Monday and Tuesday I was helping in El Nido, which in English means The Nest. The children in this room range from ages 1 to 3. It is amazing at such a young age how focused they are when doing their work. They mostly work independently, concentrating on whatever they are working on. It is amazing for me to see a child that young work on the same activity alone for more than five minutes. The children I work with at home become either bored or distracted with their activities within a few minutes. Even the couple children who are only one and a half sit at the table working quietly. They have incredible self control. They also sit so well and are engaged throughout circle time. Even though there are songs sung in both English and Spanish and some of the children might not understand all of the songs, you can tell by the looks on their faces that they are focused, and are enjoying the songs. Some simply smile, some clap along, and some sing along.
It is obvious they love their outside time. Even when they are solely running around with their friends they are smiling. They are definitely not afraid to get dirty. There are so many opportunities to teach/practice their English with them while outside. I picked up one of the younger children who was standing under the banana trees. She was point at them so I picked her up so she could touch them. I used few words with her, as she only speaks Spanish and is only a year and a half. I used the words, "green, bananas, smooth, yummy, etc." to describe the bananas as they felt them. She also felt the tree trunk and the leaves as well. There are so many learning experiences that present themselves while outside with children, especially ones using the five senses.
The teachers in El Nido work so well with the children. They constantly call to them for help/attention. It is quite obvious they adore them, and I understand why. They treat them with such kindness and respect. It is important with young children to be smiling, animated, and attentive at all times and they definitely are. They respect the children's independence, which is so important. They do not do things for them that they can do for themselves. For example, rather than wiping the children's noses immediately, they send them over to try to wipe them themselves while looking in the mirror. We need more teachers in the world like those in El Nido.
It is obvious they love their outside time. Even when they are solely running around with their friends they are smiling. They are definitely not afraid to get dirty. There are so many opportunities to teach/practice their English with them while outside. I picked up one of the younger children who was standing under the banana trees. She was point at them so I picked her up so she could touch them. I used few words with her, as she only speaks Spanish and is only a year and a half. I used the words, "green, bananas, smooth, yummy, etc." to describe the bananas as they felt them. She also felt the tree trunk and the leaves as well. There are so many learning experiences that present themselves while outside with children, especially ones using the five senses.
The teachers in El Nido work so well with the children. They constantly call to them for help/attention. It is quite obvious they adore them, and I understand why. They treat them with such kindness and respect. It is important with young children to be smiling, animated, and attentive at all times and they definitely are. They respect the children's independence, which is so important. They do not do things for them that they can do for themselves. For example, rather than wiping the children's noses immediately, they send them over to try to wipe them themselves while looking in the mirror. We need more teachers in the world like those in El Nido.