Workshops and independent tasks.

This term our workshops have been running better because the rest of the class were set up better with their work. I made sure they had specific and explicit instructions of what to do when I am with a group. Although it is still their choice of WHAT to do, they are more clear of HOW to do it, e.g quality. Having the children choose their workshops, based on their area of interest or specific need meant they were excited about going to the workshops, as well as doing their independent tasks. A happy little literacy block...yay!

Questions for Marama - what do you think?

Thanks for letting me observe what was going on in your class today. I am really excited about the workshop sessions that you are running. The kids I spoke to seemed really tuned into the system as well. My question for you, and you might like to the kids to feed into this answer, is around the idea of Quality Work. How do you know that that the work the children are doing IS Quality Work?

Workshops - Garrick from Rm 8

Workshops are good because you get to learn different things, things that you don't normally learn about...like extreme weather! I got to learn about this because you add your name to the list to learn about two different topics and I chose Extreme Weather and "Just Like New".

Right now I am off to work on my Mihi, which Marama added to the list as an option - you work on this when you are not with the teacher.

I like workshops because normally classes don't do workshops.

Workshops - Livvy from Rm 8

Each Monday we have got to go up to the Whiteboard and add our names to a workshop. These are groups that we pick to do things in, like reading, spelling and writing. Marama gets us down to the mat and she writes on the little board things that we have to do if we are not in a workshop. Most of these things are work that has to be finished by the end of the week.

My thoughts about this are.....I think it is quite good because you get to choose things that we are interested in or things we are not very good at and it is also really good because you get time to work with Marama without anyone interrupting. (the workshops run for 20 minutes with a 10 minute gap in between so she can help other people).