KidSmart- GUIDE TO EARLY LEARNING AND TECNOLOGYTEACHERS - Learning and Playing TogetherHow can I use computers to support early leaning in my classroom.
How can I keep track of children’s learning with computer games? OVERVIEW; Many of the computer activities have built-in assessment opportunities. Teachers can only take advantage of these when they observe children and ask them questions. Because good computer programs are fun even when children are not quite ready to play the game correctly, it is sometimes hard to tell whether a child is choosing to play a game differently from the way the designers intended it, or whether the child has failed to understand the game. When playing "Millie’s Little, Middle and Big," for instance, children often deliberately put the wrong size shoes on thecreatures because this creates a visual joke. Some children are careful to feed both the frog and the horse in "Millies Cookie Factory," even though the frog only gets a cookie when the number of jellybeans is incorrect. In A To Zap: E (for Elephant), children might construct funny outfits deliberately, even though they can tell what matches, or in I (for Insect) they might examine every part of the scene even though they can tell where the insects are. The activities that have both an exploratory and a game option, such as "Millie’s Build-A-Bug" or In another A to Zap activity: H (for hammer), teachers can add special words, perhaps the children's names, and ask the child to spell them. If they are spelled correctly, the word is pronounced for the child and placed on the screen. This allows teachers to create customized assessment opportunities. CONVERSATION; M.M: I try and make sure I know at what level my children are playing. I’ve noticed that sometimes, when it looks as if a child understands a game, this turns out not to be true - and I only realize it when I ask that child to try the more advanced level of the game. S.P: Yes, I had one child who looked like he knew his shapes when he played in Millies Mouse House and built things, but it turned out he just knew every construction by heart and when I asked him to try the next level, he was completely lost. There were just too many choices and he’d never learned to listen to the names of the shapes. M.M: I have some kids for whom English is hard. Sometimes I realize they don’t know what they’re supposed to do in a game because they don’t understand the directions, even when they’re really clear and simple. So I try and ask them to tell me what the computer just asked them to do. It makes them pay attention to the words being said, which I think they ignore normally. TEACHER TIPS: Here are some questions you might want to ask about the software if you are assessing childrens learning:
Many early childhood games can be played at several levels of difficulty that allow you to assess the childs mastery of the skills and concepts on which the game is based. In some cases, such as in "Millie's Little, Middle & Big," a game of finding the right size, there are two levels of difficulty. Clicking on the cat above the shoes toggles between two modes: in one mode the shoes are arranged in order of size and in the other mode they are randomly ordered. In some games there are two or three levels. Usually, the higher level presents the child with more elements to consider. In "Millie's Bing & Boing," for example, there are two levels of difficulty: children can either complete a pattern of two shapes by selecting from among eight choices, or a pattern of four shapes by selecting from among ten choices. In "Arthurs Kindergarten", children are asked to help find an object in a set of boxes. At the easiest level there are six boxes, at the hardest there are ten. Sometimes the level of difficulty is set on a special screen. In the "Jump*Start" series, the levels can be set by clicking on a button that brings up a level selection screen. Here, adults can determine the level of difficulty for the child by going to a screen where the difficulty level of each activity can be set. Some games provide hints for the child by reducing the number of options after a few unsuccessful attempts to find the right answer. In the "Jump*Start" game, children are asked to match a numeric symbol to a picture of objects. After each unsuccessful attempt, the number of available options is reduced until only the correct answer is left. CHECKLIST What to look for :
How can I foster the free expression of children’s ideas with the computer? OVERVIEW; Creative play is central to young childrens development.A computer is one of many materials they can use for play and self expression in the classroom. What does "creative play" mean when a child is using a computer? It means that the child sets the rules of the game, not the computer. Many of the "Young Explorers" activities can be set in an exploratory mode, instead of a game mode. In the exploratory mode, the child can determine the goal of her play, instead of learning how to play the game defined by the computer. In the exploratory mode in "Millie’s Make-A-Bug" children can give their bugs as many eyes as they want or redistribute the bugs body parts. Children can also engage in open-ended creative play by inventing a creature in "Baileys My Friend" or designing their own constructions in "Sammy’s Workshop" or "Millie’s Mouse House." Once a creation is complete, children can print it out to color, or use as an illustration in a story. Children can use computers for other kinds of art projects too. "Baileys Kid Cards" lets children create greeting cards, but limits them to the pictures the computer provides . Teachers can expand children’s creative options by encouraging them to enhance their cards by coloring or decorating them with other art materials. CONVERSATION; S.D.: Sometimes I forget that computers are toys. I always think of them in connection with working on reading and counting skills. But kids can really play with them, too, make things. B.M.: My kids are younger. They love making things on the computer. They love printing out their bugs and robots. I have to turn off the printer sometimes!S.D.: I make them come and get paper when they’re ready to print. They tell me how many pictures they want to make and I give them the paper. I always print outlines only - you know you can select that in the Adult Options - so they can color them and make them their own. We have a color printer, but I prefer that they do their own coloring.B.M.: I have them print out some words, like "Happy Birthday," and they decorate it with their own pictures. I like that better than using clip art, which is all the same.S.D.: I let them select pictures they like and then they dictate a storyto me and I print it for them and then they color their story. Sometimes we make books that way, too. TEACHERS TIPS: Here are some questions you might want to ask about the software if you are looking for a computer activity that helps children play creatively:
The computer can be a medium for creative expression. Many games have open-ended activities that allow children to construct things on the screen. In Sammy’s Workshop or Millie’s Mouse House, kids can construct their own objects or make their own bugs in "Millie’s Build-A-Bug," There are open-ended activities in many other programs as well. In Disney’s Kindergarten, for instance, there is a graphic construction game in which children can construct pictures or copy patterns. In many early childhood games there is an open-ended mode that lets children explore. "A To Zap," in the game for E, children can take pictures and print out their favorite silly outfits, even of they are not correct. Or, in the game for "I," they can explore every corner of the screen with the enlarger even if there are no insects to see. Some software programs, have options for printing in different ways. Edmark games often permit a choice of black and white outline printing as well as full color printing of children’s designs. The black & white outlines can be colored and decorated by children. In Disney’s Kindergarten there is a section where children are invited to do off-line drawings. This mix of media, where children do activities that relate to the characters from software, is one form of creative play based on computers. Children feel in charge when they can get the computer to do something or make something. In "A To Zap", the game for "E" allows children to construct an elephant made of three parts. Each combination is fun and children can take a picture of their particular combination. But when the three parts of the elephant's outfit match, the elephant does something that suits the outfit, in this case performing a little dance. Children can feel that they have made the elephant dance. CHECKLIST What to look for (cognition):
OVERVIEW: The computer is good at adjusting games to fit the skill levels of different children. Most of the Young Explorer activities have an exploratory mode that is open-ended — where children can discover what happens when they click in different places and a game mode -- which usually directs children to solve specific problems. Many of the games have different levels of difficulty. In" Sammy’s Make-A-Movie" children can work either with three elements in their animation, or with four. In Trudy’s Symbol Sandbox, children can work with either nine or sixteen parts when they construct their landscape. In "Elmo in Grouchland," there is a choice of "easy" or "hard" for every activity. In "Elmo in Grouchland," there is a choice of "easy" or "hard" for every activity. In "Millie's Bing and Boing," children are asked to complete increasingly complex patterns with a wider array of options. In "Jump*Start Preschool" a connect the dots activity has two levels. At first there are only a few dots. On the more challenging level there are more complex sequences with more dots and higher numbers. In Franklin goes to School, children can assemble a dinosaur at three different levels of complexity. In "Arthur's Kindergarten," they can assemble a storyboard at different levels. At the first level, one of the three pictures that make up a sequence is already in place. At the next level there are still only three pictures in a sequence, but now they are all options. At the most challenging level, there are 4 pictures per storyboard. CONVERSATION: C.D.: Some of my children learned to move the mouse very quickly, but some are having a hard time with the motor coordination. I never know if I should just leave them alone until they learn, or if I should pair them with somebody who knows so they at least get to play the games!D.T.: Some of them do need time and encouragement to learn. I find that some of my kids need me to break it down for them. I ask them "If you want to click over here, what do you have to do?" They don’t always realize that there’s a connection between what they do with the mouse and the pointer.C.D.: And once they’ve learned it, they’re off! You can see how much they like being in charge. But I have one child who seems afraid of the mouse. She likes to sit by the computer and watch, sometimes she’ll even say what she wants to do, but she won’t use the mouse. D.T.: Maybe if you did it together? You know, you hold the mouse and she moves your hand around. I don’t know. I just think you have to give kids a chance to learn and then when they really don’t like something, you have to respect it, but only after they’ve had a chance to find out for themselves. TEACHER TIP: Here are some questions you might want to ask about the software if you would like to set appropriate skill levels for children:
In "Arthurs Kindergarten," children are asked to help find an object in a set of boxes. At the easiest level there are six boxes, at the hardest there are ten. In "Trudys Symbol Sandbox," children are asked to build a landscape by placing symbols on a grid. The higher level presents them with more options, it also asks them to solve more difficult problems by building a more complex landscape. In "Baileys My Friend," the number of options stays the same, but the concepts become more difficult. On the first level, the child has to find the right color word to match the creatures body part. On the next level, the child has to match the right shape word, a more complex concept. Some games become more difficult as the child plays. In "Millie's Little, Middle & Big," for instance, children are asked to find the right size shoes. This game automatically becomes more difficult as the child progresses. Initially the shoes are sorted by size on three different shelves. After the child has successfully matched the first set, the next set of shoes is mixed on the shelves, making it harder to find an fitting pair. In most games, children can decide whether to advance to a more difficult level. "Arthur's Kindergarden" invites children to advance by showing them how many rounds of a particular activity they have completed and rewarding them with a golden sun when they have done an entire sequence. "Franklin The Turtle" shows them each game they have completed at each level of difficulty. Franklin also provides badges for completed games to prompt children to move on to more challenging levels. In "Baileys My Friend," children are asked to match a body part with a word. Children can click on each word to hear it spoken. For non-readers, this game provides an open-ended mode that lets children explore the meaning of the symbols by changing the color or shape of the creature depending on the word selected. CHECKLIST What to look for:When kids play alone:
How can I help children learn computer games together, sharing their knowledge with their peers? OVERVIEW: This is an audio only presentation. Please go to the graphical version of the site to view the presentation. CONVERSATION; J.A.: Some of my children have computers at home. They know these programs by heart. So I let them teach others, but sometimes they just take over and don’t give the kid who needs help a chance. So then I still have to be there and supervise, which means I save no time!H.C.: I know. But I don’t think it’s a waste of time. It’s important for kids to learn from each other and to learn how to teach each other. So when I see one kid taking over, I say "I notice that you know a lot about the computer and that you can teach other children about that. Let’s find out something that Joey wants to learn." Then I ask the learner-child what he wants to learn and whether he wants the other child to show him. J.A.: That’s good, that way you don’t end up making the bossy teacher-child feel like he’s a bad teacher and the learner-child gets a say in what happens. What if the child trying to learn the game doesn’t know what he wants to learn? I have some kids who can’t verbalize that sort of thing. H.C.: Then I ask the other child to pick something he thinks is a lot of fun to do and teach that part. So sometimes the other kid learning gets to move the mouse and the kid who knows the program tells him what to do. That’s OK. The kid still learns something. The problem is only if the kid who knows how to do it is also the one using the mouse. Then I’m not sure what the other kid is learning. So I have him show it once or twice and then the learner-kid gets to do it. Usually they’re OK after that.J.A.: Makes sense, except that I have some kids who are just plain bossy and I always have to make sure they don’t take over - but that’s really no different on the computer than with any other activity. TEACHER TIP: Here are some questions you might want to ask about the software if you are looking for opportunities for children to help each other:
Many software packages allow children to reflect on the decisions they make by designing a two-step process. First the child selects an option and then registers the decision with another mouse click. In "Bailey's Make-A-Story," children can select from one of four characters, vehicles, settings and activities to make a story. The program reads each choice they make, but, does not consider it final and move on to the next part of the story until they have clicked in the arrow to indicate that they are satisfied with their choice. This provides an opportunity for children to think before they decide. In the explore mode of "Millie's Little, Middle & Big," a game of finding the right size shoe for one of three different sized creatures, children can put any shoe on the creature and see whether it fits. If it does, the creature will thank the child. If it does not, the creature will complain that the shoes are either too big or too small. In exploratory mode, children can repeat this over and over without reducing the options available to guide them to the right answer. What to look for when kids are playing together:
How can I help children become more autonomous when playing with the computer? OVERVIEW: Children can work on their decision-making when they are allowed to choose which programs to use and how to use them. Most early childhood programs emphasize autonomy, encouraging children to develop a sense of self and the confidence to operate independently in the world. Making choices and stating preferences helps children develop this sense of autonomy. At the same time, teachers need to supervise childrens choices and guide them toward programs that are challenging but not too difficult for them to comprehend. CONVERSATION; K.M.: At first, I was a little disturbed when I noticed that some of my kids spent all their time on the computer selecting clip art to put on their greeting cards in Bailey’s Kid Cards. I thought there wasn’t a lot of learning going on. But then I realized that’s not true. They are making all kinds of decisions when they do that. R.C.: Yes, I realized when they say things like "I want the tree" or "I likethe star" they are really thinking about it. They will carefully click their way through a whole bunch of things and start all over again to find the right one. I think making those kinds of decisions is important for their sense of self.K.M.: I have been letting them pick their own computer activities for the same reason, so they can make the decision. Sometimes, I suggest some things they might want to try, but I always give them a few options so they can make the decision themselves. R.C.: Yes, I think that’s also true when it comes to how they play the games. I had one kid try to tell another one that she was doing it all wrong, and I had to intervene and explain that there are different ways to play these games and that it’s a good idea to try it different ways, but everybody gets to decide how they want to do it. TEACHER TIP; Here are some questions you might want to ask about the software if you are looking for a computer activity that helps children make decisions:
The choices among which children can select when they make a decision should be sufficiently interesting so that it is not merely a matter of picking the correct answer but considering the consequences or meaning of each option. In "Bailey's Make-A-Story," for instance, children can choose one of four characters, one of four vehicles, one of four locations and one of four activities to make a story. Each one of these choices presents the child with an interesting decision. This game presents the child with options that have a meaningful effect on what happens next. In this case the plot of the story changes as a result of the childs choice. For example, either Dorothy can take the magic carpet to an island or Harvey can take a spaceship to the jungle. Many software packages allow children to reflect on the decisions they make by designing a two-step process. First the child selects an option and then registers the decision with another mouse click. In Disney's Kindergartens Bellhop Shuffle, children are asked to select a bellhop with a specific set of characteristics. As they roll the mouse over each bellhop, he responds by standing up straight and presenting himself for inspection. Only clicking on him registers the choice. This allows the child to think before they decide In Sammys Sorting Station children can arrange objects into groups before putting them into the category bins where they belong. They can put all the creatures with horns together, which leaves the dinosaurs, or they can group all the dinosaurs, which leaves creatures with horns. At a more challenging level, if children dont know what creatures have webbed feet, they can group all the creatures with visible wings, and put the rest into the bin for creatures without wings or they can try to put each of the creatures into the webbed feet bin and see if it is accepted. Many programs provide immediate reward for the child's input, usually by saying some-thing encouraging like "Good!" or "You're great!" Young children respond to that kind of feed-back, take it seriously. It works best when the reward sentence varies and when it says something about the child's skill rather than just labels the response as correct or incorrect. In "Millie's Math House: What's my number," the character says a variety of different things such as "You got that one right," "Way to go," "Very good," "You're very good at this," "All right," or "Great job." CHECKLIST What to look for:When kids play alone:
How can I help children rehearse new skills on the computer until they are fully mastered? OVERVIEW; This is an audio only presentation. Please go to the graphical version of the site to view the presentation. CONVERSATION; B.T.: Sometimes I don’t know when it’s time to tell a child to try something new. Some play one game for a while and then move on, but some seem to stay with the same game forever. I know they need to practice their new skills. But they have favorite computer activities, and computers don’t mind doing the same thing over and over!P.H.: Yes, they are as enthusiastic about the kid’s achievement the hundredth time as they are the first time. It’s great. But when I observe a child drawing the same picture of a heart or a star over and over, I might suggest that she try drawing something else as well. So I also try to encourage a child to explore new areas of a software program. B.T.: Because kids find the computer feedback -- the sounds and animations -- so satisfying, it seems they have no motivation to try the game at a more difficult level, even after they have really mastered it.P.H.: We have this big chart. We put any new game anyone tries on it and then they make a check next to their name when they’ve tried it. Sometimes we have days when everybody tries something different. Seems to work. Even though some kids try a new thing for just a few minutes and then they want to go back to their favorite for the rest of their turn, which is OK with me. At least they’ve tried. TEACHER TIP: Here are some questions you might want to ask about the software if you are looking for a computer activity that helps children achieve mastery:
Many early childhood games let for children to show off their mastery of a particular activity. In "Franklin the Turtle Goes To School", children can watch the ten symbols (mushrooms in this case) on the bottom of the screen fill in as they complete each round of the game successfully. Here children are rewarded with a badge for completing ten rounds of a game. There are badges for each level of challenge. In most games, there is some reward for getting a series of right answers or solving a puzzle. Often, this is an animation, where something the child has constructed comes to life. In A To Zap, in the game for "E," when the three parts of the elephant's outfit match, the elephant does something that suits the outfit, in this case a little dance. In most games, there is some reward for getting a series of right answers or solving a puzzle. In "Elmo in Grouchland" getting Elmo all the way up a mountain results in a brilliant sun effect In Arthurs Kindergarten, children are asked to help find an object in a set of boxes. Each box stays open after it has been clicked on. After one or two unsuccessful attempts, Arthur hints I think I can help. I think it must be in one of the boxes thats still closed! Reducing the options for answers is another kind of hint. In Jump*Start Kindergarden, children are asked to match a numeric symbol, to a picture of objects. After each unsuccessful attempt, the number of available options is reduced until only the correct answer is left. CHECKLIST What to look for: When kids play alone:
When kids are playing together:
How can I make sure children are solving meaningful problems when playing computer games? OVERVIEW: A big part of learning is problem solving. Children need chances to figure problems out in different ways -- through trial and error, by talking together, and by learning how to ask good questions of adults. The computer is one of many possible contexts for problem solving in the classroom. Playing a game together, children make decisions about who will do what next in the game. Playing alone, they learn to discover and choose among their options to reach their goals. There are many opportunities for problem solving in the software provided, especially when they are used in "game" mode. In "Sammy’s Weather Machine," children can select among options to create the weather. In "Millie’s Bing and Boing," they complete patterns. In "Trudy’s Jellybean Hunt," they follow spatial directions, either absolute or relative. Children’s curiosity about how the computer works is another opportunity for problem solving. Turning the computer or printer off and on is one way they explore their questions. CONVERSATION: N.W.: I like Trudy’s Jellybean Hunt because they learn problem solving. One kid gets to say what the moves are and the other one does the mouse. And Symbol Sandbox is good for problem solving too; so is Sammy's Weather Machine. I have them make today's weather and they have to decide how windy it is. Then I ask them how we can find out and we talk about how you know when it's windy.M.S.: That's a good idea! I'll try that. We've been talking about weather anyway. But I notice that some of my kids get impatient when something doesn't work and they just click and move on to something else rather than trying to solve the problem.N.W.: Sometimes, they just make the same mistake over and over. It helps when I ask them questions. Sometimes, when a kid has tried the same thing a few times and it doesn't work, I'll ask "What do you think would happen if you tried...?" and then I'll suggest another approach. That seems to get them thinking. Sometimes I ask them to describe what they want to do and what's happening and then I'll ask other kids to make suggestions about what to try - and say why they think it might work. That way they learn from their mistakes, too.M.S.: And sometimes they try to solve problems too much on theirown. For a while, I couldn’t figure out why the computer stopped working.Turns out some of my kids were unplugging it to see what would happen! I thought something was broken. Thank goodness one of them finally showed me proudly where the plug was. So then we talked about the part of the computer and how it works. Now they leave it alone. TEACHER TIP: Here are a questions you might want to ask about the software if you are looking for a computer activity that helps children learn how to solve problems:
In Sammy's Make-A-Movie, children are invited to put three or four pictures into a sequence. The correct sequence then becomes an animated movie that can be played forward and backward. Deciding the order in which the pictures should be placed is an interesting problem for children, especially because they see the consequences of their choices when their sequence comes alive. In "Sammy's Make-A-Movie," children can try out all the different possible sequences. Sometimes the sequence makes sense in both directions and both produce a movie. Here, the hippo can either be going under or surfacing, and the sun can either rise or set. In many early childhood games there is an open-ended exploratory mode, where there is no right answer. This allows children to learn the conventions of the game and rehearse the skills involved. In "Trudy's Symbol Sandbox," for instance, they can build a landscape by placing symbols on a grid. They can change their mind and move the symbols around to create different landscapes. Hints are important to help children understand how to solve the problem. In "Millie's Little, Middle and Big," children are asked to find a fitting pair of shoes for one of three differently sized creatures. When children select a pair of shoes that does not fit, the creature complains that the shoes are either too big or too small. Reducing the number of options is another kind of hint. Here, in Bailey's My Friend, the possible answers are reduced after one or two incorrect attempts. CHECKLIST What to look for:
When kids are playing together:
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