Using the Life Experiences of Children to Create Wonderment in the Classroom
Presenter
Lynnette Arthur, Packer Collegiate Institute
Session / Time
- Breakout Session I
- Friday, April 27, 10:45 a.m. - noon
- Amersfort Room
Description
Just like adults, children have experiences that we can draw on in the classroom. The theory behind Emergent Curriculum is that children can construct their own learning. Finding the threads of commonality is key to creating wonderment. At the beginning of one school year quite a few children came back to school with “Boo-Boo’s.” Ranging from mosquito bites, scrapes, bruises, and even a broken arm. We noticed that during our daily meeting the children would want to talk about what happened to them. This occurred so regularly that we began to designate a time during our morning meeting for “Boo-Boo” sharing. Thus the beginning of Boo-Boo Curriculum was born.
Goals / Content / Intentionality
This workshop will show the magic in using a common real life experience for many children such as getting injured, to create dialog, community, and wonderment in the classroom.
Lynnette Arthur, Packer Collegiate Institute
Presenter Bio
Lynnette Arthur, Packer Collegiate Institute
Lynnette Arthur is a NYC teacher inspired by the practice of the Reggio Emilia Approach. She has worked with young learners for 17 years. In 2005, she attended an educator’s conference in Reggio Emilia, Italy which inspired and transformed her practice. One of the major take aways from Reggio was the approach of Emergent Curriculum. She has Emergent Curriculum happening in her classroom every year. In this session, she shares her dynamic approach to Emergent Curriculum!
