Situation

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I undertook my final ten-week practicum in a pre-primary class. As I was in the early childhood block with a kindergarten, another pre-primary class and two year one classes, I developed strong relationships with the other pre-primary teacher in particular as well as a good rapport with the other teachers. I developed a great relationship with the Kindergarten teacher and we would often discuss our planning and she would offer great advice. I was also fortunate to have 3 fellow pre-service teachers in those classes. We developed good friendships during my time there and were able to discuss our planning, reflections, successes and failures. The school held weekly meetings on a Wednesday alternating between an early years (phase) meeting and a whole-school meeting which I always attended.

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Action

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In addition to the fantastic professional network I developed at the school, I also developed a rapport with many of the children’s families. Initially, I created a parent introduction letter which was put on the classroom door and remained there all term. I also ensured I greeted parents daily and initiated conversation with them or shared things about their child at the end of the day. I sent home an ‘About Me’ page for parents and children to fill in which gave me a better understanding of children and their families as well as children’s interests to incorporate into my teaching. Groundwater-Smith et al (2012) recommends sending a questionnaire asking families to share their knowing about their child. We also had parent helpers in several days a week which enabled me to get to know family members better and I was able to involve them in the classroom. I also had a parent who was very musically inclined and I invited him to come during a music session, where he offered to play the didgeridoo for us to accompany our learning about Aboriginal People. I then arranged for this visit and restructured the daily timetable to enable this to occur.

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I found ways to involve parents in the learning process by writing notes on the outdoor whiteboard about what we were learning in class and asking them to bring in things related the topic. For example, when learning about shapes I put out a note asking parents to bring in any shapes that they find around the home. This received a fantastic response and the children were bringing in all kinds of shapes which they absolutely loved. They also told me about the fantastic conversations they had with parents trying to figure out which 3D shape they were. I also wrote up and sent home some learning stories and had a section for parents to comment on the learning story. I also created a “floor book” where I wrote about all the things we have learned over the term accompanied by photos. I then reflected on each topic with the children and wrote down some of the comments they had about it. I wrote up a description of the things we did and linked it to the curriculum and the EYLF for parents to see. I also encouraged parents to add any comments they had to the floor book. I also sent home a newsletter to families at the end of the term thanking them and outlining the learning that took place over the term. Finally, my gift to the children at the end of my placement was a little gift bag with a push point pencil, individualised eraser, a chocolate and a note with individual comments to each of the children; this was as much for the children as the parents and I received lovely feedback from the parents when I returned for Open night.