Plcjarg 13 aug2013

Teacher Inquiry PLC:
Meeting 3
Whakarongo School
Ana, Reece, Jo B, Gwen & Nina: 13 August 2013
Tuesday, 13 August 2013

Toi tu te kupu, toi tu te mana, toi tu te whenua
This proverb was spoken by Tinirau of Wanganui. It is a plead to hold fast to our
culture, for without language, without mana (spirit), and without land, the essence of
being a Maori would no longer exist, but be a skeleton which would not give justice to
the full body of Maoritanga (Maoridom).
Whakarongo School
Whakatauki:

Quote
Whakarongo School
What do we think?
• How we model learning - all the things that we model
• Looking at and reflecting on how we cater for different needs.
•Keeping in mind the student’s perceptions... taking time to understand/discuss and get their
input or looking at the physical evidence e.g. when going off to carry out something.
• Also about taking note of the things that you are not conscious of e.g. reactions, own values etc.
Recognising what you bring to the class with your own perspectives as well.
“The most important knowledge teachers need to do good work is
a knowledge of how students are experiencing learning and
perceiving their teacher’s actions.”
Steven Brookfield

Reading: Mihi & Pepeha
Our key reflections/noted ideas...
Key Issues/Ideas Emerging...
• Understanding the difference of mihi and pepeha: understanding the cultural significance and the appropriateness...
sometimes get too hung up on “is this right/wrong?” and offending people.
•Sometimes over thinking... some times putting the effort in is enough to show that you value and that it is important -
modelling the learning process.
•If offense is caused or something is wrong, would like to think that people could approach and help rather than
criticise
•Also about understanding that their are a variety of cultures at school.
•How important is it to know all the differences and all the aspects of mihi/pepeha?
•How do you ensure the information you are using is valid?
•How do you help Maori students identify the aspects of their pepeha?
• Mihi - is a speech with specific protocols to begin a speech at a meeting/event - not personal
•Pepeha - is a speech to introduce yourself and your heritage only.
•Liked the idea from the reading about pepeha that it is okay not to know everything as it will grow with you.
•The terms are often used in unison so is quite confusing.
Whakarongo School
Response to the Reading

Pepeha Sharing...
Whakarongo School

Whakarongo School
Pedagogy/Leading/Learning/
Leading Change

5 minutes uninterrupted presentation by each person focusing on: This needs to be
focused on your original goal...
•Teacher inquiry plan & progress
•Evidence/artifacts
•Impact of teacher actions on student learning
Reflection/ Critical Friend
Reflective Questioning & Critique from Colleagues for each presentation
Each group member should be asking questions of the presenter to encourage reflection using PLC
reflective questions
Whakarongo School
Pedagogy/Leading/Learning/ Leading Change

Reece...
Uninterrupted Presentation Reflection notes...
• Done heaps! Been good having Jane - work together to take Te Reo and been bouncing lots of ideas of each
other.
•Tested them end of last term to see how much they understood and what they already knew... found out some
prior knowledge e.g. colours etc and then reviewed some of their learning from term e.g. locative sentences...
really interesting to see how they went and was quite a big difference between students in understanding... Got
thinking about are they making connections and applying learning from the games playing to other contexts.
•Helped provide focus for learning for this term... started having a command or phrase a week and putting it
back on selves as teachers to use them. Been good in some respects but difficult in others as reiterates how
much effort you have to put in to keep using it - integrating it naturally. Don’t want to move too quickly
either...
Whakarongo School
Reflective Questioning/Coaching/Mentoring...
How did you do your testing? Orally - would say out loud and then they had to write down in te reo Maori or
English
Are you seeing a change? Yes
What did the prior knowledge show you? Some still didn’t have all colours, many didn’t have all the greetings.
Trying to use some of these more often during different situations.

Jo B...
• Been a continuation of the things been doing and trying to integrate more in literacy and maths - been
doing an activity every week in maths - counting, ordering, groups of 10 in Te Reo Maori.
• Did some posters for different numbers with pictures to demonstrate.
• Doing a lot through maths - can see the kids are having to think less about their understanding and are
using more naturally.
• In literacy been using Scribble Press to do a little pepeha book - One reading session - just need
sentence structures around so they have something to refer to and makes a really effective little book.
•Also kept using through everyday instructions.
•Been quite cool having an activity in literacy and maths - kids like it and gives reinforcement and
repetition - great way to ensure they’re getting variety of reinforcement.
Whakarongo School
How could you expand on it? First time tried doing written te reo so will expand by encouraging them
to write it more. Going to do with other sentence structures and commands etc.

Gwen...
• Had been working a lot on days of week etc - linking to maths. Have now expanded with each day
looking at days of week and looking at day before/after - children asking now after modelling it for
them... children enjoying it and picking up well and children have sheet can refer to if need it.
• Have incorporated counting 1-20 - have recognised the pattern as well.
• Used game from teacher’s college with kids recognising Maori numbers.
• Also made posters for numbers as part of maths rotations and then use them to test each other and
identify them - have been able to use them in a variety of ways.
• Have started looking at introducing themselves using KidPix - drawing themselves and using Ko ____
toku ingoa. Can use to display on the wall.
• Feeling more confident in self as well - using little commands/instructions and trying to use English
and Te Reo. Takes a long time but can slowly build confidence and understanding.
Whakarongo School
The Te Reo maths books are really good for supporting it - have you tried them? Not yet but have used
own games/activities.
Are you using it in your inquiry? A little - using locative words; and some key verbs for moving the body.
How do you decide what to focus on? Expectations to cover numbers/colours but developing as see
works for class... sharing lots between classes as well.

Ana...
Whakarongo School
• Finding things a bit of struggle at the moment: trying to balance time, new focuses and meeting needs
of kids e.g. kids going to Kapa Haka... have been integrating with literacy activities each week to reinforce
more but Kapa Haka kids feel excluded as they are not there for the targeted instruction time. Also feel
that have pushed ahead with new focus for the term too quickly - could spend much more time on Taku
Akomanga as kids are still learning this and there are so many different sentence structures that the kids
can learn with this - have only covered a few and kids still aren’t confident with them - would really like to
reinforce this more especially now that they know the object names so well - it becomes about developing
understanding of the sentences rather than just the nouns.
• Have been using for instructions but am finding that as soon as busy/stressed, forget about it again -
have to keep consciously thinking of using it.
• Feel need to revisit my goal, and my strategies and stop trying to do too much at once, but take time to
really reinforce with kids and myself.
Suggested extra teaching time during oral language to target Kapa Haka kids. Focus on one phrase/
sentence structure at a time and use in different ways. Keep using eLearning to support and explore -
get the books out there to help provide support for Kapa Haka kids.

Nina...
• Setting up the classroom - tried to make bilingual labels
• Found good te reo dictionaries - started using greetings in mornings and some simple
instructions.
• Do the days of the week.
• Trying to gradually introduce things.
• Looking to incorporate counting as well.
Whakarongo School

Organisation for next meeting...
Before the next meeting...
✓ Complete reflections please on PLC group page.
✓ Reece will find a reading for next time.
Some strategies or good ideas to maybe try for next time...
• Keep trying to use eLearning to support through posters/books... see ideas below
•Scribble Press to create books - e.g. pepeha, commands etc.
• Number posters on comic life.
• Could export scribble press as PDF and upload through Youblisher for digital story on Ultranet.
• Gwen’s electric light up game with numbers... Reece thinks there’s a journal showing you how to
do it somewhere...
•Teach during oral language time to help regularly reinforce.
•Use key phrases or sentence structures - just one a week or fortnight and really push that with
kids (use in different ways/contexts) to reinforce.
Whakarongo School

Plcjarg 13 aug2013

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Plcjarg 13 aug2013