Authenticity
12/8/2018
"I can't believe we're actually making REAL books!" one of our sweet little ones squealed as they carefully transferred their rough draft of a patterned text onto a chunky board book. I heard others whispering to their classmates, "We have to do our best because these are for our Thai class!" We will be sending the books to a kindergarten class in Thailand to help them learn English. Our little readers pretty quickly decided they wanted to write pattern books, the same kind of books that have been helping them learn to read, to send to the class in Thailand. Each child will also be making an audio version of their book so that the Thai students can listen to it and learn English. According to the Buck Institute of Education, one of the leading sources for PBL, authenticity in project based learning takes different forms. A project is authentic if:
In the case of our books for the Thai class, students are not only using the writing process and tools that authors use, but they are creating a leveled text that will be used by real kindergartners across the world. They will be providing something that will help those kindergartners learn more English and learn how to read. In our weather project, students again used processes and tools that are used by professionals. When we went to KTUU, students saw a real news studio and practiced using a green screen. In fact, they were coached on how green screens are used to give weather forecasts by a real meteorologist. I am so thankful for our amazing community that allows all of Anchorage as part of our classroom. Students saw the green screen at KTUU and they then used a green screen in our classroom to create their own forecasts. They studied weather patterns in their birthday month, just like meteorologists study weather patterns, and then created a five-day forecast infographic and delivered a forecast for their birthday month. Some of them were rather silly as we recorded their forecasts (because at the end of the day, they are still five-year olds :)). As we watched the forecasts and they saw themselves with their five-day forecasts behind them, many of them noted that they should have been less silly, looked at the camera, pointed to their forecast, or spoken more loudly during their forecast. Some even wanted to do it over. Others were proud that they said what was actually on their forecast, that they looked at the camera, or that they disappeared because they wore green. Both of these projects provide a beautiful picture of the way authenticity naturally drives high expectations. Because the product set up a realistic scenario, students, upon seeing it, elevated their standards for themselves. They also learned an important lesson that adults and professionals learn over and over as well - reflection is an important part of learning and growth. You can be proud of a job well done but still strive for improvement next time. We learn from "mistakes" to grow and become better. Perfection is not the aim; progress and learning through the process are. Our little ones know that I love spending my days at school with them, and I do. It is my joy to help authentically open up the world to them and see them embrace it, to see them be so preciously five but so mature at the same time, to see them reflect and grow, and to so excitedly tackle real-world things. This is how they learn that they can make a difference in our world, and this is how they will be equipped to do so.
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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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