What is a Connect-Type Activity?
.
Horton
describes connect type activities as those that prepare students to close the
gap between learning and the rest of their lives. He also encourage learners to integrate
what they are learning with what they know. Connect activities bridge gaps. There
are six different types of connect activities: Ponder activities, Questioning
activities, Stories by learners, Job aids, Research activities and Original work
(Horton, p164),
The connect type activity that I have selected to
use was based on the need assessment of my Prekindergarten class of twenty
students. The need assessment was performed to see what the student knew about
the book: The Very Hungray Caterpillar. As we did the discussion about the
book, a lot of the children understood that a butterfly would occur at the end of the story.
So I decided to use the Stories by learners” as the connect-type
activity for this particular group of students. It was selected due to
the age of the students and the limited capabilities these students would have
when it came to the other connect-type activities listed above. Stories are what
Prekindergarten students enjoy the most whether it be listening to a story or
telling one on their own. The students will listen to an absorb-type activity
and will then tell their own story as a connect-type activity (Horton,
2012). This will be a good way to observe the students for listening skills.
Horton (2012) tells us that storytelling activities allow students
to tell stories that are related to what they are learning about. Horton also explains that storytelling should be made optional where students are encouraged to share but are not demanded to.
Tompkins(2002) also stated that children responds to stories in different ways. In the article he list five ways children respond:
Dramatizing. Children spontaneously act out the story in both nonverbal and verbal ways
Talking Back. Children talk back to the characters, giving them advice or criticizing and complimenting them.
Critiquing / Controlling. Children suggest alternative plots, characters, or settings to personalize the story,
Inserting. Children insert themselves or their friends into the story,
Taking Over. Children take over the text and manipulate it to express their own creativity; these responses are usually humorous and provide an opportunity for children to show off.
In this activity, the students will share their experience about the Book: Very Hungry Caterpillar. . At this age level it would be a good idea to have the students participate in a do-type activity of drawing a picture to illustrate the different items the Hungry Caterpill ate because some students may feel more comfortable sharing with a picture rather than just telling their story aloud. Horton (2012) five elements for a simple story structure that would be good to follow:
Tompkins(2002) also stated that children responds to stories in different ways. In the article he list five ways children respond:
Dramatizing. Children spontaneously act out the story in both nonverbal and verbal ways
Talking Back. Children talk back to the characters, giving them advice or criticizing and complimenting them.
Critiquing / Controlling. Children suggest alternative plots, characters, or settings to personalize the story,
Inserting. Children insert themselves or their friends into the story,
Taking Over. Children take over the text and manipulate it to express their own creativity; these responses are usually humorous and provide an opportunity for children to show off.
In this activity, the students will share their experience about the Book: Very Hungry Caterpillar. . At this age level it would be a good idea to have the students participate in a do-type activity of drawing a picture to illustrate the different items the Hungry Caterpill ate because some students may feel more comfortable sharing with a picture rather than just telling their story aloud. Horton (2012) five elements for a simple story structure that would be good to follow:
1. Setting: When and where does the story occur?
2. Characters: Who is involved?
3. Conflict: What difficulty had to be overcome?
4. Resolution: How did things work out?
5. Moral: What is the point of the story?
Activity:
This is a youtubevideo by Stillfran(2009) Book: The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carles
The activity will begin with the
students watching a youtube video of a book. Afterward we would have a group
discussion about the story. The children would be given an assignment of a
do-type activity which would be creating a book of their own with the different
items that the Very Hungry Caterpillar ate. They would also be challenged to see if they could
remember the sequence and how many fruits the caterpillar ate each day. This activity would also help with the days of the week.
I would be measuring if the students can create a book and remember the sequence or order of the fruits the caterpillar ate through and what happen on each day. They would also be asked the following questions:
- Who was very hungry?
- What are some of the items that the Very Hungry Caterpillar ate?
- What did the Caterpillar turn into at the end of the Book?
The information will be collect in a class book and reported back to the children as a story by the class.
