Project Based Learning
4/28/2019
As you know, I spent the week in Palm Springs, California at a PBL training. I was so inspired and excited to be part of so many educators coming together to refine our craft of teaching in order to give our students and their families the gift of an education that helps shape them into lifelong learners, curious human beings, problem solvers, and world changers. As I reflect on my trip to California, I am completely content with my time there, but I also cannot wait to go back to explore more. That's what good PBL does as well. It leaves kids with MORE: more questions and more desire to explore the world and find problems to think about and solve, interesting things to observe, or curiosities to explain. My husband and I have already been researching some new desert plants we found, plants that we didn't even know existed until this week. Learning is part of life, and I love that, through PBL, we expose kids to this. The end result isn't a test or the public product; it's solving a problem, discovering something new about our world, ending with more questions than you started with and realizing you have so much more to learn. Moreover, it's about finding new things to explore, to problems to solve, new questions to answer. One of the most important things in PBL is how we frame the learning. We aren't learning just because students "need to know" something or because it is a standard. This is why PBL always revolves around a Driving Question. We are learning because whatever we're studying is something interesting and worthy of being studied, because we have a problem to be solved, a curiosity to be explored, or a question to be answered. And WE are learning. I learn alongside my students and from my students, and they know this. We had a great discussion about this before I left, when I told them I'd be gone so I could go to school to get even better at PBL. Adults do not know everything, and we all learn, explore, and grow together. Learning lasts for a lifetime and exploring our world and trying to make it a better place is a worthy pursuit, one that I think PBL prepares our students for in an exceptional way. I am so excited that Pacific Northern Academy embraces PBL, and I am encouraged that educators across the country are choosing (and sometimes even fighting for) project based learning for their students.
Celebrating Curiosity
4/19/2019
A few of my main goals (and joys) as an educator are showing my students that they are capable of more than they think and inspiring them to explore new things, stay curious, and enjoy learning, investigating, and asking questions. On Friday, PNA celebrated this in a big way with the help of many professionals and students in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math) fields. Our students were free to roam and explore so many neat concepts in an engaging and hands-on way: fish anatomy, space, weather, chemistry, biology, coding, engineering, and more. I loved seeing the joy, wonder, and excitement as students investigated and created within the realms of science, technology, engineering, and math. I will never tire of witnessing the awe children experience when discovering something new about our world and the way it works. Providing opportunities for students to engage with materials and people in STEM fields is an amazing way to broaden their perspectives and keep them curious and excited about learning and exploring our world. Put perhaps more exciting than the actual event was what happened after. As students returned to the classroom to wait for parents, they immediately and naturally delved into the topics they had been exploring in more depth. One student headed straight for our bookshelves and settled into a cozy chair to read more about light. Another student grabbed a sheet of paper to make a poster to teach others about the symbols and different clouds about which he had just learned. The student further investigating light brought the book over to share a new discovery with me and her classmates. None of this was prompted, but was a result of the practices that we've worked hard to establish all year, practices of inquiry and investigation, of looking for problems and solutions, of asking questions and seeking answers, of communicating and collaborating with each other so that we can all learn together. As students learn this way, it becomes more and more natural for them and they effortlessly delve into more learning, questioning, problem-solving, and collaboration. They not only desire to learn more, but they have the skills and strategies necessary to learn more. Big celebrations and events that spark curiosity and highlight the excitement of learning are important, but it is the everyday practices that naturally transform our students into lifelong learners and curious human beings.
Beyond Academics
4/12/2019
"This is our big night. It's time to show off all our hard work!" Our little performers whispered (and shouted) such things as they anxiously awaited their big show on Thursday night. Through my teaching career, I have had the privilege to serve a diverse population of students and families. I have taught in Thailand, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Virginia, and now Alaska. In many of the elementary schools in which I taught, art, music, and physical education programs had been downsized or cut completely. When I found PNA, I was excited about their emphasis on the arts and physical education. We dedicate extensive time to these subjects because they are important. According to multiple studies and sources, art, music, and physical education all increase student academic achievement as well as social and emotional wellbeing. Music specifically, facilitates learning in other subjects and areas and enhances math and language development as well as the overall development of the brain. In an article on pbs.org about the benefits of music instruction, Dr. Eric Rasmussen, chair of the Early Childhood Music Department at the Peabody Preparatory of The Johns Hopkins University says, "There's some good neuroscience research that children involved in music have larger growth of neural activity than people not in music training." The article goes on to say that, in a study, Ellen Winner, professor of psychology, and Gottfried Schlaug, professor of neurology, "found changes in the brain images of children who underwent 15 months of weekly music instruction and practice. The students in the study who received musical instruction had improved sound discrimination and fine motor tasks, and brain imaging showed changes to the networks in the brain associated with those abilities." Increased language development not only helps with reading and writing, but with social-emotional skills as well. The article also quotes Dr. Kyle Pruett, clinical professor of child psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine, who says, "Language competence is at the root of social competence. Musical experience strengthens the capacity to be verbally competent." It is evident that music enhances all areas of a child's growth and development and further enhances our ability to help our students grow into world changers with the ability to express themselves and articulate their ideas. At PNA, music is intertwined with drama and PBL, which culminates in their yearly shows. In addition to all the other benefits of music, this builds confidence. Our students get on stage in front of teachers, parents, and their peers. It is yet another opportunity for our students to find and share their voice in a fun, non-threatening way. I have witnessed shy students transform from standing quietly on stage to belting out the songs and performing the movements with gusto. Furthermore, the shows provide a bonding experience for each class, an opportunity for them to be part of something big and fun and important together. It also provides yet another role for them to try on, that of a performer. Katie treats them like performers and has high expectations for them, which they always meet. Our little ones are so fortunate to be able to participate in such a robust arts program daily. It truly enhances their learning experience as well as their academic and overall growth. Brown, Laura Lewis. "The Benefits of Music Education." PBS Parents: Education, pbs.org, n.d. 12 April 2019. http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/music-arts/the-benefits-of-music-education/.
Best Day Ever
4/5/2019
It brings me so much joy as a teacher to hear my students whisper or exclaim, "This is the best day ever!" It's a phrase I have heard repeatedly this year from our sweet little ones. It is even more rewarding knowing that authentic and engaging learning and experiences are at the core of their "best days ever," not just the fun extras (such as holiday celebrations or treats). The latest "best day ever" was our how to publishing party and book signing. We celebrated our writers' hard work during our how to unit with stacks of their very own books and a special treat of popcorn and cookies. The most exciting part, however, was the book signing. Our little writers sat proudly behind their stacks of books, waiting to answer questions and give away signed copies of their very own book. As they signed and gave their last copies, students exclaimed, "I'm all sold out!" Throughout the signing, they eagerly talked about and gave away their books (although they were a bit disappointed we were "selling" their books for free). It's also exciting to know that their learning leaves them curious and wanting more. "What are we going to do next, Mrs. McCormick?" "Are we going to build some more robots?" "Can we dissect something else?" "What kind of books are we going to write next?" Our days are constantly sprinkled with questions like these, questions that let me know our studies are spurring their curiosity and desire to learn more, explore more, and try more. Angela Watson, instructional coach and curriculum designer, says, "... student enthusiasm is not an effective measure of which activities are worthwhile." This is so true. I fondly remember some of the fun experiences, activities, and games from elementary school, but I have no idea what I learned through them. However, shouldn't creating worthwhile and effective learning experiences that do ignite student enthusiasm be one of the main goals of educators? Learning experiences that expand students' world views, understanding, and thinking AND leave them excited, curious and yearning for the next project, book, or study? At PNA, we carefully curate experiences and projects that engage our students in learning and in doing, experiences that are authentic (like publishing books and hosting a book signing), and therefore meaningful, worthwhile, and rewarding for our students-- experiences that prompt them to declare it "the best day ever" while excitedly looking to the next thing, ready to explore further and learn more. Thank you for choosing to partner with us in your child's education, being an important part of their learning experiences, and making them feel like real authors at their book signing. Here's to more "best days ever" and nurturing curious kids together.
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Saania AliMs. Ali graduated from the University of Houston with a Bachelors of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies. She specializes in Early Childhood Education, ESL, and Special Education. Her hobbies include traveling, reading, and painting! Archives
April 2021
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