Wow. I am so thankful for this visit. It was probably one of the most beneficial experiences I have had this entire year. Rebecca is a wonderful human and seems like a fantastic teacher. I really hope to be as good as her someday.
Her classroom was set up extremely well. We had a Literacy class last semester and our professor often talked about how important the things on your walls are. Big things all over the walls with lots of bright colours can be a sensory overload for students. Rebecca had minimal things on her walls and also the things that were up were all student made or collaborated. She begins her walls blank and the students help decide which is fantastic. Additionally, she had super flexible seating which she also based off the needs of her kids. Much of the materials she has are for purposeful play. They are Kindergarteners and so purposeful play is super beneficial to them. Here are some photos I took of the layout and items in her classroom:
This inquiry based approach for Kindergarteners scared me at first. However, after her presentation I felt a lot better about that idea. This visit was on Wednesday and we then got our practicum placements the Friday and I am in a Montessori school. This means that a lot of the students learning is self-directed and hands on. I am in a grade 1/2 class which is very close to Kindergarten age. So as you can tell now knowing this the visit became even MORE helpful for me in terms of making lessons. Rebecca is going to be a great resource for me to have especially for this. I am thinking I will reach out to her to see if I can go into her class to observe on one of our free Wednesdays. I would love to talk to her more now that I know how much she can help me for my practicum coming up.
I am super excited for what is upcoming! Thank you for giving us this opportunity to go see someone so cool. I will definitely be staying in touch with her.
