Every moment counts
In our school we are learning to pause and notice the everyday moments in our children's lives. We are hoping to explore these moments as an opportunity for growth and reflection. This past week we had a fire drill at our pre school. The fire drill was unplanned and unexpected. The staff had to move quickly - and it was right at the start of nap time! The teachers were amazing, taking deep breaths and waking the students in their class and quickly herding them out to the school parking lot. After the fire drill the students were ushered back to their class to resume their day, some went right back to sleep. Phew!
Some of the teachers with older students who were not napping gathered the students in the classroom and asked, them "What was that?" When I heard the question it gave me one of those brief moments of joy, because that is exactly the right kind of question to ask, at just the right moment. We need to teach in the everyday moments. To do so, we have to constantly keep in mind
just how much the children might actually understand.
What is a fire drill to a young child? I pictured the students faces as they exited the school and I pondered, what was their mind thinking? They hear a loud sound, the teacher's say, "fire drill, we need to leave the room." Then they are quickly ushered out of the school into the parking lot. They stand there for five minutes or so and then they go back into class. Do they know what a fire drill is? We use these words, yet at what age does their mind actually grasp what this means and how do we explain this to a two year old? Reminding our children that buildings can catch on fire, and we should practice what to do in case that happens is a necessity. We should all do the same thing at home, so that everyone knows that there is a plan with a designated meet up place, such as the end of your driveway. What are we teaching? Is it just a fire drill? Yes, but it also imparts the lesson that we plan for emergencies, we try not to panic and remain calm so that we can think clearly and make good decisions. Also, that especially in emergency situations it is important that we listen to instructions, follow the leader and stay together so that we can help one another if needed - and that we don't leave anyone behind.
We do so many things with our children. Often, children may be pulled along without understanding what is happening. We need to take the time and opportunity to reflect on what is is they are experiencing. Asking open ended questions to stretch their minds is essential. For them to learn, it is important that we pause and consider how they see the world. Ask them questions and explain further, so they can start to get a more full understanding of the world around them.
As we follow our daily schedules it is easy to lose sight of the meaningful teaching moments right before our eyes. Through practice and staying in the moment, we will find more and more of the teachable moments that organically occur.
So as we exit for the fire drill, we can count off how many steps to come back into the school after the fire drill. We can count how many friends we have when we reach the parking lot. We can read a story about a fire truck or write our own story as we explore our fire drill experience, we can move through literacy, math, science, art and all the subjects we want to touch on from a meaningful moment that we just lived.
The most meaningful learning occurs when we relate to something they are experiencing in the moment. We just did a fire drill I wonder what that was. Draw attention to the fact that they heard a loud sound, they saw their teachers expressions and they heard their teacher say "Come on everyone!" We reacted, how did we know what to do? Noticing how we all reacted and moved is essential. Safety skills are important.
We've all heard the term "building blocks" in regards to education. We learn this, so that next we can learn that. It is a fine analogy. Likewise, think of children's experiences as a kind of scaffolding, around which we can build faster and get a more long-lasting structure. Knowledge that is related to experiences is more meaningful. So many learning opportunities - let's not miss them!
Some of the teachers with older students who were not napping gathered the students in the classroom and asked, them "What was that?" When I heard the question it gave me one of those brief moments of joy, because that is exactly the right kind of question to ask, at just the right moment. We need to teach in the everyday moments. To do so, we have to constantly keep in mind
just how much the children might actually understand.
What is a fire drill to a young child? I pictured the students faces as they exited the school and I pondered, what was their mind thinking? They hear a loud sound, the teacher's say, "fire drill, we need to leave the room." Then they are quickly ushered out of the school into the parking lot. They stand there for five minutes or so and then they go back into class. Do they know what a fire drill is? We use these words, yet at what age does their mind actually grasp what this means and how do we explain this to a two year old? Reminding our children that buildings can catch on fire, and we should practice what to do in case that happens is a necessity. We should all do the same thing at home, so that everyone knows that there is a plan with a designated meet up place, such as the end of your driveway. What are we teaching? Is it just a fire drill? Yes, but it also imparts the lesson that we plan for emergencies, we try not to panic and remain calm so that we can think clearly and make good decisions. Also, that especially in emergency situations it is important that we listen to instructions, follow the leader and stay together so that we can help one another if needed - and that we don't leave anyone behind.
We do so many things with our children. Often, children may be pulled along without understanding what is happening. We need to take the time and opportunity to reflect on what is is they are experiencing. Asking open ended questions to stretch their minds is essential. For them to learn, it is important that we pause and consider how they see the world. Ask them questions and explain further, so they can start to get a more full understanding of the world around them.
As we follow our daily schedules it is easy to lose sight of the meaningful teaching moments right before our eyes. Through practice and staying in the moment, we will find more and more of the teachable moments that organically occur.
So as we exit for the fire drill, we can count off how many steps to come back into the school after the fire drill. We can count how many friends we have when we reach the parking lot. We can read a story about a fire truck or write our own story as we explore our fire drill experience, we can move through literacy, math, science, art and all the subjects we want to touch on from a meaningful moment that we just lived.
The most meaningful learning occurs when we relate to something they are experiencing in the moment. We just did a fire drill I wonder what that was. Draw attention to the fact that they heard a loud sound, they saw their teachers expressions and they heard their teacher say "Come on everyone!" We reacted, how did we know what to do? Noticing how we all reacted and moved is essential. Safety skills are important.
We've all heard the term "building blocks" in regards to education. We learn this, so that next we can learn that. It is a fine analogy. Likewise, think of children's experiences as a kind of scaffolding, around which we can build faster and get a more long-lasting structure. Knowledge that is related to experiences is more meaningful. So many learning opportunities - let's not miss them!
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