A great book I recommend for early education professionals to read is “Literacy Beginnings” by Gay Su Pinnell and Irene C. Fountas. Fountas and Pinnell are well respected educators who have published various books about literacy learning. This book is focused on literacy experiences in the preschool classroom; and as such, can be used as a professional development guide for teachers who want to
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Providing a print rich environment gives children an opportunity to explore and interact with various types of print in a variety of ways. As defined by Amanda Rock on About.com: In a print-rich preschool environment, preschoolers are exposed to a host of different materials geared at reading and writing. Not only are the materials readily available for little ones to access as they wish, but their
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My favorite part of teaching young children has always been STORYTIME! I love the language of a really good children’s story, and how it can both delight and educate at the same time! There are so many benefits to reading and engaging in storytelling activities with young children. Digital Storytelling I am currently taking a graduate course where I am learning more about integrating
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Digital books or e-books can be used by early childhood teachers as a tool for storytelling. Teachers can work with preschoolers to co-create digital books with photos of the children’s play or work and attach audio files with child/children as the story narrator. Young children can be involved in the making of a digital story in a variety of ways, such as: taking photographs
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After looking at Experiential and Discovery Learning theories, I explored how they can be used in professional development settings for teachers. Of particular focus, I looked at professional development studies that aimed at helping teachers to use technology more broadly in their classrooms. Examples of Teacher Professional Development In the studies reviewed (cited at the bottom), researchers looked at the impact of using experiential
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What is Discovery Learning? Discovery learning has its origins from theorist Jerome Bruner in the 1960’s, and is based on the student being an active participant in the learning process. The learning theory is based on inquiry and discovery; both in the content to be learned and the process of acquiring the knowledge. In a discovery learning classroom, students are encouraged to figure
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What is Experiential Learning? “In its simplest form, experiential learning means learning from experience or learning by doing. Experiential education first immerses learners in an experience and then encourages reflection about the experience to develop new skills, new attitudes, or new ways of thinking.” Lewis and Williams (1994, p.5). Experiential learning theory is based on the premise that knowledge is effectively acquired through learning
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After learning about the concept of an edcamp training during a course I am taking at the University of Saint Joseph; I knew this was something I wanted to organize for preschool teachers and staff in my local area. I put together the following educational video (below) to explain the idea of an edcamp; and how I applied the model to deliver a professional
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The Digital Citizenship Summit is a conference that focuses on engaging in conversations about kids and technology use. This organization brings together parents, educators, industry organizations AND students to talk about positive ways to address social media and technology use as a community. The latest DigCitSummit took place in Utah on November 3 & 4, 2017. If you follow #DigCitSummit, you can see the conversations that
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