(Click “The Bronx River Study: Launching the School Year in Jessica and Andrene’s First Grade Classroom” Guiding Questions to download the pdf version.)
Consider these questions when viewing the videos:
Learning through active involvement
Jessica and Andrene stress the importance of active experiences to support young children’s learning.
- What examples of active learning did you see in the video?
- How do these experiences enhance children’s learning?
- How are disciplinary skills and knowledge (i.e., mathematics, literacy, science, social studies, etc.) infused into these active experiences?
- What do you do or can you do in your classroom to build knowledge and skills through active learning experiences?
Incorporating children’s questions and interests into the curriculum
Andrene and Jessica discuss the role of interest and motivation in learning – about how children are “part of the curriculum” in their classroom – with the teachers adjusting curriculum plans as they follow children’s questions and interests.
- What are some examples from the video of how the teachers balance the planned/required curriculum with children’s interests and questions?
- How might you do this in your classroom?
Providing choice
The teachers discuss the importance of providing children with choices as they learn.
- What examples of offering children choices were evident in the video?
- How might you do this in your classroom?
Discipline reframed as building community
Jessica and Andrene discuss how they build community in their classroom.
- What are some of the strategies they use to build community in the classroom?
- How might you use strategies like these in your classroom?
Assessing and reporting on children’s learning
In one of the short video clips, Andrene and Jessica detail the ways in which they learn about and keep track of what children know and can do as well as how they share this information with children’s families.
- How do they keep track of children’s learning?
- How do they share what the children know and can do with families?
- What are the benefits/challenges of these practices?
Teachers as ongoing learners
The school community provides a variety of opportunities for teachers to learn, share, and reflect.
- What are some of these opportunities?
- What kinds of supports do you need/would you like, to nurture your growth as a teacher?
The High Quality Early Learning Project 