Week One Monday 3rd September 2012The school is a very welcoming environment and the staff and students

here are lovely. It was nice being able to observe the three different elementary classes today and see the range of students and the ways that the classes are run here at this school. I enjoyed getting to know some of the staff and students here of the 3 [Link] my observations today, I found it most interesting to see how the two teachers of the classrooms interact with each other during the day, to work together to create a welcoming environment for students of both linguistic backgrounds. I have found the environments of the classrooms I have visited today, to be warm and welcoming for teachers, students, and [Link] 4th September 2012 Today I visited the Grade 5 and 6, and Grade 7 English, Maths, Science, and Music. I enjoyed the Middle Years Building today. I see the relationship between teacher-student and student-student in the older years as different to traditional teaching which is teacher centred, and resulting from what I've seen so far, I feel that relationships in the school seem to be more positive from the empowerment offered in student centred learning.I found it lovely to see the connections between English learning and Music through song. I was given an opportunity to teach during Grade 7 English today, and I enjoyed it. It was most rewarding to take note of the students' progress from the beginning of the lesson and the end of the lesson, especially in language learning, because I feel that is where the progress of learning is demonstrated in the most frequent of ways. Although I normally spend more time with the younger grades of Elementary School in my elementary school teaching in Sydney, I really enjoyed my experiences with the older grades too, reflecting on, reminding me, and inspiring me about enjoying the flexibility of extending myself to working in all different areas of the school Wednesday 5th September 2012 I spent my day in the Owlets, Eaglets, and Grade Two today, and I really enjoyed it. Reflecting on my experience in the Early Childhood classes, it is so wonderful to see how the foundations for bi-lingual communication are developed from such a young age. Taking the Owlets out on their outside school trip to the park was a good reminder about the level of student organisation and management that is necessary when taking children anywhere within the school and outside it, and I found it to be an overall positive experience getting to see how everyday class routines are so important in a child's learning.I also found it very lovely to see, before, during, and after mealtime, how positive habits and mannerisms are developed from a young age, as evident in the Owlets class. So far from observing the range of classes here at Okinawa International School, I've really enjoyed being in the school. Each grade is unique, but nonetheless, just as enjoyable as the other Thursday 6th September 2012 I had a great day today in the Eaglets 2 class and in the Grade One Class. Working in the Eaglets 2 Class this morning, I was able to observe and

take part in a lesson involving the students' recollection of their excursion yesterday, linked with the learning cycle/learner roles, and I found it very fascinating to see the application of learner inquiry from De Bono's Thinking Hats at an early stage of schooling. It was great to be a part of that lesson, as I enjoyed seeing how students took their understanding of this learning style and theory. The students had PE in the gym later in the morning, and it was nice to join in and see how much the children enjoy their physical activities [Link] Grade One I observed children starting a new unit on Matter. As it was a beginning lesson on this unit, I liked how students were given opportunities to develop their own questions, as to formulate their own processes and drive the direction of their own learning. It is nice how ICT is implemented into the classroom to strengthen learning links in students too, as I feel that being a global citizen and a global educator is about building links in learning through multiple expressions/multiple intelligences.

Friday 7th September 2012 This morning I observed the Elementary school assembly, and the new learner profile was introduced, and followed up in a department meeting afterwards. I enjoyed these assemblies as I thought that they were great opportunities for students and teachers to consider the focus learner profile for the month and consider how they could be implemented inside and outside of the classroom. Later in the day I went with Mr Nakumura to the Okinawa International Centre in Uresoe, where Mr Nakumura presented a seminar on introducing Okinawa, its background, history, and culture. I really enjoyed it and it showed me sides of Okinawa that I had not learnt about previously. Following this was Grade 7 Social Studies which demonstrated students in an Independent Learning context. I thought it was wonderful to see how students took ownership of their learning and it was lovely to see how involved they got. The class had ended and students wanted to keep going, which I saw as an indicator of students' enthusiasm for empowered Self-Learning in a student centred environment. At the end of the day, I was in Teacher Roberts class for IELL and I really appreciate the way that English is built up and taught through offering students different contexts to practise and apply their language skills. Students were studying a text and using their I-pads to record a video to act out the story. I also ended up talking to Teacher Robert about ICT in learning, and it is an area which I am quite interested in following on from my studies in my Masters of Education that specialised in ICT in Education. I think that ICT is an essential component of modern day contemporary education for global citizens and global educators, and I look forward to further discussions about this with Teacher Robert. Well this first week at OIS has gone very quickly and I have had an amazing time here. Week Two Monday 10th September 2012 This week I will be spending my time in Eaglets Two and Grade Two in the morning and afternoon. I spent time working in small groups with the Eaglets Two class during their writing and ELL session earlier today and took part in preparing and practising for their Grandparents Day presentation. From working in small groups, it was nice to see how students support each other in the learning process. As students as young as a Kindergarten class are able to take ownership of their own learning, supervising the small groups demonstrates the empowerment that students feel in these learning arrangements and their willingness to support their fellow classmates. During their rehearsal for Grandparents Day items and the rehearsal of their phonics songs and sounds, it was nice to see how students learn English effectively through rhyme and [Link] the afternoon I was in grade two, helping out students in

constructing their own addition magic squares. The creativity and freedom allowed for students to be quite engaged in their learning activities. Sometime this week I am also arranging to meet with Teacher Robert to discuss some of my background experiences of ICT in Education. Tuesday 11th September 2012 Today I took part in working with a small group in the Eaglets Two classroom to prepare for and present a presentation. This also involved a self-assessment for the group as well as a peer assessment. I thought that this was a great way for students to build a rapport with one another and to create a positive learning environment that is not competitive, like when the focus is on academics and scores and the like. So far my experiences of taking part in the teaching and learning cycle here at Okinawa International School has demonstrated an inclusive and holistic approach to education, which I think is wonderful!This afternoon I was in the Grade 2 classroom. From my experiences in this classroom, I have decided to have a look for resources and references from my past teaching experiences and studies in Behaviour Management and Positive Learning Environments to assist the teacher of this class, which in turn will benefit students' learning atmosphere as well as benefit my own experiences here too.I also taught a small group of students in ELL this afternoon. From the beginning of the class I set the expectation of English only in the class and the group responded well to it. My experience with this group today reminds me of the importance of expectations and agreements for students, as opposed to simply setting rules. Empowerment and self-responsibility has played a big role in shaping the ways that I have perceived students' overall enthusiasm for their own [Link] afternoon I am meeting with Teacher Robert again to discuss some of the research and experiences that I had in the past with implementing ICT in education. Wednesday 12th September 2012 Today in the Eaglets 2 class I took part in a lesson involving students exploring the history of televisions and telephones. I thought that this lesson was very interactive for students as it involved them thinking about the developments of these inventions and exploring the reasoning behind their answers. It was also lovely to see how students could form links with this lesson through being able to reflect on older style technology images and media from the Internet and through watching a video demonstrating the concept of inventing itself. Later in the afternoon, students took part in Maths, and I enjoyed the teaching of skip counting through song and [Link] the Grade two classroom in the afternoon, students were giving presentations on consumption. While it seems so natural for students to speak to each other in Japanese in this class, it's the scaffolding of English usage that provides the nurturing environment for students to have a go at speaking English in this class. It is nice to see students having a go with their English and trying even when they might be stuck for words. Today in this class, it was good to see how students think about their language - ie

they think about how to describe their language in the sense of metalanguage. This afternoon I have another meeting with Teacher Robert to talk about past research in ICT education. Thursday 13th September 2012 This morning I took the Eaglets 2 class through their morning routine during circle time. To me, it reflects on the importance of routine for children in teaching and learning, as a way of helping them find their place in the classroom, and to set them up for the day. I find it so lovely that the values of a caring community spirit are instilled in children from such a young age, as this sets them up to be global citizens, through equipping them with attitudes and values that have students demonstrate respect and tolerance for one [Link] in the morning I went with the Eaglets 2 class to the Museum for their OET. It is great that there are regular school trips for the students, as these provide students with opportunities to develop a sense of and an understanding of the learning content and concepts through appropriate contexts, which creates more authenticity in the learning that takes [Link] the afternoon, I taught Maths in Grade Two. As the children were reviewing their Multiplication tables, and needed more practise with their English, I decided to write a worksheet involving Multiplication word problems which students had to read and then write as numeric sentences. I thought that this was a good way to engage different learning processes. Although I would have liked to include images on the worksheet, I made use of the whiteboard and drew images to represent the different groupings of numbers as asked in the questions that I had written for students. I felt that I managed the class well through a combination of verbal and non-verbal communication as well as encouraging their work efforts, and reminding them of my initial behavioural expectations before I started teaching. I have thought about it, and maybe non-verbal communication is something I will need to use regularly here at a bi-lingual school such as OIS, as the students may not always understand what is being asked of them if I was to speak to them all the time to guide their [Link] I have another meeting with Teacher Robert to discuss some further research in ICT, as well as my perceptions of ICT at OIS as well as my vision for developments in ICT at OIS and how I think I can contribute to that.