E6/E8
Activity 2 – Singing Easter songs and rhymes
Size of group: 15 children in group
Duration: 30 minutes
Setting: Reception classroom which is located in an urban town in the West Midlands
Immediate context: The activity will take place in the music area of the reception classroom.
Main area of learning: Communication, Language and Literacy
Learning objectives:
- They will learn the words to the songs and rhymes
- They will learn to listen, when the CD is playing the songs and rhyme
- They will learn to sit and not to move round
Resources
- CD player
- CD with the songs and rhymes on
- And a copy with the words of the songs and rhymes
Health and safety
There isn’t any health and safety issues with this activity. I will only need to make sure that the CD player is working properly before plugging it in and I need to make sure that the children don’t touch the CD player when it is plugged in to the socket.
Aim – The aim of this activity is to get children to use their cognitive development to learn Ester songs and Rhymes and to encourage all children to join in and take part.
Introduction
I will have a discussion with the children about Easter. I will explain to them that we will be learning a number of songs and rhymes for the Easter assembly. I will praise and encourage all children through out the activity.
From this activity I will also learn the Easter songs and rhymes. I will learn how to make all the children join in with the singing and listen to the songs.
Method:
- I will make all the children sit down, and then I will talk about Easter.
- I will then explain to the children what we will be doing and talk about the Easter songs and rhymes we will be singing.
- First I will make the children listen to the words of the song.
- Then I would say the first line and make the children repeat after me.
- And after the children have done that, I will play the CD and we will all sing it together.
- I will praise all children through out the activity.
E9
Making cards will help the children learn colours and shapes as Beaver (2001, pg 153) states at the age of 5 children’s “vocabulary can include colours, shapes, numbs and common opposites, e.g. big/small, hard/soft. Sheridan (2002, pg, 37) states “understands taking turns as well as sharing” making cards will help the children in taking urns and sharing the equipment, such as the scissors. Rhymes and songs are appropriate for this age as Sheridan (2002, pg 36) states “Knows several nursery rhymes which are repeated or sung correctly” and Tassoni (2002, pg, 210) also states “knows and understands several nursery rhymes”. When making cards children will cut out the shape of the chick this is appropriate for 5 year olds as Tassoni (2002) states “cuts out shapes using scissors quite accurately”.
E10/D1
The resource in E7 has supported the children’s learning by the children looking at the Easter card that had already been made, so they new what they had to do and where about they had to stick the chick on the card, where the eyes went and so on. I know the learning has taken place because the children made the card and also took part in singing the rhymes and songs. In activity 1 the aim was for the children to develop their creative skills by exploring different materials and to learn to take turns and share. The aim has been met because all the children were sharing and taking turns and they were able to explore and learn about different materials. When making the cards children were in groups of 4 and they were sharing the equipment and taking turns to share the glue and scissors. This show’s the learning outcomes in E8 have been achieved by doing this activity. From the singing activity nearly all the children were able to learn the words of the songs, they listened to me when I was saying the words and were repeating after me. This shows the learning outcomes in E8 have been met for singing rhymes and songs. The aims have also been met for singing activity as all the children were using their cognitive development to learn the songs and rhymes. All the children took part and joined in with the singing, this show the aims have been met for the activity.
E11
From carrying out the two activities I have learned that before planning an activity you have to get permission from your supervisor. I have learned how to plan and carry out these activities with children. I have learned, before carrying out any activity you have to check to see if you have the right resources, making the cards with children I have learnt that when children are using scissors you have to be careful and make sure that the children are using them properly. I have learned that all the equipment and resources have to be ready on the table before you start the activity. I have learnt about the health and safety risks of both the activities that I have carried out, such as the scissors and CD player, making sure that children use scissors properly and that they don’t touch the CD player when plugged in. I have learnt that all children are individuals and some children may need more help then others. I have learnt when to get involved in the activity if children are struggling. If you think a child won’t be able to do that activity but the child wants to do it, the adult should give the child a chance to try the activity and if then they are struggling then they should help. I didn’t have any children in the group who had a disability, but if their was children in the group then I would have adapted the activities to meet their needs. I have learnt that children should be given a choice about what they want to do. So in Activity 1 I gave children the choice of choosing what colour card they wanted to use for their Easter card. In Activity 2 I gave children the choice of choosing what Easter songs and rhymes they wanted to sing.
E12
If I were to do the singing activity again I could have extended it by letting the children do the actions to the songs and rhymes which would encourage the children’s physical development as well as the cognitive development. As their were some children in the group who weren’t able to concentrate for that long, doing the actions would have made them concentrate for longer. By doing the activity outside the children will be able to move around doing the actions to the songs in an open space and sing out loud. My recommendation is supported by Nursery world (2008) were it states ”Young children should experience music every day, and there is nowhere better for this than the outdoors, where they are liberated to make energetic, noisy responses and where there is ample stimulation to be musical with their whole body. Consider how 'musicality' can be incorporated into all parts of your space and as many activities as possible, with sound-making, singing, dancing and rhythmical movement being an integral part of everyday outdoor play”.
If I was to do Activity 1 again I would cut the shapes of the chick out for some children because some children found the cutting difficult as others found it easier. The children that found the cutting difficult I would plan activities were they can cut and glue pieces down on paper like doing a collage. There wasn’t any children in the group who had individual needs, so I didn’t need to adapt the activities to meet their needs. But in the future if the activity was carried out and their was children who had special needs I would keep left hand scissors for those children who are left handed and would also give children extra help if they needed it. I would also need to make sure that the table were the activity will take place is suitable for a child who has a physical disability such as being in a wheel chair. I would make sure that the table is the right height for the wheel chair to go under it and there is space for that child to move their wheelchair around if needed to. For Activity 2 singing if there is a child who has a hearing impairment and could not hear properly I would make sure that they are sitting at the front where it would be easier for them to hear the adult and by doing the actions they would understand what the adult is saying. When doing the singing activity if there is a child who had a physical disability and was in a wheel chair I would put cushions on the floor for them so they can be more comfortable when sitting on the floor. This statement shows, how important positive reinforcement is, as it says positive reinforcement is more precise than reward and it can benefit any child.
E13
Have shown anti-discriminatory/anti-bias practice throughout my assignment.
D2
Making the cards with the children and using the resource in E7 was successful, because using the resource e7 I was able to meet the learning outcomes which were set for the Easter card activity. By looking at the recourse the children were naming the parts of the body, feet, eyes etc. by looking at the resource they were able to make their card and it also made the children concentrate better more, so that their card can look like the resource and they were able to look at the resource and place everything in the right place on their card. The resource helped them in completing their card and also helped them in cutting the shapes out of the chick for their card. When the children saw the resource they knew that it was a Easter card so they started asking question about Easter and started talking to the children sitting next to the on the table.
B1
The learning that has taken place for me after planning my activity plans is that I have learnt to be well organised, so available time is not wasted and also that the children do not feel bored waiting for a activity to be set out to play. I have learnt that being well organised will benefit me and the children as they can go and get the resources themselves of their own choice for example toys off the shelf. Also by being well organised you know were everything is kept. In future I would ensure that I am well organised so I don’t make errors or mistakes also so that I don not waste my time or the children’s. More learning that has taken place for me is that I now understand how important communication is. I have recognised that good communication skills are vital in order for you to interact with the children. Also by speaking in a calm way and supporting the children whilst they learn may boost their self esteem. Also I have learnt that children have differentiated learning styles such as visual and auditory. This is vital to keep in mind when planning. Some children learn differently, this may be because they have difficulties or illnesses. I have learnt that good team work benefits everyone within the setting and also the children’s parents. I have also learnt about planning and how to plan for a child’s individual needs. To meet a child’s individual needs, is important because if you don’t this may be the reason why your plan was unsuccessful. In future practice I will ensure that I have planned to meet the children’s individual needs. More knowledge that I have gained about curriculum planning is that I have deepened my understanding about the planning cycle which is planning, implementing and reviewing/evaluating.
E14
References and Bibliography
Beaver, M. et al. (2001) Babies and young Children Diploma in Childcare and Education, Cheltenham, Nelson Thornes
Sheridan, M (2005) From Birth to Five Years, Routledge
Tassoni, P .et al. (2002) Diploma Child Care and Education, Oxford, Heinemann
