Plans: Thinking Made Visible
Welcome! After solving a few technical difficulties, we are now up and going online! We would like to say thank you to everyone who was able to join us for our open house. Those who couldn't be with us -- you were missed. We hope to see ALL of you at the upcoming family evenings that are being planned.
We would like to have you take a closer look at the children's plan work and the impact this hasmade on our learning community.
PLANS: Thinking Made Visible
Planning is an important part of our life. We plan for what is going to happen during our day, weekends, and trips. Children closely observe adults planning or making plans. Plans are important to our classroom life as well. Our morning ritual begins with each child making a plan of their intentions for their morning's work in the classroom. Each child tells this to Ms. Leslie who records this onto her plan sheet. This sheet allows us to look at the week and see what areas the children select to work in for the morning. It also provides us with information on how to setup the different learning areas and different encounters for the next day or the week.
A few weeks ago what began as a small moment with Lani bringing a notepad and pen to the group meeting to take notes of our plans for the day caused us to pause and validate the intentionality of this action. In doing so this small moment has exploded into a powerful learning encounter for our classroom of learners.
We could easily label this as literacy experiences and learning (early reading and writing) for this is clearly true but to do that we would be short changing the depth of what is occurring. What seems as a simple process of creating one's plan for the day at the surface is about each child's construction of symbolic representation of their thoughts. This process is allowing them to be active authors of their lives as they move from the spoken word to written representations of their words. It is also revealing each child's theory of how they are making this connection and processing through this.
Words can't describe the extraordinary shift that has taken place in ALL the children since that reviting moment on August 29th which began with EVERYONE wanting to do what Lani had done- taking notes about our plans.
This shift has been viewed by the children as our valuing them as authors of their day. They now have a deep connection to the plans because they are now "finding" their own way to represent their thoughts. This experience has also made an impact on the value of the printed word for they now see their words and thoughts coming alive in a new and important way. Each plan is valued and not judged by a child's lack of abilities but rather seen as the extraordinary abilities that are percolating from within each of them. Each child is different and each are taking their own steps into this experience. Their thinking is now being made visible to us through their plans.
To watch children who didn't want to mark on paper now making purposeful scribbles is monumental. To watch other children who weren't making representational drawings now showing traces of such is also monumental. To watch others doing significant representations of their plans is monumental as well. Watching other children shifting into inventive writing and spelling is also monumental!!
This small moment has captured the interest of all and we find this experience spilling into other parts of the day. Last Friday we were scheduled to go to have a group photo with the entire school. We watched Kamm run to the message center and come back with a "note" in her hand. We asked her what the note said she proceeded to tell us, "It's about going to the pictures. It says, "Walk kids, no running only walking." Below is Kamm's message. What appears on the surface as merely marks on the paper is something far more. Kamm is connecting her thoughts and how to express them on paper symbolicly to a broader audience which is a key connection. We can also look at the marks as pre-alphabetic representations or precursors to words.
On Thursday while getting ready for CE class Alyssa came to us carrying three sheets of small note paper. She said to Ms. Gitti that she wanted to take the papers so she can write the plans in CE!!! The spirit of the plans and plan making has embraced the entire classroom. Adian summed it up for us on Friday when we by passed the plans in order to enjoy the outdoors and take a walk. Upon returning it was time for lunch. Adian looked up at us and said, "Oh no we didn't do our plans!!" Indeed the plans have become important in our classroom community!
TEACHER'S OBSERVATIONS AND THOUGHTS:
To watch learning explode in this way is exciting and dynamic. As teachers it is about staying close to the children and being ready to shift and change with the work of the children. This provocation which came from Lani happened unexpectantly yet we felt the intensity of each child's connection and their wanting to connect to making plans in this new way.
The teachers found themselves shifting into a research mode for we began to plan how to scaffold the children and this plan process. The first intial experience which caught us off guard so to speak had the children using colored markers and various sizes of paper. Sensing the intentionality of the children's work we felt confident that the children would want to return to making their plans in this way the next day. We wanted to be ready for that moment. The following day we framed the experience with one slight difference we offered all the children large index cards to create their plan on rather than the random sheets and sizes of the day before. We did keep the colored markers and pencils available for their use.
In observing the plans made that day we noticed many were coloring in and filling in the plans. Their plans had the feel of a coloring book rather than putting much thought into what they were doing. It was as if their head and hands were working seperately. How could we slow them down and bring more intentionality to their work? We wondered if we took away the colored markers and pencils and provided them with only black markers if this would cause any difference in their work and in the intentionality of their work? We also wondered if we placed the index cards horizontally in a landscape position if this would also cause a shift their thinking?
The following day the children were offered the wider black markers and the paper positioned in the landscape position. We noticed a shift in many of their plans. We seemed to be heading in the right direction however still wanting to tweak this process more we decided for the following day to make a shift and offer the small black marker pens yet keeping the index cards in the same position. This led to a huge shift in their work and thinking. It appeared that we had found the tools which supported and provided the children in making their thinking more defined and offerd them the ability to work with greater detail and thoughtfullness.
A FEW of the Plans
Although each child's work has been exciting to observe. We would like to share with you just a FEW plans as an example to allow you to see the extraordinary shifts in this journey as we watch their thinking is made visible through the drawing of their plans. ALL the plans are being saved and studied by the teachers as we frame this experience.
Below is a series of Amaya's plans selected from 3 different days. Look at the shift in her thinking. The plan on the far left was her first plan. Notice how the color dominates. Altough interesting she seems to be randomly selecting numbers and letters. It appears that she is trying to "list" in order what she is wanting to do yet she seems to have a learning knot. She can't decide upon the best way to represent her list.
Below is a series of Amaya's plans selected from 3 different days. Look at the shift in her thinking. The plan on the far left was her first plan. Notice how the color dominates. Altough interesting she seems to be randomly selecting numbers and letters. It appears that she is trying to "list" in order what she is wanting to do yet she seems to have a learning knot. She can't decide upon the best way to represent her list.
In the middle plan we see her using a combination of strategies. She had someone dictate to her the words dramatic play, she then drew books for the library space and again using a friends plan she wrote message for message area. This seemed to be a better strategy for her in conveying what she wants to do first, second and third. Perhaps by drawing books to represent the reading/library area it allowed her the needed space to write messages.
In the final plan on the far left (notice she opted for the landscape position with the index card) we see a shift. The use of the black pens seems to have organized her thinking into using representational images of what she is wanting to convey and in solving her strategy of listing what she is wanting to do first, second, and third. Here she has drawn dramatic play, snack and blocks as her choices for the day.
Brooks made an incredible leap in his planning. Up until this point we would watch him "scribble" his plans. However on Wednesday Ms. Leslie observed him draw his represention of the dressup area which was of the loft. Before he shared his plan with others he suddenly scribbled it all in. In reflecting up this action perhaps HE felt that he wasn't getting it right and this was why he marked or scribbled it out.
Brooks made an incredible leap in his planning. Up until this point we would watch him "scribble" his plans. However on Wednesday Ms. Leslie observed him draw his represention of the dressup area which was of the loft. Before he shared his plan with others he suddenly scribbled it all in. In reflecting up this action perhaps HE felt that he wasn't getting it right and this was why he marked or scribbled it out.
On Thursday we had him sit by Ms. Leslie and she asked him what his plan was for the day and he replied the dressup area, which was the same area selected the day before. Ms. Leslie asked him to think about the drawing he did the day before of the dressup area/loft and to try it again only when he finished would he share it with her so that she could see it. He accepted the challenge and when he had finished his drawing and he showed it to her. She asked him if he was satisfied with this great drawing of the loft that he had done. He smiled indicating he was and this seemed to support his confidence that the picture didn't have to perfect but it was HIS work and representation that we wanted. (Below) Notice the shift from the one on the left which was the previous days plan to the one on Thursday. Brooks clearly represented the loft using the rails to represent the dressup space.
In Lisa's work look at the scribbles but focus on the far right you will notice the ladder of the loft that she was trying to represent. Again we find her working through her thoughts on how to represent dramatic play.
The last series we would like to share is Mari's work. Notice her first drawing on the far left, although it was defined she seemed unsure how to represent precisely what it was she was wanting to use as her representation of her plan. Look at the shifts she makes in the revisiting process.
In Lisa's work look at the scribbles but focus on the far right you will notice the ladder of the loft that she was trying to represent. Again we find her working through her thoughts on how to represent dramatic play.
The last series we would like to share is Mari's work. Notice her first drawing on the far left, although it was defined she seemed unsure how to represent precisely what it was she was wanting to use as her representation of her plan. Look at the shifts she makes in the revisiting process. In the middle plan she has added incredible detail in representing the loft area (dramatic play). Note she places the posts that holds the loft up, if you look at the top she added the rails with the ends. The rectangle at the bottom is the stand with a mirror that sits at the foot of the loft.
In her third plan on the right it apperas that the black markers seem to have supported the defined details she was perhaps wanting to include in the middle drawing where she placed the scribble. Here we find her representation of the block area. Note how she drew the shelves and if you look closely you will find she even included blocks.
Reflections and where to next:
Seeing the shifts that are occuring in each child we have decided to keep the black markers as the tool of choice for a while longer but will let the children choose which way to position the index cards. We will keep this "ritual" over the next week to see where the children head.
Considerations or questions about this learning encounter:
How do we scaffold and support the group?
We have children at various levels how can we support each child where they are?
How do we have the children thinking deeply about symbols and their uses in connecting with others in understanding what the symbols mean?
Research tells us that children learn and connect words if they are allowed to write words according to how it sounds without correcting them. In doing this teachers should be framing experiences that causes the child to discover that what is written is not being communicated to the reader. In doing this it allows for those learning knots or errors to surface in their hypothesis thus allowing them to discover on their own the process of the written word and having it become meaningful to the reader.
Knowing this should we then provide them with extended time in this process to see how this continues to unfold?
One possiblity that we tossed out for consideration was the creation a "telephone" book of sorts which would hold the various plans written in the printed word. In thinking about this possibility more questions has surfaced. Would this be of help or a support for the children? Should we couple the words with a symbol? If we create a tool with the plans written down would it be more powerful to have groups working on this as a collaborative process which would generate a dialogue around the symbolic representations of each plan? In doing this would it create an environment that would support a coconstructive process with peers? If we do bring the possiblity of a plan book to the group how soon should it be?
We will research these possibilities as we support the children within this daily ritual of making their plans but most importantly in making their thinking visiblie and revisitable in this meaningful and powerful way.
Posted on September 4, 2007 8:25 PM | Permalink