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"One of my guiding principles for teaching is 'Make it hands on and never do for the student what the student can do for herself.' I believe people learn best when they construct their own understandings through thoughtfully guided explorations. The key to long-lasting and meaningful learning is engagement." — Char Soucy
The 2002-2003 school year is Char Soucy's eighth teaching first grade, or a multiage primary, at Fernan Elementary. Her earlier teaching experiences—Environmental Education, Conflict Resolution, an activity-oriented French class, and Artist-in-Residence—share a common theme. She describes environmental education as experiential and constructivist-based, an approach that is evident in her classroom as well. Students engage in learning by doing: classroom animals require daily care, children are encouraged to keep their bodies active to help their brains work, music and activity are an integral part of each day.
Technology Use
Technology is integrated into Char's work as a teacher. Using the computer to generate her class schedule and lesson plans leaves more time for planning how to meet the needs of individual students. Family newsletters and numerous classroom resources take advantage of technology to speed the process and produce a polished final product.
She is creative in her use of technology with students, taking advantage of tools beyond the computer. A bread making machine—which she points out now contains a computer chip—reinforces measuring skills, reading, and following directions, and helps to develop understandings of fractions. A digital camera finds use throughout the curriculum and the school day. Char takes photos of the students early in the year, watching for "picture perfect" moments when they are doing things just right. A picture of them sitting on the rug, for example, reminds young children of desired behaviors. The morning routine of the calendar and opening activities is documented in a set of photos on a ring clip. Responsibility for the series of learning tasks is an honor that rotates among students; photos and accompanying text remind children, both readers and those not yet reading, exactly what they are to do next.
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"I use a digital camera to make icons of what they are supposed to do next so I could say: "Here's the picture; it's picture perfect, this is what I want it to look like." So I used it for directions for particularly young children before they can read. You can show them a picture of what they are supposed to do, and it jogs their memory." — Char Soucy
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