Developing a Play Based Curriculum
It is in my nature to be a teacher, so when I chose to keep my daughter at home for kindergarten (otherwise, homeschooling) the teacher in me began planning the curriculum. Truthfully, it has been a goal of mine to create a play based curriculum but until I had a motivator, I never could find the time to plan and create.
Our Play Curriculum is rooted in Early Childhood Theory. I have to admit that I have borrowed from many different sources when creating our curriculum, giving credit as due, but still I found it much easier to use what others have already researched in creating my curriculum. (I give credit where credit is due)
The curriculum includes theory of development, research about creating environments that work; assessment in the form of anecdotals and portfolios as well as lesson plans. A good curriculum is the guiding influence for the teacher. The curriculum is not a lesson plan, but a versatile set of standards, beliefs and values that helps the teacher/parent set the stage for learning. In our case, we take a play based curriculum as our guiding factor when working with our children. Within the play curriculum, we will learn about math, science, literacy, art, health, and social/emotional growth. One of the most important aspects of our play curriculum is our understanding of how children grow and develop (otherwise known as Developmentally appropriate curriculum). This allows us to follow our child’s lead (child led or child directed learning), create with the child and learn as they learn. Lessons will be in web form, using project approach where we can and KWL (which work very well with project approagh and webbing).
K – what I know
W- what I want to know
L-what I have learned
If you find yourself in the neighborhood, please feel free to view our curriculum. Unfortunately, it is not online at the moment (though it may in the future).
I am very thankful for the experiences that I have gained by working with many different early childhood professionals (you know who you are). The knowledge I have gained is allowing me to teach my children in an appropriate manner while also helping me to set my goals even higher.
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Posted on June 23rd, 2007 by karen
Filed under: Uncategorized