Multiple Intelligence Institute :: Forum

Re: Numbers in Our Daily Life [by naolekar]

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:02:38 +1500

Curriculum, Activities, and Assessment::Numbers in Our Daily Life
At my Centre for Child Development we introduce the concept of numbers by getting things which are same,say 2 balls,3cars and so on.We make the kids sit around a table, we ask them if they can see any toys on the table,encouraging their responses.Then we introduce the concept that when nothing is there we call it "zero',we then show them flashcard of 0.After that one toy is kept on table,they are asked and then introduce concept of no 1,and so on till no 5 gradually till 10.To reinforce we take them to count things around the class,then from books,this is after the concept of nos,recognition becomes clear.Another game which is favourite of kids is we prepare a really big dice using a cardboard box on which first only pictures corresponding to numbers are there say 1 tree,2 balls etc.The dice is rolled & thrown in the middle,once the children count the number of things they have to perform a action say clap,stamp their feet etc,ex- if 3 cars can be seen then clap 3 times.This is loved by kids who are active,love to learn by hands on way.this way bodily kinaesthetic,visual intelligence come in play also. In another activity we make the children stand with their back towards the wall then all have to first strech right hand in front then left when teacher calls out.After that teacher helps them to count the hands by drawing stars on hands.Also helps to reinforce left and right hand concepts. Another game which is famous in India is snakes & ladders,for which we either get it painted on the ground or make a huge cardboard cutout which we paste on ground,initially we limit the numbers to 20.the child throws the big dice made of cardboard ,they have to pick up that many things from the basket on which their marker lands after they get the number and move that many places.Same way we have a traditional game of numbers called "pachisi "where special board is there which somewhat resembles ludo,which I have modified using numbers and pictures,& which can be played using markers.Helps in number recognition,linguistic skills. By Neelakshi Chetas Centre for Child Development

Building Blocks Activities [by londicarba]

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:02:12 +1500

Curriculum, Activities, and Assessment::Building Blocks Activities
I want to share a classroom project that emerged from the interest of three and four year olds. In classrooms equipped with blocks, children spontaneously create ramps, or inclined planes. In Pre-K 202, teachers spent an entire school year supporting children’s interests in ramp investigations; nurturing their logical-mathematical and spatial intelligences. The story you will hear took place in my classroom at Ivy Academy in 2006-07.

When children are allowed long blocks of time and the freedom to choose what they want to do, the relationship between play and scientific investigations becomes obvious. One day, in late fall, I noticed children sending small cars down a ramp they had constructed in the Block Center. Sometimes they would just let the cars go, and sometimes they would give them a push. They discovered that the cars would travel farther off the ramp if they gave them a push. That weekend, I went shopping and bought some marbles. I put them in a small basket in the Block Center. I knew children had discovered the marbles when I heard squeals of joy and saw marbles rolling every which way across the classroom floor. I approached this busy group of inventers and told them that I though they had a great idea – building a ramp for marbles. But, I told them, we can’t have marbles rolling all over the classroom. I invited them to sit down and think together about how they might contain them. I learned so much about each child as I listened to them express their ideas. I watched as they listened to each other. I was in awe as I heard each one of them make suggestions and take suggestions from the others.

The question on the table was not what to build – they would build “sides and a fence” – but rather what materials to use. One thought she could make a fence out of recycled materials from the Art and Construction Center. Another thought they could use our large cardboard blocks. Eventually, they settled on the wooden blocks. Finally, they got busy building sides to “bank” the marbles, and a fence to contain them. Once built, it was time to test their idea for containment. They were now experimenting with cause and effect.

At a Circle Time later in the day, I invited the ramp builders to share their invention with the rest of their classmates. We wandered over to where it had been saved, and they talked about discovering the marbles, and marbles everywhere. At this point, I could see that experimenting with inclined planes could be a long-term, high-interest project, as it seemed to capture the imaginations of all who were listening to the presentation.

The next step involved sitting down with the whole class. I wanted to find out what my children knew about ramps; if anyone had ever seen them in the real world; how they thought ramps assisted human beings in accomplishing goals at work and play. I wanted them to think of their own experiences with inclined planes (sliding down a slide or sledding down a hill), and I wanted them to think of other ramp building materials we might have in our classroom besides blocks.

Based on some of the ideas they had about building materials, I asked our resource teacher if she would be willing to work with children on this project over several days. On the first day, they used paper towel rolls, scissors and tape to construct a pathway 120 cm. long. Once constructed, Melanie introduced several objects of various shapes, sizes, and weights. She led them in an inquiry-based discussion, inviting them to predict which of the objects would move most quickly down the path to the floor, and why. They then tested their ideas, talked about what they observed, and offered explanations.

The most important component of this approach to building knowledge is embodied in the relationship between children and teachers. By asking open-ended, inquiry-based questions, the teacher conveys that learning is not the ability to give rote answers, but a process of thinking and experimenting. After watching children play with the paper towel pathway, a parent offered to bring in her son’s plastic Roll-A-Kit, a series of short tracks that could be connected in a variety of ways. This commercial toy inspired children to think about ramps with curves, overlapping curves, and elevated catchments. When Melanie decided to repeat the ramp building activity in the spring, again using paper towel rolls, tape, scissors, and only marbles this time, children were eager to incorporate some of the design aspects, such as curves, that were inherent in the Roll-A-Kit. This would lead to more experimentation and greater complexity during construction. It is very exciting when children think to do something, and their teachers don’t know how to do it. When this happens, teachers and children become co-learners. In these situations, you can often hear children saying things like “I’ve got a good idea!” and “I know, I know!”

Three year old Mael told Melanie his good idea for constructing a curve. And I have to tell you, it was brilliant. Mael had figured out (in his mind) that “We can cut lines on both sides of a short piece of a half tube, and when we pull it in to a curve, it will have triangles spaces, and then we can cut out triangles of the same size and tape them over the spaces…” This is one of those situations where a child can think of something to do, but can’t actually do it alone. Again, teacher and child as co-learners. Melanie attached the curve, and the next thing that happened surprised us all. The marbles flew off as soon as they hit the curve. They decided they needed to “bank” it (a concept they learned in their earlier explorations in the Block Center), and they needed to support the incline at the curve. They used a chair for this, and then it was Clean Up Time. We created a barrier and a sign to protect this “work in progress” which sent a powerful message – your interests are important to us, and we take your work seriously.

Experimenting with inclined planes gave children in Pre-K 202 an opportunity to learn skills and acquire knowledge across the learning domains. They:

Acquired new vocabulary - Language and Literacy

Sharpened their cooperative learning skills – Personal/Social

Manipulated tools – Small Motor

Used thinking skills to investigate and experiment – Scientific Thinking

The project also triggered combinations of intelligences:

Logical-Mathematical

Linguistic

Spatial

Interpersonal

Experimenting with inclined planes convinced me of the proposition that all children are natural-born investigators. It was very exciting watching children in Pre-k 202 construct their own knowledge base, acquire new vocabulary, and use their thinking skills to ask questions, investigate and create.

Welcome Note for Curriculum and Assessment Forum [by londicarba]

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 06:05:41 +1500

Curriculum, Activities, and Assessment::Welcome Note for Curriculum and Assessment Forum
Note from Londi Carbajal to Users of MI:

To Users of the MI Network:

As Chief of Education for Ivy Group, I am pleased to have been asked to chat with users of the MI Network regarding curriculum and assessment. For the past year and a half, I’ve been busy defining curriculum and developing assessment strategies for teachers in our multiple intelligences kindergartens. Given the fact that Multiple Intelligences theory (MI) is neither a specific educational method nor approach, it has been both challenging and rewarding to create tools for teachers that are “in the spirit” of MI.

I made a decision early on, that the best curriculum in our MI schools would incorporate Multiple Intelligences theory, developmentally appropriate practice and play. In other words, curriculum is more than a collection of enjoyable activities. Rather, it is a complex idea containing multiple components.

Our curriculum development starts with a demonstrated respect for evidence; evidence that includes empirical research such as that done by Piaget, Erikson, Smilansky, Gardner and Vygotsky. It is goal oriented and incorporates concepts and skills that foster children’s learning and development along a continuum. It provides cognitive challenges that lead to positive outcomes for all children.

Our curriculum is comprehensive, encompassing critical areas of development (personal and social, language and literacy, mathematical thinking, scientific thinking, social studies, the arts, and physical development and health. It also includes special attention to learning dispositions – inventive, reflective, inquisitive, and resourceful.

Our teachers facilitate children’s play and foster firsthand learning through social activity and important conversations with friends. Learning is also facilitated as children move among a variety of Learning Centers, decide what type of products they want to create or what kinds of problems they want to solve, and engage in important conversations with teachers.

Lastly, our teachers assess children’s learning through ethical, appropriate, reliable, and on-going observation of children at work and play.

Theme of the Curriculum and Assessment Forum [by MII]

Sun, 10 Jan 2010 10:13:53 +1500

Curriculum, Activities, and Assessment::Theme of the Curriculum and Assessment Forum
One of the most common requests we get from educators is the need of MI related curriculum and activities. Therefore, we have created the curriculum forum where you can share your experiences in the classroom. We hope this forum can be a useful resource for you to run different activities that relate to particular sets of intelligences in the future. To further enrich the contents, we have invited Ms. Londi Carbajal, a seasoned educator with over 20 years of experience in early education, to facilitate the discussions. We look forward to reading your posts!