This has been an active week in relation to my placement experiences. The number of placement hours I have to fulfil during my time here is becoming more demanding than I first thought. However, I am confident that I will complete this with continued determination as I am nevertheless enjoying placement.
Tuesday 8th March was ‘Shrove Tuesday’ - the Finnish equivalent being ‘Laskiaistiistai’. According to some Finn’s this is a popular event where sledging is performed, with a competition for the best. Unfortunately I did not attend the event in the city, although there was a celebration in my placement. The children enjoyed sledging outside, with a hot chocolate drink and a cookie. During afternoon snack they had a traditional Shrove Bun ‘Laskiaispullat’ which was filled with whipped cream and jam; I tried one and it was very nice. In addition to this, I visited a skating rink with the children. The children are very well-equipped with ice skates and appear to have few problems skating, I think this may be because the children are raised to play such activities and they can complete them with little effort.
I had been asked to plan and complete an activity with the children in Pre-school. I planned to teach the letter ‘R’ to maintain the children’s current learning of the English Alphabet. The lesson included a group discussion on the carpet about the alphabet and then creating a mind-map together of objects that begin with the letter ‘R’. Although all of the children speak English the teacher was needed for some translations and misunderstandings, for example, ‘R’ in the Finnish alphabet sounds different to that of the English one; some children were confused and thinking of Finnish words.
The mind-map led onto an individual task of drawing, labelling and colouring their own object. I was available to assist the children although most of them worked independently throughout. To complete this lesson I also provided a simple handwriting sheet to assess the children’s forming of the letter and ability to write. I had allocated thirty minutes for the whole activity, however in practice it took longer. The teacher thought this was fine and there tended to be a more relaxed atmosphere than of back in Northern Ireland. I like this as more time can be spent with the children individually ensuring they have gained an understanding of the topic. The learning purposes were to identify and recall letters, with sequencing and group discussions to prompt thinking skills. On reflection, an area for improvement is my judgement of allocated times, although the lesson went well as the children were attentive, respectful and engaged in the activities.
Pictures: Examples of children's independent work as part of my planned lesson.
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