Assistive Technology/ Disability Assistance

Disability Assistance: Adapting the classroom for students in wheelchairs or scooters.

Knowledge: While I am working at a private preschool and have not been exposed to a 504 plan or IEP, we have had parents in wheelchairs and students that have broken legs throughout the years that we have had to make classroom adaptations to ensure their success in the classroom. This would fall under a 504 plan because we are providing a service that makes changes to the learning environment to enable students to learn alongside their peers. While it is required by the state to have a working elevator for more than one floor, and ramp access to the building, the classroom set up is not regulated.
Application: It is important that from an access stand point that regardless of the weather, the ramp access and entry to the building must be safe and available at all times. When younger children break any part of the lower leg, it is common to have a full length cast due to active bodies and resilience. There have been two scenarios that come to mind. One is a child size wheel chair and the other is a board scooter for the student to sit and scoot their way around the classroom. Both cause a need to adjust the classroom so that they are able to function and participate with peers successfully. This is why all if not most of the furniture at our school is on casters and can easily be moved, rearranged or locked in place. Many tables are also height adjustable. This makes students able to move around the room without bumping into others or becoming "stuck" in one part of the classroom. Students on scooters need assistance getting into chairs and need chairs for higher up tables used for standing. Regardless of injury or otherwise, the ability to adjust standing activities or moving furniture is an easy adjustment that can be done in the classroom where there are materials easily accessible to students to get independently.
Reflection: When students enter the classroom when we have inclement weather, we noticed that the classroom's wood floors became wet and unsafe. To adapt, we used a mat or towel that the student would roll over just as students wiped their feet upon entering. This helped keep the classroom safe from slips and falls. Some furniture needed to be removed to make room and/ or relocated to make room and mailboxes and classroom materials were rearranged for easier access for students who now were sitting a little lower. What I did realize through this limited experience was that children are resilient and when they have the opportunity to still be involved, they adapt and learn new ways of using the classroom. With doctor permission, we were also able to allow child to scoot and move on the ground in designated and monitored areas like dramatic play and library where it was challenging to maneuver a chair or scooter.

Classroom Management

App: Children's Countdown Timer

Knowledge: 
Time management can be a challenging concept for young learners. For a successfully managed classroom, keeping track of time and recognizing the importance of transitions helps make the classroom run smoothly. I notice that students who all want to be in a certain area of the classroom during free-play or at the sensory table for example, have a hard time "finding another activity" while they wait for their turn or act out when they are asked to share. I feel like I am constantly monitoring behavior caused by these transitions and it can be challenging to make sure every students gets equal exposure. Children's Countdown Timer offers a visual aide for students who are not yet capable of understanding the concept of time. I was wondering if this type of app could be explained and displayed in certain areas where time management needs to be monitored and if eventually it is an area of my classroom where I can simply observe instead of it taking up most of my instruction time? And also, how many of you full-day teachers hear "is rest time over yet?"
Application:
The free app begins with a clock that allows you to pick the amount of time you would like to set on the timer and a minimal selection of pictures to choose from. For an upgrade of $2.99 you can unlock many other picture options. I chose to stick with the free app because with about ten choices, there is not a need for a specific picture, one will keep a consistent outcome for students as they learn how to use this. The maximum amount of time that can be assigned in 59 minutes and 59 seconds per picture. The timer does tick like a clock but volume can be turned down so that it does not insight anxiety in students who are listening to a clock timer. You can choose to upload a personalized picture to your profile but it is not a necessity. Once the picture is revealed, confetti will go off and disappear.
Reflection: 
At the beginning, many students would just stare at the color as it reveals the picture and spent less time focusing on what they were doing. I did notice that once they experienced it once or twice, they then would focus on their tasks and check in. What I didn't expect is the amount of self-regulation that would come with using this app. I used this mainly during rest time (which eliminated distractions and movement) but I also used it when introducing a new dramatic play space. Because I wanted all students to have exposure to this area and a limited time frame to work in, I used this app in five minute increments with groups of four students. I would check in closer to the ending and realized that many students would clean up and sharing the space without redirection from myself! No arguments, no extra reminders that it is important to share, no reminders that it will be available for the month (all conversations typically had on a daily basis)! The only down side that I noticed was that it was not able to be used when other apps were opened like music for example. The other is that many of the young students were confused and focused on the changing colors from green to yellow to red because they are not yet aware of these colors representing a stop-light while others recognized this and were aware that the red meant that time was almost up and it was almost time to stop.

Final Presentation

Play below to see my final presentation!

Growth Plan

Click here for my growth plan!

Parent Communication/Assessment

App: Remind

Knowledge:
Remind is a messaging app that is free and safe to use for communication between teacher, student product and parents. It is an opportunity for teachers to send individualized messaged based on parent communication or child's portfolio work, specific small groups, or as a whole group announcement and reminder notification. Traditionally used for older children to connect through homework assignments, Remind is not used in the preschool classroom for homework assignments but rather a way to track conversations, digital copies of student product and a general connection and link from school to home. With over 70 languages, Remind is able to translate text for bilingual families and is a fast and effective way to send messages and material in real time, linked directly to your phone.

Application:
Remind is a free app downloadable by iPhone and android, however, all parents need is a cell phone or email address to sign up. With a sharable link, class number and class code, each parent signs up without giving their personal information being shown. Teachers can also change the settings so that parents can interact directly on the app with one another without giving out their personal information if they choose not to. Remind messages is not quite international however. Only phone numbers in the US and Canada are accepted for instant communication. When entering the app, teachers have the option to link from other platforms including Sign-Up Genius, Survey Monkey, Quizlet, Google Drive, One Drive and many more. There are also four quick options for communicating: Photo, Camera, File or Voice Clip. These four options allow for the teacher and parent to submit work based on learning goals and assessments for parents to see. Because this app does not have the option to delete comments in the communication thread, it gives an accurate depiction and time line of communication and student progress, which cannot be changed or deleted. Because this is going instantly to parents phones, there are two quick things that help in the quick communication process. First, parents can leave a quick emoji thumbs up, smiley face, heart frown or clapping. There is also read receipts to see that it has been opened.


Reflection:
This app was hard to explore without a real classroom. You do need real phone number or email addresses to begin exploring the functions of this app. Once I was able to log in one test student, I was able to see in real time how quick I was able to send a group announcement and begin private conversations with a test parent. One down side is that this app is similar to texting and could easily become unprofessional with quick responses. What I did like is that I could set my office hours so that parents knew when I was available for communication or not. This could be very helpful with tracking progress and communication and for whole group reminders like changing out extra clothes for warmer/colder weather, when we need help with recyclable materials or when there is a snow day.  It is also helpful to send quick videos or photographs to parents of students struggling with morning drop-off transitions since the photos and parent information is at the touch of your fingertips. Typically, we need to load all of this into our email accounts and upload pictures from seperate devices. 

Student as Global Citizen

App: Kids World Cultures

Knowledge
As children begin to experience empathy and kindness with their classroom communities, it is important to look outward into the growing world's community so that they are able to experience what it is like being a global citizen. Children learn about being global citizens by choosing to contribute to making their community a better place. This develops leadership and communication skills, along with skills that help children reflect as they share, compare and improve upon ideas in a collaborative way. The appreciation built amongst students allows them to develop an appreciation for the earth and the world we live in.
While many aspects of global citizenship begin with the local community, I wanted to take a deeper looking into a unit that is planned for the winter which is "Around the World". The children begin to travel and experience different customs, foods and animals located in those areas. What I wanted to do is change the curriculum to also incorporate other global connections including cultures, foods, attire, buildings and resemblance. This added history based approach will allow students to experience not like a surface level or similarities and differences but begin to understand that people around the world have different customs, cultures and ways of life.
We currently use the book Children Just Like Me (linked below). It shows a child of like age in their custom attire, how they write their name, and other facts about themselves that may be similar or different than those of my students.

YouTube: Children Just Like Me

Application
In an attempt to create a link from our classroom to the world around us (that also is appropriate for the young two year old children) I found the app, Kids World Cultures. This app is free to explore Europe and carries a $4.99 charge for other countries. This gives you a chance to play around on the app and its features and see if it is something that could work in your classroom. This kid friendly app has an alien as its leader with games and video recordings for each country in it's passport. There were two selections that seemed appropriate for exploring each country and cultures while the others seemed to be more geared towards gaming and busy activities. There were easy voice activated options for the children who cannot read to participate. It does need teacher supervision for preschool aged children or can be explored on a large TV at group time.

Reflection
This is not an app that independently makes students aware of global citizenship, but does broaden their knowledge that their is a bigger world around us to explore and show compassion for. It can be a great beginning app to open the door for deeper learning and conversations about cultures and communities outside of our own. There are some great apps like PenPal, or Touchable Earth that are more child friendly, however this app is a great transition between home and school. We found last time that even showing YouTube videos of different children explaining their attire and holiday traditions made a bigger impact to the curriculum and an extention to their learning! While global citizenship is not only about exposing children to other cultures and different parts of the world, it does open up their mind to people and communities other than their own.

Students as Researchers

Tool: Non-fiction and Animal Observation Research

Knowledge

As educators, it is our job to guide children through their curiosity and give them the tools in which to accurately find out new information. This process of validating knowledge in today’s society can be so easy with the voice activated “Ok Google”, “Alexa” or “Hey Siri”. What is even harder to explain is that what you are told or what you know, may not be a valid enough answer until you can provide evidence and research. This mindset in young children can be particularly challenging and it is the job of the educator to understand research as the process of students answering their own questions. Beginning with some curiosity and knowledge, an eagerness to learn more, observation and experimentation are ways that successful research can be done in an early childhood classroom.

During different science units in our classroom, students have access to fiction and non-fiction books to provide further support to whole group instruction. As students ask questions, The other teachers and I would constantly model and encourage observation and using the non-fiction books as a tool to compare and contrast. Without giving answers, we would support students in their research. While students continued to say, “just give me the answer!” they are challenged to go looking in the right places for the answers.

Application

As students become aware of non-fiction vs. fiction books and their characteristic, they are then able to seek out non-fiction books as research tools. To demonstrate an example, many students became interested in our butterfly life cycle last year. They observed and documented the different stages but many wanted to be told what type of butterfly they were going to be. Instead of just giving them the information, we worked closely to give them the research tools in order to prove and answer their own questions. Students studied the stages in real life while also going to the library to find non-fiction books which had different examples of butterfly species. As students guesses and confirmed each stage of life, they were able to provide themselves and others proof if which species of butterfly we grew in our class.

Reflection 

Giving students the tools to question and provide answers through their own independent research builds the beginning stepping stones into questioning the world around them and staying curious. They become confident in their results and are excited to share with others. It can be challenging as the teacher to fit this time for growth through research into the curriculum, but it is building a more well-rounded student full of questions with the tools to answer them! One thing I really noticed with incorporating this extensive time for self-research, is that they wanted to share their knowledge and retained so much more on the subject. Once they continue into elementary school, the use of technology in this area will expand the research process from the mindset of needing to find accurate research.

Students as Scribes

App: SpeaknPhoto for iPhone or iPad




Knowledge




With a group of multi-aged learners from 2.9-5 years, it can be challenging to incorporate the idea of note-taking or written script into multiple stages of literary abilities. As emergent literacy learners, students begin their documentation through scribbles, lines, or shapes until there is eventually more and more detail and control. The use of art and drawing are the first experiences children have of their own documentation. Through these “details on paper” children are able to create a narrative. While these students have yet to begin writing letters or words, they have discovered the art of storytelling and story order. Their oral skills may be “dictated” by the teacher or they may be left on their own to retell to family members at home. In order to better encourage students to use their early reading and writing skills, I was curious if there was an app that could combine student drawing with their oral dictation. This way, their work could be shared with peers in a larger group, available for edits and future revisions, or shared with parents and guardians. I wonder if these emergent literacy learners could feel more confident in their “writing” abilities if they took complete ownership of their work with their own voice and illustrations?












Application

SpeaknPhoto is an app that takes up much less storage space than videos and audio recordings and can be easily snapped, recorded, played or shared with just three easy steps. For this example students were illustrating what they knew so far about the pumpkin life cycle through detailed drawings. They were able to take the time to create their content, take a picture, have a moment to gather their thoughts and press the "speak" button to record their voice. There are two versions of this app, the free SpeaknPhoto and SpeaknPhotoHD which is $4.99 through iTunes. Once students record, they have the option to save or rerecord. It is then saved to the Gallery Dashboard and from there, can be viewed in class to other students, put on a public platform like YouTube, or text/emailed to parents right from the app without the other party needing to download.












Reflection

This app was not originally used for educational purposes. It was catered for real estate agents to create audio content for home pictures. This being said, it was still fairly easy to navigate and create content in the classroom. I was looking for an app that was accessible by students on the classroom iPad (which is their only access to technology in our classroom). Once students begin to write letters and words, the audio component is still a key technology tool for those who use invented spelling. Students can also revisit this work once the unit is complete to improve on their learning and literary skills to show progression without needing their words to be dictated by the teacher. This is a great way for students to collect their own knowledge and share it with others in a way that is accessible to them!

Comparing Education Models

Democratic Schools

I have never heard of this type of “free schooling” before, even though it is here in Massachusetts. As an educator of preschool students, I frequently have parents who are newly enrolled boasting about their child’s advanced academics when in reality what we are looking for is social or self-help skills. This sense of democracy is missing amongst the world today and is so important, but being in a parent’s position, this may be too extreme of a choice for me personally. While the mixed aged group fosters learning and maturity, I am not sure that I am comfortable or confident enough in a young child to explore and learn all they need in life through free exploration. Yes, feeling valued in their voices and votes, being inclusive and having ownership of learning are great attributes to have, but I may need just a little more balance to make me comfortable sending my child into the world as a young adult.


Pedagody of the Oppressed

I am also unfamiliar with this Paulo Freire’s book from what I believe to be his opinions on the oppressed life during the 1960s. This article was a bit confusing to digest but seems to reflect Freire’s theory of society’s role in the relationships between teacher and student. That while an oppressed society looks at a child as an “empty vessel for banking information” that instead they should be a “co-creator of knowledge”. The use of dialogue to solve problems liberates the oppressed. I am still unsure of how this looks in the classroom other than applying the theory that educators are not the dictators of the classroom. That students should feel free in their collaborations and questions throughout the learning process.



Flipped Classroom

“Ah-ha!” This instruction strategy is one that I wish I had in middle school through college. With the changes in teaching strategies from today compared to that of parents, it can be challenging for students to succeed at homework when they need assistance. The idea of using technology as tutorials and mini-lessons at home, allows students to contribute in multiple intelligences and allows for guided learning and mastery in class with peers and teachers. With a day and age where many schools supply laptops and tech devices, I wouldn’t be surprised to see this type of learning become more popular with the popularity of home tech access. While it may take more preparation to create these online videos, the benefits of observing and assisting in the learning process during school greatly benefits student learning. Some students may initially be worried about “teaching themselves” or “not understanding” but that background knowledge that they receive at home only fuels inquiry and practice during the class day. Some critics argued that it is encouraging more tech use at home, however, I look at it as a way to show students that technology can be used for research and learning to benefit their education.



Montessori

Montessori is an educational model that I have had the chance to observe first hand and studied. My current school has adapted some of the Montessori aspects including open shelving, mixed aged groups, free-choice and natural furniture. Typically, there is no technology in these classrooms but I was excited to see the last line of the article revealing that there are Montessori phonics apps being developed and potentially could be an open choice for independent work and small group practice. To me, this is a better balance between children’s independence in discovery and learning like demographic school but also have the support from observant teachers to help guide learning. The only part that always makes me a little uncomfortable when going into Montessori classrooms is how quiet and calm it is. That seems to fit a specific temperament of child and may not be the best fit for children who need more sensory input and guidance.



Waldorf

While there is a Waldorf school close by, I have not experienced it myself other than articles of its practices. I appreciate that teacher trainings include social-emotional development because I feel like early childhood education teachers should be well versed to help build collaborative skills. While there are some aspects that seem beneficial for child development including natural materials and a regular daily routine, there has been some controversy and speculations on the fundamental basis of this educational method. With a debated representation of mainly white students from the original introduction of Waldorf, there is little diversity amongst students. There are no vaccinations required and a heavy influence on spiritual beings. As a future parent, I am unsure if these underlying traditions would make me comfortable in allowing others to “create a spiritual purpose” for my child. There is no technology use in this philosophy.



Glen Urquhart

Through the website, I am sold! Not only the content but the ease and informative nature of the website makes me want to learn more. There is a blend of traditional academic teaching methods and thematic learning along with place-based environmental and community involvement. They promote inclusion and diversity and while it is yet again a tuition based private school, GUS strives to evolve the individual student as a whole. This seems to take aspects of these other methods and place it into a learning philosophy that seamlessly blends the socio-emotional, community and academics together. The photographs of the classrooms seem to have many of the newest technologies such as smart-boards. As one parent’s testimony said, “[my children] were encouraged to discover their individual voices, explore the world around them, and apply themselves with diligence.”

Student Tutorials

Camera and Photo App on the iPad

Knowledge

One of the first instances students have with giving tutorials is relaying information to others that they have already mastered in their everyday life. This is usually done by physically demonstrating or by retelling verbally. With a classroom that has minimal technology (a classroom iPad for teacher documentation and a Television) I contemplated how to dip our toe into the word of technology without diverting far from the regular classroom routine. To do this I focused on the intent of student tutorials and the practice, mastery and experience students must have in order to relay their information confidently. By allowing students to take a photograph of their process and work in real time and allowing it to be explained during group discussion by the students helps students to remember and retell their learning process to other students with support questions and assistance from the teacher.

Application

For free-play time today I placed solo cups on the rug and set up an engineering challenge for anyone to participate. As children began to be intrigued by these new materials on the rug, they began to explore different way of how to use them. After a few minutes of this I asked the open-ended question of what would be a good way to stack these cups up to make a sturdy 3 feet tower? Students began brainstorming and experimenting with a few ideas in both their placement or positioning of the cups as I stood close by and observed. As students got closer to their desired goals I asked if they would like to use the iPad to document their work and share their strategies with the class later during whole group. With this added excitement of “their turn to be teacher” struck, students were quickly organizing their thoughts and working together to discuss their strategies. When it was time for their presentation and the structure had been cleaned up, the students were able to show their pictures on the classroom television for all to see in a large format as they explained their task and the inquiry process they followed along the way. As I hoped, it also sparked the interests of the other students to want to have their turn as student tutorial presenter.

Reflection

Beginning student tutorial work in the group atmosphere takes the pressure off of students to perform at their best. They have support and guidance from others around them. With this a starting point, my hope is that all students will want to share learning processes with others and help guide students into using applications that can help them document and record themselves. Once this becomes a familiar process to them, apps like ExplainEverything or DoodlecastPro. With a mixed age group, I think it can be more of a challenge to find the right fit for technology in the classroom that is age-appropriate. Beginning their exploration in this way allows them to begin to understand the purpose and importance of peer tutorial making!

Tech for Admin Tasks

Meditation and Self Care

I feel as though I have a pretty good handle on my communication skills when it comes to productivity and organization. I use apps that help me share calendars both personal and work related. I am also an avid list maker. For me, what gets in the way of all of this are those little stressors that you just can’t get out of your head. The ones that make it hard for you to accomplish tasks or interfere with time management.

I wanted to explore a little bit more into guided meditation, even if for only a few minutes and see if it could help in both my work and professional life. Could it really help me stop and focus and re-organize by thinking process in order to be more productive in my day-to-day life?

Knowledge

To begin, I researched some of the top meditation apps on the market. Unfortunately, what I quickly realized was that the free download was quickly followed by a free week trial and a subscription service. Apps like Headspace and Simple Habit, while set up for quick and specific needs for meditation did not have many option for free sessions. The app, Calm on the other hand was an Editor’s pick on iTunes and has some great benefits for teachers! With a few one minute demo sessions, you can get a feel for what the app offers. This year Calm also began a teacher initiative supplying a one year free membership to teachers in a Kindergarten-Grade 12 classroom. With this being said, currently there is a wait on this if you do not already have it, but they offer a great pamphlet on how to incorporate meditation in and out of the classroom with all of the same benefits of adult mediation time. Check out the link below! 

http://cdn.calm.com/documents/teachers-onboarding-manual.pdf

Application

With stressors from home-life overlapping with teaching and vis-a-versa, my commute to and from work typically consist of me listening to podcasts or music to unwind and focus on being present for the next part of my day. With this app, I have been able to open it, select my desired outcome, the voice style and download it for traveling. I can take small breaks and listen to these guided meditations to help focus on by breathing, managing stress and helping to stay on track. There are options for sleep aides for when your mind is racing and calming music to put on when doing work. There are many options that are specific to your meditation needs whether it is focused on emotional or management needs. Bringing headphones into work with me has also allowed me to take a moment for myself when I need a reset too.

Reflection

I don’t know about you, but daily stressors can build up inside of me as the day progresses, until I eventually can’t take it and it affects my productivity. I have been able to use this app for those moments when I just need to help myself feel better. It’s pictures, sound effects and easy to find guided meditation topics are organized and efficient. It can be hard for me to make myself stop over-thinking but since using this app for a week now, I have been able to be more present and less stressed throughout the day and what is most important to me, more present with my family at home when the work day is done!

My Model Classroom

The Fox Hill School is a historical one room school house in Danvers, Massachusetts built in 1876. The historical nature of the building provides both a charming appeal and a home-like atmosphere. Unfortunately, this also comes with no extra space for a break room or welcome space in our entrance. With renovations taking place in the mid 2000s, our school now has a 20-child classroom with three teachers on the first floor and a 14-child classroom with two teachers on the second. We are within a few miles of multiples towns including Salem, Peabody, and Beverly to name a few.

The school operates from the hours of 8:00 am and 4:00 pm with a variety of half day and full day options. Because of this flexibility, we have families from both single and dual income homes with a majority choosing our morning and lunch programs. This flexibility in the lunch and afternoon programs allows families to cater to their childcare needs on a daily or weekly basis. Our morning program is multi-aged groups children 2.9-5 years old divided equally based on gender and age which encourages peer role modeling. Our afternoon program separates the children into the older kindergarten readiness in one group with the younger children in the other.

Each classroom is a high-ceiling, colorful open environment with tables and shelves positioned strategically to build learning centers including art, math, science, building, woodworking, reading and dramatic play. There are two toilets connected to each room making it easier to help young students self-regulate their self-help skills. Another important way we foster these self-help skills is making everything that is available to the children easily accessible. All shelves are open with pictures for children to bring to open tables independently and their cubbies are accessible from the classroom so that they are able to collect their own work to bring home.

Our morning program begins with free-play before transitioning to whole group learning, snack, teacher directed activities and recess/ gross motor play. We are a literacy based program which means that our curriculum is supported each week or month by a particular book or author. I personally lead a weekly music class, phonic learning through Lively Letters, and a monthly art class. While it is uncommon that all teachers have the same level of education, myself and the other two lead teachers rotate responsibilities throughout the week with the curriculum.

Parent communication consists of photo documentation on classroom ipads, general weekly update emails to parents and monthly family nights at the local library. We even encourage parents to use a designated email account to inform us about absences or immediate needs which is linked directly to all of the teacher’s school email accounts to help with efficiency. Each month teachers and families gather to celebrate occasions such as science night, Halloween, and read-a-thon to name a few. Along with daily greeting and check-ins we try our best to have an open line of communication throughout the day.