Professional Practice
Standard 3: Plan for and implement effective teaching & learning

A lesson observation report on the Personal Development and Health (PDH) subject “Using digital devices safely” which was implemented in a Kindergarten classroom during my final placement.

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I used a variety of verbal and non-verbal communication strategies but ensured that complementary messages were relayed by both strategies, as highlighted by Ground-Water Smith, Ewing and Le Cornu (2015), for sustained engagement and improved outcomes for students.

Variations in resources used for the lesson was part of an effective non-verbal strategy for sustained engagement. I incorporated an active game as the introduction of the lesson, used ICT, and maintained a good balance of group and independent work.

Pausing during activities at the right juncture also proved to be an effective non-verbal communication strategy. As explained in the detailed report, during the grouping game – where students formed groups to acknowledge differences in their names, home addresses, and other identity information and why this information needed to be private for safety – I often paused to regain students’ focus and explain how and why the groups were formed.

Also, pausing for high-needs and challenging behaviour students before vital lesson information was delivered ensured maximum reception of information for improved student learning.

Regarding verbal strategies of communication, acknowledgement of positive behaviour by using an established happy and sad face framework in the classroom was an effective strategy for sustained engagement. I used this framework to acknowledge students’ behaviour as well as pertinent contributions to the discussion of the topic. I used positive reinforcement more frequently to highlight examples for other students to follow than to highlight off-task behaviours, to maintain a positive environment in the classroom.

Regular questioning during discussions to retain focus and encourage students to contribute, especially if they seemed off-task, was another verbal strategy to regain focus and maintain effective classroom communication.