education regularly.

Web2.0 is not the future of education for me, that statement is a little outdated - it is definitely the present of education. So in that sense it is not the future of education - I hope there is more than Web2.0. BUT if educators have not yet explored the validity of Web2.0, will they be ready for the next step. Engage in it now, so that the tools and language are familiar enough to move to the next advancement in technology.

Web2.0 is not the future of education - collaboration is the future (or present for some). It is not the tool, the Web2.0, that is or is not the future - it is what Web2.0 enables us to do in education that is important. It enables us to collaborate, empower children/students, communicate in a way never before possible.

Web2.0 is not the future of education nor will it be unless teachers and educators are given the space and respect to learn the tools. YES - sometimes it takes time for adults to remember all the passwords, click the right button at the right time, remember new processes. Teachers need to be empowered to learn. Web2.0 wont work in education if the teachers are critized while they learn. Young people remember passwords, they know the processes - these part of their everyday world. But I feel Jen could give adults a break, and be proud that they are taking the time and trouble to learn new ways of doing things.

Web2.0 is not the future of education - open minded students and teachers are the future. I embrace Web2.0 and use it as a tool for my 3yr and 4yr old students to broaden their skills and knowledge. And I will embrace the 'next' thing if it benefits learning opportunities.

Web2.0 is not the future - it is NOW.

Mac or PC - the fight gets bigger

2010-08-11T20:42:00.000-07:00

My 11yr old nephew shared this youtube video with me last night. I asked him and our niece which they preferred. It is true - the advertising machine of the Mac is a good one and worked once again with these children. And that's great with me.

Needless to say - I'm a Mac girl. I first used a Mac in 1982. A small cube at the back of our classroom. It was the first computer the school had bought for students. Students from other classes came to our classroom to use it. I'm not sure what they learnt. We were taught programming skills using 'turtle'. But it was during our lunch breaks that we learnt the most. We were allowed to 'just play' - and we did. Mostly we played PacMan and fought for position of top score. However, we also played with the programming capabilities and learnt to explore, push buttons, test our skills and knowledge and we were even allowed to take it home for weekends. There were about 5 of us who took up the opportunity to take the Mac home. We each spent most of the weekend trying to extablish the highest score in PacMan. Our families also had the opportunity to learn the Mac operating system from us - a huge boost to our confidence and learning.

I will always be a Mac girl. Since those days in the 80s, Macs have led the way in creating a visual interface that is ideal for children in the early years. The drag and drop of large pictorial icons, the dock, the integration of iphoto in all its applications, provides an easy platform for children to create their own pages of information and manipulate images. All with very little supervision from adults. Today the children of Manaia Kindergarten enjoy playing with KidPix, creating learning stories with ComicLife, and exploring photography with Photobooth and iPhoto. New teachers to the kindergarten are also learning the Mac skills and are excited about the possibilities.

What do the children in your centre use and how?
What is your preference - Mac or PC - and why?

Mr Winkle Wakes - Education 100 years on

2010-07-24T17:19:00.001-07:00

Ok - I have a number of ideas to share with you. Its hard to decide which should go first. So check back soon....

I am hoping that this first post is out of date and that there are no schools or ECEs who function like this - or at least none that think they should. Here's hoping we are all on the same road to revolutionising education for learners in the 21C. But just in case you need any convincing - this is for you?

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Ken Robinson - Education that enriches talent

2010-06-08T22:49:00.000-07:00

"Every day, everywhere, children spread their dreams beneath our feet. And we should tread softly" - Ken Robinson.

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Adaptable technologies & Global issues

2010-06-04T13:42:00.000-07:00

I really want an iphone!

In fact I am in competition with colleagues and friends to be the first to purchase an iphone. Currently I have the oldest phone which my colleagues have dubbed - 'a modern day brick'. I have found this image of it, in a 2007 online article entitled - "How to recycle your old phone"

Ok - you can stop laughing now!! BUT when this phone dies I WILL get an iphone!!

Unfortunately my friends and I have done everything we can to KILL this phone. It has been dropped, thrown across a Greek resturant, and held above a candle flame until the back of it has been badly burnt. It still works! :-( And for a leader in technology in education this may be a very sad sight indeed.

I want an iphone.

Yes technology is doing wonders in creating collaborative learning environments, providing children with an authentic voice, building confidence and leadership. The newest technologies increasingly support these educational opportunities. In 2008 - "An Apple iPhone or iPod touch (became) a central part of Abilene Christian University's innovative learning experience when all freshmen are provided one of these converged media devices". I commend them and argue that in Early Childhood teachers should also be provided with these ever so portable learning technologies.

I want an iphone.
But at what cost?

Maybe there should be two sides to the education of technology in early childhood. Along with the introduction of technologies into our early childhood centres should be an education of fairness, environmental issues, adaptable technologies, trends and marketing ploys. We should be encouraging our communities and society to develop technologies that grow - not replace technologies yearly with the latest and greatest, but adapting what we have to do more. As an education sector we should lead the way in ensuring that our technologies are created with fairness in mind - that children and families will not be accepting technologies made with the sweat and deaths of third world citizens.

Click on the image below and identify the messages our children and families are receiving. Read the words then step back and look at the whole image.

Apple currently has some explaining to do - and so do we. Steve Job needs to act - and so do we. In our quest to use technologies to increase learning opportunities for children we need to ensure we are not also teaching excess luxury consumption and perpetuating our 'throw away' lifestyle.

Unfortunately I am unable to add the capabilities of an iphone to my modern day brick . So
I'm sticking with it until it dies (which is no time soon at this rate). But I challenge you and myself to consider improving the holistic nature of technology in education, and perhaps encourage our sector to continue to consider global issues (perhaps to the detriment of some 21C learning opportunities) and to also stand up for adaptable technologies.

The Election and National Standards

2010-05-12T01:56:00.000-07:00

In November 2008 I posted a subtle cartoon warning readers about the pitfalls of National Standards. I followed through with a post election rant, a skeptical article about the newly elected National Party of New Zealand, their promise to maintain Free ECE and the idea that "what will determine our (individual) success is the unity of purpose".

This month the true colours of our National led government have been glimpsed. Hints about the upcoming budget, spell a demise for nation wide Free ECE for 3-5yr olds. And at the start of 2010 National Standards were implemented in all schools. It is unbelievable to me that anyone can see a logic in a set standard of education outcomes for all children, especially in the primary years. These are the years to be exploring one's potential, interests, curiousities - not trying to fit into a standard mold set by pompous politicians who all dress the same way.

Ken Robinson once again excells as he explains National Standards. In his quiet, confident tone, Robinson points out the pitfalls that National Standards presents.

Be warned - National Standards will be the demise of children's self esteem and a culture of creativity and innovation. See also Do Schools Kill Creativity - Ken Robinson

Thank you to Tania for sharing this great clip with me during our latest Conference and presentation on 21Century Thinking and Learning.

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Trust children - and discover what you can learn.

2010-04-17T23:04:00.001-07:00

After some inspiring PD over the holidays, I looked for more inspiration as I ready myself for work tomorrow. Again I found such inspiration on TED! The following video is presented by Adora Svitak (author of Flying Fingers) - A "Child prodigy" who says "the world needs 'childish' thinking.... Kids' big dreams deserve high expectations, she says, starting with grownups' willingness to learn from children as much as to teach."

At Manaia Kindergarten we truely believe that children are the best teachers and learners. The community at Manaia learns alongside eachother and children are seen teaching adults new ways of thinking and doing. Check them out on their Kindergarten Blog.
Trust children - and discover what you can learn.

A new role, a challenging future.

2010-04-17T22:46:00.000-07:00

Wow - its been a while! I logged on to my blog account and found 9 comments waiting. Apologies to those whose comments I only just published.

It was an honour to be appointed head teacher at Manaia Kindergarten. The time now, however, to blog, has greatly been diminished as I seem to fill my days with other thoughts - mostly around the survival of admin. I have also found that to start with I am giving of much energy into the job, and not having a great deal of time to be replenished. So it was great to have some worth while professional development over the Easter holidays. We also have a new team of teachers at Manaia Kindergarten and I look forward to working together as a great team, sharing our learning, challenging our thinking and ways of doing things, and growing together with the children and community of Manaia.

Everythings amazing nobodys happy

2009-10-16T22:55:00.001-07:00

Dedicated to all those at the ULearn Conference who complained about their phones!!!! and want an upgrade to a faster, better, funkier fone!

This is to keep you entertained until I have time to write my reflections of our recent inspirations from ULearn09 - coming soon.

Spell with Flickr

2009-09-04T01:14:00.000-07:00

I'm really proud of Tayla - Fiona's niece - she has just taught me how to use Spell with Flickr. Try it out - it is a fun way to play with words. It's really easy - Tayla (7yrs) explained it all to me - and it doesn't look like a user friendly website. But you just type in your name and click 'Spell'. Then wait. The site will come up with a selection of photos from Flickr with the letters of the word. If you are not happy with one of the letters - click on that letter and it will give you another option. Keep clicking until you are happy with your choice. To share - copy and paste the code under the letters into a blog, facebook, or... other social site.

Great to hear the children of Glenbervie School are hooking a love of ICT into learning.

Tayla DID suggest I just use Bev - but that's just not me!

Comic Life - Software Review

2009-07-26T20:00:00.000-07:00

Fiona Grant from the MOEs Software for Learning encouraged me to write a few reviews about software we use in early childhood education. There was little doubt in my mind about which piece of software to begin my reviews.

Comic Life has been an exciting addition to the curriculum at Manaia Kindergarten. This is a software package that appeals to teachers, children and parents alike. In addition it is equally usable on both Mac and PC (though marginally faster on a Mac!).

Although Comic Life is set up to provide tools for the creation of comic strips and pages, it is quite versatile for a variety of uses.

The teachers of Manaia Kindergarten use Comic Life to write children's Learning Stories. Stories about children's learning experiences had previously be written in MS Word. We found Comic Life provided a platform to easily mix pictures and text in creative formats.

• Text boxes can be placed anywhere on the page. Text headings come in all shapes and sizes. You can choose from pre-determined styles or manipulate the shape, colour, or outline of headings. When using a Mac - Comic Life provides some text formatting options.

• Picture boxes can easily sit next to text. Neither moves unless you click and drag them to the desired position. A small image library window remains open with your image thumbnails. It is easy to click and drag your images from the window into your picture box. They automatically resize to fit the window. It is also easy to crop images by clicking and dragging the boundaries of the picture or the box. Picture boxes come in a range of style shapes which can be manipulated individually along with the frame, if desired.

• Speech bubbles are the cornerstone of Comic Life. At Manaia Kindergarten, we use speech bubbles to type children's words and correspond them with particular images. You can see an example of Speech Bubbles in use in a recent story about our trip to the Fire Station.

• Blog your learning stories easily from Comic Life. Each page can be saved as an image (jpg) and uploaded onto a website or blog.

• Bling - pages can be beautifully coloured with preset backgrounds or manipulate easily to create your own. Check out some on Manaia Kindergarten blog

• Children - the Comic Life interface makes it easy for children to create their own pages and make their own choices about images, colour, heading styles etc. Children at Manaia Kindergarten see Comic Life as an opportunity to take charge of the mouse, click to make their choices, and have direct input into writing their own learning stories. Check out Sari's story about Poi meeting her friends at home.

Purchase Comic Life - its not expensive
Comic Life is a creation of Plasq. They have a variety of Comic Life options. We use the regular Comic Life option at Manaia Kindergarten. You may also be able to purchase a bulk license to cover a number of computers and computer platforms in your Early Childhood centre. Comic Life Download Link.

PS: I am not paid by the manufacturers of Comic Life for this review - though I probably should be lol!

Best Cybersafety Practices

2009-07-26T19:12:00.000-07:00

Further to the discussion in May on ICT in ECE blog about Cybersafety Practices for Young Children - today I found a great video to illustrate some of my points.

Best Cybersafety Practices is a video produced for TVNZ for "in betweens". Inbetweens is a series of informative videos for pre-teens and teens. The series has children, talking to children, about issues that relate to their lives - and they are great. I would have liked to embed the video here - but alas that doesn't seem possible. So go over the In Betweens on TVNZs site, watch, enjoy and be informed. Read the discussion on Cybersafety Practices for Young Children. I would love to hear our comments or particitpate in discussion with you on this topic so don't for get to return to this post and leave your comments and discussions points. Enjoy.

Kahlua enjoys online company

2009-06-30T01:57:00.001-07:00

There is something to be said about the global community. How far can we push it? To what extent can it benefit us, and our loved ones? Will I discover a new niche market in technology?

Our new chihuahua poodle began life like many young children today - online. Well not exactly but his first pictures were posted on TradeMe. Once I had discovered them (and then visited him with my partner), I emailed the pictures to Kindergarten. The new born's photos were displayed through the digital projector onto the big screen for parents and children to discuss and enjoy. Within hours of arrival, here, at his new home, he sat with me to skype my relatives in South Africa. Since then his image, movements, and faint sounds have traveled through skype all around the world. You too, can enjoy images of his first visit to Manaia Kindergarten tomorrow on their blog - along with the story of his first bath!

Today our new poodle chihuahua, Kahlua, continued his ICT journey.We used YouTube to connect with other poodle pups from around the world. In our first movie we watched and listened to the excitement of a group of puppies settling into their new home in Canada.

Maybe it wasn't the right time? Maybe Fiona's baking in the kitchen was too distracting? Maybe other pups are not where his interests lie?

Technology and puppies - is there a future here?
Or was this just an excuse to blog about our new little boy!
I will keep you posted :-) LOL!!!!!!

The Child Discipline Act and The Referendum

2009-06-21T00:54:00.000-07:00

Last week I received information in my letter box about the upcoming referendum to take place in New Zealand. The infamous “Anti-Smacking Debate” has reared its ugly head again.

As a teacher of young children, I thought it my duty to respond to this debate – which will no longer be labeled the “Anti-Smacking Debate” on my blog.

Did you know that as of June 2007, the law does not prohibit parents from smacking their children. There are 5 clauses in the Crimes Act that justifies the use of force for good parenting. (I can’t believe I’m admitting that – but it is a fact). The 2007 change in the Crimes Act prohibits parents from smacking their children for the purposes of ‘correcting’ behaviour. You can read the wording of section 59 Parent Control, No 43 of the Crimes Act

I believe that the tragedy of the current debate is the wording of the up-coming referendum question.

Should a smack as part of good parental correction be a criminal offense in New Zealand?

This is irresponsibly misleading. New Zealanders are paying $9mil on this referendum and the question has been written poorly and with bias. That alone is criminal!! I do believe it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that the wording of a referendum is unbiased, well worded, and fairly executed.

It is important to understand that:

The law is not about an incidental light ‘smack’.
And therefore the referendum question is immediately flawed.
The law is not about ‘good parental’ practices.
And therefore the referendum question is flawed.

The law is aimed at parents who hit their children hard enough to end up in court*. It is to prevent those parents from using the purposes of ‘correction’ as a defense.

Rewording the Referendum - my thoughts:
Should parents be legally permitted to use force for the purposes of correcting behaviour?
The term ‘correcting’ and the word 'force' should be defined.

How do you think it should be worded?

How would you define ‘correcting’?

Debating the Bill leads to debating discipline.
What I do love about the bill and the referendum, is that discipline is up for debate again. It means we get the chance to talk about the ‘discipline’ of children, and we get to advocate for a better way.

As teachers, we are not permitted to hit children.

What would happen if a teacher were to ‘smack’ a child?

They would be disciplined (not smacked!)
They would probably loose their job.
Parents would be irate.
The teacher would loose the respect of families and colleagues.

Why?

Because there is a better way to teach children, and as professionals we should know better.

How much more then, should families learn a better way to help their children make good decisions. Smacking is lazy. Smacking is more about the adults coping mechanism than teaching children. And would it be fair to say, that left unchecked smacking can be abusive?

The definition of Discipline is “the practice of training people to obey rules”.

As teachers we are taught to respect children - (crazy to have to write that). Children naturally deserve respect. Children are capable of thinking, of problem solving, and of empathy. They are competent learners, especially young children who learn so much in the first few years of their lives. It is not so amazing to discover, that when you look for a new way to support your children’s learning, your relationships with your children grow.

Anke Richter (a German Journalist) wrote an article To Smock is to Love (2007) - an outsiders look at the ‘Child Discipline Bill’. It’s a great read, along with the discussion that follows at the end of the article. Essentially she suggests that by legislating against hitting our children, we begin to implement social change – smacking becomes ‘un-cool’. I believe that when smacking becomes un-cool (and it is so un-cool for many wonderful parents with whom I am associated), parents build richer relationships with their children. ‘Disciplining’ without smacking takes time, patience, and heaps of reflection. And time, patience and reflective thinking is the kind of modeling we need to be sharing with our children.

The citizen initiated referendum takes place in the month of August 2009. It is flawed before it even begins – but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t vote. Educate yourself about No 43 Crimes Act, about the referendum, and about the debate.

* Parental Control Crimes Act explained - pdf download
• NZ Referendum on Child Discipline 2009 - the yes vote

A fun look at our questions and children's answers

2009-06-11T01:54:00.000-07:00

I saw this in Suzie Vesper's blog. It is amazing how many parents at Kindergarten complain that when they ask their children "what did you do today at Kindergarten?" the children always reply "nothing". Seems like nothing changes!!

And that is one reason our parents love our Manaia Kindergarten Blog! They read about children's interests at Kindergarten. Parents then use what they glean from the blog as a starting point for conversations with their children about their children's learning.

On further reflection - what about the questions we ask our children? Do they inspire answers beyond "Dunno, nothing, sorto, good"? How can we ask better questions?

The Future of the Web - Are you keeping up?

2009-06-09T03:39:00.000-07:00

Sir Tim Berners Lee discusses the future of the internet on BBC online.
Keep up and take part - and you will help mould the future.

3min video

Nurturing creativity

2009-06-03T00:47:00.000-07:00

Do your best - no matter what that is - and maybe some genius will be passed through you on its way to somebody else. We are not all geniuses, but we all have a genius. As long as we show up, do our part of the job to the best of our ability, that genius has the opportunity to show up too.

An inspiring speech for all who are creative, all who want to be creative and all who didn't even know they had it in them.

Questions I asked myself when listening to this inspiring, provoking thoughtful speech.

• How can we best use these ideas to nurture children's creativity and genius?
• Do you think this is a valid approach to nurturing the best from children?
• Is it a cop out?
• Is it egotistical to think otherwise?
• If you take the genius out of you and placed the responsibility for it else where - would you try as hard? would children?

I do love Elizabeth Gilbert's concept. I love that it invites all to take part in sharing the genius, being open to creative thought, allowing yourself time to catch the poem, the tune, the thought.

PS - follow the TED link and read the comments that follow this talk - some great thoughts and debate.

(good grief - I just discovered she's my age - she seems so much wiser!!)

Why do you blog and what are you blogging about?

2009-05-21T01:28:00.000-07:00

There are many Early Childhood Education blogs around these days. Its great!! It is wonderful to see such advocacy for Early Childhood. It would be interesting to know WHY early childhood centre's are blogging. What is your motivation to blog? What are your aims? What are your results?

Results is a strange word. But is it time to reflect on your aims and what you, your centre and your children are learning through blogging?

Linda - another of our great ECE ICT facilitators - wrote a thought provoking post in the subject.
"What are we blogging?" is well worth a read. In this post, Linda challenges us to think about what were are blogging. We often say we use blogs to celebrate children's learning. Are we celebrating product? What is happening to the process? Is process being valued through our blogs?

Do you have an example of an educational blog that celebrates process, is driven by children, or posts from parents?

Will Richardson on Blogging in Education

2009-05-15T17:29:00.000-07:00

I really like Richardson's description of blogging. Have you ever heard a blog described as an online web journal? Is this your experience or does the term 'a journal' make you cringe too? Richardson describes it as a space for learning and that he has learned more from blogging than from his formal education years - including his studies towards his masters. If you were to describe, to endeavor to excite others about blogging - what words would you use?

Whats your definition of blogging?
Tell us about your blogging highlight?

Best Cybersafety practices for young children

2009-05-06T20:59:00.000-07:00

At Manaia Kindergarten we are often asked about our Cybersafety ideas, practices and policies.

I believe that the internet offers wonderful tools that enhance children's everyday learning, and tools to build community.

I believe that children should have access to the internet and a child has a right to have a presence on the internet if their family is in agreement.

I believe that by using the internet with children, children are able to learn some valuable lesson's about being safe on the world wide web. What a great time for children to learn such valuable lesson's when they are with trustworthy adults.

I also believe that children at home should have the same opportunities. Here are some safe practices that families can follow to teach children about the safe use of the internet.

1. Always have the computer in a family room - not in children's rooms (I would adhere to this until your children are ready to leave home)

2. Explore the use of safe internet filters on your computers. (read the comments on this post to learn more)

3. Always have an adult closely monitoring children's internet usage, while also giving children independent control of the computer. Just as you do with your children in public places - never be too far away from young children, give children more space/time on the computer as they grow older.

4. Teach your children that there are good (safe) sites and bad (unsafe) sites on the internet and what to do if they accidentally come across a site that doesn't look safe. There is an awesome example of this Cybersafety practice on Moving at the Speed of Creativity.

5. You should never put images of children on the internet without the permisson of their parents AND the permission of the child. Consider using pseudonyms or just first names of children. And teach children safe practices when our in real life public places. Keep personal contact details off the internet.

Those would be my top 5 tips. What are yours?

Readings:
NetSafety New Zealand
Cybersafety.org - safety tips for parents (including teens)

Blogged 27th July - Inbetweens Video on CyberSafety Practices

Building Self Esteem in Early Childhood Education

2009-05-04T21:16:00.000-07:00

Term two begins and new children begin at Kindergarten. They each come with their own identity. At kindergarten they will develop their identity further. What will they learn about their identity while at your Early Childhood Center? What elements of their character will they see as valued? How will this contribute to their self esteem?

Unicef reminds us -

Successful Education - A Quote

2009-05-02T13:24:00.000-07:00

David Hutchings is a world renown dog handler and trainer, and recently featured on TVOne's Country Calendar. He's New Zealand's own Dog Whisperer, invited to the US and Canada to run training clinics in Stockmanship and Mustering. His skills, and what he brings to New Zealand mustering is significant.

And this is what he says about his own education:

"School wasn't for me...
I just found out what I needed to know, and then I found the best people around to learn from!"

Isn't that what education is all about?

New Zealand Bloggers Badge - Copy and Share!

2009-04-25T03:46:00.000-07:00

You can copy the code below and paste this badge onto your blog. Be a Proud Kiwi!

There are two options for you below.

Step 1. Select and Copy Code you want

Step 2. Paste into an HTML widget in your side bar

Step 3. Leave a comment to say you have a badge and a link to your blog will be displayed here:

NZ Bloggers

• Naketa - ICT Early Childhood Facilitator
• Ethical Martini - This is a blog about media ethics and journalism / journalists.
• Breakaway Retreat - a luxury beach front Retreat in McLeod Bay, Whangarei Heads, NZ
• Silverspikes Photography
• Auckland Daily Photography - Awesome photographs by Lachezar from Auckland and throughout NZ
• Nelson Daily Photo - Really creative photography by Ben - capturing Nelson
• A Walk Through Auckland - brilliant concept, great photos
• Hamilton Views - another great NZ photographic blog
• Tauranga Daily Photos - there looks like a photographic challenge on between all the idyllic cities of New Zealand. Another fantastic site with a photo a day from Tauranga
• Whangarei Daily Photos - a fellow blogger from my adopted home town, capturing the spirit of Whangarei. Fantastic!!
• New Views of New Zealand - New (ish) to New Zealand as a result of a mixture of technology and love, this self acclaimed 'mad woman' shares her views of New Zealand.
• DutchCorner - postcards from New Zealand. Stories, photos, wonderful poems... and I have to direct you to a little bit of NZ humour!
• Cafe Pacific - Pacific media uncensored
• Otautahi Outrospective - Bringing to you the daily life of christchurch nz
• My UK/Kiwi Life in Photos
• Maungataroto Daily Photo - a Dinkum kiwi town
• Four Paws and Whiskers
• Christchurch Daily Photo
• Three Spoons - the culture of food in Aotearoa New Zealand
• New Zealand Links - life downunder in NZ
• Wellington Road - An American Expat, "pontificating about, you know, stuff" and life in NZ
• Just Plane Crazy - Adrenaline Action in New Zealand

This New Zealand Bloggers Badge was created by Beverly Kaye.

What makes a great teacher? II

2009-04-23T20:56:00.000-07:00

I really enjoy dialogue that comes from sharing one’s ideas online. This post is a continuation of the dialogue started in - What makes a great teacher? (13 April 2009)

Further on that subject, there have been some interesting responses that have taken me once again on journeys of discovery.

Partnership

The first, from Ann, who commented on the ICT ECE PL Café. Ann submitted this quote

“When we as teachers recognize that we are partners with our students in life's long and complex journey,…
- when we begin to treat them with the dignity and respect they deserve for simply being…
- then we are on the road to becoming worthy teachers.
It is just that simple - and just that difficult.”

I love the description of ‘life’s long and complex journey’. It reveals the depth of the journey our children/students are undertaking, as well as the exciting prospects education and life have to offer.

To be partners with our children/students and treat them with dignity and respect ‘ is just that simple - and just that difficult’. I believe this captures the earnestness of educators as well as the shear buzz for educators.

Creativity and Professional Judgment

The next day, Elaine's comment led me to Bruce Hammond’s blog and his discussion on Creative Thinking. His blog post takes a look at Elwyn Richardson’s pioneering thoughts. In Hammond's post he reflects on teachers being creative educators, and the universality of creativity. We need to be creative in education whatever tools we have at our disposal… (pencil, printing press, technology) Bruce Hammond goes on to say…

“Forget the research and current conformist 'best practice',
go back and see what teachers like Elwyn did….
By all means be 'informed' by research but not 'led';
we need to use professional judgement
you ought to know your classroom best…
We need to be more concerned about creating our own ever changing 'best practices'.”

In conclusion
As great teachers we need to be creative in our own ‘best practice’ in partnership with the holistic individuals we find ourselves linked with for some small part of their (and our) long and complex journey of learning.

Readings supporting this post:

Leading and Learning – Bruce Hammond

Ann’s quote is from Awake Magazine. This is an interesting source for educational theory, however if we are to be creative and holistic in our approach to education and use our professional judgment then we open up a world of resource and reference material worth considering.

Ann’s quote went on to refer to a statement by William Ayers
"We must find a better way, a way that builds on the strengths, experiences, skills and abilities... I am reminded of the plea of a Native American parent whose five-year-old son had been labeled a 'slow learner': 'Wind-Wolf' knows the names and migration patterns of more than forty birds. He knows there are thirteen tail feathers on a perfectly balanced eagle. What he needs is a teacher who knows his full measure.”

You might be interested to research William Ayers – another interesting character, on YouTube.

What makes a GREAT teacher?

2009-04-13T12:50:00.000-07:00

My reading this weekend included a BlogCatalog discussion facilitated by Tim Wicks - Senior Teacher in a Special School for High School students. The discussion is entitled "what makes great teacher?"

The word "knowledge" or "be smart" makes an appearance in the discussion a few times and I liked Tim's response..

"You say my list has no mention of knowledge. I will add it to the list, .... I am very focused on relationships, and for me knowledge comes in way down the list. Why? So many teachers are brimming with knowledge, yet do not connect with their students."

I would add that sometimes knowledge gets in the way of learning for many teachers. I believe strongly that NZ Early childhood curriculum reflects an emphasis on 'relationships' in education - it is the teacher's job to reflect that in practice. I know that the new New Zealand School Curriculum recently add this in their Key Competencies.

The team at Manaia is currently considering, reflecting, discussing and establishing our new team philosophy, so I was interested to read international ideas about ‘what makes a great teacher’.

I read through Tim Wick's Time to Shine Blog and “15 Critical Traits of the Remarkable Teacher” and wondered what my list might look like and how our final Kindergarten philosophy will read. Tim’s list includes - Be crazy about children, Be fun, honest, Be a learner, Go beyond the boundaries of your classroom, Be a good listener, work with children's strengths, promote self management... Others in the discussion added passion, dedication, adaptability... I liked the suggestion of being a good facilitator.

I would like to make my list more succinct.. here's my list of top five...

1. Be an effective facilitator
2. Be a passionate learner
3. Work with children's strengths
4. Be adaptable
5. Have great expectations of all
6. Show respect
7. Be caring

Ahhhh - its hard to stay on just the top 5.. and already I have shuffled, deleted, added, rearranged...

Quick thinking - off the top of your head - what are the Top 5 teacher characteristics that you value?

Thanks Elaine for your comments - I have reflected further on this topic in:
What makes a great teacher? II

Reflecting on Wisdom

2009-03-27T11:23:00.000-07:00

I began 2009 with a TED presentation that started a personal reflection on Wisdom. For some members of my family, 2009 has been a cross roads - a crucial time to move forward with integrity, dignity and a monumental amount of wisdom. It has been a time of confusion and has seemed like the days have been dragging through the mud.

Today I found this quote from the publisher of Guy Claxton's book "Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind - How intelligence increases when you think less" - and I just love it and it seems to fit. I also love that this is something we can bring to our classrooms...

"We assume that the quick-thinking " hare brain" will beat out the slower Intuition of the " tortoise mind." However, now research in cognitive science is changing this understanding of the human mind. It suggests that patience and confusion--rather than rigor and certainty--are the essential precursors of wisdom."

How often do we ask a question of a group of children. Instantly hands go up (sometimes before you have even asked the question) and we respond by randomly calling the name of a child. How much time have we given the group to think? The chosen child 'Uhmm's', bends their head, picks at their toes while the whole group wait. Then we pass them over, maybe even saying "if you don't know don't put your hand up", and choose the person who is high on their knees, pushing their arm into the sky, bursting with the desire to share what they KNOW....

...But what words of wisdom have we missed from the child, temporarily grappling with their bubble of confusion, trying to tap into their limited vocabulary, to express some profound revelation?

If anyone has read Claxton's book on "Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind", I would love to hear some authentic reviews.

Best Blog Writing?

2009-03-12T23:08:00.001-07:00

What is the best way to blog?
I have only just asked myself this question - and I am not sure I have any answers. At Manaia Kindergarten we blog as we would a daily diary - I guess you could call this the traditional way of blogging and it works well in a kindergarten setting, with the goals of informing parents about the daily/weekly learning experiences that take place at Kindergarten.
But what about professional blogs? As I have mentioned before I have a raft of unpublished (incomplete) blog posts. With a combination of writer's block followed by an onslaught of bloggable thoughts from various sources, I find my blog is feeling my blog posts are rather 'random'. It doesn't seem that my ideas are related or continue from one day to the next. Rather it seems like haphazardly inspired thoughts explored, analysed , written and abandoned. Followed by another random thought. Yes the thoughts may have something of value on their own - but is it best to have one's ideas following a logical pattern? Would that mean more to readers, would they read more posts, and therefor be more involved as a result of time spent on a blog? Or are today's readers more interested in one off blog posts, quick sources of information/discussion? Jumping from Google search to google search?

So - time to consider some organisation of this blog? limits to themes/ideas? a more narrowly defined thread?

Lest We Forget

2009-03-11T18:12:00.001-07:00

Following on from "When Computers Go Down", I'd like to thank Naketa for her comment and more wholesome look at how we sometimes feel when technology lets us down. Check it out Stuck on an Escalator
- Man!, are we getting lazy?

This reminded me of a movie I watched with my niece at the weekend - Wall-E. After living for many many years on board a High Tech Space Station - the People discover they might be able to return to Earth. After so long without gravity, and in such a High Tech environment human bodies have evolved to such an extent it is doubtful that they could ever walk again... Can they ever live without lazily relying on the technology, that for so long has kept them alive... Just the very idea of taking that first step, of coming back down to earth seems... well to them its a dream come true.

Stanton (Wall-e producer) states "It (the movie) doesn't demonize technology. It only argues that technology if properly used can help humans cultivate their true nature..."

Lest We Forget - Ensure that technology works for the betterment of humanity - such as the character, Wall-e . And let us never forget the amazing abilities our brains and bodies possess on this truly remarkable planet.

When the computers go down!

2009-03-10T18:18:00.000-07:00

The beginning of the 2009 year at Manaia Kindergarten, began at first with a bolt of fresh air. We had lovely sunny days and 8 new families at kindergarten. Our roll call topped 23 after a week or so of low numbers. It took just a day for new children to begin to explore the digital world. The cameras came out and newbies were recording their first few days through photography... photographing their first impressions of mat time, photographing the environment and new friends, photographing interests from home and sharing the photos at Kindergarten.

And then the computers went down...

Our two computers we use to create movies, upload to the blog, and email - just crashed.

I felt like we had lost a limb - In the light of our ICT project and new families excited by the possibilities, the lack of two vital computers seemed crippling.

Fortunately at Manaia we do have more than two computers and the laptops were shuffled around to accommodate. Some movies were uploaded on home computers, and we stumbled forward.

But the experience brought interesting reflections. I 'needed' to solve the problems that arose - loading photos so that we could access them again in a logical manner when the computers returned (this took a week), then re-downloading software such as Photostory and Comic Life, discovering, finding, reloading missing plug-ins, sorting codec's (which I still don't understand - never needed them on my mac)... As a problem solver I found it hard at first to move on. If you have ever watched somegreybloke, here he is expressing some of the frustration I felt.. "The Internets gone down" (warning: some inappropriate content - the first minute or two is quite relevant!! PS a new window/tab will open)

You'll be pleased to hear the children at Manaia Kindergarten continued to learn!! A downturn in technology did not equate to a downturn in learning. But it did occur to me - as education becomes more and more entwined in technology - what will happen when the computer/internet goes down? Will WE be able to switch off and learn/teach the old way? Is it even possible!! And can technology cause mass disruption in an education setting? Or is that just scare mongering?

Check out the possibilities via this news caste

- and how this may be played out for young professionals or not so professionals (ok - prehaps a little over the top! warning content may offend)
Certainly a far cry from beginning 2009 with Wisdom!!

These scenarios are good for a laugh - however have you experienced significant downtime with technology in your education setting? Are the above questions relevant? What are your thoughts?

Beginning 2009 with Wisdom

2009-02-16T19:27:00.000-08:00

I have been waiting for inspiration to step into 2009 with a positive and meaningful post for the ECEICT blog . As mentioned before - I have a number of draft copies of posts yet to be published. They all seemed an inadequate start to the new year. Today, however, I have been visiting TED again. If you haven't joined TED - I highly recommend them.

Barry Schwartz, a professor of Social Theory, talks about wisdom. That elusive quality that is hard to teach, that crosses cultural communities, age, education - and yet without it even the most intelligent among us can struggle.

Wisdom can not be taught. However I do believe that wisdom can be role modeled. As Schwartz promotes, we need organisations both on the macro level (say Kindergarten Associations, Boards of Trustees, Committees) and the micro level (individual teaching teams, individual teachers) that value wisdom above rules...

Check out what Barry Schwartz has to say. At first I thought I would recommend that you at least listen to the first 5mins... then I listened further and if you have 10min to spare enjoy a cuppa and listen. However, I actually highly recommend that you sit down, enjoy and be inspired by the 20mins of wisdom.

Please observe there is a footnote about ECE below this video.

What is Early Childhood doing about Children and the development of Wisdom?

Te Whāriki (NZ Early Childhood Curriculum) has five essential strands - Wellbeing, Belonging, Communication, Contribution, and Exploration. These we hope are some foundational developments to wisdom. Within our everyday programme we value children's thoughts. We try to connect with individuals at the beginning of the day to get them thinking - "What is your plan for the day?". When disagreements between children occur, we try to step back, or stand beside if asked and support them as they try to think through solutions. When altercations have erupted we sit together to work out how things got so bad that someone felt they had to resort to fists, and consider other pathways that could have solved the problem.

I believe that although wisdom can not be taught, we as early childhood teachers should be valuing this quality in children, parents and teachers - by documenting and celebrating wise choices, thoughts, and negotiations and promoting wisdom by not always sticking to the rules - seeing beyond the (our) rules.

What other ideas do you have to cultivate wisdom in young and older children? How can we help to build a generation of adults who are motivated by practical wisdom.

Give the Gift of yourself this Christmas

2008-12-16T23:31:00.000-08:00

Wordless Wednesday

100 Conversations - Part One

2008-12-11T22:01:00.000-08:00

In true Web fashion - I have once again stumbled on inspirational blog posts that have encouraged my thinking and inspired another post.

100 Conversations is an initiative set up by Tony Karrer who maintains the eLearning Technology blog. Tony "is CEO/CTO of TechEmpower, a software, web and eLearning development firm based in Los Angeles, and is considered one of the top technologists in e-Learning. " (quote from Tony's blogger profile).

Within Tony's list of 100 Conversations - I believe there is a conversation for you. I have set up a draft post behind the scenes of the 25 of the 100 conversations that I feel inspired to participate in. This should keep me busy through the holidays. Thanks Tony for the ideas - it helps to keep me motivated.

The first conversation that seems relevant to me at present is number 31 on Tony's list of 100 Conversations. I address this for two reasons. One - it is relevant to my learning at present. Two - I hope to encourage other educators and students who are starting out in the blogging world or are wondering about their illusive audience.

31. How do I envision (envisage) my audience.

This has been an interesting revelation to me in recent weeks. Soon after my post "Generation C" on October 15th I began to feel very disillusioned about my image of my audience. Although I have a stat counter, I wasn't a very prolific observer of my stats nor did I really know how to explore my stats positively. As I belong to EntreCard - I envisaged my small audience to be EntreCard droppers (and I mean droppers not readers). I received minimum comments - and thus imagined I had no serious readers.

After blogging fairly noncommittally with little aim - on ICT in Early Learning - I was beginning to wonder what my motivations were for blogging and whether it was worth the space on the web. And then a light bulb moment encouraged by a conversation (a "verbal comment") I had with a member of the CORE Education team occurred. The CORE member had read my blog, enjoyed my blog and quoted my "C Generation" blog post in a recent job interview for CORE - a job she recently accepted. I was blown away and I was incredibly humbled. I had an audience I never envisaged. And what I had to say or highlight, was being noticed.

After this I decided to look more closely at my stats. I had recently loaded Feedjit widget to my site and when I explored this widget further - namely by clicking on the "Watch in Real Time" option - I began to take notice of who was looking at my blog, where they had arrived from, and what they were searching for. The thing I notice most was that there is a huge audience out there looking for information about technology and learning for young children. By observing readers search queries I have begun to target my post to address some of the queries educators have about technology in education.

I have realised that with the experience of introducing blogging to young children at Manaia Kindergarten, presenting with Tania Coutts at various conferences, and addressing queries that flow through our phone lines - Tania and I have some professional learning to offer on the world wide web as elearners and educators. And maybe this is something we need to take seriously and to post professionally as we become immersed in this ever growing global conversation.

I have also read that only approx 4% of readers ever comment. Thus one has to decide when beginning a blog, what is the purpose of the blog, what do I hope to achieve by blogging, and what do I want to get out of it. I have decided that although I LOVE COMMENTS - I will no longer write for comments. Now that I have some idea about who my audience really is, the aim of this blog is to advocate for young children, for their learning and elearning, their protection, and for their right to be considered competent contributors to everyday and global conversations and learning. The other aim is to encourage others to join this advocacy role.

So how do I envisage my audience now? Prehaps just the one, though I know of two others. And the rest? Well that is quite scary. I was the youngest in my family and my sisters had a lot to say at dinner table conversations. It took me until I was 21 before I realised that sometimes people listened to my contributions too. So I do worry that my contributions are sometimes that of the youngest sister and maybe not so well informed. Forgive me if that is the case. If blogging was truly an anonymous platform I'd feel better. However I want to be part of the conversation, to contribute, to learn, and to advocate.

I believe ones vision of ones audience does matter. It helps to get to know your audience through your stats if not your comments, and then to target your posts and provide a relevant message for those who really are your audience. And more importantly I believe the internet provides a platform we are privileged to have at our finger tips and to join the conversations as an educator and learner, either as a reader or blogger, is a privilege we should grab with both hands.

PS: Thanks Janine for being part of my audience. I have noticed and I do appreciate.

Do you have something to say about education? Can you contribute? Check out Technology for Teachers

Who dares teach? - with Toondoo.com

2008-12-09T02:01:00.001-08:00

I don't ever remember cartoons being used in my education as a valid form of learning. But as Techno Dys reminds us in their blog (technology and dyslexia) - "If a picture paints 1000 words, then a three picture cartoon must be a 3000 word essay." Toondoo is a fun (and addictive) online cartoon site. Characters, scenary, props can be dragged into cartoon strips and brought to life with written words. At Toondoo.com you can read many cartoons created by people all over the world. In schools this would be a great site for students learning new languages, to create and interpret succinctly their understanding of a lesson, a book, a subject, or to express their feelings/fears/celebrations. I have been hesitant to suggest this tool for the classroom setting or for early childhood as I have not explored the site fully and can see its potential for misuse - but thanks to Meera from toondoo.com who offers to assist anyone wanting to know more about toondoo and education - I have discovered that the site has a "Safe Search" feature. I have not explored this feature but encourage educators to give this online site a whirl. Never cease to learn!!

www.toondoo.com

by SilverSpikes | Make your own at www.toondoo.com

Gever Tulley: 5 dangerous things you should let your kids do

2008-12-07T23:11:00.000-08:00

Its been yet another day of bad tv, rain out doors and a bit of a tummy bug. So I turn to Ted Talks. Even the ones I have heard before are worth revisiting - and always there is something new to learn.

When considering children at your school or kindergarten... your children at home... it might be prudent to ask yourself... Do you want cotton-wool kids?

Then why not let them use power tools, sharpen knives, break copywrite laws, play with fire? Gever Tulley is founder of the Tinkering School, and this is his TED talk about 5 Dangerous things you SHOULD let your children do.

Having reheard Gever's ideas and been provoked about his ideas - I still can not help wondering if he has 'left out' some safety ideas... MMMmmmm what do you think?

Thinking outside the square - Animation vs Animator

2008-12-06T11:13:00.000-08:00

It's amazing what you discover when you follow up on comments left on your blog. It really does become a worldwide community of sharing and learning...

So from Shal who followed up on and added a great explanation on her blog about Toondoo.com (which she is planning to use with her students) - I also discovered a link to this great clip. Talk about thinking outside the square...

Animator vs. Animation by *alanbecker on deviant ART

"A mind once stretched by new ideas NEVER regains its original dimensions"

Technology for Teachers, Technology for Education

2008-12-02T01:08:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness my mind is buzzing. I have a number of Draft Copy posts hidden away behind this blog. My fingers and allocated time, can not keep up with my questioning, readings, thought provoking conversations, and observations. But today (tonight) I will share with you some thoughts sparked by my recent posts, my ict facilitator's provocations, and professional discussions I have had with colleagues.

I blogged last month about the Benefits of Technology in Education and Naketa (our fabulous ICT facilitator for the MOEs ECE ICT PL programme) left me a challenging question in the comments... "..You have outlined wonderful scenarios in which ICT has enhanced learning experiences for children. I wonder how ICT has impacted on your own learning - personally and professionally." As I posted last week about encouraging students by leaving comments - I thought I should be using the comments I receive more productively and began to ponder on Naketa's challenge. I take time to ponder - which is a good thing sometimes... I will try to summarise my thoughts later in this post...

This evening I had a phone call from a colleague. We don't actually work together in the same kindergarten, but we are both passionate ECE advocates and enjoy philosophical conversations about education in the early years and the more formal education of the school system.

As a result of some challenging situations my colleague has found herself in recently - namely working with others who do not share her philosophy - my colleague began to think more seriously about setting up her own childcare centre based on her ideas on education and on life in general. We talked about the practicalities of this and expected outcomes. We chatted about ideals and realities. We considered the future of education and if our ideas will ever really be embraced throughout the education system. We reflected on recent conferences we have attended and the 'change' foreseen in the future for education - when IS this future going to happen. We concluded that the future is not tomorrow - the future is today.

Today there are tools and resources that can benefit education in ways that has never been possible. There are tools and resources available for educators to use for advocacy, to promote the best of education and spread this to the world. If my colleague were to set up her own childcare centre (and it would be an awesome centre) and 'experiment' with her ideas and philosophies and run it as a model for future education - she would certainly have hurdles. For one she has to fit within current education regulations. Secondly what impact would she really have on the education system as a whole in New Zealand? What impact would her childcare centre of 10pupils have globally.

The future is now. Now teachers with the convictions such as my colleague, who are passionate about a new way forward, who have the skills, expertise and knowledge of the emergent curriculum, who can see classrooms beyond the four walls - have the freedom and audience right before them. And I believe we should all be taking advantage of this. I believe we should be sharing our professional ideas globally.

And to my original question - How has technology helped me personally and professionally?
I remember a time some 30yrs ago when my mother was cajoled into buying the Encyclopedia Britannica. Nothing wrong with that 30yrs ago but it was more than we could really afford at the time. I remember using this resource for my school projects. I also remember being very distracted by these numerous books (12 books, all different colours and themes) whilst doing my projects. I would find myself reading about things I 'wasn't supposed' to be reading because they would have nothing to do with the project at hand. However I would suddenly see the potential in the information provided in these books and whilst reading I would find out about things that I had often wondered about. Some years later my family moved overseas to live and 12 heavy Encyclopedia Britannica's didn't quite fit into the suitcase allowance. So they were left behind.

I'm not afraid to say I struggled at school. No not because I did not have the E.B. I just struggled. I struggled to get my ideas down on paper with my blotchy pens, my constant typos that my pen would make (lol) and the permanency of the marks my pen would make (copious amounts of crossing out or twink didn't cut it for assignments), and the lack of quick easy information, would trip me up continuously.

When I reached teachers college 10years after leaving school and the home computer was well established - my grades, my confidence and my learning took on a whole new life. With the advent of the internet my inquiring mind found a new source of energy. And with Web2.0 I have slowly (and perhaps less confidently) begun to find a voice. And with that - along with my colleagues and the children at Manaia Kindergarten who blog about their ECE experiences - I have inadvertently entered the world of advocacy. Together through Web2.0 we are advocating for Early Childhood, for the emergent curriculum, for the future of education (seeing the children in action in the kindergarten blog is much more convincing than reams of type as seen here - so check out their blog - www.manaiakindergarten.blogspot.com ).

Web2.0 is a tool that teachers who are passionate about education can use to promote their ideas, to advocate for education - not just to those teaching in the early years but to teachers in primary, secondary, tertiary - and heck - in business too. Early Childhood teachers, and teachers who believe in a new approach to education, can begin a dialog, join the conversations, promote their ideas.

What can technology do for you as a teacher? as a professional? It can enable you to advocate to a wider audience and - and bring the future of education closer.

Think EDUCATION outside the square box

2008-11-29T20:16:00.001-08:00

by SilverSpikes | Make your own at www.toondoo.com

A Boys Blog

2008-11-29T10:53:00.000-08:00

The above blog is an example of what a 10 year old boy can do with a laptop, a blog and an adventure. His six months in Italy is up, but his story sharing skills will be with him forever. What he learned, and what he has shared with you about the Italian way of life, about being adventurous and mostly about his growing and in-depth knowledge of food has become an integral part of who he is. Read about his adventures, and be part of his learning, teaching and development. Leave him a comment on www.mytuscanyoe.blogspot.com

What does Blogging offer children's education?

2008-11-22T00:26:00.000-08:00

Once again the teachers of Manaia Kindergarten, along with other Early Childhood teachers who are part of the ICT ECE PL Program, spent a great Saturday presenting and sharing ICT initiatives and resources to 180 ECE teachers from around the North Island. And once again we found it inspiring and motivating with the added element of meeting new people and new theories and ideas.

One resource we like to promote for Early Childhood centres and schools, is blogging. This is a FREE resource and provides children/students with a new medium for self expression, story telling, celebrating achievements (be it final results or showcasing their determination and enjoyment of learning), and to teach others what they themselves have recently learned. Blogging provides a number of positive elements that traditional forms of writing, self expression and teaching are unable to offer.

The first is that blogging provides an authentic audience. It is not just the teacher who assesses children's learning. It is not just the Mums, Dads and Grandparents who smile with pride at their children's progress proudly displayed on the kitchen fridge (although both the afore-mentioned are naturally and vitally important). There is however, a world of bloggers, blog readers, children and educators who are addressed, considered, and valued by children who blog. And the idea that there are people out there and are interested, is easily accepted by the C generation. For young children, their own learning and achievements are the central parts of their world and they naturally accept that their learning and achievements are central parts of your world too!! They are all eager to share accomplishments with you.

I have not noticed children blogging for comments. Checking the blog (or checking with teachers) to see if comments have been left on their posts is not the first port of call when they arrive at Kindergarten. The swings and sandpit still rank high as the activities of choice! However they are stoked, chuffed, overjoyed when a comment is left by a loved one, by friends and actually by anyone who shows an interest in their contributions. Both known and unknown commentators are valued as comments invite children into the global conversation and recognise children's contributions on a level playing field.

Those interested in education, of students achieving goals, for those who value displays of determination - you are given a unique opportunity to encourage, to respond, and generally to contribute to individual children's learning, and to communities of children at schools, at home and at kindergartens around the world.

So my challenge for you is - Have you left a child an encouraging comment on their blog this week?

Manaia Kindergarten
Hunter Park Kindergarten
Geraldine Kindergarten
Whangarei Heads Primary
Parua Bay Primary

New Zealand Elections

2008-11-10T19:02:00.000-08:00

OK - so the election didn't quite go my way. I don't mind admitting live online - that I am an avid Labour supporter. As has been said many times in the lead up to and post elections, National and Labour have come together in many of their ideas and policies. As the opposition party, National fought many of Labours policies. However during the events leading up to the election it amazed us all how J.Keys of National described much of those same policies as ones that made sense for New Zealand - like Kiwibank, Free ECE, not fighting in Iraq, and so on.

Keys' support for many of the popular Labour initiatives was probably concerning for many supporters to Nationals right - those that want more means testing, more user pays, lowering taxes for the wealthy. Those far enough to the right seemed to have moved over and voted for the ACT party. And those to the left who may have just wanted a change seemed to have been fooled into believing that National is a 'Centre' party close to the Left now - with leftist ideas, policies and practices. BUT this is not so! Because fundamentally Nationals philosophies still underpin its direction. And this was made very evident in John Key's acceptance speech. "What will determine our success is the unity of purpose. A willingness to work together, while recognising that our collective success rests on the success of individuals"

And so it is - National supports the individual. If John Key can rise up from state housing to Prime Minister of New Zealand and help to make things better - then so can you!! He does go on to say that "We need everyone working together because we need everybody to be pulling in the same direction - and if we do that then we will make NZ prosperous as we all know we can be." And I say - prosperous for whom? Such a veiw - that the individual can make it better for the collective - denies the innate selfishness of humankind... those that wanted lower taxes because they didn't want to help those who will never know what prosperous feels like.

To suggest that EVERYONE can reach their financial goals (and therefor some semblance of a decent standard of living) - denies those who work for the less fortunate for next to nothing, denies those who for reasons beyond their control they have to stay at home with no income to support children who don't fit into the mainstream of education, or the mainstream of anything, denies those who for reason's beyond their control will never fit into mainstream.

To say - to work together as individuals for collective success - is an anomaly. And I hope that National keeps to its word about many of the policies so supported by the collective for so long. And I would prefer to hear Key say "lets work together as a collective for the success of all and for the individual"

However there has been a vote for change.

Change is what New Zealand voted for.
But we do not yet know what that change will bring - and for whom!

(More on NZ politics and how it relates to ICT in Early Childhood later.)

Where's the learning?

2008-11-06T22:57:00.001-08:00

Consider the new dawn of education, consider how technology is exciting the learner, consider our different strengths, abilities and interests, before casting your vote for education and the direction of NZ tomorrow.

by SilverSpikes | Make your own at www.toondoo.com

Then maybe try your hand at making your own statement with ToonDoo and adding it to your blog!

The Benefits of Technology in Education

2008-10-26T11:02:00.000-07:00

Having recently attended ULearn08 in Christchurch, and presented at this inspiring conference, I again came home excited about the future of education. The possibilities seem to expand with every passing year and I am amazed as I reflect and realise that actually the possibilities for us as a kindergarten continue to expand. Everytime our children assess their own learning, and challenge us with questions and responses to technology, we are amazed by their own expectations and desire for learning. Here are some real life examples:

Digital Dexterity
A few years ago when a young boy had completed his work of digital art and my expectation had been that I would either type his name at the bottom, or print the picture and write his name himself on the paper page. It was with renewed expectation about children's mouse skills that I appreciated how he wrote his name in green digital ink on the digital page. His very matter of fact satisfaction with his newly developed skill paved the way for himself and other children to extend their own possibilities.

Learners as Teachers
One four year old girl had just finished making her PhotoStory3 movie and she wanted to change the colour of her text on the movie. A few runs through that process with the adult teacher and soon this four year old was teaching her friends. When introduced to other programmes they recognised a difference in the programme interface and wanted to explore the slightly different method of changing the colour of the text. The pride in this young girls face as she taught her peers, and her matter of fact satisfaction when her friend also acquired this skill took us all to a higher level of expectation and possibilities.

A young blogger expects Web2.0 capabilites
A four year old leaned out the window at Kindergarten and said "Hey Beverly, I left a comment on the blog" - and she had! This same girl wanted to see on the computer, the school she was to attend when she turned five. When the website was downloaded by an adult teacher, the four year old searched the page and said "Hey, where can I leave a comment?" - unfortunately the school had not yet entered this young girls world of Web2.0. When she finally arrived at school on her 5th birthday, this new entrant handed over the kindergarten business card and said "This is my blog address, you will be needing that!"

What are the benefits?
You might read the above examples and wonder how they answer such a question. These are but small instances highlighting the impact of ICT on children as they assess their own learning, explore with fascination and expectation at what computers can do for them. This expectation goes with them to school. They have a level of expectation about their learning that is best supported through the use of ICT in education. Technology is an invaluable asset when we begin to explore what ICT can do for us and our students, and when we begin to view education as a collaborative, relevant, living opportunity.

Also Read:
What are the benefits of Technology in Education? Practical processes children use when engaging with technology including a list of links to kindergartens and schools who blog about their technology learning and their open exploration of education in all areas.

Are you - Generation C ? ...........................You could be!

2008-10-15T19:49:00.000-07:00

"It's not that children are interested in technology. Its that they are interested in what technology can do for them"

We are talking about the new generation. This could mean YOU.
"Generation C is not age defined but means those who are CONNECTED, COLLABORATING, CONTRIBUTING, COMMUNICATING"
Matt Headland, MTV
Quote from interview on Radio New Zealand's National programme

As an educator you are sure to have Generation C students. You could join them. Get connected, take the risk and contribute, collaborate - get communicating with new technology. Its the only logical way ahead for education.

ULearn08 - 21Century Shift - Joan Dalton

2008-10-09T15:58:00.000-07:00

What a dynamic speaker and a presenter of challenging thoughts. We all know that education is on the brink of huge change - Joan has visualised this in a very practical way. Looking back to the beginning of the 21century in 30years time what will we think of the classroom with four walls, one teacher and a set curriculum... when technology can connect the world, the students, the experts, each of any age or position in life. Young children teaching artists, primary children teaching the young mums and dads, students learning what they want when they want it because the resources will be (and in many cases already are) at our finger tips. "The world has changed, learning is limitless!" - J.Dalton

You will need high tolerance for experimentation and trial and error - risk takers will lead the way knowing that failure is ok - through trial and error we learn.
As teachers we need to facilitate and be language masters and inquirers. Lets grab the world of possiblities and get rid of words like "but...". "I Want you to...", "I'm going to give you some information that...." These comments assume the power stays with the teacher. We need to use a language of possibilities, the language of invitation , the language of inquiry and inclusion.That way we help children to self instruct - and maybe with these tools children will not lean towards self destruction.

Give yourself license to play - encourage play with possibilities
Believe in yourself.
Be wise - wise of mind, wise of heart, wise of soul.

A Whole New Mind - Daniel Pink

The Power of Questioning in ECE

2008-10-07T18:17:00.000-07:00

Questioning - Surfing or Scuba Diving?
A workshop by Mary-Anne Murphy - Educational Facilitator
#ULearn08 - Christchurch.

What?
Why?
Who?
Where?
When
How?

Questioning is important because it helps us understand issues more deeply. It indicates that we have a level of curiosity about an issue and also helps to stimulate curiosity in others. Questioning promotes conversation and can take conversations to a new and deeper level. Questioning helps us to find an answer or address a curiousity... The importance of questioning is instictive in 2-3yr olds who start off life after establishing the words Mum, Dad, and various other vital labels, by asking "what's that?" and then deepening their questioning to ask "Why?"

The profile of a good questioner is someone who has a good level of curiosity and above all is prepared to take risks. They need a certain level of patience and persistance so that they are able to continue to ask their questions again and again until they are heard, or to be able to modify their questions so that they are understood.

The early years is a great time to encourage children's questioning. But it can also be a time that is so easy to discourage questioning. The 2yr old who asks "WHY?" until the only answer you can find is because if you believed in a God - is because God decided it would be so - may start to be ignored when asking questions.

So how do we encourage questioning in a manageable why for such young children? DO WE have to answer their questions with correct answers to encourage their questioning style - or at this particular age could this not lead rather to parents, teachers and caregivers going insane and resulting in a discouragement of questioning? Do they need us to have an answer to every question? What if we asked the children their ideas to the questions they ask? We might see some astonishing insights into the way our children see the world. Would it be better to correct their insights and theories or would we encourage a development of their questioning techniques if we let them work on their theories over time? I don't believe that we have to find and give the answers immediately. I believe it is much more fun to involve children in seeking the answers to their questions and I believe this would show children that we take their questions seriously and respect them for asking their questions.

Children do not always ask questions at times that suit our timetables, or home schedules. Maybe it would be good to have a place in our classrooms and homes where children can 'park' their questions. These questions can then be addressed over time and given the time to address them. This way we would be saying to children that we are listening and that there a no wrong/bad questions - they are all valid and together we can look for the answers.

What makes a good question?
Open ended question - one that requires more than one word answers
Relevant
Takes you to another level, another question
Acknowledging that in certain context closed questions are important.

Inspiring and developing questioning... (activity)
Give the answer - " the answer is 'tree' - what is the question?"

Questioning relationship
child <-> adult <-> child <-> child

Maybe encourage the children to create our ICT survey?

Return to NZ - Still connected to the network

2008-10-07T14:25:00.000-07:00

What a fantastic experience I had in Italy and the Uk with my family. It was great to see we were still able to pick up where we left off - all together. Our physical network has been made stronger and we are still connected - emailing, skyping, sharing blogs. They are not that far away...

One thing I noticed while chatting late at night with my neice and interacting with my nephew, being involved in his correspondence schooling - is that technology in education is not a theory! It is real, it is happening, and the children are involved, engaged and using the technology in anyway they can.

Today I am sitting in the ULearn08 Christchurch auditorium. What I saw in my immediate family in Italy and the UK - is being talked about here in New Zealand in this keynote presentation. My nieces 14yrs and 16yrs are part of the technology network. I wander what guidance they have had to use these networks to create networks, to help them put their best foot forward in the social online globe, how are they using this technology to learn, grow, share, colaborate, prepare. I am hugely impressed by their abilities with technology - my hope is that their teachers guide them in a trustworthy way to gain the best for them. I am also incredibly proud of my 10year old nephew who is making fantastic leaps forward in his use of technology, putting his best work online, sharing his knowledge with others, networking with others in the online New Zealand correspondence community, extending his community by responding to the professionals who have been inspired by his blog, knowledge, and leadership in the online world of education... he is putting his best foot forward and creating his learning community.

Benefits of Skyping

2008-09-19T04:18:00.000-07:00

"A family who Skypes together stays together"

Ok probably as debatable as the old saying "a family who prays together stays together" - but in this instance the skyping lifestyle has helped to keep my family, at least, together and deepened our relationships.

The young girl who blew me kisses over skype ended up costing me over three thousand dollars. And despite the miles that have separated us, we are as close, if not closer, than we have ever been. I couldn't mention it then, but the day after my two and half year old niece was taught by her other aunt to blow kisses to me over skype, I booked my ticket to Tuscany!! I had said I couldn't afford it - but those kisses made me do it. (see story on the ICTECT blog)

My entire family congregated in Tuscany and skyped me everyday. They were planning my fathers 70th, and in the end I decided the best birthday present for him would be for us all to be together. So with those two events in mind (the kisses and the birthday) I travelled to the UK on the 13th of September (now booking airline tickets online is something I need to re-consider - the travelling story is a whole other story). Through the use of technology, skyping, email, texting - I slowly made my way to the UK, then to Goring, and then along the canal tow path - and knocked on the door of my father's canal boat. Stuck in a canal boat, away from the internet and most communication, he had no clue of my imminent arrival. He was gob smacked and I had a great week on their canal boat despite the rising river and appalling weather.

Then on to Tuscany to meet that little girl and my sister's family. Skyping has helped my nephew (check out his amazing blog about his time in Tuscany) and neice communicate with me on a regular basis, to see me, to hear my voice, to know me. Even as a two year old, Ana was able to pick up with me as we left off over six months ago. I also met up with my teenage neices in the UK. I haven't seen them for over two years. And again, via skype, blogging, and facebook our relationship is as comfortable as it ever has been.

Skyping has kept us all together. If you want to keep in touch, or rekindle your relationships with overseas family and friends, download skype today.

If you would like to know more about my adventures in Europe over the next three weeks check out treehouse dwellers. Next week I plan to skype Manaia Kindergarten children as they arrive at kindergarten for the day. Don't forget to visit next week to hear that story of skyping in education.

Can Technology benefit Eudcation?

2008-09-05T02:10:00.000-07:00

At Manaia Kindergarten technology has become integrated into the emergent curriculum.

Digital Photography
Children use technology to record and assess their learning. It has become a natural part of their kindergarten (and for some - home) lives. Children spend time creating sculptures with blocks, building volcanoes in the sandpit, or pushing their bodies to swing so high they can touch the shade sale... Then they grab a digital camera (or ask a friend or teacher to) and record their work. Quickly the analyse the images, return to their work, and perhaps modify their processes.

Movie Making
Later these same photos are often put together into a movie using Photostory3. Children again analyse their images - this time assessing which photographs best tell their story. The next step is to talk to their images and tell their story to an unseen audience. This can be tricky concept for children, so with the support of teachers they are sometimes encouraged to preview their movie and asked if they would like to make any modifications.

Blogging
Children now expect that their movies will be show cased on the Kindergarten blog. They know that when their movie is on the blog they can share it with their families at home. Families at Manaia Kindergarten are emailed when their children have an item on the blog. The blog has become a focus for parents to support the children's learning and to find out what is happening for their children at Kindergarten. They regularly leave comments for their own children and other children who share their learning.

Learning Stories
Images children create with the digital camera can also be used to create stories of learning. Using Comic Life children can easily select their images of choice and drag and drop them into picture boxes on the digital page. With the support of a teacher, they share the words they want typed on the page. Children have a large amount of control of the way the final page will look - choosing the background colour, font and colour of the title, and the shape of the speach bubbles in which to type their words.

Note: the suggestion is that Technology benefit Education - Technology is not the education.

To explore this further you need only visit schools and early childhood centre's who have integrated technology into their programme.
Check out these sites:
Manaia Kindergarten - New Zealand
Geraldine Kindergarten - NZ
Kindergarten Tales - USA
Greenwood Kindergarten - NZ
Nelson Central Primary - NZ

Technology benefiting teachers
You might also like to consider how technology benefits education by the way in which it builds professional community. When teachers are engaged in technology, sharing their knowledge, reading about the work of everyday teachers such as themselves, then the profession of teaching becomes richer - and thus in turn - children/students education benefits.

Read also:
The Benefits of Technology in Education: Real life anecdotes of Technology in use in Kindergarten
Technology for Teachers, Technology for Education

Manaia Kindergarten Presentation

2008-08-28T23:03:00.000-07:00

We at Manaia Kindergarten, are working towards a keynote presentation for CORE Eds ULearnO8 Conference. We are sharing the platform with other like minded professionals across the education sector. Our aim is to share with others what we are doing at Manaia Kindergarten, and hopefully inspire others in their ICT journey.

So what are we doing at Manaia Kindergarten? Well check out our blog for starters. Our aim was to build community - check out our Kindergarten blog and see if you agree that this tool is achieving this aim. At Ulearn we have 15mins to capture the excitement that is happening in our community... If you want to know more, at this stage , come along to ULearn. Just 15 mins - that's a challenge!

And then I came across this today in my professional reading - The Machine is Us by Dr. Michael Wesch. It is not altogether new (2yrs old is old on the web) - but I find it interesting as it succinctly (in 4mins) tells the story of what is happening with as a result of digital text. It is powerful! It makes you think. It sketches an inspiring exciting future. And it is succinct! Succinct is good. Succinct is powerful. It also encourages me to believe that the task ahead of us is possible, as much as the research we began (2yrs ago) has been powerful -it has been possible with the use of powerful tools... digital text.

Explore more of Michael Wesch's ideas here on the ICT ECE blog.

TED Talk - J. Harris: The Web's secret stories

2008-08-27T22:25:00.000-07:00

Feeling a little under the weather, I thought I would rest, watch the sun play in the harbour from my bed, and catch up on a little ICT professional listening (prefer that to the readings!). Have you seen TED yet? TED talks, such as Ken Robinson's talk posted earlier this term on ICTECE, are mostly thought provoking, well executed and cutting edge. Check out the "Jaw Dropping" category. It was whilst browsing through this that I discovered Jonathan Harris and his amazing universe.

Who is Jonathan Harris?
Instead of re-inventing the wheel I shall quote Jonathan's profile on the TED pages.

"Artist and computer scientist Jonathan Harris makes online art that captures the world's expression -- and gives us a glimpse of the soul of the Internet."

And

"Jonathan Harris [is] a New York artist and storyteller working primarily on the Internet. His work involves the exploration and understanding of humans, on a global scale, through the artifacts they leave behind on the Web." Edge.org

And here Jonathan Harris tell's the secret stories of the web. (see a selection of responses to the video below).

Beverly Kaye – August 28 2008
"At Manaia Kindergarten, we are encouraging children to tell and share their stories, to express themselves and their world. They share these openly on their public blog. It is great to see Jonathan's amazingly creative approach to gathering such stories, and devising an art-form that allows us all to celebrate the importance of humanity's feelings, thoughts, and emotions, Amazing."

Allison Thagard – August 29 2007
"I love how Jonathan says that we leave our foot prints with the blogs that people write. All the technology in the world helps anyone to be able to leave pieces of ourselves to others, in the future."

samantha frost – February 23 2008
"I thought he gave a very well rounded and interesting presentation of what seems to be some great anthropological work. Look forward to viewing the websites!"

Clifton Burriss – June 10 2008
"Mr. Harris, how do you make a project like "We feel fine" and not spend an eternity reading all of that, let alone creating "Universe" which will truly be even more impossible to unravel every article? Man, I thought I couldn't get out of the chair with Youtube, Facebook, and Google, and then this fellow invents couple more info-distribution boards. Wow..."

NOW check out the UNIVERSE
And have a play...

Have you skyped today?

2008-07-31T03:04:00.000-07:00

I was recently phoned by a telephone exchange company trying to sell me cheap international calls if I switched my allegiance to them. On the end of the line, one of those telephone sales people rambled on and on so that I couldn't interrupt and tell them to find another hobby. When eventually she did pause for a breath I informed her that I skype. A longer pause followed. I thought she was about to hang up when she asked "What does that mean?". I was amused that a sales person for a telephone company did not know about new telephonic technology. So I explained. Skype is a programme that allows the user to initiate phone calls from one computer to another (assuming that the other has downloaded skype onto their computer too). Not only can one talk to friends and family with the aid of a computer and microphone, if you have a webcam you can see each other too. The telephonist genuinely sounded impressed and asked skeptically how much it cost for a skype call. I told her that was the best part of it - it is completely free. She apologised for taking up my time and hung up.

Skype has been a wonderful way for Manaia Kindergarten children to meet and get to know children from other kindergartens around New Zealand. We have many examples of children in our Whangarei Kindergarten (at the top of the North Island of New Zealand) crowding around a computer and microphone exploring the art of conversation with children from Geraldine, Fiordland and Auckland. The skpying kindergartens have shared their knowledge of painting, matariki, possums and stoats with our children. As teachers we have been able to hold professional conversations with teachers around New Zealand and as far away as Chicago.

On a more personal note my sister recently packed up her family, with my 10yr nephew and 2yr old neice and flew off to Tuscany for a 6month holiday. It is a trip of a life time - and I miss them. My niece and I had just come to a turning point in our relationship - as happens between me and most 2yr olds. We pass that awkward phase and become buddies. So it was kinda tough on us for her to then be whisked away. The highlight for me during their holiday in Italy is that I have spoken to my sister and nephew much more than I ever did when they were just 2hrs drive from me in Auckland. We skype almost once a day - whenever Mathew is a bored he sends a little chat "Want to skype?" - and I beam from ear to ear. My niece has peered into the webcam and watched me - fascinated - but seems to have found it all a bit confusing. Today she peered into the webcam, then vanished, and I could hear her talk to my family as she pointed to the computer and said "Beverly". Later she sat on my sister's knee (her other aunt) and was taught to blow kisses. We had a wonderful time blowing kisses from Whangarei to Tuscany and back again - til I almost cried!

Have you Skyped today?
Download Skype

Can blogging benefit your children's education?

2008-07-29T02:57:00.000-07:00

As teachers in a Kindergarten, as part of the MOE ICT ECE PL CORE Education Research Programme, this is one of the questions we have been addressing. If you would like to know more, check out Manaia Kindergarten Blog. If you are concerned about the safety of children blogging and their presence on the World Wide Web, check out our Blogging Safely Webpage - with links to articles, netsafety, and videos on how to begin a blog.

Share your edublog experiences under Comments.

Have you personalised your Google Page?

2008-07-29T02:22:00.000-07:00

I have always seen the little link in the Google Search Engine page - "personalise your google page" - or some such remark and pretty much ignored it. The thing that attracted me to Google back in the mid 90s was the fact that it provided a clean page - unlike Yahoo at the time - and listed only links you asked it to list without adding a bundle of flashing light advertising. So personalising my Google page (which has always been my home page) gave me images of flashing lights, inane advertising, and clutter - and worse still - its self imposed!!

During the recent storm and between the episodes of power failures, with nothing better to do - I thought I would have a look at what a personalised Google Page offered. I have to say - as I have chosen the items on my Google Page - it is all rather handy. I have place on my Home Google page a small window with the days top news items, along with our current hobby - weather watching. A third small window accommodates my Google Reader account so on opening my Google Home Page I can see immediately, who of my friends and admirers, have updated their blogs.

Then I noticed that I could add permanent tabs to my Google Home Page. Google has a long list under "Add Stuff" - including (but not limited to) YouTube search engine, Google calender, animated eyes (which presumably watch your every move - scary!). YouTube is always a favourite of mine so I added a whole tab dedicated to YouTube's search engine, top viewed videos, Google's favourite google videos, etc - you get my drift.

I thought this 'tab' thing was kinda fun and wandered what other internet sites I like to be updated on quickly and efficiently - and ofcourse my addiction to FaceBook was quickly satisfied with a tab dedicated to my inbox, my friends updates, and profile page.

I looked at the idea of making my new Google Home Page 'pretty' (not usually my thing) and found that actually there are a number of attractive headers which change depending on the time of day (as I blog my Google Home Page is adorned with an attractive setting sun across a pacific beach). Maybe a bit kitsch, and you certainly have to play with different headers as some are more distracting than adorning.

I decided to visit the "Add Stuff" link one more time before the storm raging outside subsided - and to my delight I found ......... PACMAN. This game of my youth (I held the highest score in our 3rd form class in '83! - not sure if I should still be proud of that - but there you have it) now takes centre stage on my Personalised Google Home Page!

Ken Robinson

2008-07-19T02:58:00.001-07:00

This talk from Ken Robinson may be a few years old - but definitely a good watch. What seems like an obvious way forward for education, seems to be a new idea for so many. Sir Ken Robinson, doesn't so much give a definitive view on what education should look like, but rather poses some reflective questions about education today. I have felt for some time that early childhood is on a good road. Wouldn't it be wonderful if the school system followed the lead of Early Childhood Education, by following children's interests, strengths and the tools that come so naturally to them, as a vehicle to teach them many of life's necessities. And along the way wouldn't children develop a passion for learning, because they are learning about things that interest them. And wouldn't it be great if assessment did not consist of a hall filled with rows of desks, shuffling papers, tension, stress, and a pass or fail. But rather wouldn't it be great if children could be encouraged through positive assessment practices, and scaffolded by teachers who are passionate because there are sharing their strengths and interests. Because isn't it that which is important - the knowledge, skill and passion TO LEARN - and not the actual data we throw at them? Because the data we feed them today, will probably not be the data they need for tomorrow...

Here's Ken Robinson's take from TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design)

Also check out Ken Robinson's views on National Standards

Team Challenge

2008-07-17T16:17:00.000-07:00

David Spragg provided a thought provoking day, as he challenged the teachers of the Northland Kindergarten Association, to step forward positively as we face new changes. Many of us are excited by the prospect of having a new teachers join our individual kindergarten teams. David Spragg proffered that if our new challenges DON'T SCARE us, then we need new challenges. That is - there will be some testing times. It was mentioned a number of times that it takes almost two years to settle into a new job, for changes to become embedded, for a team to congeal.

Personality types
We identified our different personality types based on shapes. Many identified with the Squiggle - a person with many ideas, who can see the whole picture, who is a bit rusty on detail. The Circle was the next biggest shape - the nurturer, making sure everyone is ok and working together well. And then the square, rectangle and triangle - more interested in detail, some more so than others, some more obsessively than others. It is important to remember that no one shape is better than another - indeed it is better for a team to have one of each 'shaped personalities' in the team - a team of circles rolling around taking care of each other will not dream or get the job done, squiggles will too might have the ideas, but if the detail is not there the job is not achieved, and the squares, rectangles and triangles need a dreamer.

It was also noted that we need to treat our team members with the same respect that we treat children. If a child said "I'd like to build a rocket today!" - would it be acceptable to respond - "Mmm, No. We tried that yesterday and it didn't work." And yet for some reason we are apt to responding in this way to new ideas from adults. Spragg challenged "What is the worst that could happen in trying out an idea, even if you have tried it before, or don't think it will work - Let your team member give it a go, with the support and enthusiasm we proffer children".

Barriers to flexibility - what are our barriers. Spragg divided the barriers into three main areas - Attitude, Structure, Competence.

Attitude. We use power play, Cynicism, tradition - to prevent ourselves moving forward.
Structures. Architecture (Not a big enough office, not a big enough playground), Union regulations, Legal requirements (can't do that we're not allowed)
Competencies - Knowledge gaps, Skills Shortage (don't know how to draw), Technology deficiencies (don't know how blogs work), Innovations shortfalls (isn't measurable)

Tantrums - He suggested our barriers can be manifested in what essentially is an adult tantrum. We all do it, it is way to ensure we get things done the way we want them done - but tantrums are not helpful in a team decision. How does your tantrum manifest itself? If you feel a teacher throwing a tantrum in a meeting - Spragg suggests you point it out. It is hard, but a good decision can not be made if one member is throwing a tantrum. It is best to say "Lets put a hold on this decision until you get a grip on your tantrum." Tantrums need to be left at the door.

Philosophy
To build a team philosophy - you first have to be a team and have a personal philosophy within that team. Spragg suggested that we work together for a term, make notes and sort out our own philosophy in words, and then come together and work out a team philosophy.

"It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change." - Darwin

So for Manaia Kindergarten, we wait, step forward positivitely and with excitement - prepared for the new road ahead.

1968 - Future of Computers

2008-07-04T14:25:00.000-07:00

So what did they get right and what's a little different?
What is our prediction for 2048?

A quote to share around...

2008-06-29T01:37:00.001-07:00

This is a quote I found on Naketa's Blog (our fabulous ICT facilitator!) - and I thought it inspiring...

" The last few decades have belonged to a certain kind of person with a certain kind of mind - computer programmers who could crank code, lawyers who could craft contracts, MBAs who could crunch numbers. But the keys of the kingdom are changing hands. The future belongs to a very different kind of person with a very different kind of mind - creators and empathizers, pattern recognizers and meaning makers. These people - artists, inventors, designers, storytellers, caregivers, consolers, big picture thinkers - will now reap society's richest rewards and share its greatest joys. "

Source: http://www.danpink.com/wnm.html

Chris and Cru - A fight for Justice

2008-05-22T22:18:00.000-07:00

Ok - it's late - but it's passionate!!

Human rights have been disregarded this week. Two young children - twins - three months old - were murdered. After two years of investigation, a charge filed against their father, a trial, and TEN MINUTES of deliberation - somebody has gotten away with murder.

This CAN NOT happen! New Zealanders CAN NOT let this slide!

I do not know if their father, Chris, who has stood trial for their murders, did deal the final blow. Maybe it was their mother, who is rumoured to have gone out drinking on the town the night the children died, who beat them so badly before going out for the night.

The Day Chris and Cru Died - Macsyna King returned from a night away and discovered the boys had sustained substantial bruising. She and her husband took them to the GP - "who ordered immediate hospitalisation for the infants. Instead of going to Middlemore Hospital, which was only 10 minutes away, the parents went to McDonalds and returned home after several hours" (wikipedia). When the children were eventually taken to the hospital it was discovered that they had suffered serious brain injury as the result of skull fractures from blunt force truama.

As the investigations began the public were told that the Kahui family refused to speak to police.
WHAT does that mean?
How is it that children can be murdered in their home and the ones in the house at the time can decide whether or not they would like to speak to the police?
I did not understand then and I do not understand now why the police scrambled as the whanau (extended family) pointed fingers at eachother, defended the parents, and defied police. Why did the police investigating these murders allow this family to get away with it? It took 5 months for a charge to be laid.

During the trial there were many references of the abuse that Chris and Cru suffered at the hands of their parents. It is not doubted that these children sustained continual abuse during their 3 traumatic months. And even on this the law enforcers seem powerless to act.

Are we really going to allow New Zealanders to get away with the abuse of children AGAIN?
Are we really going to allow New Zealanders to get away with the murder of their children?

You can read a slightly different but equally as brutal, version of events here.

A late addition to the May 15th, Blogging for Human Rights Campaign BUT not just a post - THIS IS a call for action. See below.

Does anyone know of a public online forum, where New Zealanders can have their voice? A site that has a moderator who will oversee a mature fight for justice. I would like to see somebody like the Commissioner for Children facilitate such a site. Children need us to fight for their rights. We need to fight for our children!

Other's Uniting in Human Rights
Pentad
DrowsyMonkey
Everyone deserves a good Education
The Right to Exist
For more...

Bloggers Unite - 15th of May

2008-05-14T03:34:00.001-07:00

As I curl onto my bed and surf the net before I shut my eyes - with wireless broadband I can help to change the world!!!

Tomorrow BlogCatalog is running it's initiative - uniting bloggers around the world to raise awareness of a single topic of world wide concern. Bloggers Unite's previous campaigns have addressed Organ Donation Awareness (sorry I missed that one), Bloggers against Abuse, Acts of Kindness. On the 15th of MAY 2008 - bloggers will unite again to raise awareness on Human Rights Issues.

So surfers on the web, on the 15th of May, will find themselves reading a similar message over and over again as more and more people unite on world concerns.

For my small part - I discussed this event with Ash at the new and responsive DotDash social network. They too are joining this event. Hopefully more and more social networks, ...... schools, teachers, students, parents and more .... will use this time to band together and unite on a single topic of world wide concern...
and use the internet as a POWER FOR GOOD.

How will Early Childhood respond?
How will YOU change the world from your place in it?

To find out more - go to www.unite.blogcatalog.com

Mathmaticious

2008-04-30T19:51:00.000-07:00

I have realised that many of my blog posts are not so much about ICT in early childhood - but are focusing on ICT in schools. The reason for this is that as a teacher in the early childhood sector, dedicated to making education relevant, exciting and explorative, I find it motivating to see and share the ICT exploration happening in the primary and secondary sectors. I have been concerned about our students moving on to primary and secondary schools where there is a very 'traditional' approach to education. So it is really motivating to come across videos such as Mathmaticious. I highly recommend Early Childhood Teachers, Parents and School teachers check this out and encourage a wider spectrum of learning methods. See what school children are saying about this approach to learning via theYouTube comments.

My Great Imaging of the World

2008-04-18T16:30:00.000-07:00

Found My Great Imaging of the World from Free Technology for Teachers

Thought this was a great place to display my own photos, but it is also a great site for students looking to extend their knowledge about countries and cultures around the world. Students can also add their photos depicting their view of their world. Like a photographic wiki.

Beyond the Classroom walls

2008-04-18T13:36:00.000-07:00

As a kindergarten community exploring the possibilities of information and communication technology, we continue to discuss and promote it's uses higher up the education spectrum. Where are our children heading? What will their primary and secondary schools be offering to further their excitement of learning using technology as a resource?

Second Life is not new to Education - but I challenge you.. are YOU thinking beyond the classroom walls?

Then again, I challenge myself. Is there any room for young children in Second Life? What are the implications? What are the possibilities?

You might like to engage in discussion about this here through comments or at BlogCatalog as part of the Education Today group.

Education today - Where to from here?

2008-03-28T15:37:00.000-07:00

Ok - I looked up YouTube about Education some months ago and found an interesting video that made me think about my support for a new way of thinking and teaching in today's educational environment. It seemed to support some opinions I had heard about the way children are taught today. I thought at the time Maria McDermott (Associate Professor, Department of Mathematics, University of Rochester ) made some good points. Something upset me about this and I hesitated to reflect on it because I was nervous that I might have to rethink my basic fundamental beliefs about today's education (both positive and negative).

After a good deal of personal reflection, discussion with colleagues, and research - I am happy to share this video with you, and encourage you to think about it's message - and TO READ FURTHER. Compare this video with the accompaning video below and the post "Back Up Educaiton". Tell me your thoughts, reflections, on what you know, see here and other research you have discovered.

After re-searching for the above video - I also discovered this YouTube video. Watch and compare. I have added the crux of the lyrics (but not the repetitions - you can retrieve all the lyrics from the YouTube site).

LYRICS:
what you know about math
what you know about math
what you know about math

hey, dont you know I represent LC
when i add, shorty subtract
Got my notebook
where I'm showin' all my work
.......

Rollin 24s, mathematicians in the business
We'll be your future boss
Don't make us mad or you'll be useless.
.........

ti-89 titanium
know I'm shinin' dog
fresh batteries in the back
to do my natural log

(hey)you know we multiply
(hey)while memorizing pi
(hey)take limits to the sky
(hey)be sure to simplify

graphing utility(okay)
does trigonometry(okay)
I'm goin' to GT(okay)
dont you cheat off me

(oh)distance is rate times time
(oh)the sine graph ain't no line
(oh)exponential decline
(oh)bet your score can't beat mine

(cheah)here everybody hates
(ch-ch-ch-cheah)cuz i can integrate
(ch-ch-ch-cheah)we're bout to graduate
(ch-ch-ch-cheah)not gettin many dates

(what)i got to find a mate
(now what)but girls just player hate
(now what)and always make me wait
(now what)but i know im not gay
........

calculators too slow
test is done i gotta go
all the maths inside my brain
final grade is 10 Hoe!

(ey)we rollin twenty fo's
(ey)Reimann sums are low
(ey)now calculus is known
(ey)thank GALILEO

few things here i wanna say
I can integrate all day
e to the 2x is fine
gimme something worth my time

so what you wanna do (okay)
derivative or two (okay)
think i know a few (okay)
now i wont be screwed

(oh)see all those like terms
(oh)them things you never learned
(oh)nothin' to calculate
You must have skipped that day

(what)you're stuck in algebra 1
(now what)you'll never have this fun
(now what)quadratic equation
(now what)forgot you're too dumb
.......
(BROCK) -- "I Know All About Math"

---------------------------------------- ----
YouTube Quote "This video was made for the furthering of math by myself and my friend. Among that it was also made for a great math teacher(featured ending) that myself and others have come to respect over the years. I used an idea from the original video(www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ooa 8nHKPZ5k) and made it my own. This video is by all means a REMIX. Also, this video stands as a response to all others willing to compete with their math-rapping abilities as well as video editting skills. 100% of the video was made by those SEEN in the video. Yes, Steven and I know math and yes we are that funny. Steven really is that white, I really wrote that solo, and I really do play guitar!"

Now read Back Up Education post. Your thoughts are welcome. Please leave your comments.

Back Up Education - Marc Prensky

2008-03-27T22:19:00.000-07:00

I would just like to acknowledge the great link that Cheryl (kindergarten teacher for the Northland Kindergarten Association) shared with me in a recent comment.

I am just exploring Marc Prensky's website and thus far I think he has some inspiring things to say to todays teachers and parents. Marc has a page in his site listing his writings. Thus far I have read Digital Native, Digital Immigrants and another quick easy read is Back Up Education which you can download as a pdf file to read, keep and share, share, share. What I loved about Back Up Education is how succinctly Marc puts into perspective the role of ICT in today's education environment. ICT is not going away. It is deeply embedded in the lives of young people today - they are as he writes in his earlier publications - Digital Natives.

As teachers and parents we sometimes confuse the methods of learning with the basics of learning. He suggests that we no longer teach children how (the method) to read or make a sundial - because we have newer quicker methods of (the basics) reading the time - with a machine strapped to our wrist. In the same way, why are we so caught up with putting long division algorithm and cursive writing (or any writing penmanship) for example, before ICT, - when we have calculators and keyboards?

Some teachers argue that if this technology breaks down (back up education) children need to know how to do these things manually. Realistically, Marc suggests, that if these things break down - we fix them (and I would go on to say, maybe we need to teach children HOW to fix the technology if it breaks down rather than throwing it out). And if computers, phone lines, satellites, televisions - if this whole IT network breaks down - our children's algorithms and penmanship will be the least of our worries.

You should check out Marc's website and see what else this visionary has to say.
Thanks Cheryl! If you too have any sites worth sharing, or have any views on this post - PLEASE share - Leave a comment - that's what education is about!!

Gizmoz

2008-01-22T19:04:00.000-08:00

Get your own at Gizmoz.com

Press the Play button in the pink circle on the phone above. Its a little slow - so be patient. This was pretty cool - still in beta and the recording wasn't complete (I challenge you to a duel if you disagree with my comments!! lol - but then again you should share your thoughts anyway... and give Gizmoz a go!

FaceBook, Yuwie and Bux.It

2008-01-14T12:21:00.000-08:00

Fiona and I have set our new years resolution. We have been so busy on the house over the last 3years that it is time to refocus. We have decided we need to be more social!! With that in mind I decided I needed to reconnect with old friends and in so doing, hopefully make new friends along the way. I searched the Internet googling names of old friends to see if I could suss out what they were up to and how to get hold of them again. As a result I discovered FaceBook.

I joined FaceBook about a month ago. I thought it was quite cool that I could find old friends – and I did. I sent them messages and invited them as friends. I also advertised a unit for rent ( didn’t get any bites – TradeMe is excellent on that score – though I have learnt that TradeMe won’t sell digital files such as The Chill Book you see on the right hand side). I then began to feel a little down that I could only find 13friends. I hesitate to mention that because it seems such a blight on character to ‘have’ only 13 friends. When I mentioned this to someone they said “13?!! I thought most people have 100s!”. So that didn’t boost my confidence. Then I realised slowly that actually these 13 friends are people I have found on FaceBook – many of my friends can not be bothered with it. Despite my ravings, they just don’t see the point. My REAL friends think it’s all a bit inane and get a little annoyed when I pull out the laptop to check out what my ‘friends’ are doing when my REAL friends want to go for a walk along the beach, hit the shops, chat about the day, discuss philosophy etc. And yes my partner feels it would be much more useful to get things done around the house!!

There ARE a few cool things to explore on FaceBook. You can rate how sexy you are, and constantly rate yourself or your friends in relation to how trendy you are, what you would spend your money on if you won a million, boast about the number of countries you have visited (note: check places the plane has landed at – you look more impressive that way – or of cause you can lie!!), add graffiti, get an anagram for your name (mines Best Excellent Visionary Entertaining Relaxed Loving Yummy – but I had to re-enter it a couple of times before I got the anagram I liked – the first one said “V for Vicious” – didn’t like that – I hit the computer, mangled at it’s keys, swore and pressed the REFRESH button!). The funny thing about my 'addiction' to Facebook is that I’m not one to 'poke' too much, to throw virtual snowballs, or to watch eggs hatch. (sorry Michelle – did appreciate that you were thinking of me). Then again – was she? You can share all these applications with ALL your friends by clicking a box "Share All".

My family, friends and mostly my partner will be pleased to hear that the addiction is wearing off. I think I will still keep my account. It’s good to be able to tap into the social network to advertise – though my one advert I was not at all successful. I have put another advert up for The Chill Book (read more about that here) – I thought I should send a message to all (13) of my friends to tell them about the advert – but then I consider that is using them a bit and I’m not like that – even in the virtual world.

.........................................................................

However I am trying another experiment in Yuwie. (You don’t need to press the join button on the right hand side of this blog – or here – or here – or here - to find out all about it – but it would help with my referals if you do!). I’m going ANON on Yuwie. I’m seeing if I can be someone else online. My name is George though I still admit to being female and it probably doesn’t help that I’ve listed my blogs on my Yuwie account so my anonymity probably won’t last long if I’m actually wanting to push my blogs and blog visits. But I thought I would give it a go. I like the clubs on Yuwie and have joined up with lots of photographic clubs and of cause MAC clubs. I haven’t set up an account yet, so I have no idea how much I’m earning on Yuwie (you get paid everytime someone views your page, or someone looks at your referral’s page if you really want to find out more click here). But there is also that kind of advantage – if it really is an advantage.

........................................................

I've been reading quite a bit about making money online. It seems a bit of a fickle endeavour - but I thought I would find out if this really works - if it can be done by mere mortals such as myself. Thus I joined up with Yuwie and as a bit of an experiment I’m also trying out Bux.to. Here all I have to do is click on an ad, have it up on the computer for 30 seconds and then I earn ONE cent! I thought I wouldn’t bother other people with this and just try it out on my own. There are a limited number of ads to watch per 24hrs. Yesterday was my first day – I clicked on 14 ads and earned 14cents (you want to earn that kind of money click here!). Each ad taking 30 seconds I spent 4min 20sec doing this (though don’t tell the advertisers I was also cooking dinner at the same time). Anyway I figured if I want to make $140, it would take me 420hours (is my maths correct)… that’s a long time to prepare dinner.
Fiona and I ditched the computers last night (actually I ditched the computer with Fiona’s encouragement) and we went for a walk along Ocean Beach (and I didn’t even take a camera to show you how beautiful it was – you’ll have to visit it yourself!!). We did talk about all of this – and we calculated that by using Bux.to on my own (without referrals) we would be paid $1.20 an hour. (So in order for us to make our millions we need you to click here and join as our referral.) But you don’t have to – cause this is probably a red herring and there would be easier, quicker and more social ways of making an extra buck! Besides it seems as though even Virtual George is not very pushy – and I don’t blame her!!

Right now however – I’m wandering if 24hr has passed and I can click on more ads – or I could phone Mitre10 about all the new tools we have to buy to tame our out-of-control weeds that are consuming the builders rubble left over from last years building project!!

Maybe I will leave all of this computer stuff til such a time that I’m laid up sick in bed – and just enjoy this amazing Northland summer instead…..?!

Then again read this LINK first "With Friends Like These..." by Tom Hodgkinson of The Guardian posted Monday January 14 2008 - some quotes - "Now even if you don't buy the idea that Facebook is some kind of extension of the American imperialist programme crossed with a massive information-gathering tool, there is no way of denying that as a business, it is pure mega-genius....The creators of the site need do very little bar fiddle with the programme. In the main, they simply sit back and watch as millions of Facebook addicts voluntarily upload their ID details, photographs and lists of their favourite consumer objects." And there is much on this site about the people behind FaceBook etc

Then if you would like to be more social or earn more money click the START button at the bottom of your computer and select SHUT DOWN (what is it about the PC - you have to click Start in order to End). If you are on a Mac - don't worry about it, your computer will sort it out!! And get out there, plant some seeds - yes real seeds, water the garden, share the fruits of your labour with friends (again real friends), then go for a walk on the beach, or a drink at the pub, or enjoy a boat ride around the bays!!

If you have any additional or alternative views on the above, or know of any website or REAL books on the subject please leave them in the comments section, or email me, or phone me, or tell me!! I look forward to hearing your point of view.

Examples from The Chill Book

2008-01-13T12:11:00.000-08:00

Interesting

2008-01-08T15:55:00.001-08:00

You don't need to look too deeply to realise the truth in this... Its great to see it happening within us.
(designer unknown)

The Chill Book

2008-01-04T01:54:00.001-08:00

As a teacher I am constantly concerned about my involvement in children's art. I have recently attended workshops at the Early Childhood Convention on this particular topic and was amazed at how many others faced this dilemma. I love art, and exploring texture, colour, shape, and I love to experiment with many mediums. I have often sat with the children at the art table and my fingers have itched to get lost in the world of art - but something stops me. One thing that does stop me is my ability to get LOST in my art and I find it hard to connect with others and activities going on around me. So this is probably not the best place to be when I have the responsibility of 30 children in my care. On the other hand - I am also stopped by the voices in my head - the ones that say "Don't show the children you are better at drawing than they are - they might feel discouraged". There are times when I have drawn one or two things - and the children do feel discouraged and have asked me to draw something for them. I have felt uncomfortable in this position - because I haven't yet come up with an encouraging statement that continues their explorations. I have felt though that abstract collage would be an area I would love to explore with the children at Kindergarten. Just getting involved, getting messy, gluing, ripping, cutting, shaking, creating. That is one of my aims for 2008.

My other dilemma is colouring-in. I LOVED to colour in when I was a child. There were times that I was stuck inside for numerous reasons - usually I was tired and I didn't want to have to think. Colouring in was my refuge. I could sit for hours and colour. Yes I was provided with colouring-in books - pictures of stereo typical flowers, the quintessential boys and girls, butterflies and clowns. I coloured them all in , and when I had more energy I created my own. But I loved to colour-in. I firmly believe that my accute knowledge of colour derives from my intense obsession with colouring-in as a child. It is what drives my art today, drives my photography and aids my composition. I can see the argument many present for banning colouring-in for young developing minds - I'm not sure I completely agree with it - but I see the arguement - thus my dilemma. I have, therefore, turned to Mandala style designs for a new book I have created called 'The Chill Book'. I provide it here for you to explore - with your children or on your own. Explore colour and enjoy. The designs are probably a bit too intricate for kindergarten aged children - I will work on that.

Please be aware I charge a small fee for this file - a recognition of the time, creativity and effort I have put into creating this book. Check it out - see what you think and PLEASE leave your comments as a form of feedback and reflection for my on going professional development.

Education of the future....?

2007-12-01T20:32:00.000-08:00

After searching on YouTube for the movie Linda showed (see below) at the Auckland Regional Hui - I found some other great thought provoking compilations.... check it out.

Auckland Regional Hui

2007-12-01T19:28:00.000-08:00

We had a great time in Auckland this Saturday at the ECE ICT Professional Learning Programme's Auckland Regional Hui. I woke at 5am, was on the road to Tania's by 6.45am, and we were on our way to Auckland for the 9am start. Naketa (our fantastic facilitator) opened the day with a movie (it's all about cool movies) about the things facilitators get up to... looks like hard work and great fun. Certainly the facilitators on this programme are inspiring - Naketa has been for us and we look forward to her inspirations over the next two years plus! (you can check out her blog here)

Everyone at the Hui had an opportunity to present their research and progress at workshops. These were inspiring. I couldn't discuss all I learnt from these but here are some highlights. I was motivated by Waiuku Kindergarten, to extend our transition to schools programme (using the movies we have made about our local schools) and make these movies available in book form for easy access. I also saw an idea we have been dwelling on in action - A transition to school board displaying photos of children who are attending, or are going to attend a particular school. There were also photos of significant features of the school on the board. The children at Wiauku seem to refer to this regularly. Movies that showed groups of children around the board showed us the huge benefits and discussions this board generated about schools. Thanks Waiuku Kindergarten for sharing your research.

The second workshop I attended was from Meadowood Childcare Centre. It was great to see how movies are being used for children with "special rights" as a tool to help in IDP (individual development planning) meetings. These movies are put on a secure online site for supporters from other disciplines (occupational therapist, physio etc)to view before a visit or meeting. Oh how often it is that when these professionals visit an ECE centre, a child is either having a tough day, or just not wanting to do the things that the therapists need them to do in order to assess their development. Movies online as a way for group assessment appears valuable.

Tania and I presented at the second workshop. We presented on our passion for blogging and how it is benefiting our children and community, how links are being made across continents and knowledge is being shared - how we are all inspiring eachother to grow and learn. This presentation was based on the presentation we gave during the September holidays at the ULearn 07 Conference in Auckland. You can find out more about this on Manaia's Kindergarten Blog - click here.

Linda (another great Auckland facilitator) rounded up the Hui with an inspiring way of looking back over the year, seeing where we have come from, and reflecting on what we have learnt both over the year and at the Regional Hui, and where to from now. Tania and I drove back discussing many ideas about the road ahead.

Our goal for the day had been to not get a speeding fine or land in a paddock!! That goal achieved we learnt so much, deepened our relationship with other teachers on the ECE ICT PL Programme which is always a wonderful experience.

Here is a movie Linda showed about Education, which kinda sums up what we are all trying to achieve. Thanks to Naketa and Linda for a great day!

New Blog

2007-08-04T22:06:00.000-07:00

It has been a few days since I posted on this site. I have been upgrading and managing another of my blog sites which is now up and running. You can check out my new photographic site SilverSpikes Photography

Wow!

2007-07-30T00:36:00.000-07:00

Wow.....
Wow.....
Watched this on Close Up and had to find out more. Be prepared to feel your skin tingle!

Don't forget the name Paul Pots

My Meez

2007-07-24T00:18:00.000-07:00

Found this cool site - thanks to Naketa's blog. Thought I would show of my alter ego.

Meet Alex...

More techy - heaps of fun

2007-07-04T16:14:00.000-07:00

Ok - been having fun surfing... Check out this cool YouTube for Honda!

Websites made easy

2007-07-04T15:20:00.000-07:00

For anyone who thought creating a website was too techy, difficult, and aren't computer literate enough - check out this site...

Recommended Blogs

2007-06-12T03:09:00.000-07:00

Check out the blogs listed on the right. These are a result of our ECE ICT PL 3 year programme. Children 3-5yrs of age are up and running and using the technology to grow and learn. Check it out - you'll be amazed.

Welcome

2007-06-12T03:01:00.000-07:00

Move over 0s9 - the new laptop has arrived and taken over the digital waves. Be on the lookout for many new entries and great graphics.

2007-06-04T17:31:00.000-07:00

Well it seems that my dearly loved, very old and delapidated, OS9 iMac might finally have done it's dash. In my efforts to start a blog, and keep up with the children of Manaia Kindergarten, this much undervalued, much loved computer will be assigned to the corner of the desk to make way for the MacBook Pro, OSX, and Broadband. It has been a wonderful slave for my artistic exploitations (check out www.kdesign.co.nz) but even in this, the ol' iMac has begun to slow to a halt. (it is currently typing three words behind my typing). Blogging is not for this ol' thing - but blogging is a great way to share with your wider community all that you learn, see and do. And I want to be part of that journey! Hopefully this will be a great way to share my ICT learning and any artistic spin offs that that might produce. Tomorrow I wll be at the stor upgrading - but I wont forget this old friend.

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2007-05-06T11:39:00.000-07:00

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