Why....Monkey Cheeks??

Miss Piyanuch, my dear colleague told me about her lovely experience with her students. She told me that last Tuesday evening  she  taught Grade 4 students about living things around them. She asked the students the question: "What is your favorite animal?" All students were eager to answer the questions: "I like dogs. I like cats. I like birds. I like dinosaurs....." Most of the students answered the questions except Chuwit whose face looked very thoughtful. She decided to ask him the same question " Chuwit, what is your favorite animal?" Chuwit stood up suddenly and answered "I like snakes but I have a question in my mind?" Miss Piyanuch responded "Please ask your question, Chuwit?" Finally he asked shyly "Why does the King like the Monkey Cheeks?" All the students laughed.

Miss Piyanuch was nerveless for a while. First, she didn't think that a monkey is the King's favorite animal because she heard that the King loves Tongdaeng (his dog). Finally she decided to ask Chuwit "Why do you think the King likes monkeys?" He answered "I often heard the King mention monkeys.Yesterday I watched a TV news program. The King talked about the Monkey Cheeks and flood". 

At last Miss Piyanuch understood at once why Chuwit thought that "the King likes monkeys". She realized suddenly that to fulfil Chuwit's understanding about "The Monkey Cheeks Project (Kaem Ling)" she must explain further. (Kaem Ling Project initiated by His Majesty the King is a drainage work from upper area through the canal southwards to a large storage canal near seashore.)

Would you please introduce tools for Miss Piyanuch to help Chuwit? Don't answer "Wikis" because it is my answer.

Please help Doraemon! It is hurt!

Young children have the world of imagination. Their world of imagination and real world overlap each other. Sometimes young children cannot separate which one is true or which one is imagination.

Last week I asked my students to tell their activities during a long holiday to their classmates. I heard one student said "I bought a whale and fed it in my house." Another boy said "I went to the zoo. I saw a mother dragon was giving birth." When his friends asked "How many baby dragons are there?"He answered "Fourteen!".

A week later, I assigned the students to write a passage "My Favorite Cartoon Character". First, I talked to them about their favorite cartoons. Later, I guided them to search for information about those cartoons from Wikis and search link from Wiki references. Finally, the students presented in front of the class.

After I assigned this task, I overheard my students talking about their favorite cartoons. It's funny. One student said "I've thought that Superman was a  human but in fact it is just a cartoon." Another student said "I won't cry anymore when Doraemon was hurt because it is only a cartoon character."

It seems my imagination will be absorbed by my students. I may have to search like my students "Is Wiki true? or It's just a cartoon character like Doraemon!!".

Wiki....A Tool for Facilitating Mother

I am happy to be a primary teacher. The nature of primary students are eager to learn new things. Each day I have to answer my students' innocent questions e.g. Why is an elephant bigger than a pig? Where are aliens? Why does my grandmother have grey hair? etc. I enjoy answering their questions and my students are happy to listen me explain about amazing stories. I do not forget to add details, tips and tricks to fulfill the answers. Wiki is my best friend at this time. I do not need to go to the library, just click Wikis, the answers will stampede like water flowing from a tap. It makes me feel more confidence to talk to my students.

As a class teacher, I have to meet parents on "Open Day" every semester. Most parents who attended the meeting were "mothers". During the meeting we exchanged opinions each other about students' behaviors, students and online games, teaching and learning etc. The highlight of the meeting that day was "homework is too much". One mother lifted her hand and said  "Last week a Social studies teacher assigned the students to do the report about "Sukothai.. the ancient capital of Thailand" I have to help my son to search for the information with tear". All mothers agreed because they were serious and could not facilitate their sons as well.

At the meeting, I walked in front of the class and said "Mother! Listen to me!I can help you." I showed how to search for information, how to select and how to guide their children from Wikis. I saw smiles on the mothers' faces. Before they went home, one mother walked to me and whispered "Thank you Miss Wilairat to introduce Wikis!  Wikis help me go to bed early".

That day I went home with smile and had a good dream. Thank you "Wikis" again to make my life enjoyable.

It's not me....... to make Bangkok flood !

Last week Grade 6 students studied creative art lesson. The teacher assigned them to create things from  their own imagination. If you come into this classroom, don't be frightened because there are various kinds of objects e.g. dinosaurs, spaceships, robots, buffaloes. I like to visit this room and feel appreciated to these creative students' work.

One morning, when I passed this room, I saw a group of students spraying silver colour on their artifacts. I understood at once that it was a robot who destroys the world. Another group was moulding a cray house. A few seconds later, the students from this group walked to watch the robot. After they watched it carefully, one of the students said " You make Bangkok flood!". A quarrel started and it seemed not to finish. I interrupted them with a question "What happened?" Each student scrambled to explain. I stopped the evidence by ordering "Let's continue your work and we will discuss this issue the next period".

Next period, I posted the topic for discussion "The Affect of Spray to the Environment". Super Robot Group argued that flood was not related to spray. Another group insisted that the spray has an affect to flood because they watched the documentary from television. It said that "spray make the world hotter one degree censius. It results polar ice melt and Bangkok will be flood in the future. Discussion was continuing for a while but the contents that the students discuss seemed to be opinions than facts. I decided to tell the students to leave this discussion and assigned them to search for more information from "Wiki" and discussed later. I didn't forget to remind them to consider the information carefully that it comes from facts  based on scientific principle or opinions.

One week later, each group well prepared the information to present in class. I noticed that most information were reliable without opinions and based on scientific principle. Each group could present in step covering every side.  The argument was also discussed based on scientific principle. At the end, Super Robot Group showed "a spray can" to class and read its mixtures loudly with a slide on the projector. The slide showed the affect of chemical substances that resulted to global warming from "Wiki". Now my students understand each other. Thank you Wiki!

Help! A Nuclear Power Plant is growing in my Backyard!

Last week, Preecha (one of my students) told me that he overheard adults discussing the nuclear power plant which is being built behind their village. A lot of officers came with instruments for surveying the area. The adults seemed to be worried about the danger of nuclear reaction. Preecha asked me whether that was true or not. He asked, “If it was true, why would the government still build them?” I had never researched this, so I couldn't answer my student.

The next day, we brought  up this issue for discussion in the class to help clarify my student's doubt and my own. Every student was excited because they imagined about the reactions in their heads. The students were divided into groups to search for the information about advantages and disadvantages of Nuclear Power Plants as well as the need to build them. The students were assigned to search for information via the "wikis".

A few days later, a lot of information about Nuclear Power Plants were gushing from the students who were eager to learn more deeply. Every student participated in the discussion by presenting various perspectives about the necessity of electrical energy in their daily life. There were two different perspectives amongst my students. The first group thought that nuclear power plants are the safest and cheapest at this time. The second group focused on the problems that might come after the nuclear material has been used. Although it was a significant word from wikis "Three Mile Island accident" and "Chernobyl disaster" but I concluded that Preecha was worried that "If it  happens, how will his family and neighbours cope?".

I am now considering whether I'm going to encourage my students to oppose Nuclear Power Plants or not. I can lay the blame with "wikis"for  leading my students to search for a wide range of different information.

This is an example of a clip from "wikis" that one group of my students presented in front of the class. I felt dreadful when I watched it. Let's watch it and tell me what do you think?