Parent's Evening

This week along with many other parents (judging by friends Facebook and Twitter statuses) we had parents evening. Thinking about parents evening reminded me of the poem "Parents' Evening" by Allan Ahlberg which describes a family and teacher waiting for parents' evening. I think this poem sums up parents evening for a lot of us.

We're waiting in the corridor,
My dad, my mum and me.
They're sitting there and talking;
I'm nervous as can be.
I wonder what she'll tell 'em.
I'll say I've got a pain!
I wish I'd got my spellings right.
I wish I had a brain.

We're waiting in the corridor,
My husband, son and me.
My son just stands there smiling;
I'm smiling, nervously 
I wonder what she'll tell us.
I hope it's not all bad.
He's such a good boy, really;
But dozy - like his dad.

We're waiting in the corridor
My wife, my boy and me.
My wife's as cool as cucumber;
I'm nervous as can be.
I hate these parents' evenings.
I feel just like a kid again
Who's gonna get the stick.

I'm waiting in the classroom.
It's nearly time to start.
I wish there was a way to stop
The pounding in my heart.
The parents in the corridor
Are chatting cheerfully;
And now I've got to face them;
And I'm nervous as can be.

Luckily our experiences this time weren't bad - our boys are meeting age related expectations, behave well and enjoy learning... we have been set more targets for them so look out for more posts about these and how we are supporting them with these at home.

Today's Target: Spelling (Look, Cover, Write, Check Method)

The "Look, Cover, Write and Check" spelling method is an easy activity for learning new spelling words.

First, write the list of words to learn onto a piece of paper.

Look
Get the child to "Look" at the word. They should really study the word - taking the time to say it out loud, looking at the whole word, saying the letters aloud and looking for identifiable patterns or shorter words inside the bigger word. During this step they are looking for anything that will help commit the word to permanent memory. Before moving on to the next step encourage your child to close their eyes, picture the word and to try spelling the word from memory and then opening their eyes to check accuracy. Looking at the word one last time before attempting to spell it on their own can be of help.

Cover
Now they need to "Cover" the word; they can a hand, a bookmark, or another piece of paper so that the spelling is hidden from sight.

Spell
The "Spell" step is self-explanatory - they need to write the word down on the paper

Check
The final step is to "Check" the accuracy of what they have written. This is done by comparing it letter by letter to the original. If they use both hands they can simultaneously point to each of the letters in the word to make sure they notice any mistakes. If there are mistakes, the process should be repeated from the beginning until the word is spelled correctly.

We found using the Reception Key Words Whiteboard a really useful tool for the learning these words as it saved having to write a new list each time we wanted to practice.

Today's Target: Spelling High Frequency Words

We have now managed to read the high frequency words and we have moved on to learning to spell them... here are ten ways we tried with varying levels of popularity / success.

1. Traditional spelling test - me reading the word, him writing it down on paper
2. Using magnetic letters
3. Copying the words, saying each letter as he wrote it
4. Typing spelling test - as above but typing the answer on the computer
5. Writing silly sentences of target words
6. The look, cover, write, check method (more about this method on another post but we found also found some games online - have a search)
7. Backwards spelling - I said the letters and he had to work out what the word was
8. Using the letters from Pass the Word
9. Oral quizzes - "how do you spell..." This was great when driving or waiting for appointments
10. Correcting my spelling (for words I knew he knew - not good for learning!)

Today's Target: Reading High Frequency Key Words

Over the last week we have continued to work our way through the learning to read high frequency words... here are the top five ways we have practiced reading them:

1. Reading books together and seeing which ones we can spot
2. Matching pairs (using two sets of word flashcards - read as you turn over)
3. Find the word (we printed a sheet with them on in a wall arrangement and coloured the bricks)
4. Fishing (a paper clip added to the word flashcard and a magnet on a string for a rod) - read the word when you pull it out)
5. Quick reading lists - list ten-twenty of the words in a list, how fast can you read them all correctly

How have you been practicing these words?

We have started learning to spell them too - look out for a post on that next week!

Today's Target: High Frequency Key Words

Children in Reception / Year 1 and Year 2 have a list of high frequency words that they need to learn to read and spell. Our eldest has been given the challenge of ensuring that he can read and spell them and he is very excited about ticking them all of his list! So over the next few weeks that is what we will be doing and I will blog about the different ways we do this. If you have any great ideas please let me know!

First of all we have dug out the set of Magnetic Reception High Frequency Words and they are stuck on the fridge so we can check the reading of them by making sentences - I will leave some there for the boys to read in the morning.

I think he can read all of these and probably spell most of them but it makes sense to start with checking the reception words before tackling the list of Year 1 & 2 ones.

Today's Target: Multiplication

Our eldest has just started being interested in learning times tables - he can rote count 2,4,6,8 or 5,10,15,20 or 10,20,30,40,50 etc but now he is beginning to understand the concept behind the counting in 2s, 5s and 10s.



So - 1 x 2 is 2, 2 x 2 is 4, 3 x 2 is 6, 4 x 2 is 8 etc or 2, 4, 6, 8 or some other method? Which is the best way for children to learn their multiplication tables? I think the answer is use as many different methods as possible (and have fun).

Some children will find it really easy to memorise the rote chant of the times tables but it is important to ensure that they understand the underlying maths fact that 4x2 = 2+2+2+2 and that it is the same as 2x4.



Some of the other things we have been doing (apart from the chanting!)

• pairing socks: counting the pairs / individual socks - a pair = 2 socks, 2 pairs = 4 socks, 3 pairs = 6 socks etc
• sorting for three children: the number in each bowl x 3 is the number altogether

Please add a comment let us know any ideas you have!

Today's Target: Colour Matching

Like most other families that live within a 30mile radius of an IKEA store we have these sets of coloured plates, cups, bowls and spoons.

Also (I guess like many other children) our children love to have "matching" sets at each meal time. This causes a bit of angst at the moment as our youngest likes the green set best and our green spoon got lost! However, joking aside, this is a great introduction to colour matching in every day life.

We have also used the bowls as "sorting pots" with other coloured items (for example; coloured paper clips, mini pompoms, crayons, toy cars) matching all the same colour things together in the bowl of that colour.

Learning colour matching is a skill within Mathematical Development - sorting familiar objects to identify their similarities and differences, making choices and justifying decisions and as part of Creative Development as children explore colour.

Other colour matching games that are enjoyed in our house are:

Today's Target: Letter Formation

Once children are consistently Mark Making it is time to encourage the correct letter formations. There are many resources to help this but ultimately it is practice that makes perfect - the key is to keep the practicing fun.

Our four year old has been product testing the My First Wipe Clean a-z letters over the half term holiday and has thoroughly enjoyed himself (and yes he is appearing to be left handed).

Today's Target: Mark Making to Writing

Children learn to write by starting "mark making" these simple marks then develop into something more recognisable as writing, from a very young age they will imitate adults, grasping writing tools and making marks on paper or any other available surface! It is important during this development that they are encouraged, as young writers as it is from this that handwriting grows.

Mark-making can be done with a pencil and paper but the wider the range of textures and media that are used the more fun it is and the more children will practice it.

Some suggestions:

• Paint using an easel and brushes
• Chalk on boards
• Draw in sand (wet or dry) with either a stick or a finger
• Paint the playground / wall with water and large brushes
• Draw shapes in the air with a wand
• Finger paint
• Dance with a ribbon in your writing hand
• Draw in cornflour "gloop"
• Draw in salt
• Write with pens on a whiteboard
• Use chunky triangular crayons
• Use felt tip pens or colouring pencils
• Draw in mud with sticks

Learning to hold a pencil and make marks that ultimately lead to writing is a complex development. Young children’s scribblings and drawings are their way of communicating and showing observation of their world and as parents and teachers we should encourage, praise and celebrate their achievements.

Examples of development - writing a weather report by my nearly four year old and my nearly six year old boys.

The scribbled circle is the sun, the sideways wavy line is the "s" (followed by another attempt - that looks like a c), then a recogniseable (but formed incorrectly) "u" and a "n".

There is a whole sentence that is recognisable (one reversed letter and the x to cross out a s which was placed without a finger space) plus a recogniseable picture!

Setting Targets

First of all I must apologise for the lack of posts on this blog - I will get writing again! As most of the country's children return to school for a new term and will be being set targets, I thought a post about setting targets and setting myself some would be a good start for posting again.

So, what is a target and why are they set? The Compact Oxford Dictionary defines a target as "an objective or result towards which efforts are directed" and the The Standards Site (for the Department of Children, Schools and Families) says that "Setting targets for pupil achievement puts standards at the centre of school planning, and helps staff focus on practical ways of raising them".

To be effective, targets need to be SMART targets. This means they should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable and Realistic, and set against an appropriate Timescale

Children are likely to have targets relating to the stage they are at: some might be "learning the sounds the letters make", "learning the times tables", "writing the letters the correct way round", "counting to 5", "recognising the numbers to 10", "reading the key sight words", "remembering finger spaces" - the list is endless. If your child is struggling with a particular target - check out some of the resources at Littlesheep Learning that might help!

Adults set themselves targets too - my husband is currently trying to reach his fundraising target and then next Sunday will be trying to complete the London Marathon in his target time, I have friends going back to college / university to work towards qualifications to help them in their careers and to be honest my to do list each day is a target!

So back to this blog and my (Specific) targets:

By the end of April (Timescale) I will have written five blog posts (Measurable) - (Achievable (hopefully!) and Realistic (one every other day should be manageable).

By the end of May I will have developed a routine for posts in themes eg new products, teaching and learning ideas, product reviews or news.

By the end of June I will be posting five posts a week.

I am intending a series of posts relating to different areas of children's learning and the targets they might be being set - so watch this space!

What are your targets?