Infant/toddler teachers take a child-centered, emergent approach, meaning that they observe the children at play, ask themselves what they are interested in learning, and design developmentally appropriate curricula to meet and extend those interests. This curriculum development technique leads to "possibilities for the child to develop deeper…

First conceptualized by Friedrich Froebel as a "children's garden," kindergarten classrooms in Canada today emphasize play and exploration as the primary methods of learning and development. This garden provides multiple opportunities for children to become lost in spontaneous play and creative interactions with peers. Kindergarten has…

The authors describe a teaching strategy that can support the development and learning of all children in inclusive learning environments. They give an overview of peer-mediated intervention and share useful information on how classroom teachers can use this tool to promote learning, particularly in the areas of social and communication…

Children's identities and sense of self are inextricably tied to their families. The experience of being welcome or unwelcome, visible or invisible begins in early childhood. The goal of early childhood professionals is to ensure that all children and their families are welcomed in early childhood settings and provided with quality care and…

Classroom teachers serve as mentors to college students majoring in early childhood education. They establish good communication, provide rich environment for classroom observation, model best practices, create opportunities for reflection, and support students' participation in curriculum planning and teaching. William H. Strader, forum…

In a university lab preschool, teachers initiated a curriculum development approach using child-centered webbing. The authors look at problems early childhood education students encountered in implementing the approach at the school, including incorporating early learning standards into the planning while keeping the focus on the child. The…

The authors demonstrate how to tailor curriculum to support the varied interests, abilities, and talents of the children in a kindergarten class. Through words and photographs, they describe an in-depth study of rocks and sand, a topic of great interest to the children. The teachers posed open-ended questions that fostered high-level discussions.…

The New Zealand Ministry of Education's early childhood curriculum policy is built on a framework called "Te Whariki." This framework provides a sociocultural context for children's early learning and emphasizes a learning partnership between teachers, parents, families, and community. Besides interpersonal relationships, Te Whariki…

Explores several approaches to infant/toddler education and offers suggestions for developing an effective program that reflects the best of what is known about how infants and toddlers grow and learn. (RH)

Engagement and integration increase when children have an opportunity to investigate something of great interest to them and have a say in what they learn about the topic. Helm explains how to use webs to introduce required concepts and skills and integrate standards in the project approach. She walks readers through five steps to making an…

Overviews characteristics of preoperational thought, summarizes Piaget's theory of the peroperational child's view of reality, explores implications of the preoperational stage of development for early childhood science education, and provides general guidelines for an early childhood science curriculum. (Author/RH)

Discusses the value of nature education to early childhood education. The domains of adaptive, aesthetic, cognitive, communication, sensorimotor, and socioemotional development are discussed. Suggests that because young children learn primarily through their senses and motoric manipulation, they are excellent candidates for nature education…

Explores the importance of play in the cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development of young children. Functional, constructive, and dramatic play, and games with rules, are examined. Suggests that play is a powerful curricular tool for the kindergarten and primary classroom. Investigates ways to integrate play into the curriculum and to…

Offers practical suggestions for a non-sexist preschool curriculum, with emphasis on developing classroom materials, such as puzzles, flannel board figures, block accessories, etc., which can help to eliminate sex-role stereotyping. Examples of changes which occurred due to the experimental curriculum are given. (ED)

Shows how several principles from Piaget's theory have a number of implications for the classroom learning environment, curriculum development and teacher role. (BF/JH)