Category Archives: 2.1 Curriculum

Social Studies: Fieldwork.

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When learning about social studies, it is important to think of creative ways to get the class interested in the topic they are learning about as the class may find it hard to find a connection or find it relevant to their lives. For example, when learning about history, children may not find it interesting as it may not be relevant or may not find a link to their lives today. One way to make social studies interesting and exciting for children is through fieldwork/field trips.

Fieldwork can have a big impact on children’s understanding of Social Studies as it allows the children to gain a deeper understanding of the topic they are learning about and makes the learning more realistic for them. Fieldwork also allows children to gain a better understanding of their local area and helps them to create a “mental map” in their heads (Scoffham, 2013, p63)

Fieldwork can be applied to many different aspects of Social Studies. Fieldwork does not have to be far out of the classroom (Catling and Willy, 2009). This means that if there is not a big budget for field trips within the school, children can learn through fieldwork within the school grounds or in their local catchment area. However, when suitable, teachers can take children on a field trip to many different places within the city to further their understanding of the current topic they are learning about.

For History, children can take a field trip to many different places within Dundee or their local community to learn more about the history of their city or their culture. If the class is based within Dundee, there are many different opportunities to learn about the history of Dundee. Some of these include the V&A, The Verdant Works, the McManus Galleries, etc.

For geography, children can take a field trip to places that can teach them about how Dundee has evolved over time and has grown in size and with more businesses, which can also teach children about the business aspects of social studies. An example of a place to go to learn about this would be the McManus Galleries as there is a 3D plan of what Dundee used to be like and children can identify how much it has changed.

Visit to McManus Galleries

As part of our Social Studies elective, we took a pre-visit trip to the McManus Galleries to get a better understanding of what children could learn during a field trip to this museum. The McManus Galleries offers many different opportunities for children to learn about social studies, including both history and geography.

For History, the McManus Galleries offer many different sections on the history of Dundee, some examples including the evolution of games, Dundee during wars and evolution of clothes. For Geography, McManus Galleries offer opportunities for children to learn about what Dundee used to be like and how it has grown in size over many years.

It is important for teachers to have a pre-visit to the place of their field trip before they take their class. This is because it allows the teacher to identify any learning opportunities available for the children and if there are any risks that they need to be cautious of when there with the children.

Therefore, overall, when planning fieldwork for social studies, I think it is important to consider where is going to be the most beneficial place for the children to learn and to always have a pre-visit before the fieldwork to ensure there are learning opportunities and no risks for the children.

References:

Catling, J. and Willy, T. (2009) Teaching Primary Geography. Exeter: Learning Matters.

Scoffham, S. (2013) Teaching Geography Creatively. Oxon:Routledge.

Health and Wellbeing: Relationships

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During our Health and Wellbeing lecture, we were learning about relationships and how important relationships are for children. As our TDT after the lecture, we were asked to watch two videos. One on children’s brain development by Doctor Suzanne Zeedyk and another on the importance of the child’s early years by John Carochan.

In Suzanne Zeedyk’s video, she talks about how human babies are different to other mammals’ babies as they are born prematurely because of the size of their heads. Due to this, this means that their brains aren’t as fully developed as other mammals when born. The brain then develops as the child starts to grow outside of the womb and can be influenced by their surroundings and relationships and therefore means that the first four years of a child’s life are the most important and could influence their future.

In John Carnochan’s video, he talks about how important the first 4 years of a child’s life are and how they can have an impact on their future. In both videos, they talk about how if a child grows up in a threatening environment then the child focused on protecting themselves from the threatening environment and can hinder their development. John Carnochan talks about how children need consistency in their lives, especially during their early years. Children may not always get this consistency or safe environment from their home lives so it is very important for teachers to create this in the classroom so the children can feel safe and comfortable in at least one part of their lives.

After watching these videos, it made me more aware of how much a child’s life at home could influence their future if they don’t have consistency. It made me realise that when I am teaching the classroom, I have to try and create a safe and welcoming environment for the children in case they don’t have a safe place at home so at least they will feel safe in my classroom and will want to come to school.