Focus on Learning

“I hear, and I forget,

I see, and I remember,

I do, and I understand.”

- Chinese proverb

The learning space for students at Daystar School extends far beyond the walls of the classrooms. Daystar’s curriculum has been developed on the premise that the entire city is our classroom.  The cultural richness of Chicago and the surrounding area is an exciting arena for students to explore and learn. Nearly every week students, teachers, and parents travel to museums, businesses, cultural centers, stores, zoos, nature preserves, farms, neighborhoods, places of worship for learning activities and lessons.

At Daystar, students do not go on “field trips,” but rather on “Learning Excursions.” Field trips differ from Learning Excursions in that typically, a class will go on one or two all-day field trips per school year.  But at Daystar, students in grades K-8 go on an average of 20-25 Learning Excursions per class, per school year. Learning Excursions are short, educational experiences that are specifically tied to the classroom unit study and are approximately one to two hours in duration.  With field trips, students might go to the Museum of Science and Industry once in K-8 with their class.  Daystar students might go to the Museum of Science and Industry three times in one school year while studying three different subjects.

Setting aside the traditional notion that a classroom is the best setting for instruction is revolutionary, and the implications of using the city as a classroom are far reaching. Daystar School has developed this kind of educational program to:

Motivate students and increase their learning.

Neuroscientific research has given us a better understanding of where and how learning occurs, and we need to look beyond the classrooms to provide our students with the rich and authentic learning environments that promote learning. In Human Brain and Human Learning, Leslie A. Hart challenges us to “leave the classrooms behind” and provide students with “large amounts of sensory input from experiences in the real world.” He points out that the “process of learning is the extraction of patterns from confusion – not from clarity and simplicity.” He urges us to place students in learning environments where they will “use rather than simply recognize knowledge and skills” if we want to “see significant physiological changes and growth in their brains.”

Build student’s knowledge, awareness, and appreciation of the city.

Students receive first-hand knowledge of the city of Chicago – the good, the bad, and the fascinating. Often, when students to become more aware of their surroundings in their home city, this translates to a great awareness and ability to navigate whether visiting across the country, or touring a city across the world. Experiencing many of the vast resources of their city enables students to gain an appreciation for the planning, development and thought that went into the formation of each resource.

Encourage students to seek God’s kingdom in the city.

Students must be prepared and challenged to be involved in our cities, to assume leadership roles, to shape culture and build community, to understand the impact of urbanization and globalization, and to respond to the challenge of making the gospel of Christ relevant to people living in our cities.

Our quest to incorporate the resources of the city into our educational program has been an exciting and rewarding adventure. Whenever students reflect on their experiences at Daystar, they speak enthusiastically about their visits and activities outside the classroom. Teachers see how the excursions provide students with unique opportunities to learn in group settings, to develop their observational and questioning skills, to learn from primary sources, and to practice appropriate behavior in various public settings. Students are developing respect and appreciation for artifacts, for diversity, and for other cultures. Students are also recognizing that learning occurs everywhere and all the time, and they are becoming adept at using each situation for careful observation and making connections. Their first-hand experiences away from school motivate them to continue and extend their learning in the classroom setting.

About Harriet Potoka: Mrs. Harriet Potoka has been a Christian elementary school principal for over 25 years, 15 of those years at Daystar School. Before becoming a principal, Mrs. Potoka was an elementary classroom teacher and curriculum coordinator. Harriet currently resides in Chicago with her husband, Gene. They have 3 adult children, 8 grandchildren, and 7 granddogs.

Many times when trying to get children to take a break from screen time, they give a blank stare hoping parents will give in and let them continue playing instead of doing something physically active.  Or when mentioning going for a walk or getting some exercise, parents end up with a “basket case” on their hands.  Trying to fit physical activity into a child’s everyday routine can be hard but there are many benefits for children in doing so. Physical activity impacts children’s development, long term health, school performance, and their general attitude towards physical activity itself.

Physical activity positively impacts development of young bodies and minds.  During physical activity, the bones and muscles in their bodies are becoming stronger by the physical impact which helps the bones and muscles to develop properly.  Physical activity causes the body to need more blood pumped faster which strengthens the heart muscles. When children perform physical activity requiring hand-eye coordination, they are strengthening the part of the brain that deals with these concepts.

Encouraging children to be physically active now will also impact their health in the future.  There have been many studies conducted showing that children who were active when they were younger were more likely to continue this into their adult years.  Physically active children have a decreased risk of becoming obese at a very young age or later on in life.  When children see and feel the benefits of physical activity, they are more likely to build a positive attitude towards exercising and will be less likely to be a “basket case” the next time a parent asks them to turn away from the screen and get moving!

Not only will physical activity benefit children in body and mind development, present and future health, but it also helps children in their school performance.  Studies have shown that physically active children perform better academically, are able to concentrate better, and also have better classroom behavior.  Regular physical exercise also decreases stress, anxiety, depression, and other health factors that could affect their studies.  Exercise is also a great mood booster for children because it is something enjoyable to do both indoors and outdoors.

Parents play a very important part in getting children moving.  Children are more likely to come alongside parents who are physically active and do those activities as well.  Engaging in physical activity together as a family will also get children motivated and engaged in fun and creative activities.  Limiting TV/computer time often results in children engaging in play that keeps them moving, burning that limitless energy children seem to have.  Family physical activity may be so much fun that the children don’t even know parents have snuck physical activity into their day!

Fun Family Activity Ideas:

• Family walks after dinner – turn it into a scavenger hunt or play “I Spy.”
• Start slow by walking to the ice cream store as a family.
• Park farther out to get extra exercise when running errands.
• Play Wii dance games together – family members without the remote can dance along.
• Be “that parent” that is running and playing with their children on the playground equipment.
• Take your bikes with you on vacation or rent when you get to your destination.
• Go to your neighborhood pool during family or open swim times.
• Teach your children to play a ball sport (or have them teach you).
• Do a walking tour of your city’s downtown or a local nature preserve.
• Ride your bikes to a destination for a family picnic.

About Heidi McNeil:  Mrs. Heidi McNeil grew up in Adel, Illinois where she and her siblings were home schooled. Heidi went on to obtain her B. Ed. from Liberty University. In 2011, she joined the Daystar School staff as a first grade teacher’s aid. Heidi and her husband, Sean, attend Park Community Church and enjoy spending time exploring Chicago together.

Links:

http://www.cyh.com/HealthTopics/HealthTopicDetails.aspx?p=114&np=301&id=1977

http://www.activelivingresearch.org/files/Active_Ed.pdf

NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children by Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman

After reading just a few chapter titles and summaries from the book NurtureShock, my interest was piqued.  In tackling issues like, “The inverse Power of Praise,” “Does teaching children about race and skin color make them better off or worse?” “Why has modern involved parenting failed to produce a generation of angels?” and others, Bronson and Merryman use a common sense approach backed by multiple research studies.

While the titles may be sensational, the chapters deliver without coming across as preachy, judgmental or condemning. Bronson and Merryman challenge what we believe to be good parenting and argues that these common approaches are doing our children a disservice. NurtureShock is not an advice book, but simply puts forth the challenge of commonly held concepts, backs it up with years of research mixed with real-life examples and lets the reader make the final decision on the validity of their argument. The book is full of insightful wisdom in sound bites and in longer prose that brings parents, educators, and anyone working with children to a place of understanding and gently directs them on how to say it better and do it better.

Personally, the practical phrase: “Emphasizing effort gives a child a variable that they can control” has revolutionized my approach to parenting and the way I praise children. I thought about how many times I have given children a blanket statement for their achievement – “You did great!” or “That’s wonderful!”  While children cannot help but be wonderful (they just are), a child’s effort in practicing a sport or working multiple days on a project is an endeavor worthy of special praise. Since reading NurtureShock, I’ve tried to be specific when I praise or compliment my own children: “I’m so proud of you. Your teacher said you have been working really hard in class to learn your 8x table.” It takes more time and concentration to be specific and to focus on effort. At first, it was downright difficult to reprogram myself to focus on effort – but as soon as I put forth the “effort” myself, it paid off. Just as Bronson and Merryman said it would.

NurtureShock debunks the accepted norms and standards of parenting, and does so in plain English, uncomplicated by “educator-speak” or medical jargon.  I highly recommend this book.

About Simone Widney: Simone Widney is a wife and mother who does admissions and marketing for Daystar School in all of her spare time. A community volunteer since the age of eleven, Simone has relished her role as an adoption advocate for the past nine years.

Links:  http://www.nurtureshock.com/

We have all heard that as parents we are supposed to somehow limit the amount of “screen time” our children have every day.  I read an article recently, though, that spoke of the concept of screen time as a moving target.  In the 1960s and 70s, when I was growing up, my parents didn’t really have to limit the amount of TV my siblings and I watched because, quite frankly, there wasn’t much interesting on the television past 30 minutes of Gilligan’s Island and another 30 of Brady Bunch.  Playing a board game or riding bikes was definitely more interesting than anything else on the television, which was of course the only screen we knew way back when!

Things have changed since then in drastic ways, making choices parents must make about television much more complicated.  Limiting television to an hour or so after homework is done feels like a reasonable choice to many families.  Other families take a stronger approach and limit television to weekends only.  Some families even take the step of having no televisions in their homes at all.  As a parent and a teacher I respect and admire each of these choices.  I especially appreciate the choice most parents make to keep televisions out of their children’s bedrooms, recognizing that watching TV in an unsupervised and/or solitary way is never the right thing for children or teens.  There are good reasons for parents to make careful choices about how much and what type of TV their children are exposed to.  TheAmericanAcademyof Pediatrics has a position statement on their website citing research related to children and television.  According to them the amount of television children watch is directly related to violent behavior, self-image and body concept, nutrition, and even substance use and abuse.  The sexually suggestive and violent nature of much mainstream television and commercials is inappropriate for children and teens.  It seems clear that limiting or even eliminating television in our homes is the right choice.

Difficult as that seems, the ubiquity of screens in our lives makes me wish things were only that easy.  After we have madeinformed choices and set clear limits about televisions in our homes, we are still left with tough decisions to make regarding the other screens in our lives/cars/homes.  Phones, tablets, and computers are screens that are more difficult to limit or eliminate. So how do we make wise choices for our children and families regarding those screens? 

As many know, I was one of the first people to hop on the iPad bandwagon, waiting atDaystarSchoolon that first Saturday of delivery back in 2010.  I was anxious to get it and begin using it in the classroom, since then requesting two more for the Exploratorium kindergarten class.  I definitely love gadgets (and screens).  As a matter of fact, I had a hard time sitting down to write this blog because I am currently a bit obsessed with a new game on my iPad!  I am convinced, though, that if we want to raise children who are more interested in people than in things, we must be diligent and deliberate about the amount of time they (and we) spend looking at screens instead of talking with people.

How do we do that?  For starters, as a teacher I work hard to make sure that the screen (even an iPad one) is never the most exciting thing in my classroom.  Fair enough, right, because it’s my job?  But the tougher question for me is if I work equally hard at home to make sure that a screen is never the most exciting thing in the room.  My kids love to play board games, tell stories, and talk about their day.  Am I willing to take the tough step of limiting TV/computer/iPad/gaming/phone screens to make sure that I am more interesting/fun–even to my teenage children?  Because all of our children really do want to spend time with us—even the teenagers—it’s easy to be more interesting than a screen.  The question is whether or not we’re willing to take the time.  I’m going to try.  How about you?

Soccer. Piano. Football. Karate. Violin. Cheerleading. Chess. French. Ballet.

The list of extracurricular activities for children goes on and on. So much so, that play may seem too simple, maybe even purposeless. Its value, however, is immeasurable. Play is vital for optimal child development, including healthy brain development. Through play, children learn how to interact with others and the world around them. Unstructured and unscheduled times force children to be creative and to use their brains to figure out how to entertain themselves. And while this is obviously important for young children, the value of play does not end at age ten. The older children get, the more important it is for them to be able to interact with those around them. Play gives them that opportunity.

As a teacher, my goal is to help mold my students into a well-rounded person. Many parents want their children to experience all that is available to them. If their own families were not able to afford extracurricular activities when they were a child, parents may fear their children are missing out on these opportunities. But we, the adults, need to remember that these are children and their job is to play.

Extracurricular activities have their merits: learning to work on a team or develop a musical ability is beneficial. The key is to avoid the temptation to fill a child’s week with too many activities. Regardless of our age, our brains and bodies need time to relax. It is even more important for young, developing brains to have some unstructured ‘down-time.’

I sometimes see students who come to school unable to focus, or cranky and having a hard time getting along with their friends. My observation is that they are tired. Limiting extracurricular activities to two a week might be a good idea – perhaps a sport and learning a musical instrument. Certainly, I would suggest introducing one activity and allowing time for adjustment before introducing a second activity. Children should be carefully monitored for signs of stress and fatigue.

Extracurricular activities are both healthy and beneficial to developing children. It is the responsibility of the adults in children’s lives to ensure they are receiving adequate rest and free play time.

By Thanh Shanahan

About Thanh Shanahan: Mrs. Thanh Shanahan holds a masters degree in early childhood education from Concordia University where she also earned her undergrad degree. Thanh has been teaching for twelve years with this being her second year teaching at Daystar School. In addition, she sings, plays guitar and piano, and is on the worship team at her church. Thanh has supportive parents who did not overschedule her as a child.

References:

http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;119/1/182

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-sigman/play-importance_b_821238.html

http://www.bfrc.ca/pdf/BFRCPlaytips.pdf

http://www.acceleratedlearning.co.uk/importance_of_play.htm