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Showing posts from February, 2018

Kotahitanga Mentoring/PCT Day 1

Riverdale School We had compliant children, but we wanted kids to get up and get their learning. So much growth when you work together.  The power of working together. Everyone needs an equal voice in collaboration. Belief in the power of 3. About 90 is the maximum... Some power of 2, because 4 is too many. If kids need to move, they can. It takes 50% of your brain power to stay still - Nathan Mikaere-Wallis Often the 3rd teacher is the connector teacher. Two teachers are taking small groups, the third teacher is increasing the level of work of the independent students.  We have behaviours that underpin how we will work together. - License Levels - zone up the expectations - expressions of key competencies - what do these look like at 5, or 7 etc Collaboration vs cooperation Is a checklist the right thing to enable collaboration? The only time you learn is where it is hard - our kids and our staff need to know that! Every space needs some kind of breakout space.  We all

Words Their Way - Chris Braid

Words Their Way Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary and Spelling Instruction - Word Sorts - a systematic, sequenced approach. We want children to have a map of how it all works Layers of the Orthography - the ways words are written down Alphabet Sound Layer (English language - 56% as it sounds - would get correct) Pattern Layer Meaning Layer (Anglo-saxton, greek, latin) WHEN THESE ARE ALL IN PLACE, ENGLISH LANGUAGE BECOMES 97% RELIABLE This programme helps children to map the patterns. These layers relate to progression in reading and writing. Children who write how they speak are stuck in phonological knowledge... Schwa vowel (the vowel that is indiscriminate) - e.g.:  Forage (but we say forige) Emphasis (we loose the a - we don't say - "em - far - sis") Mother Butter Be curious about words! Children need to see a word spelt correctly 40 times before it gets locked in. Every time a child (or adult!) sees a word spelt incorrectl