Cox to present at GISA conference

Darlington kindergarten and pre-first teacher Janice Cox will be a presenter at the 2010 Georgia Independent School Association annual conference, to be held Nov. 1 at Holy Spirit Preparatory School in Atlanta.

Her session, titled “Creative Learning for Playtime and Snack,” will focus on creative ways to maximize students’ learning time during the school day. In her own classroom, Cox has set up creative learning spaces that do just that.

"My basic philosophy of education is that learning should be fun,” she said. “I have taught this way for a long time and have loved watching children love to learn. My mother always found incredible ways to allow us to learn as children. She set up the dairy, the post office, the mad scientists’ lab, the telephone operator’s desk and even provided sewing supplies for me to become a fashion designer for my dolls. She has a wisdom about teaching that is wonderful and fun, even though she was never a professional educator. So she was, and still is, my inspiration.”

Cox’s classroom features the “Chubby Cubby” restaurant, which is used during snack time. In this area, students learn numerous math and socialization skills, from menu reading and money counting to serving others with a smile. Another creative space Cox has set up for her students is the “Oval Rug Office,” which teaches respect for our country’s leaders and orderly control. Students serve as the president and vice president, receiving extra pleasures during their day as well as added responsibilities toward their constituents.

“Children learn naturally in a play setting, so providing a creative environment with tools to match the learning objectives allows students to discover and learn as they play,” she said. “We want to help them find the right questions in order for them to discover the right answers. Creativity in the classroom is limitless and the possibilities for joy-filled academics are never ending when we remind ourselves that learning really is fun!”

Cox’s presentation will include a PowerPoint slideshow of photos of Darlington students working in these creative spaces as well as a handout that describes each space, what it teaches and ideas on how to set up something similar in your own classroom.

“I hope to provide a glimmer of excitement that the participants can take back to their classrooms and use,” she said. “We, as educators, cannot afford to become stalemated in our practices. Sharing with other teachers as a presenter provides a fun way to ignite a fresh flame for this profession we have chosen. Students in this digital generation need different stimuli from the previous generation’s learners. Sometimes they seem to have lost the ability to learn with their imaginations. I love to see them find that path, think critically and apply their knowledge while having fun.”