In our classroom we balance academic learning with social learning. Children need to be ready to receive academic instruction. When they are part of a large group, learning can be a challenge if a student cannot navigate the variety of social situations that occur throughout the day in various settings. If a child is "distracted" by feelings of frustration with a peer, he or she may be process the math lesson they are taught or be able to complete a writing task independently with clear thinking. Therefore, learning in kindergarten must include being able to practice and apply strategies for resolving conflicts, following the group plan, following the school expectations, recognizing when peers are showing prosocial behavior and knowing how to calm ones own body mindfully.
In October I wrote about our social curriculum and the foundational skills practiced. That practice did not end with a few lessons, but rather continues all throughout the year. Each month we build a deeper understanding of how to work with others and how to recognize what the self needs to regulate behavior, thinking and choices. In this blog and the one to follow, you will see glimpses of how the social curriculum grows in layers all year in our classroom. Through multiple forms of practice, children can ready to learn academically.
Continuing to study emotions in our own self and others. Following the group plan of the classroom means using tools such as behavior reminders with Whole Body Listening Larry.
A popular fictional character, David, offered many examples of social learning. In one book about this character, David Goes to School, we studied the connection between David's actions, his feelings and how his actions affected the emotions and behavior of others around him. If I were to sum up social learning in our classroom, it is just this idea... that our actions affect others and we need to be mindful of how others react to what we say and do.
We use partnerships for reading, writing, math and science work. So it only makes sense that we learn how to be a partner and how to navigate conflicts with a partner. Early in the year we completed partner drawings where one partner gave up control to the other by following directions for creating a partner drawing. This works against young children's tendency to be ego-centric and focus only on what they need.... this activity required partners to listen and following through on what their partner needed.
Happy Partners!
Positive Reinforcement: We combine whole-school and in-class tools for positive reinforcement. We earn "warm fuzzies" for following the school expectations. Each day we try to earn an extra recess in our room by filling up a mini-sized cup with fuzzies. Before the snow arrived we earned several extra recess times at the end of the school day. We use literature to support learning about social skills.
Bucket Fillers: Based on the book Have You Filled A Bucket Today? kids look to notice their peers following class expectations and give out bucket tickets as a positive recognition. When giving a bucket ticket, kids tell the other child how they contributed to the class social expectations.
Acting out emotions with play scenarios.
Problem Puppets: Our class problem puppets, Danny and Penny help us to solve conflicts by coming up with solutions that make each person in the conflict feel respected.
Acting out conflicts with problem puppets.
Mindfulness: We use many tools to calm our brains and body for listening and learning... video projections, audio music and yoga techniques. In the lower picture we learned about bullying from a traveling puppet theater group who educates kids on how to deal with bullying behavior.
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