Materials

The last workshop was about materials that are used to create teaching tools. Kriscia and I presented some types of poppets that were made with paperboard, old fabric, and paper bags. The most important aspect to take into account are the size and colors of the puppets that is why we use catching colors to make them more interesting for children. 

Moreover, my classmates share with us some other ideas to use different materials to teach a lesson. The first idea was flashcards presented by Bryan and Eunice. The flashcards contained numbers and animals to teach farm animals. However, flashcards can contained just images or they can be used to teach another topic. The activity was funny because we practice pronunciation and vocabulary about animals.

The second activity was modeling clay. This activity was presented by Brenda and Nancy. They explain us that the use of this materials help children develop their fine and gross motor skill because children manipulate the material and create what they want. Personally, I really like to use modeling clay with children because they develop their imagination at the time to create something with this material. The third option was grouping techniques that are use when teachers need to that students work in groups. 

The most famous techniques are the random technique that means that teachers choose the students randomly to be part of a group. The other one is the social cooperative technique that consist in make groups with different level students in that way students can support and help each other with the ones that have difficulties to learn. 

The fourth option was make a musical instrument with recycle materials, and my friends Deyanira and Jacky presented a type of drum that was made with a plastic glass, a balloon, and some stones.  This option was nice because we can make noise with this instrument and sing a song related to the topic that are being taught. 

Moreover, Wanda and Vanessa create a spinning wheel with recycle material too. This fantastic tool can be used in classes with different topics. In my opinion it can be used to teach colors, to ask question to students related to the topic that they are studying, or simply each color of the spinning wheel can have a command that students must complete. 

The last idea was presented by Josue and it was flip cards that it can be used to tell a story to children; however, it has different uses. One idea that came up in the class was to give a message to students by telling a story, and teachers can engage students to participate in the reading or making the mimic of the characters that appear in the story. 

The most important aspect of these idea of using materials to create teaching tools is that they are attractive for children since they like to play and have fun with their classmates. Teachers do not have to spend a lot of many to create these types of tools because some of them are made with recycle materials that are easy to found and manipulate. In this week I learnt that children learn through play and it is important that teachers give plenty opportunities to their students to practice during the class. I am happy because I have grown a lot during these classes and all the knowledge that I have acquire I will put it in practice in my classes.