Intentional teaching in action: Camping at kindergarten

Facilitator

In this webinar we will be exploring intentional teaching strategies in action.

So, what do we mean by intentional teaching?

Intentional teaching involves educators being thoughtful, purposeful and deliberate in their decisions and actions. Intentional teaching is an active process and a way of relating to the children that embraces and builds on their strengths.

When early years educators, and teachers, use intentional teaching practices, they take an active role in children’s learning. Teachers invite children to share their interests and ideas, identify opportunities to help children to become involved in play, and build on interests and ideas that they observe that day. Teachers recognise that children’s learning occurs in social contexts and make deliberate, well-planned decisions to support learning through children’s social interactions with a range of partners.

Teachers also embed intentional teaching strategies in the decisions they make as they plan and organise the physical learning environment, and engage with children in the context of play, real-life engagements and routines and transitions.

Teachers use a wide range of interactional strategies as they coconstruct learning with children and support them to investigate and explore ideas. Through interactions they extend children’s thinking, challenge their ideas and expand their interests. Teachers introduce ideas and make links to children’s ideas in order to support children to discover new possibilities and develop and test hypotheses. The Queensland kindergarten learning guideline pp. 63–64 provides examples of the strategies that teachers use to facilitate children’s learning adapted from the Early Years Learning Framework.

We are now going to complete a task designed to identify intentional teaching strategies in action.

First, take a moment to view and enjoy the audiovisual segment “Intentional teaching in action: Camping at kindergarten”.

Teacher

We do that when we go camping. We put the marshmallows over near the fire and turn it around, and then do you blow on them?

Boy 1

Yes.

Teacher

Is that what you do? I blow on them then. Can you take it off and eat it? Ben, just watch that stick, alright?

Boy 1

Yes.

Teacher

Have a little see if that one's cooked enough for you.

Boy 2

Yep.

Teacher

They're really delicious aren't they? They're really sweet.

Boy 1

Hey, I want the big stick

Boy 3

It's almost dark. You have to have the marshmallows when it's dark because that's when the fire gets on.

Teacher

Is that when you light the fire when you go camping …?

Boy 3

Yes.

Teacher

… at night time?

Girl

It's bed time now.

Teacher

So you can sit ...

Boy 3

Yes.

Boy 2

Hey, that's my stick.

Teacher

… around the fire …

Boy 2

It's night time now.

Boy 3

Yes.

Teacher

… and have marshmallows as a treat.

Girl

I think it’s bed time.

Boy 3

Yes.

Teacher

That's what we do when we go camping

Boy 1

I'm cooking marshmallows.

Teacher

I think they want to do their cooking before they go to bed. I don't know where the tents are though, have you seen the tents?

Girl

Hey.

Teacher

I wonder where we're going to sleep

Girl

Hey, I've got some marshmallows.

Teacher

Okay, so can you put them on sticks?

Boy 1

I know where we can sleep in a cubby house.

Girl

We can make tents.

Teacher

Maybe over here in the bushes do you think would be a good …

Boy 3

Can we use water today?

Teacher

… would be a good spot.

Do you need the water for the fire? When you're finished with the fire you're going to put the water out — the fire out?

Girl

That water there.

Boy 3

No, in my fire.

Teacher

You want to go and stir it.

Teacher

Maybe over here in the bushes do you think would be a good …

Boy 3

I did.

Teacher

Is it all ready to eat?

Boy 2

No one's allowed to step — no one's allowed to put more bricks in there. Only I'm allowed too, because if they drop them too hard then there will be fire everywhere.

Teacher

There will. That's why you made that really special safe space around the fire

Girl

Can we have hash browns tonight?

Teacher

Pardon?

Girl

Hash browns.

Teacher

Hash browns for dinner? I haven't ever made hash browns when I've been camping. I'll have to try and remember that. Do you fry them?

Boy 1

I’ve got water.

Teacher

Oh, well, check, Cameron, I don't know that Ben wants the fire to go out yet. Ask Ben.

Boy 3

I want to catch it with my fishing line here.

Teacher

Oh, can you hear that sizzle when the fire goes out?

Boy 2

Good.

Teacher

Do you need anymore?

Boy 2

No, thank you.

Teacher

No? Is that enough?

Boy 2

Yes.

Boy 1

Then when we're not here …

Boy 2

When the fire goes out, everyone …

Teacher

Sorry, I just can't hear what Cameron's saying.

Boy 1

Like a rocket and then you blow it and it pops and it turns into a firework.

Teacher

Is that the same sort of sound that you can hear when you put the fire out? Yeah.

So sorry, Ben, now the fire’s out what's happening now?

Boy 2

People are allowed to step inside it now and catch the bricks because the fire's out.

Teacher

But those bricks will be really hot for a long time won't they?

Boy 2

Yes. But once the water's tipped on them they're not hot.

Teacher

So the fire's gone out?

Boy 2

The fire's what makes them hot.

Teacher

It is. Now that the fire is out, do you know it sometimes takes a long time for those bricks to cool down? Even though the fire's not there anymore those bricks can stay hot for a really long time

Boy 1

But where can we make the tent?

Teacher

So the fire's gone out?

Girl

I know.

Teacher

I know — Xavier was camping in behind the bushes over here yesterday.

Girl

I know.

Boy 1

Yeah.

Boy 2

No, that's not what …

Boy 1

It wasn't that far from Ben's house.

Teacher

Well, Ben, we'll have to find out, because Xavier was actually organising us for soup, so you might need to find out from Xavier what his idea.

Teacher

So the fire's gone out?

Boy 1

Xavier

Teacher

Oh so it's ready to eat?

Boy 3

Well not really. Well I want some water in

Teacher

Okay, so you're going to add some water to it

Boy 1

We can have a picture.

Teacher

Ben did you find a space for the camp?

Boy 2

Yes.

Teacher

Where are we going to put it? Have we got sleeping bags or have you got swags? You've got sleeping bags, so where are you going to roll your sleeping bag out to?

This looks pretty cosy over there.

Boy 2

Yeah.

Teacher

That looks nice and soft there to go and lie down there, have a little feel. That looks really soft, try it out and see.

Facilitator

Now that you have viewed the short segment, read the intentional teaching strategies listed on page 63 and 64 of your Queensland kindergarten learning guideline.

Watch the audiovisual segment a second time and, using the list in Table 1, identify the intentional teaching strategies the teacher, Lisa, uses to support children’s play.

Note: See the transcript above of “Camping at kindergarten” audiovisual segment.

Finally, answer the set of five reflective questions in Table 2, which are based around the audiovisual segment:

• How did Lisa extend on the children’s ideas?
• How did Lisa respond to the children’s ideas and interests “in the moment”?
• How could Lisa continue to build on the children’s interests?
• What kind of learning does this scenario capture?
• And finally, what links can you see between the strategies used to support the camping play and the Queensland kindergarten learning guideline learning and development areas?