DATE: 30 August, 2011
The teachers are the
ones who mostly use the cameras at our centre rather than the children, and every
now and then the teachers let the children take photographs with our centre
cameras. When the children showed an
interest in wanting to take photographs, we got an old play camera for the
children to use. This morning I noticed
3 girls taking photos of one another outside in the playground with the play
camera, and when one girl did not share the camera, I decided to let the others
use the teacher’s camera that I had.
This sparked the interest of the other children who gathered around us
to take turns at taking a photo of whatever they wanted.
 |
| A child took a photograph of a friend holding a slug. |
 |
| Children taking photographs of each other. |
I noticed that most of
the children that used the camera knew how to stand and hold it, and then click
the button. Some children experimented
by holding the camera at different angles, and “zoomed the lens in and out” in
order to take the right photograph (Ministry of Education, 2004, p. 18). Those that were not so familiar quickly
learned how and enjoyed taking numerous photographs of their friends around
them who sometimes stopped to pose. I
monitored their use by ensuring that everyone had a turn and then I took some
children with me to download the pictures onto the computer in the kitchen.
The children
watched as I explained and showed them how we downloaded their photographs from
the camera onto the computer by connecting a special cord to the camera and the
computer. The children smiled and got
excited when they saw their photographs coming up on the computer and stood
amazed at this new technology that they encountered. As a result of this learning experience, a
few children have taken on this interest further by using their family cameras
at home and one child even brought in a toy camera to share with his
friends.
When reflecting
on this whole process, I recognised that the children were inspired to use the
camera by observing the teachers taking photographs of the children’s learning (Ministry
of Education, 2004). I also recognised
that “as educators we need to understand how modern technologies can help us
better meet the social, physical, and learning needs of young children” in
order to appropriately facilitate and scaffold the use of “effective tools”
such as cameras (Tsantis, Bewick & Thouvenelle, 2003,
p.8). The
teachers at our centre also believe it is important to support the children’s interests
to actively explore the use of “ICT as part of their learning journey” (Ministry
of Education, 2004, p. 19). This is done
by providing various opportunities and learning experiences that help to extend
upon their current knowledge and skills, as well as encouraging the children “to
take responsibility for their own learning” (Ministry of Education, 2004, p.
19).
The significance
of the children’s learning and development from using the digital camera is
that they “develop the ability to represent their discoveries, using creative
and expressive media and the technology associated with them” (Ministry of
Education, 1996, p. 88). When the
children are engaged in this type of activity, “it is the ‘doing’ that is important,
rather than the ‘product’” in the “process approach to technology” (Smorti,
1999, p. 6). The children also developed
“the confidence to choose and experiment with materials, to play around with
ideas, and to explore actively with” their senses of sight and touch (Ministry
of Education, 1996, p. 88). The children
also “develop an understanding that symbols can be “read” by others and that
thoughts, experiences, and ideas can be represented through … photographs” (Ministry
of Education, 1996, p. 78).
REFERENCES:
Ministry of Education.
(1996). Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga
mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa .Wellington: Learning Media.
Ministry of Education.
(2004). Kei tua o te pae assessment for
learning: Early childhood exemplars.
Smorti, S. (1999). Technology in early childhood. Early
Education, 19, 5-9.
Tsantis,
L. A., Bewick, C. J., & Thouvenelle, S. (2003). Examining some common
about computer use in the early
years. Young Children. Vol 58 (1),
pp. 1-9.
I really enjoyed reading your reflection Michelle. I agree with you about children not having many opportunities to use ‘real’ cameras as this is also the case at my centre where children are rarely given the opportunity to use the camera to take photos themselves so it is great that you were able to provide this opportunity. I believe that children having the opportunity to take their own photos allow children to explore the environment around them in a different way. It also helps us teacher to see the child’s environment and what is around them through their eyes and see what is meaningful to the child. I liked the way you demonstrated to the children how to download the photos from the camera to the computer, this gives the children the opportunity to learn operational functions of the camera and the computer and the children are able to gain an understanding of how the photos get from the camera to the computer. It is great to see that children have taken their experiences from the centre home and have started to use home cameras to take photos. A suggestion I do have that could extend on the children’s interest in taking photos could be to give the children the opportunity to write a small sentence about each photo they have taken and make a book, this way children are able to make something that is meaningful to them. Through taking their own photos children are able to gain a sense of accomplishment and a sense of ownership. It sounds like the children had great fun taking their own photos, Great work Michelle!
ReplyDeleteWow! this is awesome Michelle, by allowing the children to use a real camera gave the children a great opportunity to discover and explore for themselves the technology of using a camera. It will enable children to learn how to take care and be careful when handling such equipments. Through experience, I understand too that children are the best photographers, when they take pictures, it often helps us adults to view things around us and the environment the way children see it and from their angle as well. This added a lot more fun for the children, what I really mean is if we adults can enjoy photography, so would children! I must say that the children at your centre will really treasure this experience because like you said earlier on, it was teachers who mostly use the cameras so having being given this wonderful opportunity to explore and discover this technology is really great for the children! Kāpai Michelle!
ReplyDeleteHey Michelle this is a great experience for the children. I think it is important we let children explore with all types of technology at a young age so they feel more confident using technology as they grow older. When you give them an experience of using cameras and letting them use cameras this helps us see what the children see and how they look at and percieve our world to be. I think it is great letting children learn about how to take photo's , position the camera to take photo's on different angles and how to look at the photo's they have just taken. It is a very meaningful experience for the children they are also learning about turn taking which is important. As they are learning to turn take they are also building their social skills as they are working together and talking about the photo's they have taken. This type of experience would be a great experience to document, you could teach them how to put their photo's on the computer and make it into a story or learning story using their words to make a story of what their photo's are about and where you could go next to extend their interest. I think it is great for the parents to see their children using technology and learning about how to use it. It also gives the children a feeling of satisfaction. Awesome Michelle!
ReplyDeleteSerena
ReplyDeleteI am going through a similar phase of interests in my own centre. Over the last couple of months children have noticed my own camera that I carry around daily and use as a data collection tool for documenting and programme planning. Your reflection rang a bell with me when you described how most of the picture taking is done by staff and adults rather than the child themselves. I have provided my own camera to children at times while supervised and have also noticed that they have an understanding of how this technology works and what the result is. I believe that children need to be able to make a contribution to their own learning and by documenting their own experiences they are able to share and communicate ideas among their peers and with more knowledgeable adults, "digital resources need to support children’s self-directed learning experiences where they need to be able to investigate their own interests" (Ministry of Education 2004, p.42)