- Enough bowls to go around
- Enough chopsticks to go around (if not it will have to be done in sittings)
- Noodles
- Sauce
For health and safety reasons there will have to be checks for the children’s allergies and intolerances. It would also be essential to check with parents to make sure the children are aloud this certain food. To make it fair to all of the children they will all get a chance to try to eat with the chopsticks, but there will be help available if any of the children need it. If any child still finds it difficult they can use a spoon or a fork if they choose. I will also not stereotype between boys and girls they will all get a fair chance and amount of time.
- Retelling and acting out the legend of the animals-this activity is mainly linked to the area of learning communication, language and literacy but is also linked with personal, social and emotional and partly with physical development. The children would have already have been told the story, they will all be allocated a part to play, rat, rooster, donkey etc they will act out the race (maybe with animal masks) and then the order they came in, they will also act out the build up to why the race happened, the role of the adult is to direct the children, reminding them of their lines if they forget or telling them to stop the race when appropriate. Also to provide resources that may be required. Masks or costumes maybe used as a resource. For health and safety reasons costumes will have to be checked for length so the children do not trip over them and also that there is enough space to move around freely without any obstacles or obstructions. If there are more children than there are parts, it may be beneficial to act it out twice this way all the children can act and watch. If there are any children with mobility difficulties, the area should be made accessible if not so already so that they can join in. also if a child has a hearing or visual impairment one to one guidance/assistance could help so they can join in.
- The train game- is a mathematical game so it is this area that will be encouraged. This is a game for four players each player has the first section of the train on a card, all the other cards are placed face down on he table. Each child takes their turn to pick up a single card, turn it over to try and get the number one. If they get the correct card they try for the next number on their next turn if it is the wrong card the child shows it to the rest of the group and then returns it face down on the table , it is now the next child’s turn. The winner is the first child to get their lines up to the number five. The role of the adult is to make sure that they are all taking fair turns and to ask questions such as ‘how many more cards do you need?’, ‘what number do you need next?’ and ‘is that the right number?’ to encourage their thinking on the subject. The only resource required is the game cards. For health and safety reasons the cards must stay on the table, under no circumstances must the children throw them as they catch somebody in the eye. So not to discriminate all children get a fair turn even if they are thinking of their next move for a long period of time the adult should help if the child looks confused, upset or troubled , therefore giving the child a sense of independence. For a child with a visual impairment it may be necessary to guide their hands so they can find the cards and tell them the number on it. For a child with a hearing impairment and adult or even another child who can sign may help.
This is the resource I made to aid me in the train game. I made it by printing the pictures, colouring them in brightly and backing each individual picture onto card. Unfortunately no activities that can be carried apart from the original game and extensions of that it was originally made for.
Results
The train game-The children could generally handle the cards well although it arose occasionally that the children could not lift up the cards because they were flat on the table. Throughout the game I asked the children questions about their lines such as:
- “What number are you looking for?”
- “How many more do you need to finish?”
Most of the answers off the children were one worded. The children responded well to the brightly coloured card, talking about it. I allowed the children to pick their favourite colour for the starting card although it arose that two of the children had the same favourite I rectified this by playing two games in between which they swapped cards. The children could talk well about whose turn it was, whose turn was coming next and how many people have their turn before they do. All the children listened and watched the person whose turn it was at the time. I occasionally had to prompt the children as to the whereabouts of where the card they needed had been put down; I also came across the children reminding each other where the cards were if they could remember themselves. All the children understood how to play the game and the rules. Most of the children carried out the instructions I gave them easily.
Mind map-China- The children came up with a lot of suggestions, mostly, but not all were to do with China. Nearly all of the children sat quietly and listened to others for the duration of this activity. Occasionally some of the children did call out. All of the children had an opportunity to put forward their suggestion. For this to happen the quieter children were asked whether they had anything to say. Some of the children had a little help in the form of an adult telling them how to work it out when it came to the question “how many more suggestions to make twenty?” The children didn’t make any suggestions about colours or decorations by themselves until an adult brought up the subject. They did however suggest by themselves the types of clothes they wear. One of the first suggestions was Chinese writing which was repeated a number of times as suggestions from the other children. Generally all of the children listened, took turns to speak and waited to be asked (a few didn’t but they were corrected during the activity). There were no suggestions about traditions or celebrations. Chinese food was the most popular suggestion. The children responded well to open ended questions.
Evaluation
The train game-I think that generally there was the correct amount of children for the game. If there were fewer children the game would be too short for me to really ask the children many questions. If there were more children the game would take a lot longer and there would be the chance of the children’s minds wandering. I think the reason I only got one-worded answers was my questions, they weren’t much opened and also the children were quite involved by the time I asked the questions and could have been concentration. All round I think that the game was a little too easy as all the children grasped it well they did not however become bored so it may have been the right amount of both to keep them stimulated.
Tassoni and Beith (2002 p 400) state that between the ages of four and six years a child should normally be:
- ‘Starting to understand simple rules in a games’
- ‘Playing co-operatively, taking turns and enjoying table top games
Nearly all the children could do the above I therefore suggest that the game is appropriate for the age range I planned it for.
Throughout this observation the children have gained developing co-ordination and control over the cards. They have used fine motor skills to lift a turn over the cards, for the first few times the children turned over the cards they had a little difficulty all of the children discovered however that if they slide the card to the edge of the table it was easier to pick up. They have also been learning about sharing and turn taking and how everyone has to have fair turns and not to hurry them along. They have been thinking about ordinal numbers (first second etc) and what number comes next, and also through my open-ended questions, about lengths and sizes of the lines.
B F Skinner’s theory of positive and negative reinforcement also fits in here. If a child gets a number and puts it in the correct order, they may be praised, told well done. There actions have been reinforced (positive reinforcement). On the other hand a child may not come first the first time they play the game, they may not like this feeling which would inspire them to really try the next time, although if they do not come first again the may take a disliking to the game.
I was fully prepared for the activity as all I needed was the game cards, I didn’t need any additional resources. I discussed with my placement supervisor the suitability of the game and whether she thought it to be age and stage appropriate to these children. I was mostly completely planned and ready for this activity although it would have been helpful if I could have more time, there was enough time to play quite a few games, but not all the children in the class got a chance to play and not also was that unfair to some of the children I could have benefited from seeing the whole class dealing with the game to support my evaluation more. As I have said the number of children in the group was correct it was easy to manage the situation. I think that I gave clear instructions although it may have made more sense to the children if I had set down some firm ground rules at the start. Again the only thing that did not go to plan was the amount of time I had allocated for the game.
The resources I made was suitable for its purpose it lasted quite well and was quite durable as they were backed onto card I think in future I would laminate the cards so they were more durable. It did help the children to learn, but I think it would have been more helpful to them if the numbers were higher as most of the children already knew their numbers one to five quite well. I could also have made different versions of the game such as, instead of trains I could do flowers or animals depending on what the subject they were focusing on at the time was.
Mind map-China-I think that including the whole class was suitable because the children all gained feedback off each other. Although it was quite difficult to tell how many of the children could count the suggestions as they all counted at the same time, some of the children could have been following what everyone else was saying. When the children were asked (separately) “how many suggestions to make twenty?” they took a little longer than I had expected to work it out but got it right in the end. Some of the children had a little prompting as how to work it out. As the suggestion about Chinese writing came up a lot I wasn’t sure if the children were copying the first child who suggested it or whether they were going to suggest it in the first place.
Tassoni and Beith (2002 p 400) state that between the ages of four and six years a child should normally be:
- ‘Showing more understanding and using reason based on their experiences’
- ‘Starting to use and understand symbols – e.g. reading and writing’
Again nearly all the children could do the above I suggest therefore that this activity is appropriate for the age and stage of these children.
The children have been learning in the area of knowledge and understanding of the world they have been thinking of past events that they could link with the subject of China (e.g. I had a Chinese last night). The children have expanded in their knowledge of listening, not interrupting and waiting to be asked before speaking. They have also learnt a bit about how to discuss with people. They have also been learning about mathematics by counting how many suggestions are on the board and calculating ‘how many more…’
Again with this activity I can see where B F Skinner’s theory fits in. in a similar way to the first activity – if a child comes up with good suggestions they will get a well done. This will encourage them to think deeper to think of another suggestion to get the same praise (positive reinforcement). B F Skinner also says that by ignoring certain behaviour it may disappear which could be done with the children that interrupt.
Tassoni and Beith (2992 p 223) state that ‘adults need to extend children’s vocabulary and help them to use language as a way of thinking, open questions can be used when working with children. This means asking questions where children have to give more than one worded answers’ during my activity I believe I covered this as I asked a few open ended and the children responded well. ‘Children also need to learn the skills of listening and this means that we must be good role models for them by listening to them’ although the children were good at listening I still believe that I acted as a good role model to them by listening to all of the suggestions and not being dismissive.
I wasn’t prepared for the amount of suggestions that the children gave it may have been helpful if I had a spare piece of paper for such circumstances. I had discussed with my placement supervisor the suitability of this activity I discussed whether it was age and stage appropriate and whether it was stimulating enough for the children to sit there for a while and pay attention. I think that the time I had allocated for this activity was appropriate; the times were roughly similar when the children started to run out of suggestions and when we had to start the next activity. The activity was a success there was good feedback later on throughout the day and the children were also asking to have other people suggestions explained to them (showing they were interested in the subject). I had extra support from my supervisor to manage all of the children as it was a class of twenty-eight so it was managed quite well. I gave clear instructions about what we were doing but not about how they had to sit or that they had to wait to be asked. I think that it would have been beneficial to explain this before the activity was started to set down the ground rules. Other than this all went to plan with the activity.
Recommendations
The train game – when I asked the children the questions I often got one-word answers, in order to help them expand on the subject more, the adult in the situations asking more open-ended questions about the subject could do this. During the game I had two children with the same favourite colour I dealt with this by playing two games, it may have been easier to ask the children to swap in the middle of the game or to not let the children choose at all I could just deal the cards to them. I could also for future games keep the colours the same (starting cards one colour, number one cards another colour etc). In order for the children to progress, I could make other cards numbered up to ten, if this proved to difficult because of the amount of cards on the table they could be separated into two piles one to five and six to ten. I could also play the game backwards if they had managed it the original way well. I could make the cards colour co-ordinated e.g. either they have to get the whole set of one colour to win or that the aim is to make a pattern. The best way I think to extend this activity would be turning it into a quiz – each child is asked a maths question, if they get the question right they can turn over a card if they get it wrong they will wait until their next turn. In this activity whatever the version an adult would need to be present to make sure the game is being carried out in the way planned, that the children are all taking turns and that the children are being sensible with the cards.
Mind map-China- To expand this activity to a higher level I could use smaller groups so the children could go into more detail on their suggestions. The only problem with this being they will not hear such a wide range of feedback as they would with the whole class. I could also throughout the designated time for the subject, do smaller mind maps of the individual subjects such as:
And add them to the larger mind map to resemble a spider diagram. This would be benefiting them because each subject is into more depth and it will be in a visible place in the class so they can view it at all times. To expand this activity even further the child who has made a suggestion could come to the front of the class and attempt to write or copy it onto the paper so they have made a larger contribution. I think this would be the most beneficial way to expand as it has links to language and literacy already (listening and reading) it would bring in other areas (reading more and writing. I think that it would also encourage the other children to make more suggestions. An adult would have to be present at all time as they are the one who would be writing down the children’s suggestions and also to encourage the ideas of the children’s.
To begin with I viewed curriculum plans that are being implemented already to get and idea about how the curriculum plans are set out and an idea about the information included in them. The second step was to think of a range of activities that could be carried out in the setting and then compare them to developmental norms and milestones for this age range and also the curriculum guidance for the Foundation Stage to get ideas. I tried to link most of the activities to at least one early learning goal. Activities that were suitable to the subject and could be linked to early learning goals were included in my curriculum plan; however there was a few that are not linked to the early learning goals, which I included anyway because I thought that they were good for learning in certain areas. I decided what to include by the relevance to the early learning goals. For all of the activities I needed to think about the availability of resources, the space that it needed to be carried out, the overall safety of the activity, to make sure it was fair to all the children, not discriminative and that there was enough time allocated. I discussed my overall curriculum plan with my supervisor to get acknowledgment on whether it was suitable to the children or not and to ask whether I had included everything that is normally included in a curriculum plan.
References
Hobart, C. and Frankel, J. (1999) A Practical Guide to Activities (second edition) Cheltenham: Stanley Thorne (Pub.) Ltd
QCA/DFEE (2001) Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage REF: QCA/00/587
Tassoni, P. Beith, K. Eldridge, H. Gough, A (2002) Diploma Child Care and Education Heinemann Childcare, Oxford.
Bibliography
Lindon, J. Understanding Children’s Play Cheltenham: Stanley Thornes (Pub.) Ltd.
Malik, H. (1998) A Practical Guide to Equal Opportunities Cheltenham: Stanley Thornes (Pub.) Ltd
Mukherji, P. and O’dea, T. Understanding Children’s Language and Literacy Cheltenham: Stanley Thorne (Pub.) Ltd.
Tassoni, P. (2002) Planning for the Foundation Stage Oxford: Heinemann
Williams, S. and Goodman, S. (2000) Helping Young Children with Mathematics London: Hodder and Stoughton.
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