Reflection involves looking back on an experience and drawing on your emotions, expectations and beliefs to help you make sense of what the problem is. It is an action e.g. finding a solution to a problem. It may involve gathering others’ beliefs and comparing them. Reflection allows us to challenge our actions and beliefs and turn them into new ideas.

The Gibbs Model encourages us to act upon what we reflect on and identify the positives and negatives in order to work upon them. It enables us to become better learners and encourages us to never stop trying to improve our learning.

As teachers, it is important for us to continually reflect upon our lessons. We need to ensure that our pupils are able to understand what we are teaching. Children have different learning styles. It may be essential to reflect upon our teaching and adapt it for some pupils who don’t initially grasp the concept as it is not taught in a way that works with their learning style.

When writing academically, it is crucial to have basic skills and knowledge in grammar, punctuation and paragraphing.

Grammar is important as it is required for a piece of writing to make sense. Through my studies of modern languages, I have learnt of the importance of learning grammar in order to understand the language. By ensuring we have a high level of grammar we are able to understand the logic behind what we are writing.

Punctuation can change the meaning of a sentence. A common example is- “Let’s eat Grandpa.” and “Let’s eat, Grandpa.” Good punctuation means that the piece of writing is easier for the reader to understand and get the point across. Sometimes, it can be easy to write a long sentence which would be better as a shorter sentence as this adds emphasis. When checking work, it is a good idea to read it aloud to see if it makes sense. If you feel that you need to take a breath mid-sentence, you may need to put a comma or full stop in.

Paragraphing allows ideas and topics to flow logically. They allow work to be clearly structured rather than a huge chunk of writing. It is a good idea to read pieces of writing aloud to see where a natural break point is to help you paragraph. By paragraphing, there is a clearer division between topics making the piece easier to read and understand as each idea can be taken one at a time.

The benefits of active learning include:

• Encourages creativity through thinking using imaginary situations as well as real life situations
• Interesting way to learn e.g. through play
• Allows children to remain more focussed in lessons as it is more exciting and enjoyable for children
• Increased enthusiasm in both pupils and teachers
• Allows pupils to give feedback and discuss what they are learning
• Improves pupils’ social skills and builds relationships through group work and discussion
• Creates a sense of community within the classroom
• Allows those with different learning styles to participate

The benefits of co-operative working include:

• Opinions from different individuals can be heard meaning a wider perspective is gained.
• Increased trust and respect within a community.
• Relationships can be built within a community.
• Network of support to help one another.
• Work can be shared and divided up.
• Improves communication and team working skills.
• Resources and knowledge can be shared.

Activity 1

I will update the tables below as I continue to learn what helps my learning.

Activity 2

I use a diary and to do list to ensure I know what work I have to do and when it is due. I also plan my time using a timetable to make sure I spend an appropriate length of time on each task especially during busy time periods such as near deadlines.