Let’s take a look…….

       Prior to the 20 th century, little scientific attention was given to studying how children develop and learn.

In the last 75 years, however, research has provided a plethora of valuable information about early childhood as a separate and distinct stage of life with its own characteristics.

Early childhood has been defined as a period of life between 0 to 8 years of age.

One of the major influences guiding the field of early childhood education over the last 20 years has been the position statement on developmentally appropriate practice of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). Developmentally appropriate practice means teaching in ways that match the way children develop and learn so as to promote their optimal development and learning.

Research shows constructive, purposeful play supports essential learning. PLAY = WORK in the Early Childhood Classroom

We will examine each learning center in our classroom.

Learning Centers include:            Block Area Dramatic Play Toys and Games Art Area Library Discovery Sand and Water Cooking/Snack Computers Writing Center Outdoor Play

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Using fine and gross motor muscles

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Classifying by shape, size and color

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Experimenting with balance and forms

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Using their imagination

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Testing their ideas

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Recognizing quantity and number concepts

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Learning cooperation

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Using language skills

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Verbalizing ideas and concepts

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Understanding emotions

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Communicating with others

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Observing others

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Using fine and gross motor muscles

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Understanding the feeling of others

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Acting out real life situations

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Creating stories

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Strengthening our small motor muscles Focusing on spatial concepts Developing language skills Enhancing cognitive development Learning new ideas Learning to estimate Classifying and sorting Counting and comparing Recognizing patterns and shapes Taking turns Working with groups and partners

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Expanding creativity

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Increasing language development

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Cooperating and sharing

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Improving hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills

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Exploring various art media

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Experiencing sensory activities

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Experimenting with colors and materials

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Working with shapes and patterns

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Creating representations of their ideas

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Learning pre-reading skills Developing language skills Sequencing events Recognizing that text has meaning

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Learning to take care of books Experiencing quiet moments Learning to create their own stories Gathering information Story retelling Using their imagination Creating a love for reading

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Learning and testing new concepts Increasing language development Learning to plan and discover Observing

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Predicting Comparing Drawing conclusions Experiencing sensory activities Discovering how things work Exploring nature Collecting and recording data

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Learning and testing new concepts

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Increasing language development

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Learning to plan and discover

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Experimenting

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Measuring

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Observing cause and effect

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Drawing conclusions

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Experiencing sensory activities

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Pouring and scooping

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Using fine motor skills Learn how to follow instructions Improving self-help skills Developing self-control

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Sharing Helping others Understanding health and nutrition Reading recipes Measuring ingredients Counting, adding, multiplying and dividing Using one-to-one correspondence

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Developing fine motor skills

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Enhancing pre-writing skills

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Advancing pre-reading skills

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Covering math and basic concepts

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Using the computer as a tool

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Learning how a mouse works

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Understanding computer functions

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Working with classmates

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Using fine motor skills

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Increasing their language development

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Putting thoughts into pictures and words

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Learning that print has meaning

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Experimenting with writing materials

 Strengthening gross motor skills  Building pride in accomplishments  Playing cooperatively with peers  Expanding vocabulary  Investigating nature  Learning about weather  Using math concepts  Problem solving

   Research shows the importance of teacher-child relationships. Children’s ability to form positive relationships with adults is important to their social development and academic success.

Warm, supportive relationships encourage children’s motivation, engagement, self-direction, cooperation, and positive attitudes toward school.

Kindergarten teachers rank self-regulation, the ability to control one’s emotions and behavior and to resist impulses, as the characteristic most necessary for school readiness.

Social-Emotional Objectives and Dimensions

1. Regulates own emotions and behaviors a. Manages feelings b. Follows limits and expectations c. Takes care of own needs appropriately 2. Establishes and sustains positive relationships a. Forms relationships with adults b. Responds to emotional cues c. Interacts with peers d. Makes friends 3. Participates cooperatively and constructively in group situations a. Balances needs and rights of self and others b. Solves social problems

                Vygotsky (1978) states that play actually facilitates cognitive development. Children not only practice what they already know-they also learn new things.

Dramatic play is linked to the development of SELF-REGULATION and may be particularly beneficial for children who are impulsive or who are less advanced in self-regulatory development.

Private speech, or slef-talk, is an important part of developing self-regulation skills. Krafft and Berk (2006) found that the private speech of 3 to 5 year-olds was more likely to occur during open-ended activities, especially dramatic play, than in closed-ended tasks with predetermined goals. Smilansky and Shefatya (1999) found that children who engaged in high levels of sociodramatic play in preschool performed better in later school years than peers whose preschool play was less mature.

Researchers have found that play can support memory development. As children act out real-life scenarios in their play, they discover meaningful connections among the information to be remembered. Fantuzzo and McWayne (2002) found that play with peers was associated with motivation to learn, task persistence, autonomy, and prosocial behavior.

American educator, philosopher, psychologist, and theorist John Dewey (1897) explored education as a social process. He thought that children learn best when they interact with other people in a rich environment.

Locke () – Locke said the main goal of education is self-control. Locke advised us to give children plenty of exercise so their bodies will become strong, and he suggested that children play outdoors in all seasons…” Rousseau – “Instead of rushing in to teach children to think in the “correct” ways, we should allow them to perfect their own capacitates and to learn in their own ways, as nature intends.

Taylor and Carlson (1997) – “Several studies suggest that preschool play enhances cognitive capacities such as problem solving and creativity, as well as the ability to see things from others’ perspectives.” Montessori said “we are wrong to assume that children are whatever we make of them, for children also learn on their own, from their own maturational promptings.” A recent study by Rebecca Marcon of the University of North Florida followed children from different pre-school programs through fourth grade. She found that those who had attended play-oriented programs where child-initiated activities predominated did better academically than those who had attended academic-oriented programs.

The integration of these different types of behaviors (motor skills, social interactions, language, etc) is key to the cognitive development of young children. According to Rogers and Sawyer (1988), "until at least the age of nine, children's cognitive structures function best in this unified mode" (p. 58). Because children's play draws upon all of these behaviors, it is a very effective vehicle for learning. According to Fromberg and Gullo (1992), play enhances language development, social competence, creativity, imagination, and thinking skills. Frost (1992) concurred, stating that "play is the chief vehicle for the development of imagination and intelligence, language, social skills, and perceptual-motor abilities in infants and young children" (p. 48). Piaget (1962) defined play as assimilation, or the child's efforts to make environmental stimuli match his or her own concepts. He believed “children must interact with the environment to develop, but it is they, not the external environment, who build new cognitive structures. Development, then, is not governed by internal maturation or external teachings. It is an active construction process, in which children, through their own activities , build increasing differentiated and comprehensive cognitive structures."

 If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at: 269-463-6749 ext. 15 or [email protected]

 I will be sending home monthly letters along with suggestions of play activities you can do at home with your child  Please sign-up on the volunteer calendar, so you can see your child at WORK in our classroom!

 Bickart, T. & Colker, L. & Dodge, D. & Heroman, C. (2010) The Creative Curriculum for Preschool. Washington, D.C.:Teaching Strategies.

 Crain, W. (2011). Theories of Development: Concepts and Applications, Sixth Edition. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.  Englebright Fox, J. Back-to-Basics: Play in Early Childhood. Early Childhood News. www.earlychildhoodnews.com