Sunday 1 May 2016

IMPORTANT WEBSITES - The top sites are most relevant to the Birth to 8 contexts

IMPORTANT WEBSITES - The top sites are most relevant to the Birth to 8 contexts

 

  • Attached Files:
    Early Childhood Australia will advocate to ensure quality, social justice and equity in all issues relating to the education and care of children from birth to eight years.
  • ACECQA is an independent national authority based in Sydney. One of their roles is to educate and inform the community about the importance of improving outcomes in children's education and care. They also provide government, the sector and families with access to current research to ensure National quality framework [NQF] policy and service delivery is in line with best practice. ACECQA guides the implementation of the NQF for early childhood education and care nationally to ensure consistency in delivery. Follow this link to receive their newsletter.  
  • ECTA Inc., the Early Childhood Teachers Association comprises Queensland registered teachers and others interested in the work of early childhood professionals committed to promoting early childhood education philosophy and the ongoing development of quality care and education for young children.
  • Information on ECTA

    Attached Files:
     Here is some information on membership to the Early Childhood Teacher's Association (ECTA). Highly recommended!
  • Established in 1907, C&K is proud to be the largest and longest established provider of community based early childhood education and care services in Queensland.
     
  • The Australian institute for teaching and school leadership. This also provide links to the new National Standards for teachers which will be implemented from 2013.
  • The Department of Education, Training and Employment website.
  • The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) is responsible for developing the National Curriculum from kindergarten to Year 12 in specific learning areas.
  • The Australian Curriculum sets the expectations for what all Australian students should be taught, regardless of where they live or their background. For Foundation -10, it means that students now have access to the same content, and their achievements can be judged against consistent national standards.
  • The College was established by the Education (Queensland College of Teachers) Act 2005, as an independent professional body representing all members of the Queensland teaching profession and commenced operations on 1 January 2006.
  • Productive Pedagogies form part of the Education Queensland Department’s New Basics project.
  • A site for those interested in knowing what Education Queensland offers to assist teachers with classroom management.  The strategies on this site may be implemented at your school during your field experience.
  • Montessori Australia site - The Montessori approach aims to foster children's love of learning and encourages independence by providing an environment of activities and materials which children use at their own pace
  • The QCAA develops and revises syllabuses and guidelines for the Kindergarten Year to Year 12 and accredits syllabuses and guideline prepared outside of the QCAA. It also offers services and resources to help teachers implement QCAA syllabuses.
  • An independent school is a non-government school that is governed, managed and accountable at the level of the individual school.
  • Queensland Anglican schools are committed to achieving outstanding standards of education for young Queenslanders.
  • Steiner schools have a unique and distinctive approach to educating children, aiming to enable each stage of growth to be fully and vividly enjoyed and experienced.
  • Very practical Australian parenting website funded by the Australian Government. The team of expert advisors includes QUT staff, in particular Dr Donna Berthelsen and Dr Marilyn Campbell from our Faculty.

Books for children aged 0-5

There are many great books for children aged 0-5 available from one of Queensland's more than 300 local libraries. Search for your local library External Link.

Books your local librarian recommends may include those on the following list:
Suggested booklist
TitleAuthor
ABCMcDonnel, Fiona
All about meMcKinnon, Debbie
Baby bilby where do you sleep?Oliver, Narelle
Baby bird's blankieWild, Margaret
Baby wombat's weekFrench, Jackie
BelindaAllen, Pamela
Bertie and the bearAllen, Pamela
Big red hen and the little lost eggWild, Margaret
Boo to a gooseFox, Mem
Brown bear, brown bear what do you seeMartin Jr, Bill and Carle, Eric
(The) cat in the hatDr Seuss
Cows in the kitchenCrebbin, June and McEwen, Katharine
Crocodile boatJorgensen, Gail and Mullins, Patricia
Dear ZooCampbell, Rod
Early learning big book of Australian natureParish, Steve
Fuzzy bee and friendsPriddy, Roger
Going shoppingGarland, Sarah
Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's DairyDodd, Lynley
Here come Poppy and MaxGardiner, Lindsey
HugAlborough, Jez
I went walkingMachin, Sue and Vivas, Julie
Kiss kissWild, Margaret
Let's get a pupGraham, Bob
(The) little yellow diggerGilderdale, Betty and Alan
Maisie's bedtimeCousins, Lucy
Old MacDonald had a barnGublis, Stephen
On your potty!Miller, Virginia
Owl babiesWaddell, Martin and Benson, Patrick
Possum magicFox, Mem
Rosie's walkHutchins, Pat
Shhh! Little mouseAllen, Pamela
Spot goes on holidayHill, Eric
Ten in the bedDale, Penny
That's not my teddyWatt, Fiona and Wells, Rachel
Time for bedFox, Mem and Dyer, Jane
Toddlerobics animal funNewcombe, Zita
dePaola, TomieTomie's baa baa black sheep and other rhymes
(The) very hungry caterpillarCarle, Eric
We're going on a bear huntRosen, Michael and Oxenbury, Helen
What colour are your knickers?Llyod, Sam
(The) wheels on the busDan, Penny
Where is the green sheep?Fox, Mem
Where the wild things areSendak, Maurice
Where's my teddy?Alborough, Jez
(The) wide-mouthed frogFaulkner, Keith and Lambert, Jonathan
Who sank the boat?Allen, Pamela
Whose tail?Rowe, Jeannette
Wombat diaryFrench, Jackie
Yo Yo goes to the beachRowe, Jeannette
Za-za's baby brotherCousins, Lucy

Sunday 20 March 2016

Friday 18 March 2016

13 Children’s Books That Encourage Kindness Towards Others

1. We All Sing With The Same Voice by J. Philip Miller and Sheppard M. Greene

We All Sing With The Same Voice by J. Philip Miller and Sheppard M. Greene
What It’s About: This is a song book that connects kids around the world. The verses highlight differences between kids, illustrated on the pages of the book. The chorus brings all of these kids with many differences together, singing “We all sing with the same voice. The same song. The same voice. We all sing with the same voice and we sing in harmony.”
Why It’s Important: Not only will the music engage kids as young as three, but it also encourages global awareness and connection at a young age. Everyone is different and unique, and this book celebrates those differences while singing together as friends.

2. Have You Filled A Bucket Today? A Guide To Daily Happiness For Kids by Carol McCloud

Have You Filled A Bucket Today? A Guide To Daily Happiness For Kids by Carol McCloud
What It’s About: This book introduces an idea that everyone has an “invisible bucket.” These buckets are used to hold your good thoughts and feelings about yourself. When you do something kind, you help fill someone else’s bucket.
Why It’s Important: This provides kids with a visual representation of the importance of kindness. It focuses on social interactions and how our actions positively or negatively affect other people. This book would be especially beneficial as kids begin to develop empathy towards others.

3. A Sick Day For Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead and Erin E. Stead

A Sick Day For Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead and Erin E. Stead
What It’s About: This story is about a zookeeper who is great friends with all of the animals and takes the time out of his day to do what they like with them. One day, he is too sick to go to work and the animals decide to come and visit him.
Why It’s Important: This sweet story shows how kind actions towards others are repaid. The animals all take care of Amos when he needs a friend, which shows children how important continual kindness towards others is.

4. Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson

Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson
What It’s About: This story is about a new girl at school, named Maya and how Chloe, who has gone to the school for a while, reacts when she arrives. Chloe is not welcoming towards Maya, and excludes her from the group games. Maya leaves and Chloe is left feeling full of regret.
Why It’s Important: This story does not have the happy ending that so many books do, but teaches a critical lesson. Every choice we makes affects others in either a positive or negative way, and we do not always have an opportunity to fix our negative actions.

5. Last Stop On Market Street by Matt de la Pena

Last Stop On Market Street by Matt de la Pena
What It’s About: This 2016 winner of the Newbery Medal follows a young boy, CJ, and his grandmother on their way home one day. CJ spends most of the journey asking “How come…?” questions about everyone and everything. His grandmother answers each question with patience and eventually they leave the bus to volunteer at a soup kitchen.
Why It’s Important: CJ is asking seemingly simple questions throughout the book, but his grandmother’s responses always elicit empathy towards the other characters throughout the book. It serves as a reminder that everyone we encounter has skills and a story, but we must be kind and open-hearted in order to hear it.

6. Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts

Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts
What It’s About: In this book, we see a young boy dreaming about getting a pair of really cool shoes. Unfortunately, his family does not have the money for this dream to become a reality. He eventually finds the shoes in a thrift shop in near perfect condition and buys them even though they are too tight. Another kid in his class can’t afford new shoes either, and his feet would fit in the cool shoes when the narrator’s would not. So, the narrator decides to give his shoes away.
Why It’s Important: This book highlights the importance of giving and making difficult decisions. We see the narrator struggle to decide if he can really give his shoes away, but when he decides to, both he and the boy who receive his shoes end up happier than they were before.

7. Horton Hears A Who by Dr. Seuss

Horton Hears A Who by Dr. Seuss
What It’s About: A classic Dr. Seuss, this book is about an elephant who discovers an entire community living on a speck of dust. With his big ears, Horton is the only animal in the jungle who is able to hear the Whos. Despite being made fun of by the other animals, Horton stands by Whoville because he knows it is the right thing to do.
Why It’s Important: Not only is Horton doing the right thing, he is doing the right thing while everyone around him is bullying him to give up. This teaches an important lesson about standing by what you believe in, no matter what you face. With older children, you can also use this book to discuss the importance of advocating for those who do not have a voice

8. Enemy Pie by Derek Munson

Enemy Pie by Derek Munson
What It’s About: This is about a boy who is having a great summer until Jeremy Ross moves in down the street. Jeremy excludes people from birthday parties and laughs when they strike out in baseball. The narrator’s father makes enemy pie to help defeat Jeremy Ross. In order for enemy pie to work, the boys have to play together all day. By the end of the day they are good friends and enjoy the pie together.
Why It’s Important: This tells a classic story of judging a book by its cover, or making judgements about people based on insignificant details. After spending quality time together the two enemies learned that they actually got along quite well.

9. Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed by Emily Pearson, Fumi Kosaka

Ordinary Mary's Extraordinary Deed by Emily Pearson, Fumi Kosaka
What It’s About: This story is about an average girl who decides to pick some blueberries for her neighbor. The neighbor bakes blueberry muffins and gives plates of them to five other people. This good deed turns into a chain strangers doing kind things for other strangers. Eventually, Mary has someone do something nice for her whose kind actions can be traced back to Mary’s blueberry picking.
Why It’s Important: This is another book that shows the important your actions can have on others, but it also shows the ways your actions can ripple out to affect total strangers.

10. The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig

The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig
What It’s About: This sweet book tells the story of Brian, a quiet boy who never makes a fuss or much noise at all. He feels invisible compared to the other children who are the center of the teacher’s attention by being loud, or the children with lots of friends who get picked first for sports. When a new kid comes to school, he makes Brian feel a lot less invisible.
Why It’s Important: All kids are different. Some are outgoing and some are quiet. This book celebrates those differences while teaching the importance of welcoming all types of kids to play and participate.

11. The Three Questions by Jon J Muth

The Three Questions by Jon J Muth
What It’s About: This book is about a boy named Nikolai who wants to be a good person, but is not always sure how. He wants to discover the answer to the three questions: When is the best time to do things? Who is the most important one? What is the right thing to do? His three animal friends help him answer these questions, but they all have slightly different approaches. He eventually learns that the right time is now, the important one is the one you are with, and the right thing to do is good.
Why It’s Important: This book takes a more conceptual approach to helping others, but would serve as an extremely useful tool for starting a discussion with older children about why kindness is an important character trait.

12. Rude Cakes by Rowboat Watkins

Rude Cakes by Rowboat Watkins
What It’s About: This book is about a cake, who is, very rude. He never says please or thank you, never listens, and doesn’t share well. One day a giant cyclops takes the rude cake and wears him as a hat. The cyclops has great manners, but the cake hates being a hat. After finally getting away from the cyclops, the cake becomes much more polite.
Why It’s Important: Although this book is quite out there, it teaches how far good manners and behavior can go toward getting what you want.

13. The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
What It’s About: A familiar book to many, this book tells the heartfelt story of a boy and a tree who loved each other very much, but the boy ends up taking parts of the tree until the tree is worn down into a stump. At the end of the book, the boy (now an old man) just needs a place to sit, so he and the stump sit together.
Why It’s Important: This book shows the continual generosity and kindness of the tree, and how much the actions of the boy affected the tree. It can be used to teach children that kindness is important, but you should never give up so much that you suffer. You can also use it to teach give and take, the importance of a healthy and mutually beneficial relationship.