Preschool Classroom
PRESCHOOL CLASSROOM
Janelle Conlin
Early Childhood Curriculum & Methods: ECE311
Instructor: Michael Walter
August 10, 2012
PRESCHOOL CLASSROOM Preschool classroom’s fosters an exploratory play environment for children ages four to five to prepare students for private school kindergarten courses and utilizes North Carolina kindergarten standards to develop curriculum. Cumberland County public school system does not have the best reputation for educating students and has created a need for more private schools. Currently, we only offer a preschool program but plan to expand into the elementary school ages. As the new school year approaches I will be redesigning the classroom environment and curriculum by incorporating theories from Reggio Emilia, Creative Curriculum, and High Scope Curriculum along with including state standard activities to cover the main concepts for the core subjects to prepare for Kindergarten. Classroom environment and teaching strategies will incorporate philosophies and theories from Reggio Emilia, Creative Curriculum, High Scope Curriculum, and Piaget’s theory into a comprehensive curriculum design for preschoolers. When developing curriculum it is important for this age group to have several approaches. “Children ages 3–8 benefit from planned, teacher-guided, interactive small-group and large- group experiences” (NAEYC, 2009).
“Reggio Emilia programs demonstrate how planning an environment is driven by respect for the rights of the child to a beautiful welcoming space that promotes relationships and attention to detail” (Jaruszewicz. 2012). Emergent curriculum introduces topics of study where lessons are child initiated and theme based on student’s interest. Another belief that I have started to practice is the importance of learned centered activities. I believe that with the environment being set up properly it can expand learning and gives me the opportunity to use emergent curriculum
Janelle Conlin
Early Childhood Curriculum & Methods: ECE311
Instructor: Michael Walter
August 10, 2012
PRESCHOOL CLASSROOM Preschool classroom’s fosters an exploratory play environment for children ages four to five to prepare students for private school kindergarten courses and utilizes North Carolina kindergarten standards to develop curriculum. Cumberland County public school system does not have the best reputation for educating students and has created a need for more private schools. Currently, we only offer a preschool program but plan to expand into the elementary school ages. As the new school year approaches I will be redesigning the classroom environment and curriculum by incorporating theories from Reggio Emilia, Creative Curriculum, and High Scope Curriculum along with including state standard activities to cover the main concepts for the core subjects to prepare for Kindergarten. Classroom environment and teaching strategies will incorporate philosophies and theories from Reggio Emilia, Creative Curriculum, High Scope Curriculum, and Piaget’s theory into a comprehensive curriculum design for preschoolers. When developing curriculum it is important for this age group to have several approaches. “Children ages 3–8 benefit from planned, teacher-guided, interactive small-group and large- group experiences” (NAEYC, 2009).
“Reggio Emilia programs demonstrate how planning an environment is driven by respect for the rights of the child to a beautiful welcoming space that promotes relationships and attention to detail” (Jaruszewicz. 2012). Emergent curriculum introduces topics of study where lessons are child initiated and theme based on student’s interest. Another belief that I have started to practice is the importance of learned centered activities. I believe that with the environment being set up properly it can expand learning and gives me the opportunity to use emergent curriculum
References: Common Core State Standards Initiative: Kindergarten Introduction. Retrieved from http://www.corestandards.org/Math/Content/K/introduction/ Edwards, C. P. (2002). Three Approaches from Europe: Waldorf, Montessori, and Reggio Emilia. Early Childhood Research and Practice, 4(1), 2-14. Retrieved from http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v4n1/edwards.html Estes, LA., Krogh, S. (2012) Pathways to Teaching Young Children: An Introduction to Early Childhood Education. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Jaruszewicz, C. (2012). Curriculum and Methods for Early Childhood Educators. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education National Association for the Education of Young Children. (2009). Key Messages of the Position Statement. Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/file/positions/KeyMessages.pdf North Carolina Essential Standards (2014) Kindergarten Music- Essential Standards. Retrieved from http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/acre/standards/new-standards/arts/music/k-8.pdf North Carolina Essential Standards (2014) Kindergarten Visual Arts- Essential Standards. Retrieved from http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/acre/standards/new-standards/arts/visual/k-8.pdf