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This week I used Pinterest. I think this is a great resource for teachers as it has so many different ideas and resources uploaded by teachers. I also like how using the hashtags was quite simple and also quite useful! I used #picturebooks first, and found a whole range of books. There were a lot more books (and relevant ones) when I searched this hashtag in Pinterest compared to in Tumblr.

I then typed in #sustainability next to #picturebooks, and it refined the search to show me picture books specific to the topic of sustainability. I really thought this was great and it has made me want to use more and more hashtags to see what I can find on Pinterest!

I definitely think I would use Pinterest for lesson ideas and resources when teaching. I like how there is an endless amount of posts on the site, and they are also very relevant and specific for teaching. I can see how using Pinterest might be better than a Google search when looking for lesson ideas!

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When searching Tumblr for picture books, I came across this website: http://coloursofus.com/multicultural-childrens-books-fathers/

When on the site, it displays 40 different picture books related to fathers from all across the world. Some of the stories are Father’s Day stories, another I saw was about a child who visits her father in prison, and some were about what a child’s father means to them. There are also stories set in different countries as well as stories about having two dads.

One particular book that caught my eye was one called: ‘A New Year’s Reunion: A Chinese Story.’  This story is about a child whose father works far away from home for most of the year but comes home to share a special New Years Eve with his family. The description on the website for the story says that children whose fathers are away from home a lot would really resonate with this story. I remember that at primary school my best friend’s father worked in Iran and would only be home in Australia for a few weeks at a time. I remember how she would miss him a lot, and maybe a story like this could have brought her some comfort. This story would also be appropriate when looking at the cross-curricular priority of Australia’s engagement with Asia, as it explores traditions surrounding New Years Eve in China.

I recommend looking at these stories on the website above! They would be great for lots of different lessons, and especially around Father’s day.

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I looked at the video “Welcome to Shelly Beach, Port Lincoln.” The video shows two local Parnkalla boys who go to Shelly Beach, which is their special place. Within the video the two boys use Indigenous and English words to describe the place. On the screen in subtitles the Indigenous word and the English meaning is displayed. For a frontloading activity, students could have a list of Indigenous words and the English meaning. From this they could make their own story to describe a special place they have. This would get students to engage more closely with an Indigenous language, as well as start to appreciate what a special place may look like and mean to someone. This would be a good lead into a book that focuses on the importance of Country or a specific place to an Indigenous community.

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For placement I was in a Foundation Class. The teacher had been having some difficulties with the students in her class not always making the right decisions. Some of the students were making choices that involved not listening in class, or showing poor behaviour. Then there were also some students who the teacher wanted to see participate more in class.

In one lesson, the teacher read the story ‘Pedro the Brave’ to the students. She asked the students lots of questions about what it means to be brave. She discouraged the students saying responses such as ‘you need to be a superhero’ or ‘not crying when you fall over.’ This was because, she wanted to get across to the students that being brave is about doing something and having a try even when you may be scared or worried about it.

After this introduction, the teacher got each student to make a paper medal. This medal was their ‘bravery’ medal. Each time the teacher thought a student had been brave they got to wear their medal. Being brave in class could mean having a go at answering a question, or not being afraid to move seats if a student next to you is distracting you from your work.

The students decorated their medals with glitter and wrote their names on it. The medals were hung up on a display under a banner ‘bravery.’ The students would take their medal down to wear when they had earned it. A photo has been included (from the internet) to give a basic idea of what they looked like.

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This week I have mainly been using digital media on my laptop. I have been completing assignments, where I have used a few different textbooks (e-books and hard copies) as well as journal articles. A lot of the research I do online, but I have also referred to some textbooks I have at home. I have been using various Internet search engines, such as Firefox, Internet explorer and Google Chrome. I have also been experimenting with understanding how to use tumblr!

With my assignments I have been on CloudDeakin a lot looking at the discussion posts, assignment guides and rubrics.

A part from these things on my laptop, I have also used my phone quite a bit for text messaging, calls and FaceTime.

A part from using textbooks, the only other print text I have looked at is the newspaper. I have been using a lot of digital sources instead. These are summarised within the Wordle!

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When I was in Grade 4 I remember having the book ‘The Magic Faraway Tree’ read to me at school. This book was one that I really enjoyed. It was easy to become attached to the characters and all the magical lands they would visit. It was always exciting to hear what new land the characters would discover and what adventures they would have there. A particular land I remember liking was when they visited the Land of Presents.

Moon-Face, Silky, Saucepan Man and Mister Watzisname will be characters that will be hard to forget! As well as Dame Washalot who would throw down dirty water onto whoever was climbing the tree!  

I remember the suspense we would all feel in class when the characters would find themselves in trouble. We would be sitting on the edge of our seats! Enid Blyton created such a magical story that will not be easily forgotten.