Elda Hymas August Blog post: What is Kidwatching?

Blog:  Elda Hymas

August:  What is Kidwatching?   By G. Owocki and Y Goodman

            While the purpose of kidwatching allows you to better know your students need and strengths, I know that as elementary teachers we do this every day in every setting that our students are in with us.  Even with the social interaction of recess we watch for ways to help them.  We may not always take notes on these observation, yet when working independently or in groups with our children we are able to recall and utilize the memories we have stored away.

            The environment the teacher creates is not just rich in learning but must feel safe for students to take risks.  We want them to show understanding and explore questions on challenging concepts and material.  Kidwatching helps us refine our philosophy and teaching to better accommodate each group of students.  No two years will ever be the same and adaptions must match perfectly match the needs of the students that you currently serve. Our observations and interactions with students does not interrupt teaching but rather allows us a richer understanding of students needs and wants.  We can better understand their knowledge to shape our curriculum by building our community, develop language and literature, enrich the environment, understand students learning, analyze data, assist and encourage students in self-evaluation to build curriculum instruction.

            Teacher’s kidwatching to build an insider view of cultural understanding.  This allows for reflective awareness and decisions based on observed data.   We are better able to understand student’s world and their application of learning.  Students are continuously applying their ideas and understanding of how language works.  Through their talk and work they test their ideas, correct hypotheses, invent and use models.  They may challenge their working model and reshape their understanding.  Students constantly adjust and build knowledge function through grammar, genres, and formats that provide sociocultural experiences.

            Given that all students have literacy knowledge, their interaction provides a richer concept for them to explore.  The rich environment provided by the teacher, provides learning in reading, writing, listening, and speaking.   As an ESOL teacher these are the areas that I strive to help my students develop and explore.

I encourage interactions in learning experiences and apply my kidwatching to continue to support their understanding and development of learning.  I know that with my help today they will be able to do themselves tomorrow.  Their knowledge based on competencies they demonstrate to me will carry over to their classrooms and lifelong learning.  The competencies of today become the problem solving learning of their future.  By providing problems, questions, thinking and development they can meet challenges with confidence.

            By getting to know each child in whole group, conferences and instruction sessions, I can help them address their fears and realize their knowledge.  Observations of kidwatching helps my guide students through understanding miscues without devaluating the students thought process.  My observations from the sidelines help me understand student’s strengths.  Strategic planning helps me consider the value of criteria for small groups or individuals.  All of this brings my closer to my goal of effective language users.