Describe a constructivist lesson you would teach:
I have actually had a chance to teach a form of a constructivist lesson through a previous class I have taken. A partner and I developed a physical knowledge activity and explored bubbles with preschoolers. One way we should have gone prior to the activity might have been to have a small discussion with the children about what they know about bubbles (they have probably blown them before, seen them in the bathtub or the kitchen sink). Through this type of activity- most commonly known as a KWL chart- I could have determined what the children already know about bubbles, possible revealing some of their misconceptions, as well as what they need to know about bubbles. Now, this may seem like an unusual topic to explore with children, but at such a young age, the preschoolers were genuinely interested in the activities and have many curiosities about the way things work, even if it is something as simple as bubbles.
After figuring out what they know, (this next step is actually what happened in my activities), I would do some actual experimentation with the children. I provided them with several different types of bubble wands, in different dishes, and we even experimented with different forms of bubbles (the liquid bubbles and bubbles we created from soap and water). Through this actual experimentation, that we performed outside, I observed the children's actions and words- how they described the movement of bubbles, were they excited about what they were making, could they explain what was happening? I did experience some exciting inquisition during another activity I performed with the same materials, same setup, however this time we experimented with blowing bubbles indoors. One child noticed that when we blew bubbles inside, they didn't go as far as when we had blown them outside. When I asked why he thought this was, his response was to the effect that there was no wind inside the classroom to move the bubbles. (This was exciting! He was constructing his own knowledge from what he observed!)
If I had had more time to devote to this activity, I would have wanted to explore the concept of bubbles over many more consecutive days. I think we could have went in depth with the physical knowledge content, because eventually (hopefully) the children would wonder why bubbles moved a certain way, had only one certain shape, and why they floated. I think the point here that I want to make, and with any type of constructivist lesson, is that the children construct their knowledge based on their discovery. Throughout the activity I did with the children, i posed questions to guide their thinking- open-ended questions like "Why do you think...?" These types of questions, where children really have to think about the answer, help push children to think deeply and construct answers. It should be exemplified by the teacher that even though the answer is wrong (or not what we expected), it should be considered valuable!
Which of these learning activities/skills lend themselves to student's individual or group construction? How might you structure learning activities that lead students to discover these skills/these principles?
I am beginning to learn more and more how important it is to create a "community of learners." As an adult and in college, I have always felt strongly about doing independent work (probably because I don't usually enjoy working in groups, however I want to be optimistic about that). With more experience on this idea of community of learners, I am really seeing the benefits of collaboration, and I feel it is very important in the elementary years. Along with this, I also think providing hands on experiences are beneficial to students' learning. I know that I learn best when I am actually able to carry out the idea, and it sticks with me better than just listening about it. With my students, I hope to create as many hands on, real world experiences in creative ways so that they not only remember what they learned, but also comprehend and truly understand the material and can explain or "teach" it to someone else.
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