Establishing our learning community

In Room 8, one of our main areas of focus has been on helping the children to see themselves as part of a group.  We want the children to be aware of each other's needs and feelings and take these into consideration alongside their own needs and feelings, in their choices and actions.

We have tried to create a tone and environment that invites the children to see each other in new ways, to collaborate, and to deepen friendships.  Classroom experiences and resources are carefully planned and thought out in an attempt to help the children build upon their skills in working together, sharing with each other and being considerate towards all members of the group.

In our second week together as a class, we made playdough together.  The initial purpose for the experience was to provide an experience through which we could draw upon maths (measurement), reading (of the recipe) and later writing, when the children to went away and recorded their ideas about making playdough.  However, from the experience, the teacher noted that the children had great difficulty sharing this task, and were very much concerned with getting their own turn.  Many of the children struggled with having to wait for a turn to stir the playdough, which led to yelling, crying and even kicking . . . 

The following week, we made grapefruit juice together.  This time, the children made a plan for how to organise the turn-taking before we began making the juice.  Kori nominated himself to be the first child to juice a grapefruit as and the rest if the children agreed that this was acceptable.  Some children felt that we should go around the table taking turns, while others felt that whoever had the last turn should choose the next person.  After a brief discussion the children agreed that whoever had the last turn would choose the next person to have a turn.  Having ownership of the 'rules' seemed to have a huge impact and the children were able to patiently wait for their turn without complaint.  

In the day to day running of the classroom, we try to promote sharing in many ways, for example, having a tray of crayons with only one of each colour of per table, so that the children have the chance to develop patience in waiting for someone else to finish with the colour they want, and also for the children using the crayon to be considerate of others who are waiting.  We try to give the children the opportunity to establish rules and systems for sharing resources as well as having opportunities to learn to resolve their differences independently by standing back and giving the children time to do so, and offering input when the children ask for it or are having difficulty reaching a resolution.

 

We will continue to look for new ways to help the children to see themselves as part of a group, considering each other's needs and feeling, and develop strategies for working together and resolving their differences.