COL Teacher Inquiry: Curriculum refresh: Common practice model

It has been interesting to read through the first phase  "Common Practice Model" that has recently been put out by the Ministry of Education as part of their curriculum refresh. The section is talking about the beginning of primary schooling and is potentially describing a curriculum based on the science of reading. 

This section is from the "Strengthening Explicit Teaching in Literacy and Communication" section. Here is a link to the full document: Phase 1 - Common Practice Model 

COL Teacher Inquiry: Clapping syllables!

The 'Phonological Awareness Screening Assessment' by Liz Kane identified that syllables were an area my tamariki need learn. I began by explicitly teaching the whole class about syllables. We clapped the syllables in our names as we called the roll and used these picture cards from Twinkl (pictured below) to practice clapping the syllables in words. We practiced this in short burst throughout the school day over a few weeks, only ever spending a few minutes at a time... a few times a day practicing. 

I then introduced the class to this syllable game (Here is a link to the syllable game). At this point, we had already spent a few weeks practicing clapping syllables together. It was a joy to see the children all joining in the game and excitedly clapping and counting the syllables in words with their friends. 

Side note - this was also a great way to build vocabulary! 

Nga mihi nui! 

Perfect attendance!

What a dream start our class has had to 2023. All seven of my tamariki have been at school everyday (excluding one day where a child had a doctors appointment). They are such superstars! It has created a settled class that have adapted well to the routines and expectations of school life. Long may our excellent attendance continue! 

COL Teacher Inquiry - Profiling: E-asstle writing with new entrants!

This week my class completed their e-asttle writing sample for term 1. 

They wrote a recount about going swimming in the school pool. It was interesting to observe the children's behaviour while they were completing their writing sample - this is not something that is recorded as a part of the assessment, but as a junior school teacher I always find it really informative (especially those working below a 1B level). I've selected two samples from my class to unpack in this blog post. 

Child A, has been at school for a term, has good phonological awareness and concepts about how written language works. I observed them say their sentence aloud before they began to write, sound out the words and attempt to write the sounds they knew. They knew where to start their writing and which direction to go. It was interesting to see how they recorded random sounds in the place of sounds that they didn't know. I knew this as  I got shouted at from across the room, "Mrs Kirby, I hear a /u/ sound... I don't know the /u/ sound...oh I'll just write a /i/". They were very aware that they needed finger spaces in-between words and used these correctly. They had an awareness of using full-stops at the end of a sentence. 

Their writing reads, "I am swimming at the pool. I am under the water." 

Child B, has been at school for four weeks. He is learning english as a second language and he speaks Filipino at home. He understood at the topic of the writing was swimming. He wrote his name correctly (for the first time independently!!). He began his writing in the correct place and wrote from left to right. It was interesting to observe him saying sounds and babbling away to himself as he wrote (I couldn't understand what he was saying). 

As a class, I observed my many of tamariki writing by saying sounds and recording letters onto their writing paper - most understand the directionality of writing, that words are made up of sounds and our writing is a way of sharing our ideas. All of my tamariki are emergent writers working at a PRE - 1B curriculum level. 

I am interested to see how an increased phonological awareness (hearing the sounds in words)  and the use of a structured literacy approach will impact my tamariki's achievement in writing as the year progresses.