Topic: This strategy will be used twice in this unit. EY students take time to adjust to new routines so I want to provide more opportunities for them to practice this. First time, they will need to think of all living things, non-living and no longer living things they know. Second time – Earth surroundings (in L2 class they talk about climates and surfaces, so they may connect to knowledge from that subject as well). 

Snowball strategy goes as following- students work alone-in pairs-in 4-in 8 etc. till they collaborate as a class. In each regrouping they need to take new piece of paper and copy what they already wrote(drew) and brainstorm for more ideas. The papers they no longer need they can squeeze and make balls. In the end of the class we will have snowball fights with leftover papers. NB: We will use recycling paper for this activity.

Why this is collaboration not just team work? In the beginning, students will be grouped heterogeneously, according to their native language. I have students whose English level is not so high so it is a good chance for them to recall/learn words. At the same time, they will have a common goal- to find at least 50 living things as a class in order to get a reward (we call it “compliments” that they put into buckets).

I have been teaching for more than 14 years and, frankly speaking, in the beginning I wanted all of my students to always “try their best”. I thought that was the goal. To see their potential and let it blossom to its full. Later I realized that there is no such thing as “best”, and even if at some point students do nothing, it is already “the best” they can do in that particular moment. To let go and let it be is very important. To give time and to know when to push and when to pause. My teaching philosophy reflects the abovementioned idea.

At the same time, as a teacher, I try to keep my classroom balanced and flexible. Let’s imagine a circle. Everything within the circle is flexible and contains huge amount of freedom in choice and self-expression. However, the circle has clear boundaries and everything beyond them is somewhat restricted. I teach Early years and providing an example of an adult who establishes rules and sticks to essential agreements is very important. Students look up at me as at a figure who can provide safety and fairness. There is a lot of freedom and flexibility that I give to students when it comes to learning process (that includes playtime in EY). I have been working in an IB school for the past 3 years, and I love how the fundamental principles of IB work in early years and low primary classrooms. The inquiry pathway is flexible to the needs of each particular class students and differentiation provides a lot of support to establish equity. 

As a learner I believe have a good memory but poor attention span. With the development of social media and access to so much information (both useful and absolutely useless) it is more difficult for many people to stay focused.  My situation is not that bad, but comparing myself now to myself 15 years ago when I was finishing school, I definitely have to put more effort to focus now. 

I am a visual learner and I like to take colorful notes when I listen to lectures. Even though technology is an integral part of our lives nowadays, I am still more of an “old school” person who likes to have paper version or everything and write things down. It is easier for me to remember information that is on paper rather than on laptop.

Last but not least, as a learner, I like to listen to other people. I express my opinion if I am sure of what I am saying and if I really want to contribute something important. Rather than that, I like to talk to people who know much more then me and absorb everything they say. I notice details and then use them to learn. For instance, if in informal conversation, someone mentions a new teaching approach or a book they use for STEAM, I will read about that and see if I can use it in classroom. 

 

First, students will watch One Earth video together as whole class. Then, students will be divided into 4 Jigsaw groups 3 members in each. Topic 1 -deforestation, topic 2- ocean pollution, topic 3- climate change. Materials will vary depends on the group. Some students will use our school’s Reading A-Z system, others will watch corresponding video on the topic.  

Next, students will move from Jigsaw to Expert groups and share their findings. They will need to write or draw one fact and details. This is still challenging for KG students so it may not go as smooth as expected, but I at least want them to give it a try. Ultimately, they may share what they learned orally.

Students go back to jigsaw groups and exchange information and propose solution to the final question: why it happens and what to do? Finally, they make a poster together. It should contain all 3 topics. Finally, they present it in front of their classmates. Each member of the group should speak. 

We follow Jigsaw 2 strategy which means I will assess both each group for collaboration and each student individually by providing exit quiz.

1.       Reading Rockets. (2012, February 16). Cooperative Learning: The Jigsaw Method  Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtm5_w6JthA

2.       Cult of Pedagogy. (2015, April 15). The Jigsaw Method Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euhtXUgBEts

3.       Desktop Cooperative Learning Strategies Companion shared by Dr. Veronica Steffen Garcia, UCJC 

These experiences aim to develop students’ literacy. It can help students develop agency and to be able to get information for UOI independently (for example, in Jigsaw activity mentioned above).  Daily 5 stations is a great way to help students achieve learning goals regardless their current levels. Classroom will have 5 stations: Read tot self (find familiar words from our UOI in the book and use Sentence frames to document the words your found) , read to someone ( reading of different levels depending on group on the topic from our UOI) , listen for comprehension (listen and use Bubble map to record what you heard), writing and teacher table. Students will be divided into groups, and they will rotate daily. Children will be grouped homogeneously based on their needs. In addition, the lowest group will have a chance to work with teacher more often than others.

1.       Edutopia. (2017, October 3). Station Rotation: Differentiating Instruction to Reach All Students Retrieved from YouTube.com

2.       Edpuzzle. (2021, July 14). What is the Station Rotation Model? Retrieved from YouTube.com

3.       Tom, T. (2020). Differentiated Instruction Strategies: Learning Stations. Retrieved from TeachHUB. 

4.       _bigheartlittleminds_. (2021, February 28). Breaking down how Daily 5 works in my classroom! Retrieved from Youtube.com

5.       Twinkl.com

Example of Bubble map:Example of books: Sentence frames example: