Small Group Teaching

Small group teaching means that I can get to know each child as an individual. It means that I can teach each child at their point of need.

I have used ability grouping before, for reading and math.

Currently I don't. Why?

The biggest reason is that the children learn from each other.

Another reason is that the activity we do in a small group is open enough for each child to do it at their own level.
An important reason is that I haven't been teaching reading. That's something I think I would teach in an ability or interest group.

There may be a time I ability group in the future but for now, it's mixed ability.

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Journals & Writing

We like to write about what interests us. It's the same for children. Journal writing time is an invitation for the children to draw something of interest to them. They tell me something about their pictures and I write it on the page. They see how writing happens by starting with an idea then seeing it get written down.

Paper Tray / Spatial Exploration

The paper trays were moved from the top of the shelf to the table so that some of the children could make a trap using the yarn. One of the children experimented with the paper trays. He pushed them back to discover that they can be formed into steps or they can be stacked on top of one another. Spatial exploration.

Yarn Trap

The yarn was used to make a trap. It was tied to a picture frame and a basket. Each was positioned on shelves across from one another. The children had to go "under" the trap to get to the carpet for whole class time. There was a lot of sharing of ideas, problem solving, and use of the positional language "over" and "under" and "around".

NZ Teacher

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