Standard 6 - Teachers use a range of teaching practices and resources to engage students in effective learning
Engagement, interpreted and defined diversely by numerous academics, is most commonly referred to as “...behavioral engagement as indexed by cooperative participation, conformity to classroom rules and routines, self-directedness, persistence, and effort." (Fredricks, Blumenfeld, & Paris, 2004, cited in Hughes & Kwok, 2007).
One of the critical goals a high quality teacher must continually aim for is to create a learning environment and experiences that are engaging. Engagement can come in a number of forms; adapting activities to suit specific learning styles (for example, hands-on activities to engage kinesthetic learners), making the content relevant to the students lives, and ensuring flexibility and open communication within the classroom. Without engagement in learning, student performance is affected negatively (Willms, 2000).
The artefacts provided are a small sample of my lessons I have designed during my preceding placements. I always ensured my lessons were creative, diverse, active, full of a range of resources and most importantly fun. I was able to evaluate the student’s level of engagement by their body language, level of participation and the level of discussion about the lesson afterwards.
Another form of engagement that makes an enormous impact on student outcomes is relationships between school, families and students. The National Framework for Values Education in Australian Schools noted that “...partnerships with parents and caregivers and their local community was fundamental to successful values education.” (2005). Reflecting on Standard three (teachers know their students), engagement of the family within the school can create a strong partnership to enhance school-home learning experiences. (Hughes & Kwok, 2007).
This standard is influenced by the effectiveness and achievement of standards one through five.
One of the critical goals a high quality teacher must continually aim for is to create a learning environment and experiences that are engaging. Engagement can come in a number of forms; adapting activities to suit specific learning styles (for example, hands-on activities to engage kinesthetic learners), making the content relevant to the students lives, and ensuring flexibility and open communication within the classroom. Without engagement in learning, student performance is affected negatively (Willms, 2000).
The artefacts provided are a small sample of my lessons I have designed during my preceding placements. I always ensured my lessons were creative, diverse, active, full of a range of resources and most importantly fun. I was able to evaluate the student’s level of engagement by their body language, level of participation and the level of discussion about the lesson afterwards.
Another form of engagement that makes an enormous impact on student outcomes is relationships between school, families and students. The National Framework for Values Education in Australian Schools noted that “...partnerships with parents and caregivers and their local community was fundamental to successful values education.” (2005). Reflecting on Standard three (teachers know their students), engagement of the family within the school can create a strong partnership to enhance school-home learning experiences. (Hughes & Kwok, 2007).
This standard is influenced by the effectiveness and achievement of standards one through five.
Artefacts for Standard 6
Artefact 1 - Toy Technology: Experimenting with wind toys
This was a lesson I ran during my final placement in my first week back for phase two. It was a continuation of the scientific side to Toy Technology, and I wanted to create something engaging and creative which would encourage them to explore how wind can be use to make toys move. The idea was not to give the students too much instruction on how to make the parachute or what will happen, but focus on the process of a science experiment using scientific vocabulary.
This lesson didn't go quite as planned for a number of reasons, however I learnt a lot about lesson planning and the student's level of ability from this. My Associate Teacher was absent this day, so therefore there are only my professional reflection notes at the end of the lesson plan. I have also attached a couple of examples of the experiments students wrote about.
This was a lesson I ran during my final placement in my first week back for phase two. It was a continuation of the scientific side to Toy Technology, and I wanted to create something engaging and creative which would encourage them to explore how wind can be use to make toys move. The idea was not to give the students too much instruction on how to make the parachute or what will happen, but focus on the process of a science experiment using scientific vocabulary.
This lesson didn't go quite as planned for a number of reasons, however I learnt a lot about lesson planning and the student's level of ability from this. My Associate Teacher was absent this day, so therefore there are only my professional reflection notes at the end of the lesson plan. I have also attached a couple of examples of the experiments students wrote about.
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Artefact 2 - V is for Visualisation lesson
This was a lesson created for my prep class. My Associate Teacher wanted something creative using the letter/sound of the week; U and V. I chose V for visualisation, as it was different, creative and something that most children in the class had never been exposed to.
I have a special interest in student well-being, especially mental illness and mental awareness, and visualisation (especially with young children) is an excellent place to introduce concepts like relaxation and mindfulness.
The students really embraced in this lesson and spent the rest of the school day discussing it in class. I even had a parent approach me the next day thanking me for showing her son about visualisations, as he had told his parents about how much it had affected him and wanted to discover resources to pursue it further.
Personally, I treasure that feedback and this lesson validates that thinking creatively and producing alternative lessons using a range of resources can assist students develop holistically.
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Artefact 3 - Invention Scavenger Hunt lesson
This lesson was my first of an integrated unit I was asked to create on ‘Inventions’. The ideas behind this lesson were excellent and the grade fives did well with the time they had available.
In reflection (in the same file as the lesson plan), my management of the class and time was not fantastic, however I was able to learn a lot from this lesson and contribute heavily to the construction of my other lessons within this integrated unit.
Although it did not run smoothly, the activities within the lesson provided students with an opportunity to explore, research and build curiosities around inventions that they use on a daily basis (see examples below).
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Artefact 4 - Language Experience: At the beach
Language experience lessons occur weekly in the prep classroom I was working in. It relates back to the letter/sound of the week. I came up with the idea of having a language experience around the beach. I incorporated all the senses into the lesson using a variety of resources I discovered at the school and from my home. The students were thoroughly engaged, the only negative came from the lack of time they had to spend on this experience (realistically, that experience could have been extended into an entire unit or a full week of work). It gave me an opportunity to be creative and to 'wow' the students by bringing the beach into the classroom. The students were able to use their prior and newly scaffolded knowledge to share stories, use their creativity and imagination, and physical work with materials from the beach to engage them in their learning. My professional reflection and my Associate Teacher's comments are provided on the last page.
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