In child-centered education programs, children construct their own knowledge from their experiences and interactions with the world around them, and teachers foster children's growth and development by building on children's interests, needs, and strengths within a safe and caring environment. The Step by Step educational program developed a…

Part 2 of this five part project asks students of the Tasmanian region of Australia to explore the history of Port Arthur, a 19th century penal colony located in Tasmania. The project is based on three ideas: (1) studying history can be educational and enjoyable; (2) imagination is an essential part of studying history; and (3) history is most of…

In child-centered education programs, children construct their own knowledge from their experiences and interactions with the world around them, and teachers foster children's growth and development by building on children's interests, needs, and strengths within a safe and caring environment. The Step by Step educational program developed a…

Intended to encourage children to develop their imaginations naturally, with only a small amount of help from adults, this book presents over 125 activities for creative and pretend play for young children. The book's introduction describes the importance and benefits of pretend play, the adult's role, and needed materials and space. The…

The arts are central to quality early childhood programs. Experiences in the arts commonly attract and sustain children's involvement and provide opportunities for individualized creative responses. This research project investigated the implementation of arts games (structured play experiences based on drama, music, dance, and movement) into the…

Provides fully developed library media activities that are designed to be used in connection with specific curriculum units. Topics covered include art (U.S. folk art); reading/language arts (dramatizing story events); science (simple machines); and social studies (state and federal legislatures, and explorers). (LRW)

The purpose of this Child Development Associate (CDA) training module, one of a series of 18, is to provide the CDA intern with an understanding of both the processes involved in the development of language skills and the role of the teacher in enhancing language development. The module stipulates competency-based objectives and provides essential…

This curriculum guide offers principles, guidelines, and suggested activities for teaching art to young children with a wide variety of disabilities. An introductory chapter notes the benefits of the arts, adaptations for various disabilities, the curriculum's rationale, and integration of the arts across learning domains. Chapter 2 examines how…

Originally developed as part of a project for the Department of Defense Schools (DoDDS) system, this learning package on classroom drama as an instructional tool is designed for teachers who wish to upgrade or expand their teaching skills on their own. The package includes an overview of the project; a comprehensive search of the ERIC database; a…

The role of sociodramatic play in children's cognitive, social, and physical development is discussed, drawing on observations of work with parents and their children ages 3-5. The paper focuses on the way the teachers guided and facilitated play taking cues from the children. A training session was provided to the parents on ways to play with…

Arranged in three sections, the book offers practical techniques for introducing environmental education at the secondary level. The first section, on planning, outlines a conceptual framework for environmental education, discusses development of school policy on environmental education, provides approaches to controversial and values issues,…

This book provides practical, everyday activities to weave language development and early literacy activities into the daily schedule in an early childhood education program. The chapters are organized by areas common in most early childhood environments: (1) circle time; (2) snack time; (3) dramatic play; (4) outdoor play; (5) art; (6) sand and…

Goals of block building in early childhood classrooms focus on physical, social, cognitive, and emotional development. Reports survey results of the value teachers place on block play. Offers illustrations of task cards to use with blocks in math, language arts, social studies, and science. Discusses guidelines and suggests idea cards and sentence…

Discusses dramatic activities and techniques useful in the teaching of foreign languages. A distinction is made between theater and other dramatic activities; the latter ranges from reading theater to skits learned by memory. Two examples of activities are suggested for the teacher. (AMH)

This book is a resource guide that provides examples of cooperative activities and techniques that teachers can incorporate in and adapt to their own classrooms. The premise upon which the book is based is that a cooperative environment stimulates children to explore the aspect of school life that appeals to them--the chance to play with…