Bridging The Gap

Today I went to a course that was about "Bridging the Gap."  If I am honest, I literally couldn't think of anything worse today than having to head to a couse/seminar- not really sure what I should call it.  I was feeling tired and it had been a big day- my daughter had just gone to her first ever night away from us (school camp) etc etc (I digress).  Ayway, my point is that I am really pleased I went to the seminar and I came away feeling professionally refreshed (but still a bit tired.)
It was designed to get us thinking about the transition between preschool and school and the challenges that this presents.  Here are some of the things that got me thinking (in no particular order):

• It is a fact that the vast majority of children in NZ are attending some form of early childhood center and for a very large percentage this begins in their first year of life. The services offered in NZ are incredibly diverse and this is something that, as a country, we value.  The diversity in services is quite significant and their approaches do vary too.
• Te Whariki drives the play based learning philosophy in these centres and provides a basis for working with parents, children and whanau.  Te Whariki provides a rich array of planned play based learning experiences that facilitate and focus on specific learning outcomes and thoughtful and intentional pedegogy. 
• Play based learning helps to meet the emotional, cultural, social, academic and behavioural needs of the children.
• Probably one of the things I really have taken from today is that we say that children are starting school and they are not ready, yet it is us, the school, that is not ready for the children. It is true that children are different than what they were 10 years ago and they have different needs today than they appeared to have 10 years ago- but they also have new skills than what they did 10 years ago- because we live in the 21 century- a  time of change and evolution.  It is not wrong- it is just different.

We looked at the psychological and physiological aspects of what is happening with these kids, and while I found that interesting, I feel that it is not what I took away.
A couple of teachers talked about what they are doing in their classrooms to help bridge the gap for these wee ones.  They set up a play based learning session from 8.30am-9.30am and they discussed the benefits of the quality time this is for these kids.  It is great for the children to 'ease' their way into the school day in a more familiar setting that is similar to preschool.  It is also great for the parents because they can spend time settling their children into the day, knowing they are happy and the teachers are given the opportunity to build realtionships with the parents.
We brainstormed some activities that could help facilitate self regulation which inlcuded:

• Teaching the children relaxation and breathing
• Physical activity
• Regular food/water comsumption ( Play Eat Learn)
• Teaching children about their body temperature
• Games and activiteis that encourage stopping and starting or extremes e.g: loud/quiet etc
• Playdough
• Painting/colouring
• Sensory materials
• Music, etc

All in all I found that I have my "concentration face" on as I contemplate this.  I am a processor and I am still thinking about how it would/will all look in my class, but I am convinced that I am willing to try the playbased approach, but I am nervous as I potentially step out of my comfort zone and will I muck it up?  Actually, upon reflection- is that even possible?  Maybe this translates to excitement????