Nadirchat

Let us be mindful of the messages we give children. As teachers our words and actions leave lasting impressions. So let's ensure that we guide children to see the wonderful colors of life in their own unique way. It is our calling to walk along side children, to light the flame of learning.  Flowers are Red by Harry Chapin The little boy went first day of school He got some crayons and started to draw He put colors all over the paper For colors was what he saw And the teacher said.. What you doin' young man I'm paintin' flowers he said She said... It's not the time for art young man And anyway flowers are green and red There's a time for everything young man And a way it should be done You've got to show concern for everyone else For you're not the only one And she said... Flowers are red young man Green leaves are green There's no need to see flowers any other way Than they way they always have been seen But the little boy said... There are so many ...

In the autumn of 2013, I accepted a part time teaching position at Centennial College. The subject, the Project Approach. Having worked with projects for over a decade, I considered this to be an easy undertaking. Working with perspective teachers is a great responsibility and as such I delved into the process of research (more so than usual). As teachers we are always students. We can never turn away from the need to seek new information, to find, discover and uncover new knowledge. The introduction of the Reggio Approach in North America has caused a great deal of upheaval in the traditional thinking around the education of young children. There is no shortage of books, articles, polices, documents to support this.  Each article is rich in providing the reader with the underlying guidelines and the how to that are needed to support this type of pedagogy.  The question is, how are educators making the transition and are they truly prepared? Are the environments ready? Just as...

It's been a long, cold winter. Even, these little creatures have been hard pressed to find food under the thick coating of ice that was left behind in December. Thanks to the tasty bread, supplied by Euro Harvest Bakery in Woodbridge Ontario  http://euroharvestbakery.net/ many of our bushy tailed friends have not gone hungry. In fact, they wait by the playground door, gracefully accepting our humble offerings, each and every morning! What a perfect way for young children to learn to care for God's creatures.

As teachers we consider STEM ( science, technology, engineering and math) as one of the areas that brings about the highest level of thinking, and problem solving.  Most of all it nurtures the disposition to inquire and to make sense of the mechanics of life. There is no doubt that children are engineers; constantly modifying the world to satisfy their curiosities. In consideration of this, then our task is to create environments that facilitate opportunities to test their thinking. Let us consider Aidan and Marco, whose fascination with the Star Wars light saber, led to the making of this intricate Electric Machine. If I had to say that we were surprised by how much Aidan already knew about electricity, it would be a lie. Aidan has been with us since he was a toddler. Now at the age of six, he is a master of theories. Water is a conductor of electricity. We must be careful not to place electrical components into water. Electricity makes things work. Electricity comes from a source...