Introduction to Module 5 Unit Festivals and Celebrations

Gifted and Talented Children learning in collaborative group

work.

Clarification of terms

• Gifted children are achieving at an advanced level in one or more academic subject

• Talented children have noticeably advanced skills practical activities and subjects art, music, sport

• May have gift or talent in one area, not in others• Intellectual ability may not be matched with

emotional maturity

Issues in Education

• Recognition

• Appropriate provision

• Allocation of resources

• Regular monitoring

• Social and emotional needs

• Parent and teacher shared understanding and expectations

Opportunities for gifted and talented children in group work

about Celebrations and Festivals

• Different skills required for different roles within group: leadership, recording, time keeping, reporting

• Thinking skills :research, information gathering, sorting, evaluating, prioritising

• Open ended, sharing personal experience, valuing other traditions

Jigsaw Collaborative Group Work

• Opportunity for children to develop thinking skills, demonstrate organisational and communication skills

• Content of activity chosen for specific purpose

• Structure, timing and roles clear

• Opportunity to enjoy preferred learning styles

Age Related Variations

• Celebrations and Festivals For young children an opportunity to share and

discuss individual experience, and become specialists in this area

For older children an opportunity to research traditions, reflect on variety and personal significance

Method of recording appropriate to experience and skills of group – chart, diagrams, collage, powerpoint presentation

Length of time allowed

Possible alternative content for jigsaw activity observed in classroom based research

• Aspects of life in Ancient Greece: art and architecture, sport, literature and theatre, political life

• Research physical and economic aspects of European countries: rivers, mountains, large cities, industrial activity

Nature of task

• Collaborative sharing of experience

• Research new subject area, using appropriate reference resources

• Evaluating content to communicate with other groups

• Used in higher education institutions for distance learning

Monitoring the learning and behaviour of gifted and talented

children• Evaluate any diagrams or charts

• Observation of group activity with framework

• Video record or tape record activity

• Asking further questions to explore ideas in depth

• Interview individual group members

Observation of group

• Select appropriate framework to collect relevant information about cognitive, social, emotional learning

• Use any conversations with individuals for Assessment for Learning strategies.

• Compare observations and insight from recording between colleagues

How is information from observations useful ?

• Inform planning of differentiated learning

• Inform grouping for other activities

• Shared understanding, learner and parents

• Inform whole school policy and provision

Procedure for Jigsaw activity

• Divide whole group into 4 large groups, • Allocate subject to each group: food, music and

dance, clothes, games and sport• Invite group to allocate roles :scribe, timekeeper,

reporter, chairperson, 3 observers• Large group has limited time to share

experiences and knowledge about Celebrations and Festivals in Kazakhstan.

• Observers use schedules to observe learning in group

Second stage of Jigsaw activity

• Limited time to review information and agree on 5 most important points to report to other groups.

• Group members, except observers, take number 1- ?, then 4 people who are 1s meet etc, and listen to each other – 5 minutes for each presentation, including questions

Feedback from Observers

• Interesting comparison between dynamic in larger group and group of 4 ‘experts’

• Insight into behaviour indicating group members learning from each other

• Significance of allocated roles in group

• Value of group structure for facilitating learning.