Playing with a Tangram Square 
 

The Chinese  wonderfully invented the Tangram Square and it has fascinated people ever since.Let's know all about Tangrams.

Something about Shapes:

Shapes fascinate one and all. Everything around us has a shape. The most important form i.e. humans have a shape. All objects around us have a particular shape. Humans connect well to the shapes they remember or to those shapes which appeal to them.

Children also tend to recognize shapes from early on in their lives.

Shapes in our daily lives:

“Geometry is the art of correct reasoning from incorrectly drawn figures.”

Geometry which basically means the measurement of the earth basically deals with space and figures. It is used to measure length, area, volume, etc.

Geometry exists in every walk of our lives. Hence it is important to teach geometry to the students at an early age. The more affinity and likeness that they have to shapes, the better they become in understanding and solving geometry.

The children come to learn about the different kinds of shapes when they are in kindergarten. Here they are also taught about some spatial concepts like ‘above’, ‘below’, ‘over’, etc.

Both these important concepts are well combined in a Chinese Mathematical puzzle called the Tangrams.

What are Tangrams?

Tangrams are a set of seven geometrical shapes. There are two large triangles, one medium-sized triangle, two small triangles, one square and one parallelogram. If you arrange these shapes properly, they make a square.

This puzzle was invented by the Chinese around 200 years ago. The tangram travelled to Britain from China and it started gaining popularity. From the UK it went to Europe and then across the Atlantic to the United States of America.

In ancient times itself, people had arranged tangrams into more than 6500 shapes. Today these pieces of shapes are still being reinvented into different shapes by people who love to solve these puzzles. A tangram can be made by cutting a square into its seven geometrical shapes. Nowadays one can play with tangrams online also.

Each part is called a tan. The best way to play is to give a picture to the children who have a shape. Let them place the tans in a manner that they resemble the design given. The seams of the tans should be invisible in the picture which is provided to the students.

While arranging tans, one must take care that the seams should be touching were; they should not overlap and there should not be any gap between the seams.

Advantages in Education:

When the students experiment with the tans while trying to assert them according to the picture, they analyse the shapes. They look at it from different perspectives. They have to visualize the pattern in their minds. They juggle with different arrangements. Since the outlines in the given picture are not visible the child has to envision the placement of different shapes in his mind. This helps to develop the visual spatial skills among the children.

It was found that if the kids played with tangrams or puzzles similar to them for 40 minutes and then appeared for an arithmetic pen and paper test, they scored much better than their regular class test. Also, the results after playing with tangrams was much better rather than games like a crossword.

Educational benefits of Tangrams:

1.      The children learn new vocabulary like flip, rotate, etc.

2.      They gain a familiarity with the shapes and hence a better understanding of geometry.

3.      They have a better understanding of spatial relationships.

4.      They understand the formation and decomposition of the geometric shapes.

Schools should introduce Tangrams and let the students experiment invigoratingly. They are a sign of healthy growth in Mathematics.

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9 Ways to have Fun in the Class

“Work done with fun does not seem work at all.” This is a fact and it cannot be ruled out. Any work which includes fun element seems easy and gets done in a short amount of time. 

Most multinational corporations are aware about the importance of fun and so they ensure that their employees relax and have some fun when they work.

So why not in the class? Every teacher must implement Funtime in teaching to ensure that the students learn well in the class.

#1Smiling Face: The teacher must enter with a smiling face in the class. This relaxes the atmosphere and creates and eagerness in the students to pay attention to what is being said. Moreover they are not tensed and hence tend to listen attentively to the teacher.

#2 Songs and poems: Songs and poems are the best way to relax the children in the class. They attract the students like ants to sugar. In due course of time the students love composing lyrics on their own and singing them in the class. The teacher can also join them in composing the lyrics.

#3 Riddles and jokes: The best way to engage the students in the class is to ask them riddles when you enter. I remember my English teacher used to do it frequently. She used to ask a riddle and the answer would be related to the topic which she was going to teach. Jokes add humour and humour is a must in life. Small jokes related to teacher and students or the ant and the elephant are the most popular ones in the class. 

#4Story narration: We all remember our Grandmas and our moms who narrated stories to us. Stories have a lingering impact on the mind.  The students remember concepts taught with stories very well because they do not take them as a topic to study but the mind creates an illusion and portrays as if they are in the world of entertainment. Hence learning is easy.

#5 Sharing experiences: The teacher seems more approachable when she shares her own experience related to day to day work or her own learning experiences. A teacher must make the class realistic by quoting her experiences to make the children understand that everyone has gone through a learning phase in school and to tell them that it always happens.

#6 Movies: There are some good movies available to teach lessons in school. Some good movies which you can use effectively in the classroom are-#FindingNemo  #GoodwillHunting #BehindTheSun #RememberTheTitans, etc.

  

#7 Class Mascot: Creating and using a Class Mascot is a good way to bind the children to the teacher. They have something to follow in common and then there are many rules and discipline techniques which can be easily taught using a Mascot. There are common Goals which a teacher can take up to teach and inculcate through a mascot. A mascot can be a cartoon character or any imaginary figure which the teacher can decide upon. I have also seen teachers who create a cartoon of their face and use it. It gives a personalized touch and the children feel more connected because it is someone whom they see every day and get in touch with.

#8 Surprise packets: Surprise packets can be many. It can be a simple flashcard which comes out of the pocket of the teacher, or a joke which you crack suddenly while teaching, or a declaration that today’s class will be outside the classroom or simply don’t teach anything only engage the children in fun. Surprise packets are great ways to have fun in the classroom. The best part about them is you can do anything offhand and the children would love it because it is not a part of the routine.

#9 Laugh out Loud: As it is said ‘throw your worries to the wind and enjoy’. So on some days just leave everything and concentrate on laughing out loud with the children. This will not only relieve your stress but relax them for days to come. Laughing is taken seriously by some schools where discipline is a priority. But I feel that the students should be allowed to laugh and smile and have fun. This is the best way to learn in today’s world. I feel experiential learning is a part of this. 

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A Good Academic Program for School

School and Education revolves around a good academic program. The development and mental growth of a student depends upon calculated risks and proper educational training taken during the schooling days. During the primary school days academic program would include good reading and math classes. Only good schools focus on a proper reading and writing and mathematical skill development program.

I would focus the blog content on three pillars-Reading, Writing, Grammar and Mathematical Ability.

Developing Reading skills among the school children-

Sight Words-The famous 100 word list of English is very important and helps the children to develop their reading skills. By merely keeping these words as sight words in the classrooms the teachers or facilitators can ensure development of good reading skills among the children. In the western countries a lot of stress is laid on these 100 word lists as it regularizes the reading skills among the students.

Once the children are familiar with the words, daily reading and repetition will ensure that the student is able to gain momentum in the reading skills.

Story Narration: Stories are a great way of expressing thoughts. All the incidents, all the thought processes, all the experiences, all the facts and much more can be very well woven and presented in the story form. Stories are a great way to arouse emotions, bring lifeless things to life, learn empathy, emulate and narrate. Narrating stories to the children at a very young age is very beneficial because it arouses their interests towards the characters, the settings and the plot. This also makes them curious and they want to start reading at the earliest. In this attempt, they actually pick up on their reading skills fast. The students are able to know more about the world in the small age that they are in.

Modular reading by teachers: The teachers should demonstrate reading to the children in the classroom in the school. This familiarizes the children to the different nuances of reading like correct pronunciation, pauses and expressions on different punctuation marks, etc.

Reading in Groups by the students: The students should be encouraged to read aloud to their own group of peers. This gives them a lot of confidence and helps them develop their public speaking skills also. The smart children of the group will immediately correct the child if he or she pronounces the word in an incorrect manner. At times this is positive behavior because the children tend to take the correction by the peers in lighthearted manner and they easily learn the correct pronunciation.

Individual read aloud sessions-These sessions help the children to read correctly and fluently. These are known to be very beneficial. They bring in good results as far as reading skill development in school is concerned.

Think aloud session: Immediately after reading, think aloud sessions should be conducted. The children should be asked to think aloud their thoughts about the behavior of the character or why the particular character reacted in the way it did, or what would have happened if the character had behaved in a different manner. These type of questions teach them how to think which is very important. Only a school can develop such a wonderful thinking pattern among the children.

Developing Writing Skills in School:

A lot of time and efforts have to be invested in school to teach writing skills to the students. Merely laying down guidelines does not help. The teachers have to be given a set pattern and then monitored on a daily basis by providing them feedback and then guidance where there are shortcomings.

Handwriting skills: All the schools must first stress on developing the handwriting skills of the students. Writing correctly and neatly both are prerequisites in teaching and learning. To teach Handwriting properly to the students, the school must follow a particular format of writing alphabets and numbers. The students must be given a sample format at the beginning of the session which they are supposed to follow. The teachers themselves will need to practice handwriting because each teacher uses a different font. Uniformity in handwriting of the teachers will be percolated to the students and they will learn good handwriting skills.

Creative Writing: The next important juncture is teaching creative writing to the students. The students must be taught what is a subject and what is an object. Understanding subject, verb and object and their placement in a sentence will help the children to write correct sentences.

Though it takes time to understand this part, but once done the students make sentences easily. Different topics should be given to the students on a daily basis by the English Language teachers. This will develop their creative writing skills and the students will be able to write on any given topic within a few months or weeks depending upon their intelligence level.

Grammar:

Grammar and Mathematics run almost on the same lines. Teaching grammar becomes very important when we have to teach writing skills to the children. There have been numerous debates related to the importance of grammar in spoken language. True that learning grammar does not guarantee perfection in spoken English, but it is important to know the correct sentence structures of the language. While teaching Grammar a rigid scale of high importance or a lowly scale of no importance should not be used. Grammar should be dealt with from a relatively important point of view. Reading and Grammar should be combined to give the necessary output.

Mathematical Skills:

Math is a logic based subject. The students must be taught tables, and the four basic calculations-Addition, Multiplication, Subtraction and Division.

Mathematics teaches children the conceptual skills, reasoning and logical skills. It helps them in their day to day life, helps them across their curriculum and creates a joyful learning environment. The students are delighted to use calculations. They get excited when they discover something new. As their confidence grows they look for something new, they search or point out patterns, apply logical reasoning in every part. The students are able to explore and explain their ideas using shapes and diagrams. They discover how Math has evolved and helps us in our daily life. Mathematics stimulates their creativity, fosters their spirit and prepares them to deal with many challenges beyond the classroom.

Mathematics should be related to real life while teaching. Many everyday transactions and real-life problems, and most forms of employment, require confidence and competence in a range of basic mathematical skills and knowledge – such as measurement, manipulating shapes, organizing space, handling money, recording and interpreting numerical and graphical data, and using information and communications technology.

A good school should focus on these pillars to reap a success story alongwith their students.

Disclaimer

THIS BLOG claims no credit for any images posted on this site unless otherwise noted. Images on this blog are copyright to its respectful owners. If there is an image appearing on this blog that belongs to you and do not wish for it appear on this site, please E-mail with a link to said image and it will be promptly removed.

10 Ways to Invigorate Students after the Vacations

Time is hectic before vacations, lots of things to do and too many things to wind up before the vacation starts.

Just like Christmas and New Year in the western countries, Diwali vacations are short but full of activity at home as it is festival time in India. Before closing for vacations, the school is abuzz with celebrations and activities which are associated with the biggest festival of the year. There are competitions and special assemblies which take place in the school.

Hence when the children rejoin after these vacations, they are still in their slumber. It takes time for them to get used to the academic routine and the daily humdrum of the school and especially of a classroom.

But a teacher does not have to worry. She can make use of these tips to energise the students and help them fall in the routine quickly.

Breaking the Ice-This activity has too many advantages. There are hardly any drawbacks to it. A good ice breaker generally puts in a lots of energy in the

children and eagerly await what is going to happen next. As their curiosity level is very high, they are all set to learn whatever you are about to deliver. 

I generally make it a habit to have a new ice breaker everytime the session starts. This keeps the energy level in me also very high. Once the positive notes flow down to the children, their response is very motivating for the teacher and teaching is a cake walk from then on.

Physical Activities-Come vacations and generally spend some or most of their time relaxing or sleeping late. So they are unable to quickly come in the grip of teaching learning pace which is soon going to come. To pull them out in the slumber and help them realize that it is study time, these physical activities can help you a lot. They will actually set the ball rolling for day one. 

But for any physical activity to take place, the teacher must be cautious and take care that the children are not hurt in her over enthusiasm. Making them do simple physical exercises or making them run around hunting something will help them pull up their socks and your job is already half done.

A tough task- Just to pull them out of their reverie you can also assign a somehow difficult task so that they start trying to apply their brains and come to conclusion. This is a good way to make them understand that it’s study time again.

Outdoor session-After the brief intro session indoors, take them out if the weather is fine. They love to be close to nature. They also feel more invigorated outside the classroom after a long vacation rather than the inner confines of a classroom.

Cutting and Pasting activity-

Abert Einstein has rightly said-“Creativity is intelligence having fun.”

Let the kids intelligence bloom by giving them an opportunity to be creative. Appreciate their work and see how well they respond to the positivity. Teaching would be fun for you and learning would be an easy go task for them.

Decorating the classroom- All of us love a warm and welcoming atmosphere and so the students. Do prepare your classroom one day in advance by putting up educational charts and attractive teaching material. This sets the mood for a welcoming feeling in the classroom.

Proper lesson planning-Vacations is a relaxing time for the teachers and we tend to let everything loose for sometime. But now gear up. Before you enter the classroom, the lesson planning part should be well rehearsed to ensure smooth flowing of the rest of the term. Make a check whether your assignment is ready. Have you calculated the working days and decided upon the curriculum? Are the desired worksheets already planned or will you have to plan it? The teaching aids are appropriate as per the topic or not?

All these checks are very important before the students start arriving.

Creative Writing prompt-

“Writing is the painting of the voice”-Voltaire

Keep a creative writing activity at hand. Do make the children write about their vacations. This is a good idea because a teacher gets to know the happiness or the sadness level in the child. It is then easy to counsel the child or make him proud of his achievements. So nothing gets unnoticed from the eye of the teacher.

Teacher should have a high energy level- High energy and feel good level of a teacher will help the students to fall in line quickly. Do leave your relaxing mode and enter a high charging zone for the benefit of the students.

Rewards and Awards- These have always been a success mantra in the classroom and I feel it will continue to be it forever. Children respond well to rewards and awards. They feel connected to the classroom when they are a part of achievements and recognition.

Vacations will come and go each year. Teachers have to be prepared after vacation to bring a successful end to a teaching year. Happy teaching.