So who runs this blog?

I wonder how best to describe myself here… I guess that I’m a bit of a perpetual student. After finishing high school I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do so I picked a subject I liked, Physical Education, and applied to study it at university even though I had no idea what I would do with that degree once I was done.

Degrees in hand, I still had no idea what I wanted to do so I did what former students do best: I spent a year travelling.

Upon returning home I spent some time thinking about what I might want to do. I realized that everything I had previously enjoyed was somehow connected to teaching so I went to Teachers’ College and made a promise to myself that I would give teaching a try to see if I liked it. I ended up specializing in Outdoor and Experiential Education and really wanted to teach in an alternative setting, not a regular classroom.

No outdoor education jobs were available so I ended up teaching at and international school in Switzerland and then other international schools in Germany. It was there I became familiar with the International Baccalaureate’s Primary Years Programme and worked as a classroom teacher, teacher-librarian and curriculum co-ordinator. I whole-heartedly believe in the tenets of the IB-PYP including:

  • teaching and learning should be transdisciplinary
  • teaching and learning is most effective through inquiry since it allows students to construct their own meaning
  • understanding broad global concepts is possible for young learners when you look at local examples
  • assessment should provide feedback to students to aid learning
  • collaboration helps everyone and everything

At my current school, I have taught grade 3, Physical Education and provided Learning Support. I am currently the Information and Communications Technology Integrator for Kindergarten to grade 5. Being able to teach as well as support both students and teachers is a joy and our shift to a 1:1 iPad and laptop school has been a rewarding challenge!

Welcome to my blog,

Lara Jensen