Blogging Activities

As part of elementary mathematics where early childhood students are required to learn mathematics pedagogical content knowledge of primary-level mathematics, students are required to read (at least the basic text) and reflect. The blogging activities are designed for this purpose.

Some students have gone ahead and blog their thoughts even when it is not a course requirement.

The blogs are assessed on the following criteria:

1. how insightful they are - such blogs tend to go beyond what is in the textbook / lessons. the writer tends to blend what they read / hear / experience with their own experience as a learner / teacher of young children.

2. how much pleasure is derived from reading them - such blogs are well-written and presented, sometimes illustrated with quotes, photos, links and so on.

The blogs will be assessed on 25th September 2010. If your blog is not ready to be assessed by 25th September, please alert me by saying something on your latest blog entry. Feel free to edit and improve on your entries. But of course I want to read your first blog soon! There is an earlier deadline for the first blog, remember?

The following are the required blogs:
A. Pre-Course Reading Chapters 1 & 2 - reflect on what you have read.
B. Reflect on your learning in the first session.
C. Read about problem solving in the textbook - reflect on one aspect of problem solving in relation to the environment-based tasks that you did with your group members at the start of the third session.
D. We started a discussion on sequencing learning tasks for place value (the example used was 34) - give your views on how the five tasks on the textbook page should be sequenced.

EDU330 Variations

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We now have some time to reflect on what we have learnt in the first four sessions. We have two weeks to read and reflect. During this period, I will nudge you to read and request you to complete three blogs.

E. Blog about techonolgy - read the related blog about this task
F. Review chapters on whole numbers / numeracy and reflect on common practices in pre-school teaching - read the related blog about this task.
G. Read the chapter on geometric thinking and blog something relating what you read to the problem of finding the (interior) angles in a pentagon.

The final blog should be done within a couple of days of the end of the course.

H. Write about the most significant impact this course has on your work as an early childhood educator - its relevance, if it changes your mindset, blah blah blah exceot that I hope it is more succint than blah blah blah.