Every Thursdays we have baking with our four years old as part of their transitioning programme. I thought that it was a good idea to introduce the children to a new technology tool that we are going to use, which is an egg beater. We started by putting all the ingredients that we need on the table, I had eight children who were interested in baking with me today, we started by letting the children have turns put the eggs in the bowl ready to mix. I was holding the egg beater, showing the children and how to mix the eggs in the bowl. The girls had no problem with using our piece of technology as they are familiar with how their mother’s used it when baked at home. The children each had turns holding the egg beater and mixing the eggs in the bowl, the boys were delighted to experience this new technology in the centre as we usually use the spoon but now we used the egg mixing tool in the kitchen, which is a good opportunity to work with technology in a different curriculum area which is new to some children who usually works with computers. “Students should be encouraged to access relevant knowledge and skills from other learning areas” (Ministry of Education, p. 34).
As a student educator I believe that it is important to expose children to different kinds of technology in different curriculum areas to extend their learning, this is because we use technology in various places and settings and it is important for us educators to support children’s learning with technology, this is supported by Te Whāriki that, “Using many materials for different purposes enables children to recognize that different technologies may be used in various places and settings” (Ministry of Education, 1996. p. 95). Furthermore process cooking is a technological activity when children use thier physical skills to mix, hold bowls and spoons. "For example, process cooking is a technological activity or system, developed, used and adapted by early childhood services to meet children's learning needs" (Smorti, 1999. p. 6).
After we mixed the eggs we then add together all the ingredients and start mixing it again with our technology tool, D a four year old boy can’t wait to have his second turn again says that, “this is cool” and was engaging with us for an amount of time working with the egg beater. M also a four year old girl says, “I love helping my mum when she’s baking, this is my favourite job and this is how I do it with my mum” she then puts the bowl sideways and starts mixing. "Children use thier knowledge about processes and problem solving (technology), science, reading, mathematics. They use: physical skills (eg holding bowls and spoons, mixing), social and emotional skills, and language" (Smorti, 1999. p. 6). I then explained to the children the reason why we used the egg beater is because it helps us mix our eggs and cake fast also it is easy to use which is why technology is vital to us. “The simplest definition of ‘technology’ I found was that – ‘technology is about helping people and solving problems’. Each of the above items are thus associated with technology” (Smorti, 1999. p. 1).
With the egg mixer children were able to work collaborative with their peers, develops verbal communication, sharing and developing social skills such as turn taking. Children also develop awareness about different technologies and their use, and why they are important. Most of all children had fun using the egg beater, and I believe that’s the important part about learning is having fun; furthermore some children didn’t have the opportunity to work with egg beaters before and I believe that it was important to introduce technology in an early age so that children can be confidence to use them as they grow up or transit to Primary School. This is align with Te Whāriki as cited in Smorti that, “ Te Whaariki states that in order to participate in this world, our children will need the confidence to develop their own perspectives as well as the capacity to continue acquiring new knowledge and skills” (Smorti, 1999. p. 1). I believe that exposing children to different technologies helps them become aware of technology, more confidence to use technology and communicate collaborative with peers and adults.
Reference List
http://www.fotosearch.com/CSP386/k3867692/
Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o Aotearoa : Early childhood curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media
Smorti, S. (1999) Technology in Early Childhood. Early Education, 19, 5-10.
http://technologyinthecentre.blogspot.co.nz/2012/08/egg-beater.html
ReplyDeleteKia Ora Pauline!..I enjoyed reading your reflection and I admire how well you wrote it out. You have covered everything and I agree with you by saying that children should be exposed to all areas of play. Children are fascinated by cooking activities and the kitchen equipment. They are always eager to learn because they may have seen their family members cook or helped them cook.. Cooking is an essential life skill. This also makes makes them connect families to the centre.To add on, by using the egg beater also boosted the children's gross and fine motor skills together with their ability to concentrate. Children also problem solved and discovered what happens when you beat the eggs up. Yes, i agree that children need to be introduced to all kinds of technology as it boosts them holistically. Ka Pai!!
ReplyDeletePauline, I totally love the idea of baking with children. Children love being involved in it and they are always curious to know about the outcome of their product. I think that when children do baking activities they build upon their skills such as turn taking, being patient and problem solving. Te Whāriki states that solving problems together develops children’s understanding of how technologies can help them and others” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.96). I liked the way you gave turns to the children to mix the eggs in the bowl and it is great to hear that the girls were really confident while using the egg beater because they had exposure to baking activities at home. I think that children build upon their confidence when their parents provide them with exciting and new activities and they also get to recall their past experiences. Children also improve their learning abilities when their parents introduce something at home and the teachers facilitate their learning, curiosity and imagination at the centre. Mama noa ho!
ReplyDeletehey Pauline, it’s good to see something different on these blogs, i like that you have chosen to talk about the egg beater because we use it in our centres but the learning experiences that children can benefit from it is not talked about. I like that you have identified the key learning outcomes of the children’s learning from this experiment especially having the children share and take turns, this can help children learn to share and wait for others. I like how you stated that the children engaged in this process and it also really good skill because children are holding the handle of the egg beater and at the same time moving the other hand to beat, it’s good that the children had the opportunity to explore this because personally its challenging for them, and for me it was having to try and balance the beater so the mixture don’t tip over, it helps children also to be aware of the environment. Lastly this is a good way of getting children to help out at home and at family gatherings so children can also teach and show others how it’s done. Good work Pauline.
ReplyDeleteTalofa
ReplyDeleteWow Pauline an egg beater, you continue to shock me, with Seema I read about baking, with Monisha it was an overhead projector, with Jen it was about using play dough and now an egg beater this was really fascinating. I personally learnt from reading this was that anything can be non technology, but I think that using a non digital device is much more easier because it don’t need power and also children learn how to do things on their own. It was also good to read that the boys had no problem in using this non technology because they are the ones who are usually involved in using the computers and Ipad. It was also good to read that you introduced this technology at the right time which is during cooking; the best place children learn I personally think. I also read that there was a lot of learning which was verbal communication, sharing and also developing social skills. I am still amazed at how how an egg beater can be so useful. Ka pai Pauline.