Some points he made:
- good planning (he asked if he could photograph it!)
- he felt the children are actually quite advanced (maths concepts-wise) for their age - I've been worrying about the opposite
- good use of 'Turn and talk' and 'Pause'
My thoughts and observations:
- the children were for some reason, unusually slow and almost restrained throughout the launch (not sure really why this was the case?) and it came across almost as if the problem itself was unable to be grasped by them; even the most normally switched on amongst the children seemed unable to answer the question, "What's this story/problem about?" and then, "What do we need to find out?" Perhaps related to having an observer?
- see DMIC anecdotal notes for week by week observations
Next steps and reflections:
- Make the launch really snappy
- No need at this stage, to place such an emphasis on the Group Norms; perhaps refer to them on Monday and Wednesday only; reduce the number of Norms down to the most important 5 now (the original Group Norms, it could be agreed with the group, have been 'achieved' and could be taken off the list)
- Incorporate the use of materials throughout the connection.
