Project: Intentional Teaching Capstone

Dominique Diamond
Assessing Student Learning
Professor Williams
Over the course of the month of March, students in classroom 105 learned about
tubes and tunnels. They first explored the concept of what a tunnel is, what a tunnels
purpose is, and what they look like. First, we read Tunnels by Gail Gibbons, then we explored
how objects move through tunnels and tubes with our tunnel bin. Using a story to introduce
this topic helped give children background knowledge to build on for the next activity. Story
time targeted language development by encouraging vocabulary, print awareness and
phonological awareness. The tunnel bin activity targeted cognitive development increasing
attention span, memory, and critical thinking skills.
During the first activity, we read Tunnels by Gail Gibbons. Children learned
vocabulary word surrounding the topic. As I read through the book student were repeating
back vocabulary words, and they related the story to their lives when one student told me
she was going to see one when she went on a train. When we did our tunnel bin activity Each
student made predications on how they thought our materials would move through the
tunnels. Children were engaged with the activity showing curiosity in the cause and effect of
dropping the ball through our tunnel.
In the following days, we had tabletop toys we built tunnels with magna tiles. Each
student used different tiles and shapes to make their version of a tunnel. After they made
their tunnel, we got our toy cars and pushed them through the tunnels. We watched as the
cars passed through each student’s creation. At art students used paper towel rolls to make
a train tunnel. First, they decorated their tunnel with different art materials like maker,
paint, and gemstones. Once, dried we took popsicle sticks and green construction paper and
make train track glued them on and then we glued on their tunnels.
For each activity, I modeled vocabulary and asked questions, encouraging children to
make connections and relate the topic to their lives. I used extension activities to reinforce
the concept of tunnels. Reading at a calm pace with pauses allowed children a moment to
ask questions or reflect on the information they just heard. I used questions to encourage
thinking both open and closed ended questions. When I guided conversation in the activity I
tried to help them relate this topic to their everyday lives. I asked if they went under tunnels
before, in the book a school bus was going through a tunnel, so I ask them if they go through
a tunnel on their bus ride to school.
Children are in the preoperational stage of Piaget’s theory. They reflected their
developmental levels across different developmental domains during each activity.
Cognitively children engaged in problem solving and spatial reasoning. Linguistically children
used new vocabulary words and communicated ideas to their peers. Children took turns with
the materials for the tunnel bin highlighting social-emotional development. Children used
fine and gross motor skills during the tunnel bin. They stood around the table and used their
pincher grasp to pick up each ball and role it down the tunnel.
Based on my assessment of the students, there are a few things I would change. In
the future I would add more materials. I would make more than one tunnel bin, and I would
include several balls made from different materials. I think offering more materials would
keep all the students engaged in the lesson. I would break the story time into smaller groups.
Doing this would allow me to provide additional support to children who need it. Overall, the
lessons on Tunnels supported children’s learning within multiple domains of development.
The lesson encouraged communication, engagement and meaningful hands- on exploration.
References
Sullivan, L. E. (2009). Preoperational Stage. In The SAGE Glossary of the Social and Behavioral
Sciences (Vol. 3, pp. 400–400). SAGE Publications, Inc.
https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412972024.n1973
Drifte, C. (2013). Early learning goals for children with special needs : learning through play
(1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315070001