Children Are Our Future, Teach Them Well: April 2009

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Earth Hour for children..

Where were you this time last month?
With 2 candles lit and some incense in the box, we sat through Earth Hour, with the rest of the world in our own home.

Here are 2 clips of images and videos which you may want to use to show the children in your class what Earth Hour means and why it is important for them to save and treasure mother Earth..

(1) Starting from image #2, [if you click on the first image, it will refresh the whole webpage] click on the images to see an animated fade between "on" and "off". This effect requires javascript to be enabled..
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/03/earth_hour_2009.html

(2) The origins of Earth Hour..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CRs-7lRlPo

Sunday, April 26, 2009

"E" for Elephant..and Exceptional

An amazing feat from the big "E".

It needs to be seen to be believed.
So here's our lovable "E"lephant doing an "E"xceptional feat :

http://fun.mivzakon.co.il/flash/video/2344/2344.html

(Thanks to Jennifer Chung, DPT-2008/09 class, for bringing this to us)

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Tribute to our lecturer..

A fitting tribute to our lecturer, Philip Koh, for giving us the best teachings (and 'laughable moments') during our ECE

course.

Thanks again, Philip, you made the difference!

..from the Class of 2008-09 NY-EC-A2

DNA way of spotting talent in a child

"A child's development is a result of several factors, including her inherited genetic traits and upbringing. Trying to predict your child's progress on the basis of her DNA results alone is doomed to failure bcoz this narrow approach ignores all the other influences, for eg a brilliant child won't achieve educationally if she isn't motivated. It's far better to give your child a full range of learning experiences that will maximise her potential than to opt for an expensive DNA test that has limited predictive value in the real world"..Dr Richard Woolfson, child psychologist, on the new DNA tests that some parents are using to predict their child's future

Learning Disabilities in Children

The truth is 15% of children of normal intelligence in every cohort have learning disabilities. The best known is probably dyslexia where the child has difficulty reading because some numbers and letters of the alphabet appear similar to him. Early intervention can make a critical difference to these children. It would be terrible waste for a society to lose up to 15% of each cohort because they had not been given the opportunity to develop according to their individual talents..Prof Ho Lai Yun, SGH

Erikson's 8 Stages and Looking at Ourselves as Educators

Stage1 - See our trainings as necessary for our own job satisfaction and not just a requirement to do a job; Stage2 - Develop a can-do attitude as opposed to "just-tell-me-what-to-do" attitude; Stage3 - Devise new or expand on old curriculum ideas; Stage4 - Participate in mentor-teacher programs and informal discussion groups; Stage5 - Speak positively about ourselves and our job; Stage6 - Seek ways to establish teamwork; Stage7 - Become a mentor to someone newer in our field; Stage8 - Know that for many children and families we have made a difference ..extracts "Erikson and ECE: Looking at Ourselves and Our Profession Developmentally", R Gratz, P Boulton

Make-believe Play

Let There be No Impatience in Your Life

Children Are Our Future, Teach Them Well