June 17, 2013
Great Start to Quality Resource Center Newsletter
In This Issue
Small Group Time - Key Points
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Dear Great Start to Quality Providers,

This is your weekly touchpoint with the Great Start to Quality Consultants!  The focus each week will be a shared topic that will provide support to each of you in your daily work with young children and families.  Enjoy!

Dawn and Heather
Quality Improvement Consultants - Eastern Region

 


 Small Group Time - Key Points

I recently attended a training offered through the Great Start to Quality Resource Center with a certified trainer from High Scope.  Mr. Kenneth Sherman came to us from Dallas, Texas and discussed small group times and it's importance in the daily routine.  High Scope follows what is best practices and developmentally appropriate when they talk about small group.  They state that, "small group times are adult-initiated (meaning that the teacher plans the materials and the learning experiences based on learning content, children's interests, and their levels of development) activities during which children explore materials in their own way with the adult sharing the excitement of their discoveries." --taken from the High Scope Preschool Training Series book 11.

One of the biggest things I took from this training is that small group time needs to occur everyday.  When working with a large group of children, the small group time gives you an opportunity to do some intentional teaching and really work on the growth and development of the individual child.  Although through observation and assessment you may plan for the entire group, there are always different levels of development to focus on to meet the needs of each child individually.

So, what does that mean?  Let's say for instance that you have observed the children in your care could use some exposure to cutting with scissors.  However, the children vary from needing practice holding scissors to cut effectively to cutting on a curved line and around corners.  This is a large range of development that needs to be addressed.  Working in small groups will provide you with the chance to expose all the children to cutting while working at the developmental level of each individual child.

What will that look like?  Provide each child with their own set of materials.  This could include 3 or 4 pages from a magazine and a pair of scissors.  Let the children practice cutting out specific items from the pages. Through interactions with the children, you can scaffold their learning to meet their developmental needs. Have the early learners cutting any item on the page and the more advanced items cut items with varying shapes, curves, and corners.

During the training, I heard Kenneth speak repeatedly about the adult child interactions and the adults role to scaffold the learning at all times.  I was surprised to learn that the materials used in the small group opportunities can be very simple as long as the communication occurring between the adult and child is focused on a specific content item.....what is it you hope to learn about the child from the interaction and what do you hope the child will take from it (what skill will they practice).
 
Small group time is very focused on a specific content goal and intentional teaching via communication, scaffolding, and role modeling skills and behaviors.  It is NOT a time for teachers to have all children working on the same item with the same goal.
 
Also, don't be surprised if the children do something completely different with the materials provided than what you may have first expected.  Be flexible and let the children lead.
 
It is very important that you also have back up materials to enhance the experience during small group. The back up materials for this small group could be paper and glue.  For those children that are just learning to cut (and may become frustrated) and for those that are quite skilled (and may become bored), it is essential to have additional items to keep the group intact and allow time for the "middle of the road" children to complete the task with success.
 
Finally, there are five key things to keep in mind when having small group time with children.
  • Build on children's strengths
  • Provide new experiences
  • Provide regular peer interactions
  • Take the opportunity to know more about the group of children
  • Use support strategies with the children during interactions

Below are a couple of videos taken from the High Scope website regarding small group time:

http://www.highscope.org/media/SGT/WC-SGT%20IntroBB.mov

http://www.highscope.org/media/SGT/WC-SGT%20My%20paper%20clipsBB.mov

 

The Great Start to Quality Resource Center has training videos and resource books that can be checked out to support you in implementing and improving your small group times.  

  • Small Group Times to Scaffold Early Learning (resource book)
  • Small Group Times for Active Learners DVD
  • 100 Small Group Activities:  The Teacher's Idea Book 3

Great news!!! The Resource Center is offering the same training that I attended again on August 17th in Lapeer.  Don't hesitate and get signed up for the class!  It's definitely worth it!


Trainings to improve your PQA scores...

"Supportive Adult-Child Interactions with Infants and Toddlers in Child Care" is coming to Bay County!!!
Training will be held on July 20th at Kinder Kare, 1504 W. Thomas St., Bay City.

"PQA Training" is coming to Saginaw County!!!
Training will be held on July 26th at Good Shepherd Early Childhood Center, 5335 Brockway Rd., Saginaw.
 
These trainings are being offered by High Scope at a cost of only $25 for 6 hours of training.  Spots are filling fast so don't delay in enrolling at:
www.greatstartCONNECT.org             


 

Pinterest Find of the Week... 

 

 

Building Houses With the Three Little Pigs: Small-group activity for preschoolers

 

After reading the story The Three Little Pigs, provide the children with blocks and three of some type of animal.  Let the children retell the story in their own ways while you are observing their ability to remember, recall, and retell.  Remember...scaffolding a child's learning is the key to success!! 

 

 
Looking for Training? 


Below is a list of trainings offered this summer for each county.  Trainings are being added often so for more detailed information and to register, go to:

 

 

Arenac/Bay Counties:

 

Praise vs. Encouragement---Leigh LaFave
Supportive Adult-Child Interactions with Infants and Toddlers in Child Care---High Scope certified trainer
Working with Infants and Toddlers---Connie Griffore

Huron County:

Shooting for the STARS: Self-Assessment Survey Computer Lab Open House---Resource Center Staff
Creative Curriculum Overview and Interest Areas Workshop---Ann Guidarini
Using Teaching Strategies Gold Lab Session---Ann Guidarini
Creative Curriculum Intentional Teaching---Joyce Neyer

Lapeer County:

 

Shooting for the STARS: Self-Assessment Survey Computer Lab Open House---Resource Center Staff
Scaffolding Children's Learning at Small Group---High Scope certified trainer

Saginaw County:

 

Why Toddlers Bite---Connie Griffore
Program Quality Assessment---High Scope certified trainer
Child Initiated Learning---Anne Tapp
Building Positive Relationship---Courtney Cramer & Julie Miller
AHEAD: At Home & At Day Care Working with Children with Special Needs---Dawn Koger
How to Support Children in Resolving Conflicts---High Scope certified trainer

Saint Clair County:

 

Transforming Aggression---Gloria Sherman
Creative Curriculum---Teaching Strategies certified trainer
Adults as Partners in Children's Development---Susie Gordan

Sanilac County:

 

Rhythm, Rock, and Rap---Stephanie Ridley

Tuscola County:

 

Observing and Assessing the Young Child---Rita Trinklein & Wendy Butler
Shooting for the STARS: Self-Assessment Survey Computer Lab Open House---Resource Center Staff
Addressing Challenging Behavior with Positive Behavior Support---Ruth Kasper
Creative Curriculum---Teaching Strategies certified trainer

Mail Correspondence and Online:

 

Building a Better Brain
Using and Extending Lending Library Materials
Safe Sleep & Shaken Baby Syndrome
 
Have you visited your Lending Library lately? 
 
The Eastern Resource Center's Lending Library is a FREE educational resource available to parents and early childhood professionals. We offer themed bins and CARES bags full of learning materials to enhance your classroom or childcare environment for children birth to age 5! Stop by your local Lending Library to check out something new today!  

 

Not sure where your local Lending Library is located?  

  • Click on "Great Start to Quality Resource Centers". 
  • Click "Eastern Resource Center" on the map to find the Lending Library near you!
  • NEW LOCATION for SANILAC COUNTY LENDING LIBRARY:  Sanilac ISD, 49 N. Jackson St., Sandusky.  Call Nina Barnett to schedule your appointment today to check out materials.  Nina can be reached at 810-684-2200, ext. 4109
 
How to contact your Consultant:

  Dawn Kalkman
  (Huron, Lapeer, Sanilac, St. Clair, Tuscola)
  Email:  dkalkman@sisd.cc
  Cell:  989-280-1103

  Heather Rousseau 
  (Arenac, Bay, Saginaw)
  Email:  hrousseau@sisd.cc
  Cell:  989-284-2250