Since this course started, I have worked voluntary to enable myself to gain more experience.
I sometimes work with small groups assisting pupils’ who find work difficult.
(S T2 P 23) mentions that “As a teaching assistant you can have opportunities to create learning experiences where children feel they can talk in a safe environment, make mistakes and ask questions”
School
I support the school by being a flexible team member, working with other staff, and in partnership with parents.
Ursula Schlapp and Julia Davidson (2005 P 19) comments that “The majority of class teachers with classroom assistants found it easy to work with them and appreciated their flexibility, competence and initiative”.
I have developed a way of communicating with other teaching assistants about support we provide to pupils.
I do this by attending meetings regularly and by way of a home/ school diary which we introduced recently alongside the children’s reading diaries so that teachers, assistants and parents can make comments regarding their child’s progress.
The Foundation Stage Curriculum comments that “Parents and families are central to a child’s well-being and practitioners should support this important relationship by sharing information. (QCA/DfEE 2008).
I also support the school by knowing and following the relevant school policies and procedures, and I continue to develop my skills through in-service training and other courses which I feel will benefit my role.
(ST 2 P15) states that “Teaching assistants are expected to develop a range of specific skills related to effective support. In service training courses therefore highlight specific workplace competences to be acquired and occupational standards that should be met”.
Curriculum
I support the curriculum under direction and guidance of the teacher, having awareness and understanding of theories about how children think and learn.
I have to have knowledge and a good understanding of the sequence of the pupils expected development, and an understanding of factors which affect the pupils learning process and learning difficulties.
The Foundation Stage comments that “Making learning plans for each child used be based on information gained from talking to them, their parents and colleagues.” (QCA, 2008).
I have also gained understanding of, and how to implement the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies and a greater understanding of planning lessons.
The Foundation Stage curriculum states that children must be supported in developing their understanding of Numeracy and Literacy in a broad range of contexts in which they can explore, enjoy, learn and practise. (QCA, 2008).
I also try to make learning fun and interesting so the children enjoy the area of the curriculum they are undertaking.
I agree with Steve Walker on video sequence 11, “In which he said I want the learning to be fun, if the children are laughing, they are enjoying it and I believe if they’re having fun, they are finding learning more enjoyable”.
Part 2 – Learning Support for an Individual or Group
Parental/carer collaboration with your school
From studying this course I have come to understand why it is important to work with parents/carers within schools.
Parents are the first educators in a child’s life and children learn skills by copying the adults and other children within their family circle. These skills can offered be seen when children in my setting play in the role play area, they can be seen taking roles of mother and father and they select other children as babies and aunts and uncles.
The Early Years Foundation Stage comments that “Practitioners and parents can learn allot from each other and can help to support and extend children’s learning and development”. (QCA, 2008).
My practice is linked with the interest of parents/carers. We all try to maintain contact with the parents whose children we support by inviting parents to come in to see their children’s work every term and to see how their children are settling in.
As discussed in (ST18 P24) “Parents want the best for their children in schooling as in everything else, they want regular, reliable and accessible information on the life and work of the school and how this impacts on their children”.
We also encourage children to display their work so that their parents can see what they have achieved over the term.
Parents were also asked to contribute to displays on occasions thus encouraging parent/ teacher collaboration. We try to make the displays easy to see, use lots of bright colors and easy to read text, and interactive ,where possible the children’s work is displayed in the reception area and in classroom’s so prospecting parents can see what we are working on subject wise.
(ST12 P12) states that Teachers, teaching assistants and children should work closely together to maximise the educational role of displays and their potential to enhance schools as learning environments.
Some parents have also been invited into school to give talks on the type of employment they do and we recently had a parent in to talk about a trip to Africa she went on when she was younger, she also brought along photos and artifacts for the children to look at and examine. The children enjoyed hearing about the parent’s tales of Africa and they found it amusing trying to balance bowls on their heads like the people do in Africa to carry fruit on and other items.
The Early Years Foundation Stage comments that “Children feel a sense of belonging in the setting when their parents are also involved in it”. (QCA, 2008).
We also have a home/school diary system that parents and staff can write in.
(ST 18 P 23) states that “Nobody knows a child quite like the parents” and children and young people can be very different in school and at home”.
By having a diary from school/home I am able to see what has happened at home and if there’s anything that can affect the child’s learning, for example, child has had little sleep or been ill recently, this information is essential as it can affect the child’s learning.
From writing in the diary parents can see what their child has done that day, what targets they achieved, like child writing own name independently for the first time, the evidence can then be stuck into the home/school diary, so the parents can see what has been achieved. (ST, 18 P24) states that parents “want information on their child’s progress and achievements, even the not so good bits.
When I started supporting Child A who has (ADHD) his fine motor skills where under developed and his pencil control needed improvement , by giving the child letters to copy over made up of dots he could work on his pencil control as well as learn letters, this was a enormous achievement for him. And by making use of the home/school diary, I was able to share this achievement with his parents.
The Foundation Stage states that “Parents should review their children’s progress regularly and contribute to their learning and development.” (QCA, 2008).
Through developing good helpful collaboration with families we can build on the support we offer the children in our setting.
(ST, 18 P10) states that “parents and teachers working together in partnership are able to bring out the best in children”.
Learning in and outside the classroom
At present I support a child with (ADHD). I support him in and outside of the classroom. The Foundation Stage states that practises should make sure that they promote equal opportunities and ensure all children and families feel included, safe and valued (QCA, 2008).
The school aims to merge the children’s learning using both indoor and outdoor space.
We have recently been learning about the life cycle of animals. (TMA 6 See Appendix 3).
In order to support Child A I worked in a small group with him on our Very Hungry Caterpillar theme. The children worked colouring and cutting out pictures of the egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and the butterfly, we than hung the pictures onto a coat hanger with string and hung them up outside in the garden.
I supported Child A using the scissors by guiding his hand around the picture and then slowly decreased my hold on his hand to allow him to proceed.
(ST, 15 P 25) makes the comment that we need to give children space to try things on their own but when indicated give help.
My main duty is to give support to Child A; however to help him gain independence I stand back, observe allowing him to work with the other children, he likes watching the children and attempts to follow their lead, this helps develop social skills and fosters group acceptance.
The Foundation Stage comments that “Children learn better by doing, and by doing with others who are more competent, rather than just being told. (QCA, 2008).
Parents were also encouraged to come into the school to help set up the garden in the Hungry Caterpillar theme. They helped by painting the walls with butterflies and caterpillars and some parents planted flowers with their children.
“The knowledge and expertise of parents and other adults are used to support the learning opportunities provided by the setting” (QCA, 2000, P 9).
Some children were also looking to see if they could find any insects whilst their parents helped with this project.
The Foundation Stage comments that as children become absorbed in finding out about the world through their explorations they feel a sense of achievement and their self esteem and confidence increase. (QCA, 2008).
We also had a caterpillar pavilion in the classroom where the children could carefully monitor to see how they had grown and developed through their lifecycle. After the children were encouraged to let the butterflies go and an explanation was given by the teacher on why they were released back into nature.
While doing the Hungry Caterpillar theme the children worked on a CD Rom which was linked to a science and mathematics lesson. The CD ROM is used to support the teaching off and reinforcing the life cycle of the butterfly, coming under the ‘Knowledge and Understanding of the World’ area of learning.
Ralston 2005 P21 states using new technologies sensitively and with careful planning can act as a catalyst contributing to a stimulating classroom.
Making use of both indoor and outdoor space is important, it allows, “Children to learn by working on a larger more active scale than is possible indoors”, (QCA, 2000, P 5).
We have recently been to a nature reserve, which had a tropical house. The children and some parents attended and were able to see plants and butterflies. The children could be seen having fun watching the butterflies flying around and they also got to see a large North American butterfly eating fruit.
After the visit the children were given time to play in the children’s park area of the nature reserve. The apparatus available where made up off several different animals the children could be seen running around pretending to be butterflies and some were being bumble bees the children were enjoying the time to learn and play.
Children need to be given sufficient time to explore, experiment, practise, repeat and consolidate ideas and skills”. (QCA 2000, p118).
By studying this course, I have gained a better understanding in regard to supporting children’s learning through play. I try to make lesson enjoyable and fun.
Starting from a very early age children participate in many different kinds of play. Symbolic and pretend play creates an imaginary world.
(ST 13, pg 12) mentions the value of play in learning as children are establishing friendships while interacting, having fun and enjoyment with their peers.
I now understand that I must use the knowledge I have gained from this course to support the children but not to force my support on them ,knowing when to stand back and when to intervene is the key. I will use this new awareness in my upcoming practice.
Part 3 - Professional Learning and Training Needs
(ST 2, PG 28) makes the comment that “The phrase ‘lifelong learning’ is a much used one today, it has a formal institutional meaning that refers to continuous education and adult learning through specified courses, with opportunities to gain qualifications”
I agree with this comment and my ambition at present is to carry on building my Makaton (Appendix 3) Sign Language skills and to undertake a British Sign Language course, as this would be valuable to me with working with special needs children and their parents.
It can also help me gain employment with children and adults with a hearing impairment or speech impairment in the future.
I also feel I could benefit from doing the new Open University course entitled Understanding the autism spectrum as there are differences in terms of symptoms, severity and consequences which I have little knowledge about.
There are also many other areas of special needs that I have no knowledge of, or experience, and perhaps doing other courses or attending workshops or in house training arranged by my practice would be valuable for my role and my career.
Doing E111 has also brought to my attention that I need to gain a better understanding of ICT in children’s learning.
(ST, 15 P 30) states that ICT is an integral part of our lives today and confidence in engaging with ICT resources are necessary so we can all play a full part in society.
In the future I will put forward to the children questions about what they like about ICT and what equipment they like to use like i.e., computers ,digital camera etc.
This will help me understand what the children learn from using technical equipment and will help me plan for future learning using ICT.
The Foundation Stage states “We should support children in using a range of ICT equipment including cameras, CD players and tape recorders”. (QCA, 2008).
I also feel I could develop my observation skills further when monitoring the children in my practice.
The Foundation Stage makes the comment that “Assessments are the decisions we make using what we have observed about a child’s learning and development. (QCA, 2008).
I will do this by working alongside a more experienced member of staff when he or she is carrying out an observation on a child to gain knowledge of how to be a component observer and on how to record my findings and report these to the Teacher or outside agencies.
Studying E111 has given me the confidence and the knowledge to take my studying further, I will continue to study with The Open University for several years to obtain an honours degree in childhood and youth studies and from doing short courses at college. This is interim qualifications as my main career aim is become an Early Years Teacher by doing a PGCE at the Nottingham Trent University.
Word Count 3059
References
. (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zone_of_proximal_development. (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Ralston ‘Primary Teaching Assistants, ‘Primary Teaching Assistants, Curriculum in Context’ London, David Fulton, in association with the Open University.
The Open University, 2005, Study Topic 1 ‘Teaching Assistants Today’, E111 Supporting Learning in Primary Schools, Milton Keynes. The Open University.
The Open University, 2005, Study Topic 2 ‘Autobiography and Learning’, E111 Supporting Learning in Primary Schools, Milton Keynes. The Open University.
The Open University, 2005, Study Topic 12 ‘Environments for Learning’, E111 Supporting Learning in Primary Schools, Milton Keynes, The Open University.
The Open University, 2005, Study Topic 13 ‘Play and Learning’, E111 Supporting Learning in Primary Schools, Milton Keynes, The Open University.
The Open University, 2005, Study Topic 15 ‘Language and Literacy, E111 Supporting Learning in Primary Schools, Milton Keynes, The Open University.
The Open University, 2005, Study Topic 18 ‘Parents, Carers and Families’, E111 Supporting Learning in Primary Schools, Milton Keynes, The Open University.
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, (QCA) (2008) ‘The Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage’, London (QCA).
Ursula Schlapp and Julia Davidson Learners and Learning’ London, David Fulton, in association with the Open University.
