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WHEN CHILDREN MAKE ERRORS:  A constructivist teacher's ways of intervening ...

For people who work with children ages 3-8

I wrote a book a while ago, which has been well received.  Called The Sun's Not Broken, A Cloud's Just in the Way, the title reflects a kind teacher, gently correcting a child who has constructed a poetic theory about the gloomy weather that engulfs him. 

While just about all of the rest of that book still holds, I have learned a mighty lesson since that time .... The kindly answer I gave Hamid was part of a style which closes children down from making theories and testing them.  Beyond that style are a couple of others ... helping the child explore his/her theory and test it, or helping the child extend his/her theory because theory-making (the having of wonderful ideas) is, in itself, so important.

This workshop will help teachers, caregivers, or parents examine how we can support Hamid and, instead of becoming another cloud, we can let sun and air shine upon his intelligence,  assisting him in developing and testing his ideas.

Please bring the story of a child's mistaken idea to the workshop.

(Students of the Reggio Emilia Approach will recognize the idea of "progettazione" in this workshop.)

E-mail:  sydney@eceteacher.org, www.eceteacher.org • (C) Copyright Sydney Gurewitz Clemens, 2007