Replacing Letters of the Week with Real Learning

Here's another snippet from my new book, Monday Memo: Creating Change in Early Childhood Education, One Message At a Time. 

As we  discussed,  this year will be about building relationships  and implementing developmentally appropriate practice. We  connected the research about how children  learn with the importance of being intentional teachers.  Some of what  we discussed was new to you.  During our discussion of the Vermont standards for kindergarten  readiness, we noted that decoding (reading) and writing are not required skills for four year olds.

 

The amount of time used for teaching letters and sounds can now be used to offer free time experiences that increase their independence,  i.e. getting dressed, communicating  their needs, caring for each other,  problem  solving skills, etc.  You can also  use that time to allow  the children to explore interesting materials that people bring into the classroom.

 

Remember  when we practiced setting up materials in an intentional  way to get the children interested?  Jacquie and Jenn sorted rocks and put them in glass baby food jars. They displayed the jars on a mirror to offer a visual appeal. Then they took a few big shells and placed some small rocks in one and larger rocks in the other. Next to the rocks they placed a magnifying glass. They told us their intent was to encourage the children to explore and maybe sort the rocks by size. We all agreed that this display was much  more interesting than the red bowl of rocks that they usually have sitting in the science area.

 

Developmentally  appropriate practice  and child centered learning  have been  proven  to be excellent  ways to teach children.  This combination  of the constructivist  and sociocultural theories  tells us to create  experiences  that allow children  to construct  meaning. Giving children  ample time to have these experiences lets them  share what  they  are learning  with their peers. The  role of teacher  as facilitator  means  you “guide” learning  experiences, not “teach knowledge.”

Want more?  Order your copy of Monday Memo today at Amazon.com!