NUACHTÁN KINDER | March 2022

THE IMPORTANCE OF RULES IN A CLASSROOM

By Montserrat Flores Padilla | Kindergarten Principal’s Assistant

Classroom rules are social guidelines based on respect between people and whose objective is to maintain an appropriate school environment. Thanks to these rules, the school environment will be pleasant and optimal for everyone to achieve their goals.

The rules are elaborated based on the teachers’ contributions. In doing so, the rights and duties that each person has and the measures to respect and comply with them are shared.

• Do not interrupt when someone else is talking

It fosters respect and patience in kids.

• Ask for permission to leave the classroom

Notifying when you have to leave for some reason makes the teacher’s job easier. Not to mention that, for example, in typical settings where this value is important, it is at work.

• Greetings and farewells

It is one of the most important rules of courtesy we have. If we fail to do any of these actions, we are likely to make a very bad first impression.

• If an item is loaned, it must be returned

If a student lends an item, it must be returned, otherwise it could easily be considered theft of someone else’s property.

• Maintain order in the classroom

By promoting classroom order, we ensure that our children learn to value the maintenance of common areas, and at the same time, we promote order outside the classroom.

• If an adult enters the classroom, say ‘Good morning or afternoon’

This is more out of respect for an authority figure. If we analyze the situation, the way we treat our superiors greatly influences our development as individuals, and the way we treat people.

• Respect personal space

If a person does not want to be bothered, it is necessary for him to have the space he needs to clarify his ideas. And if a child learns that from an early age, he will save himself thousands of problems in the future.

• Maintain discipline

Discipline is a human trait that can be sown in all aspects of daily life, without exception. Therefore, it is important to implement discipline as a fundamental pillar in academic training.

• Have a positive attitude

Above all, one must have a positive attitude in the face of adversity and for the day to day. While it is true that this attitude should not always be maintained, as it can lead to problems and be overwhelming, it is important to take life’s challenges with a smile.

• Students should sit correctly

In addition to helping the student’s good posture, it allows concentration to play a leading role in the study.

Edda Stea.  The 21 Rules every Classroom should have. from Procrastinate Made Easy Website:

https://procrastinafacil.com/reglas-salon-de-clases/

REASONS TO LEARN ENGLISH

By Iliana Brien | English Coordination

Learning any language helps to develop a variety of skills, but…

Why is English the main language taught as a second language?

Hence the reasons:

1. Work

Perhaps the main reason why you should study English is because it is fundamental when it comes to finding a job. English will give us the possibility of a better job. Our job opportunities will multiply as soon as we master the language, no matter your field of work since it is considered the international language, as it is the most used in business and international trade.

2. Education and information

Another important reason to learn English is that we will be able to access to more current and complete information, we will know the latest scientific, academic and technological texts, written in English. According to a study, more than 56% of websites are published in English. In second place is German with 8%.

3. Vacations

One of our main barriers when traveling can be the language, the lack of knowledge of the language of the country we want to visit. Since it is very difficult to learn the language of every country we visit -we would need a few lifetimes to achieve it-, we are fortunate to count on English to overcome these barriers and thus, be able to fully enjoy our trip, get to know the culture, understand their customs and meet interesting people.

4. Other cultures

Studying English is important because it will show you other cultures, lifestyles and different ways of thinking. You will be able to meet new and interesting people and understand their customs.

5. The most learned language

English is the most widely learned language as a second language. While the number of native English speakers is between 300 and 400 million, the number of people who learn it as a second language is the same, surpassing all the other languages.

6. Self-improvement

Learning English is easier than you think, and the pride you will feel when you have done it is indescribable. As your knowledge and vocabulary increase; each time you notice that you understand better, your self-confidence will also boost.

7. Art and literature

By knowing English, you will be able to enjoy British humor, Anglo-Saxon literature, movies and theater, and English culture in general. You will be able to watch movies in their original version, understand the lyrics of English songs or appreciate the stories and twists and turns of your favorite video games.  

8. Other skills

Knowing English means being able to express yourself fluently and smoothly, presenting your ideas with order and clarity in front of a native audience. It also means understanding and assimilating the ideas and responses provided by other people, the radio, television, as well as the texts we read. According to scientific research, studying English or learning a language in general produces certain stimuli in the brain that help us to improve our skills in other areas such as creativity, problem solving, reasoning or mental ability.

9. Because it is the universal language

English is the language of international communication, commerce and finance. English is a common language in many corners of the world and the official language of many international organizations such as the European Union, the United Nations and UNESCO.

Source: Sprachcaffe.de (info@sprachcaffe.de). (2022). ¿Por qué estudiar inglés? [Why to study English?]

Reasons to learn English | Sprachcaffe. Sprachcaffe.

SENSORY STIMULATION IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND ITS IMPORTANCE FOR CHILDREN’S DEVELOPMENT

By Ana Laura Arias | Day Care Coordination

The first years of life are key for a person’s learning and cognitive development. The particularities of a baby mean that the way we relate to him, the way he learns and discovers the world have nothing to do with that of adults. Until the age of 3, one of the most effective techniques in the development of the intellect is sensory stimulation.

Sensations at this stage are one of the main sources of all knowledge and, therefore, children’s learning will depend on all the sensations they receive from their environment. These are explored by the senses and represent a fundamental stimulation in the structural growth of the brain and its development.

Importance of sensory stimulation

During the first years, the brain is busy building its wiring system. Activity in it articulates tiny electrical connections called synapses. The amount of stimulation infants receive directly affects the number of synapses that form. Repeated and consistent stimulation strengthens these connections and makes them permanent, but, if left unused, they can eventually disappear; the infant stage is the most important for a young, developing brain. This intense period of brain growth and networking capacity happens only once in a lifetime. Therefore, educators have a brief and unique opportunity to help foster the development of young children’s brain circuits.

Infants and toddlers have a biological need and desire to learn. In this sense, until the age of 3, there is a clear preference for the human: their face, their voice, their touch and their smell above all else. 

Therefore, the «best toys» and the ones that bring him the most knowledge are other children and adults in contact with him.

Benefits of sensory stimulation in early childhood education:

• Increases curiosity, attention, concentration and desire to learn.
• Promotes logical thinking.
• Stimulates non-verbal communication.
• Develops positive relationships with other children and adults.
• Improves future learning .
• Helps to accept stimuli from the environment .
• Knowledge of one’s own body .

To promote children’s stimulation in the classroom it is important to have a big and adequate space that favors this task. The objective is to take advantage of the child’s sensory capacity to the maximum, so we must try to stimulate each of the senses of the child.

How to promote sensory stimulation

Auditory stimulation

It is through auditory activities that perception is sharpened, physical activity is stimulated, the child’s motor skills and coordination are improved, and language development is favored. Some activities that can be performed are: using rattles or games that make sounds or music, imitating animal sounds, making the child imitate different actions and sounds.

Visual stimulation

The classroom should be painted with different colors and objects of various sizes, shapes and shades to stimulate vision. This will allow him/her to adopt tools to coexist in his/her environment and interact and relate with others. Among the activities that can be carried out are: games with mirrors or objects in which they are reflected, playing with lights or luminous toys or hiding objects for the child to look for them.

Tactile stimulation

It is, perhaps, the most important form of stimulation, since it is the sense that is present from the beginning of life and the one that provides the most information to the child. Through its stimulation, brain connections are developed and stimulated for a better cognitive and psycho-emotional development. To stimulate it, the child can play with dough or objects of various textures, wrap the child in different fabrics or make his body parts experience different sensations: cold, heat, air, weight, etc.

Odor stimulation

From birth, the child begins to develop this sense, recognizing the smell of the mother or the one of breast milk. To encourage it, it is important to surround the child with pleasant and not too intense scents and to familiarize him/her with common smells in his/her daily games: fruits, flowers, food, etc.

Taste stimulation

The sense of taste is a sense that the child is learning because it does not appear from the beginning. Thanks to it, processes such as sucking, chewing, swallowing and drooling control are also regulated and developed. To do this, you can experiment with foods with a very strong taste to see their reaction, massage the mouth to stimulate the oro-facial system and to vary the foods so that he/she gets used to all tastes and textures.

During the first stages of development it is important that we offer the baby a series of opportunities that allow him to know himself, to know others and to discover the richness of the world around him. To do so, it is necessary to facilitate a series of meaningful sensory experiences that allow him/her to participate in the environment and enhance his/her motor, emotional, cognitive and social development.

Through early sensory stimulation, we seek to provide the best opportunities for physical, intellectual and social development so that their abilities and skills allow him/her to be better than he/she would have been without this environment rich in sensory stimuli. These stimuli will help the baby to develop strong and healthy.

Providing the baby and child with a rich environment with a balanced degree of stimuli causes the neuronal tissue to develop and strengthen in a healthy way.

Source : https://www.unir.net

Paula Martínez Mares,  Occupational Therapist, specialist in Sensory Integration at Red Cenit Valencia

SETTING THE FOUNDATIONS FOR LEARNING

By Pilar Lavín | PYP Coordination

Early childhood experiences set the foundation for all future learning. During these years there is a fast development in the physical, emotional, social and cognitive levels. A child’s brain and body develop at a faster rate than at any other time in his or her life. It is in early childhood that social development also occurs, as children have a natural tendency to explore, discover, play and establish connections with themselves, with others and with everything around them. Through these interactions, children form their perception of themselves and others in the world (Rushton and Juola-Rushton, 2010).

Supporting children cognitively, socially, emotionally, and physically requires that all members of the learning community value early childhood on its proper terms, as a stage in which play is the main vehicle for inquiry. Through play, young children develop approaches to learning and make contact with key factors in their development:

• Receptive and cognitive skills (e.g., listening, remembering, thinking, analyzing, generating theories, and controlling attention and working memory)
• Representational skills (e.g., the use of symbolic systems – such as written and spoken language, drawing, and mathematical symbols – to construct and represent meaning)
• Relational skills (e.g., the ability to play with his/her peers, share and wait for turns, as well as to respect others)

The transdisciplinary PYP framework is highly relevant to all members of the learning community during this stage. It provides authentic opportunities to focus on the foundational developmental skills, which are acquired during this crucial period and which help young learners self-regulate as they learn. Transdisciplinary themes provide authentic contexts for students to learn increasingly complex ideas about themselves and the world surrounding them. Main ideas related to the theme «Who We Are» help young children learn about identity, relationships, well-being, and what it means to be part of a community. The theme «How We Express Ourselves» relates to discovery, creativity, and the expression of ideas and feelings.

From principles to practice. The early childhood learner. Retrieved from:

https://resources.ibo.org/pyp/?lang=es