FOCUSING - HUNCH

WHAT WILL THE FOCUS OF MY INQUIRY BE....? WHY?

I am going to focus on Learning through Play in the classroom.  A particular monitored focus for the year will be the promotion of Fantasy Play in the classroom.  Some core potential areas to inquire into under this umbrella:

• What are higher order thinking skills, actually?  What is executive functioning, actually?  How does fantasy play support this?

• How does a teacher model fantasy play without owning this?

• How can fantasy play be used as a vehicle for core curriculum learning?

• How can fantasy play be used to enhance the key competency learning?
  
• What are the best ways to provoke and resource, fantasy play?
  

WHAT HUNCHES DO I HAVE AROUND OUTCOMES?

With the development of fantasy play in my classroom I expect to find/see:

• An increase in engagement with core curriculum learning and wider learning through the NZC, using fantasy play. 
  
• Children of Room 5 are pre-operational, so therefore still able to access the ability to believe in 'make believe' characters and be fully engaged in that narrative.  I need to capitalise on this before they become too old!
  
• Creative writing skills including planning, plot and vocabulary building will be supported by the fantasy play narrative.
  
• Learning to scaffold fantasy play appropriately will increase the quality and frequency of peer-to-peer fantasy play without teacher involvement.
  
• Fantasy play will increase the key competency skill base in Room 5 as learning activities can be crafted to scaffold this learning and the introduction of a 3rd party will create personal learning that is still removed from each student.

TARGET STUDENTS

These children represent boys/girls, ethnicity, LA/MA/HA academic achievement, core-curriculum needs identified in focusing stage, different social needs, differing levels of development:

• Blake
• Harley
• Elizabeth
• Harry
• Indigo

SCANNING

What is going on for my learners...

STATS

Ethnicity

12 NZE

6 Maori

1 Cook Island Maori

1 African

Gender

14 boys

6 girls

Health

1 Type 1 Diabetic child

1 child on RTLB roll - diagnosed FASD ad ADHD (medicated with rhetolin).

1 child on SLT roll (Term 1 only) - diagnosed as being globally delayed

1 child with health needs that results in absence from school

1 child with significant changes happening in the home.

All children labelled as Year 2 - 1 child who started school at age 6.

DEVELOPMENTALLY

Pre-operational learners in Room 5.  Many children are enjoying the soothing and calming nature of the sensorimotor activities but fit into Piaget's developmental stage of pre-operational.

How do I know?

Observations of the children in play during the first 6 weeks of school showed that they were all firmly in the pre-operational cognitive stage using the indicators above.  Evidence was collected:

Louie, Mathew and Harry are using props/symbols in replacement of actual items for their play.  This is showing increased ability in pretend play.

Harley and Eli substituted sand with a yellow piece of fabric.

Eli has created a security camera out of substituted goods.

When working on capacity; Ozzy, Laycee, Harley, Holden, Edan and Cora-Lee all identified taller vessels as being capable of holding the most amount of water.  Therefore showing an irreversibility factor.

When sitting back and watching play, it was obvious that the children were needing coaching around different ways to solve a problem with our peers.  The children are all ego-centric and unable to see the points of view of others.  As a result, children were resulting to hitting or yelling to solve problems.  Daily modelling sessions for solving problems was introduced at brainfood time (or just before) and a variety of resources are used.  Puppets, Sesame St clips and picture books to name a few.  Role playing scenarios is highly enjoyable - making sure to always have the children be the 'good guy' as per IY guidelines.

Patience clips

Sharing clips

Conflict clips

Friendship and kindness clips

CURRICULUM

How do I know?

Using last year's pass-on data and my Term 1 testing, I was able to set up tracking sheets for JAM and Running Record testing.

JAM tracking sheets

Running Record tracking sheets

After moderating and reflecting on the student's writing, I noticed the following behaviours throughout Term 1:

• Children will write with teacher but uninterested in writing independently.
• Children enjoyed writing own choice stories the most.
• Two most capable independent readers (NZ European girls) were lacking vocab in written language.
• Not a high mileage for writing happening in Room 5 in first 6 weeks of the year.
• My first observation of the year reflected that my team leader wanting a focus on handwriting in my daily programme to help my students write longer pieces and quicker (with more ease).
• National Standards data and SOL (student ownership of learning) is the focused pass-on data received so unsure of wider curriculum understandings and efficacies.

PLAY

Urges

How do I know?

Observations of the children in play during the first 8 weeks of school showed that the major urges that children were exhibiting were/are:

Enclosure

Construction

Orientation

Deconstruction

STUDENT VOICE

What stuff do we do in class that is learning?

03.03.18

I asked the children this simple question and plugged the answers that the children gave me into Wordle.  The children could have as few or as many answers as they liked.  They couldn't see or hear the answers that previously children gave.  All children answered the question.