Early Childhood Special Education and Assistive Technology Blog

By:  Caitlyn Pagnottaro, ECSEAT Scholar There’s a lot of things that children tell us every day and a lot of messages that they send us, even if we don’t receive those messages verbally in a way that we can understand. That’s why as educators it’s important for us to have the ability to recognize whether a child can’t do something simply because it’s too difficult, or because we haven’t provided them an environment where they’re comfortable and capable of doing the work. That’s the whole idea behind flexible seating. More and more educators in grades K – 3 are adding this into their practice where children get to choose their own workspaces. Traditionally, children would be introduced to their desk space labeled with their name, but instead teachers are introducing them to spaces that they can choose to work from such as crate chairs, exercise balls, kneeling tables and much more. It’s up to the student to choose where they think they’re going to do their best work. For a lot of ch...

By:  Caitlyn Pagnottaro, ECSEAT Scholar So much has changed since I was a young child starting school. Looking back I can see what we valued then compared to what we value today. I remember that I played a lot. If we had circle time and other structured parts of the day I don’t remember it. I remember playing. I remember playing with my friends at the time inside and outside of the classroom. The preschool/kindergarten that I attended was private and the play area that we had behind our building was amazing. At least from what I recall as a small child it was because everything around me seemed so much bigger. There was a huge climbing structure that I used to hang off of, or climb to the highest point as if I were on the top of the world. We had this playhouse that you could climb up to which my girlfriends and I would all go up to together and hangout and giggle. I can’t remember anything academic that we ever did in preschool unless it involved a book and that was a...

By:   Kimberly Chouinard , EC-SEAT Scholar App Review : SeeSaw Learning During this time of remote learning, as of April 2020, it is important to consider a few features in selecting the right app for your program's needs and students in presenting, monitoring and assessing student performance: 1. How easy is this SeeSaw Learning app to use for teachers? This app is easy to navigate. It offers tutorials and support pages for teacher to support its use. 2. Ease of use for families and security of information? Parents are invited by teacher to join SeeSaw via email using their email and student code.  For remote learning, parents need to join as the "student" in order to complete work and share with teacher on the app. Compatible with several devices including, Chromebooks, computers, iPads, iPhones, Android tablets, Android phones, and Kindle Fire. 3. What ways or modes will this app give teachers to share learning experiences? The app contains a library of activiti...

By: Kimberly Chouinard,  EC-SEAT Scholar This week started with a bang! It’s hard to believe it still the same week, actually, it is a blend of 2 weeks. On Friday 3/13 the state of NH announced that all schools would be closed and move forward with a remote learning model during the COVID-19 pandemic. On Friday (3/13), my school district sent an email asking staff to work from home on Monday (3/16) and to review options and ideas for beginning a remote learning model for their grade level.  On Monday (3/16) we had the first of many, preschool team Zoom meetings. We collaborated, shared, planned, and came up with a plan to begin to move forward planning for remote learning. 1.     We agreed to create an activity calendar, with four developmental subheadings to work on for both the 3- and 4-year old programs. 2.     We planned how we wanted to explain to parents how to implement these suggested activities at home. 3.     We divided th...

Watch Dr. Therese Wilkomm create a simple light box! A great idea for classrooms and work with young children! Other ATinNH videos demonstrating Assistive Technology solutions can be found here -  https://www.youtube.com/user/ATinNH.

By Alicia Giannelli, EC-SEAT Scholar Education has always shifted. It has changed and evolved based on current socio-cultural values and goals. Over time, these goals have changed based on societal needs and desires. When early education began it was very different than what we have today. That is because society’s needs and learning opportunities have changed. In the past, children needed to be home to help the family and did not need simple educational skills, but now education is for all children to allow them to explore the world around them and to get the skills needed to support themselves and their families later. “The modern human mind has evolved with the history of the human species” (Bodrova, 2007, pg 11). Today there are many cultural influences that affect the early childhood education practice. Some of these include the push-down method and behavior management. These two influences are changing the nature of teaching and what the early childhood classroom looks like. Wh...

By: Alicia Giannelli, EC-SEAT Scholar The following blogpost includes sample emails and a reflection about how to teach with the Novel Effect App. Read the sample emails, the reflection, and follow the links to learn more.  Using the Novel Effect App - https://noveleffect.com/  - to Enhance Reading Online Location: Screencastify Videos and Emails Audience: Preschool Team Members and Preschool Families Book: Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-dHeNfXtgc Sample Email to Preschool Families: Hello Everyone, I have an app called Novel Effect that I want to share with you all! It is an app that adds sound effects while you read. I feel as though you and your children will love it as much as I do. Check out my video on the Novel Effect app  here .   The website also has great information for you to explore: https://noveleffect.com/  I have also created a read-aloud of Don't Let the Pigeon Drive The Bus, by Mo Willems f...

By: Carrie Portrie , EC-SEAT Coordinator The National Association for theEducation of Young Children (NAEYC) with the Fred Rogers Center for EarlyLearning and Children’s Media (2012) joint position statement Technology and Interactive Media as Tools in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth through Age 8 states when technology is used wisely and with intention it “support learning and relationships,” (p. 1). When children and adults learn together the potential for positive development can enhance relationships throughout an early learning community (p. 1). Technology includes a variety of tools and devices including but not limited to: “computers, tablets, multitouch screens, interactive whiteboards, mobile devices, cameras, DVD and music players, audio recorders, electronic toys, games, e-book readers, and older analog devices still being used such as tape recorders, VCRs, VHS tapes, record and cassette players, light tables, projectors, and microscopes,” (NAE...

By: Kyleigh Pharris,  EC-SEAT Scholar, Seacoast Reads Coordinator While participating in an online course at the University of New Hampshire, EDUCATION 703/803 C Classroom Management: Creating Positive Learning Environments, I reflected upon the importance of teacher language in the early childhood classroom. Through this process of reflection I created a table outlining recommended guidelines for teacher language. Focusing on teacher language is important in the purpose of understanding how a teacher’s conveyed message can impact the management of the classroom. As Patenaude (2011) stated, “A teacher ’ s words affect the students who hear those words.” It is through language that teachers are able to create a welcoming atmosphere for children and families, establish a collaborative community, and engage children in learning encounters. As an EC-SEAT scholar I wanted to share these guidelines for positive teacher language with early childhood professionals to illustrate ...