MysterySkype

Yesterday (12.9.14) Room 11 participated in our first Skype chat. This is a concept that was pitched to me by Sonya (@Vanschaijik). She had been approached by Craig Kemp (@mrkempnz) who wanted a class at his school in Singapore to connect via Skype with a class in another country. I had told the students about this ‘Mystery Skype’ and there was a lot of excitement. Friday was the day.

 All went well (thanks to a great team). Our new friends figured out where we were from well before us (note – next time we should come prepared with atlas/ipads). 

After both classes had figured out each other's locations we had some spare time to ask further questions. It was great to hear the student's questioning. Our class' focus recently has been on transport and more specifically trains. It was good to hear the student's questions about transport and now we have more to learn/research about Singapore's MRT system.  

What a fun opportunity! The students were totally engaged and excited to investigate and find out more. It was good hearing my very multi-cultural class use some of their knowledge/experience. It was also a great learning opportunity for me and has provided a great spring board for future learning.

Through this process I saw 'walls' being broken down for my students as they took another step towards seeing themselves as connected global citizens. I was very grateful for the support of both Craig and Sonya. This was a seemingly easy experience to organise and had huge impact. We are definitely excited about our next ‘Mystery Skype’.  

Elim Visit

On Wednesday Renee Hogg and I had the opportunity to visit Elim Christian College in Botany Downs. The school is a full primary and secondary school located on separate sites.  We were taken on a tour of both campuses. The purpose of our tour was to investigate how Elim are using team teaching and shared space.

The first area we looked at was the Year 7 block which was designed with the teacher’s input. This space has 3 teachers and approx. 75 students. In the unit there is space to accommodate whole group sessions, group teaching and independent work (based on a cave, waterhole and campfire scenario). One aspect that impressed me was how much ownership the students had over this space, and their learning. The names and expectations about the 3 ‘learning areas’ were all discussed and generated with the students. There are times when the students are directed into a learning area and at other times they select it (using a sign to dictate what ‘space’ they are in).

While at the senior campus we also had an opportunity to see how a team of Yr8 teachers had used a pre-existing building (the old library) and had turned it in to a shared teaching space. 

Following this we were taken to the junior campus which is a more modern build. This campus is going through further development. The spaces have again been designed to be flexible and open to accommodate team teaching/shared space. There are large glass sliding doors, a range of furniture (including desks, kneelers, circle couches and beanbags) and breakout areas.

Overall I think this was a really useful experience as it allowed us to see both designed and ‘improvised’ spaces. It was helpful to be able to ask questions and hear from Wendy’s first-hand experience. 

Welcome

Welcome

Hi I'm Elena. I am a teacher at Newmarket Primary School, Auckland New Zealand.
I am interested in connecting with other educators. I love teaching and learning.