Fluent Essays

My assignment is due in 8 hours and there is no extra time.  You will complete Draft activity plan word document and create a language/literacy activity for young kids.  There are 3 pdf attachment you can read that will give you guidance on how to make one.  You can use the sample activity plan pdf to guide  this is only a draft so it does not need to be perfect. MUST BE ON LANGUAGE/LITERACY LBCC-CDECE 50 Draft Activity Plan Name: _____________________________________________________________________________________ 1. Name and brief description: 2. Justification: 3. Objective: By participating in this activity children will: (I will know this when I see/hear children…) 4. Space and materials: 5. Procedure: 6. Guidance: 7. Resources: by Deb Curtis The birds living in a tree just outside the window of our school generated quite a stir among the three- and five-year- old children in the program where I am a child care teacher. There was much excitement and delight as the children observed the birds build a nest and care for their new babies. To take advantage and extend on this wonder-filled event, I decided to gather some props and materials for our indoor environment and invite the children to more personally explore and represent what they were seeing through the window. At the local craft store I found some beautiful bird families made from feathers, a set of tiny plastic eggs, and a few bird nests commercially made from twigs and feathers. I also collected feathers, dried leaves, grass, and moss and a variety of small, flat baskets. I carefully arranged these items on the top of a low shelf in the classroom and displayed books about birds and nests nearby. The children eagerly accepted this invitation, imitating the drama they had been observing out the window. They were especially drawn to acting out how the bird parents cared for their babies. The children also designed elaborate nests with the natural materials, sharing their theories about what kinds of nests the birds would like. Over the next month the children continued to play with the birds and nests, poured over the books about them, and par- ticipated in many other activities and conversations sparked by this enchanting event in nature and the opportunity to pursue it in active, meaningful ways. In my work as a preschool teacher I have found that offering information about things that children have limited experi- ences with, or posing a series of questions to try to encourage their thinking doesn’t seem to get much of a lively or sus- tained response. But when I carefully arrange props and rep- resentational materials in the environment with a particular focus in mind, the children are delighted to discover and play with them, eagerly share their ideas and theories, and seek more information. Because of this I have been steadily collecting, organizing, arranging, and offering props and representational materials that captivate children’s interest. Designing Invitations I call collections of interesting and carefully combined materials “Invitations” and I use them in a number of ways: ■ Invitations to respond to and enhance an emerging interest, as with the Bird Invitation described above. When I observe an interest among the group I intentionally organize props and materials for children to revisit and represent their ideas. As I observe their conversations and activities, I get new information for what else to offer to extend the activities and learning possibilities. ■ Invitations to help children learn new skills and multiple uses for tools and materials that are a part of the daily environment. I arrange materials and make displays throughout the regular areas of the room, often including documentation with diagrams, instructions, or photos of children’s previous work in this area. For example, I arrange blocks and other block props in specific ways that suggest new possibilities for building and design and include photos of children’s previous block constructions. The children use these Invitations as launching points for revisiting their work, adding complex ideas, and trying new skills. Deb Curtis has been a preschool and childcare teacher at the Burlington Little School in Burlington, Washington for the past seven years. She is also co-author of several books with Margie Carter. This article was extracted from their latest book Designs for Living and Learning, Transforming Early Childhood Environments, published by Redleaf Press. 38 Child Care Information Exchange May/June 2004 Creating Invitations for Learning Single copy reprint permission from Child Care Information Exchange PO Box 3249, Redmond, WA 98073 • (800)221-2864 • www.ChildCareExchange.com Multiple use copy agreement available for educators by request. ■ Invitations to offer activities and experiences with particular content knowledge. Designing Invitations related to math, science, social studies, literacy, and other content areas of early childhood education gives children experiences in wonderful ways that are engaging and natural for their active learning styles. When creating these Invitations I try to highlight a particular skill, concept, or information, and offer an engaging way to explore or practice the concepts. For example, I created a small sensory tub filled with lavender scented rice and included an array of hollow, plastic, three dimensional geometric shapes for children to fill with the rice. As the children work, they are exploring the physical knowledge related to geometric forms and spatial relation- ships. We name the words for the shapes as they are filling them — cube, cone, etc. ■ Invitations to introduce children to new concepts or events. When I want to plan for a particular topic or concept, I arrange a collection of materials and props in an accessible place in the room for the children to visit and use through- out the day. I observe their actions and record their conver- sations so I can uncover their ideas and understandings for further planning. For example, I assembled a display of dolls with different skin colors, photos, and books about the Civil Rights Movement and differences among people. I left them out a few weeks before the celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday. As the children interacted with the materials, I took note of what they seemed to know and understand about the life of Dr. King. I was sur- prised to discover how little the children knew about this great man, but also heartened to see their intense interest in his life and work around issues of fairness. The informa- tion and interactions spurred by this simple Invitation helped me design more meaningful activities around the holiday celebrations, based on the children’s ideas and awareness. Principles for Designing Invitations As I have been studying how to collect and create Invitations, I have drawn inspiration from many sources. Maria Montes- sori and her well-known materials and methods, including Practical Life activities has made such an important contribu- tion to my practice. Fredrick Froebel, known as the father of kindergarten and the inventor of blocks, described his approach to organizing and offering materials as “Gifts” for learning. The educators from the schools of Reggio Emilia, Italy, talk of “provocation” and have given us innovative ideas for the kinds of materials that engage children and care- ful, aesthetically beautiful ways to display them. I have also learned from many early childhood teachers and caregivers and their creative collections of Curriculum Prop Boxes. All of these sources are worth studying as you seek to enhance children’s use and learning with materials in your environ- ment. The most important source for my learning about collecting and arranging Invitations in my child care room has been from the children themselves. When children are offered interesting open-ended materials, which are thoughtfully combined and arranged, you will see them work in amazing, yet predictable ways. ■ Exploring — Children are drawn to the sensory aspect of materials. Principle: Look for collections that have textures, interesting surfaces for touching or looking at or looking through, things that make sounds or move in interesting ways. Natural materials are always a good source for this kind of exploration. ■ Transforming — Children are completely mesmerized with transforming materials and rearranging the world around them. Principle: Look for materials and substances that can be changed, moved, reconfigured, or otherwise have some kind of cause and effect quality. ■ Organizing and Designing — With an interesting, varied collection of materials preschool children will organize them by their attributes or use them in beautiful designs. Principle: Find collections of materials that have similarities and differences and can be used for sorting, patterning, and designing. ■ Building and Constructing — Young children like to put things together in relationship to each other, to connect things to other things, and to use building and construction materials to represent many aspects of their ideas and understandings. May/June 2004 Child Care Information Exchange 39 40 Child Care Information Exchange May/June 2004 Principle: Along with typical early childhood construction materials, seek out interesting shapes and sizes of items for building as well as things that can be used to decorate con- structions. I also look for loose parts and recycled materials that resemble parts of something else, such as an airplane wing, a boat shape, or a dinosaur’s scales. ■ Dramatizing — With limited props preschool-age children will turn anything into dramatic play. Principle: Keep an eye out for props and figures that can be added to any of the above background materials for an adventure or story. ■ Drawing — Drawing is a natural medium for young children to express their ideas. Principle: Regularly provide tools for children to draw and write as a part of Invitations. ■ Reading — Children will thoughtfully study books and visual information related to a collection of props they have been using for exploring and representing. Principle: Include resource books, stories, photos, posters, diagrams, and instructions to enrich the use of the materials by offering new suggestions and extensions, and support the development of literacy skills. Collecting� Arranging� and Displaying Invitations The set of materials I gather depends on the focus of the Invitation I am creating. I always make sure that the collection has at least three or four aspects from the list above so the children will have a variety of options for combining and using the materials. I am always searching for items that con- vey a sense of magic and wonder, treasures that beg to be a part of a drama or creation as well as those that are substan- tial and have an important aspect or function. For example, in an Invitation to explore stones, I gathered a set of identical stones of varying sizes that are smooth and heavy to touch; they can be seriated by size, balanced and stacked into a tower, or designed as a habitat for a drama using a family of plastic snakes. Included with the collection are books about designs in nature, rocks, and snakes. I have found that the way materials and props are offered is as critical to their use as what is offered. Thoughtfully col- lected and carefully placed materials help children focus on what is available and spark their ideas and actions. When arranging the display, it is important to position the materials in an orderly fashion so the children can see what is available and the possibilities for their use. ■ Designate an accessible location with enough space for one to four children to work with the Invitation, such as a low shelf, counter top, or small table. If I’m creating an Invita- tion in a regular area of the room, I make sure it is out of the way of the typical use and traffic flow. ■ Provide a background for the materials such as a cloth or a tray to highlight the materials and define the work area. I think of this as offering figure/ground support like a puzzle, or a blank artist’s palette to invite the work that will be done. ■ Offer collections of like objects, for example all metal tools in the sensory table, all wood containers for sorting, or all natural baskets for storage. These like objects create a context for the materials so the Invitation does not look cluttered. ■ Place like objects in baskets near the tools and materials they can be used with so the children can see what is available and how the materials relate to each other. ■ Arrange the materials in beautiful ways that suggest how they might be used. For example, design a beginning pattern with tiles, partially build a small construction, offer an example of a simple drawing done with colored pencils, place the correct number of beads in the section of a tray with the corresponding numeral. Scouting for Invitations Once you begin providing interesting open-ended materials and observe the marvelous ways the children use them, you will be eager to search for and provide more. Always be on the lookout in thrift stores, craft stores, garden shops, and garage and estate sales. You can develop an eye for the perfect treasure based on what you have seen children do with simi- lar materials. You can also take a chance and offer children something that jumps out and captures your own curiosity. It’s always delightful and surprising to see the children’s unique ideas and approaches. What better way to offer learn- ing experiences — as an invitation to wonder, explore, and create in as many ways as possible! CURRICULUM 45 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2011 EXCHANGE If nature has commanded that of all the animals, infancy shall last longest in human beings — it is because nature knows how many rivers there are to cross and paths to retrace. Nature provides time for mistakes to be corrected (by both children and adults), for prejudices to be overcome, and for children to catch their breath and restore their image of themselves, peers, parents, teachers, and the world. (Malaguzzi, 1998, p. 80) Introduction For those who are tired of old images and practices, Malaguzzi suggests that there is time for mistakes to be corrected. New paths of practice can be forged by being willing to consider another way of teach- ing and learning with young children. And as with any change in professional practice, teachers face cognitive disso- nance when they try to reconcile their current practice with new ideas. This is the story of what happened when four teachers abandoned their theme-based approach in favor of the uncharted terri- tory of an emergent curriculum, and how this act impacted their practice and their self-image. It is also the story of a personal journey. I spent years as a preschool teacher strug- gling with the theme approach. I knew that there was a better way, but in spite of purchasing numerous books and at- tending conferences and workshops, my curriculum practice was not innovative. My practice was run-of-the mill and com- monplace. When I became a director, I had the opportunity to work with a teach- er who adopted an innovative approach to curriculum planning. Themes could last more than one week and the ideas for themes did not just connect to holidays, the weather, and preschool concepts such as colours, numbers, and the alphabet. I vividly recall how, for one month’s time, her classroom became the Hundred Acre Wood inspired by the children’s favou- rite literary character, Winnie the Pooh. However, I was dismayed and frustrated with the inability of the other teachers to abandon their own theme-based practice. When I left my position as director to become a teacher educator, I left the op- portunity to practice a curriculum that was not run-of-the-mill and common- place, but innovative and authentic. Un- fortunately, I was not aware of emergent curriculum when I was working with children. As a result of my experiences, I decided to focus my doctoral research on four teachers implementing emergent curriculum so that I could better under- stand how it could impact teaching practice. Past practice The four teachers in question — Felicia, Rose, Mary, and Layla — described their past practice in this way: n Themes were the preferred approach. n The curriculum was routine and tightly scripted. n The routine provided a level of comfort to those who were using it. n A tightly controlled time frame of one- week intervals was used. n The teachers controlled the curriculum; children had little input. Diane Kashin, EdD, is a professor at Seneca College in Toronto. She completed her Doctorate of Education degree from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. Her thesis, “Reaching the Top of the Mountain: The Impact of Emergent Curriculum on the Practice and Self-Image of Early Childhood Educators,” was published in 2009 and is available from amazon.com. Her first textbook, Playing and Learning In Early Childhood Education (co-authored with Beverlie Dietze), will be published by Pearson Canada in 2011. Diane is currently the president of the Association for Early Childhood Educators of Ontario and is a consultant with the Acorn School, the site of her summer experience with emergent curriculum. From theme-based to emergent curriculum Four teachers change and learn about themselves, the children, and authentic practice by Diane Kashin Reprinted with permission from Exchange magazine. Visit us at www.ChildCareExchange.com or call (800) 221-2864. Multiple use copy agreement available for educators by request. 46 CURRICULUM EXCHANGE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2011 The theme approach to curriculum planning is described as linear, lock- step, and segmented by subject (Wien, 2004) or what Felicia referred to as ‘fill- ing in the boxes.’ A matrix of activities guided the week’s activities and there was little opportunity for discovery or emerging directions if they conflicted with the ‘theme of the week.’ In this approach, there is no opportunity to “revisit children’s work to incorporate principles of editing” which Clemens (1999) calls “the permission to start wrong” (p. 2). Rose’s observation that “by the end of the week your theme is done even if the children want to know more” shifted the teachers’ attention to what was happening in their class- rooms. Themes are based on the assumption that “all children will benefit and be in- terested.” Themes do not acknowledge each child’s uniqueness and they do not “empower children to become part of the planning process” (Crowther, 2003, p. 40). Mary agreed, saying, “[Themes were] more structured, more teacher di- rected. This is what we are doing today, this is what we are doing tomorrow and this is what we are doing next week.” As Fraser (2000) suggests, in the field of early childhood education sometimes . . . Experiences that happen in the class- room have little relationship to the writ- ten plans. . . . [Children} come up with more interesting ideas than the teachers had thought of. . . . [Teachers] “find themselves caught in the dilemma of sticking with the theme or abandoning it and following the children’s inter- ests” (p. 124). As Felicia recalled: “When I was transforming from filling in the boxes to emergent curriculum, the boxes couldn’t hold everything, only one physical activity, one cogni- tive, one social. This is the limitation.” The need to change Except for Felicia, the others had not questioned or deliberated on the practice of themes. However, increasingly Felicia had difficulty reconciling the emerging, expressed interest of the children with the prescribed theme-of-the-week and began to reflect on her teaching practice in a way that questioned the use of themes. Felicia recalls feelings of frustration and a lack of authenticity in implementing themes. For Felicia this was the driving force in seeking alternative approaches. Felicia contends, “If you are following the tradi- tional curriculum, it gets in the way of real meaningful learning.” Felicia’s perception was that themes “did not feel right.” Wien (1995) refers to theme-based practice as re- flecting a ‘teacher dominion orientation.’ In this practice, teachers choose the activ- ity, its purposes, and its design, and then implement it. Ownership of the activity belongs to the teacher: part of the activ- ity is persuading children to her purpose, motivating them (p. 8). Wien’s (1995) case study of a teacher whose program planning was based on themes offers some insights. This teacher found the “traditional content she has been using for themes: shapes, colours, alphabet, and numbers (which is remark- ably similar to the content of traditional kindergarten and primary classrooms) increasingly boring” (p. 24). The teacher saw part of her role as familiarizing children with material they will encounter in school. Themes are based on a school model. Early childhood teachers feel it provides an academic focus especially with the use of worksheets. “The teacher controls the agenda for action” and “there is a prescribed range of possible responses that the children are permitted; activity outside the range is corrected” (Wien, 1995, p. 8). Wien’s characterization of the limitations of the theme-based approach fit with what Rose had been observing. She described how she had seen teachers reacting to children colouring outside the lines while completing worksheets. “Mommy is not going to like it because you are colouring outside the lines.” In trying to duplicate a school model, early childhood programs use instructional group experiences, construction paper cut-outs (e.g. turkeys at Thanksgiving, pumpkins at Halloween, and shamrocks for St. Patrick’s Day) and worksheets to ‘teach’ the children. Abandoning themes When I began my study, Mary, Felicia, Layla, and Rose had all abandoned the use of themes. The focus of curriculum planning for each participant had become project work and all were attempting to implement an emergent curriculum with varying results. Project work and emer- gent curriculum, it appears, do not always go hand-in-hand. n Projects can become predetermined by the teachers once an interest has been established. n While projects are labeled ‘emergent curriculum,’ once there is an expressed interest in the topic by the children, the teachers take over. n Teachers respond to children’s initial interest by collecting related resources and provide connecting activities, and the project becomes teacher directed. n The direction of the project is pre-deter- mined and teacher controlled. Layla, Felicia, and Rose engaged the children in class meetings to make group decisions about the direction of the project. In this way: n The children had the opportunity to decide how they would make decisions; “would it be consensus or majority rules?” n The children were presented with topics representing the emerging CURRICULUM 47 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2011 EXCHANGE that with the practice she is “more alert to what the children are talking about and showing interest in.” When asked whether she is satisfied with emergent curriculum, she answers with a quali- fying, “pretty satisfied.” She says, “I don’t know how far to go when doing emergent curriculum. How much is going to be too structured? I need a bal- ance between structure and completely emergent.” Layla, on the other hand, asserts that she is “extremely satisfied” and it is the “best curriculum we ever had.” Rose claims she is “very satisfied” with her approach to curriculum even though she was initially resistant. She asserts, “Now I cannot comprehend pre-cut” and proclaims, “I wouldn’t know how to go back.” Felicia believes that if it were not for emergent curriculum she would not be working in the field. Emergent curriculum has lent authenticity to her practice. Final thoughts For me, this journey of discovery has shed much light on the practice of emer- gent curriculum. I discovered that emer- gent curriculum has transformational possibilities such as depicted in Reggio Emilia’s Hundred Languages of Children Exhibit. Having multiple opportunities to visit the exhibit during its tenure in Toronto has made me a believer. It has been the stories of these four teachers, coupled with the inspiration from the marvelous documentation pan- els of the exhibit, that have motivated me to once again seek the experience of working directly with children. For two months during my summer holiday, I worked in a Reggio-inspired program. I relished the possibilities inherent when learning with and from children on a daily basis. I appreciated the opportu- nity of establishing reciporical relation- ships with children, parents, and other teachers. I cherished the chance I had were encouraged to explore, discover, inquire, predict, and theorize. The teach- ers had to work hard to pique and sus- tain the children’s interest in this topic. In Felicia’s classroom, the children were able to identify artistic elements and characteristics of the great masters of the art world. By limiting the number of artists for the children, she allowed for more in-depth study than would have been possible with a larger number. When the children in Rose’s program arrived after attending school for a full day, they encountered resources and activities that engaged their sense of wonder and discovery about snakes. In Mary’s classroom, the children seemed to have an abundance of knowl- edge related to the Lion King movie. Teachers’ reflections on the process Becoming a teacher of emergent cur- riculum is not easy. Layla recalled the experience of losing control of the cur- riculum when she began to implement an emergent curriculum. She recalls the experience as being traumatic. She felt vulnerable. Layla was in the vulnerable position outside of the “teacher domin- ion” (Wien, 1995, p. 5). By stepping out of this comfort zone to a place of cogni- tive discomfort, Layla experienced the colliding of past and present practice. Layla recalls that it took considerable time for her to accept emergent cur- riculum to define her practice. Now she claims “it has given me more confidence in what I do.” Rose also recalls being initially resistant. Felicia took to the practice immediately, accepting the dis- comfort as the impetus for growth and development. She now views emergent curriculum as being ‘instrumental’ in keeping her in the field. Mary is less than enthusiastic about emergent curriculum, but acknowledges interests of the group and a decision was made about the project that would unfold. n The children reacted to waning interest and the development of emerging topics. n The children expressed and transcribed ideas and theories about the project and determined its direction. In contrast, Mary determined the activi- ties that were presented every day which related to her project on animals. Interest- ingly, Mary is the only one of the four teachers who was not transformed by the change to a project approach. Even though the centre she had worked in professed to be ‘Reggio-inspired,’ she was dissatisfied with emergent curriculum and admit- ted to not knowing what is meant to ‘do Reggio.’ Mary struggled with children’s behavioural issues in her classroom and felt the need to maintain control. What was missing for Mary that was there for the other three? My research suggests that the following components are necessary for a successful practice of emergent curriculum: n On-site support n Access to professional development n An intrinsic desire to change n A collaborative approach to curriculum that includes parents, teachers, and chil- dren By sharing control of the curriculum and letting go of the belief that a teacher has to have all the knowledge and make all the decisions, a classroom can actually appear more in control. Neither Rose, Layla, nor Felicia had daily issues with children’s behaviour. All of the participants viewed their projects as an opportunity for chil- dren to acquire knowledge on their respec- tive topics, but also to provide children with active involvement in the emerging curriculum: The children in Layla’s class were able to identify common weather patterns as well as speculate upon cause and effect. They 48 CURRICULUM EXCHANGE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2011 Additional resources on emergent curriculum Carter, M. (2006). Giving children more languages. CD-ROM. Mechanicsburg, PA: Harvest Resources. Carter, M. (1999). Thinking big: Extend- ing emergent curriculum projects. DVD. Mechanicsburg, PA: Harvest Resources. Carter, M. (2004). To see takes time: Growing curriculum from children’s theories. DVD. Mechanicsburg, PA: Harvest Resources. Forman, G., & Gandini, L. (2006). The Amusement Park for Birds DVD. Am- herst, MA: Videatives, Inc. to practice documenting a project. For me, I had finally lived first-hand emer- gent curriculum within a Reggio-inspired environment. At the end of the summer I felt confident to stand before another new succession of pre-service early childhood education students in my classroom having practiced what I preach. References Clemens, G. S. (1999, Spring). Editing permission to start wrong. Early Childhood Research and Practice, 1, 1. Crowther, I. (2003). Creating effective learn- ing environments. Scarborough, Ontario: Thomson and Nelson. Fraser, S. (2000). Authentic childhood: Experiencing Reggio Emilia in the classroom. Scarborough, Ontario: Nelson Fraser. Malaguzzi, L. (1998). History, ideas, and basic philosophy. In C. Edwards, L. Gandini, & G. Forman (Eds.), The hundred languages of children: The Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education (pp. 49- 77). Norwood, NJ: Albex. Wien, C. A. (1995). Developmentally appropriate practice in “real life”: Stories of teacher practical knowledge. Teachers Col- lege Press: New York. Writing Learning Objectives Bloom’s Taxonomy: A classification of Educational Learning When writing activity plans for young children it is essential that the objectives be clear and observable. With young children the only way you can know what they know is through observation. There is a tool called Bloom's Taxonomy that can help you to write objectives that will be observable. Blooms Taxonomy of Learning Objectives describe six levels of learning-the levels are in increasing order of complexity - the first levels build the foundation on which higher order skills can be developed. For preschool aged children most objectives will fall within the first three levels but higher order skills are appropriate as well. Bloom's Taxonomy: Name of level Description Verbs used in Objectives Example #1- Knowledge This is where children recall information and content. This is simply: the gathering of new knowledge Identify, Recognize, show, Tell, Name, Write, Recite, Collect, State By participating in this activity children will: recite the words to the song along with the teacher. #2- Comprehension or Understanding This is where children explain or interpret new information based on prior learning. Compare, Describe, Distinguish, explain, Illustrate, Match, Predict, Say, Summarize By participating in this activity children will: compare what they know about insects to the story #3- Application This is where children solve real problems and solve difficult situations using relevant information, prior knowledge or rules and principles that they are aware of. Adapt, Build, Classify, Modify, operate, Plan, Prepare, Produce, Demonstrate, Develop, Discover, Dramatize, Graph, By participating in this activity children will: dramatize the events stated in their own written stories #4- Analysis This is where children analyze complicated and complex information by separating it into parts in order to determine the relationships and organization of those parts as they relate to the whole. Categorize, Classify, Compare, Determine, distinguish, examine, group, Organize, sequence, Infer By participating in this activity children will: compare the events in the story__ to the story__ #5- Synthesis This is where children order, organize or transfer prior knowledge and current learning to form new ideas or solve problems. Change, Combine, Compose, Create, Design, Develop, Invent, Incorporate, Plan, Revise, Produce By participating in this activity children will: create new stories about animals with the flannel board pieces #6- Evaluation This is where children, judge, predict and justify information based on a set of specific, carefully defined standards and criteria, not based on personal opinion. Consider, Evaluate, Justify, Summarize, Defend By participating in this activity children will: evaluate the characters behavior based on the rules in their own classroom.