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Early Childhood Curriculum and Evaluation

ED5102

Pam Whitty, EdD, Associate Professor

Office: Rm 215B

Email: whitty@unb.ca

Office hours directly after class and by appointment.

Welcome to the world of young children's thinking and learning and the thinking and learning of early childhood educators. It is a world that intrigues, challenges and delights! The aim of this course is to serve as an introduction to how children interact with their various worlds and the people, materials, and events therein. To accomplish this aim, we will examine and document thoughtful curriculum for young children, ages 3-8. The interrelatedness of curriculum and evaluation is a primary premise of ongoing curriculum development for young children, and thus a primary premise of the course.

Coincident with learning about the what and how of thoughtful curriculum, you will also be responsible for documenting your own learnings, in particular your growing perspectives on what it means to educate young children.

There is a compulsory field component to the course where you will have the opportunity to interact with young children in an educational setting.

Classes are highly interactive, therefore your attendance and informed participation are obligatory. That means everyone has a responsibility to self, classmates, and myself to do your readings and writings.

Assignments are due on the date indicated. Late assignments may result in a lowered grade. If you are having a problem meeting assignment dates, please come and talk to me. I am involved in a number of educational projects and won't always be on campus, however voice mail and email are wonderful technologies for communication. Please leave a message and I will return it.

COURSE SECTIONS:

The course is divided into two sections determined by field placement:

PART A

From the week of September 14-October 30, our field focus will be the demonstration classroom established for the UNB Parenting for a Literate community and the Fredericton, Family Resource Centre. Our readings and assignments will be centered around what it means for children to become literate, the variety of literacies available to young children as they come to communicate within the worlds of home, school, and community. Literacies for young children encompasses talking, drawing, play, reading, writing, art making, and block play.

The main texts will be:

Joanne Hendrick (1997): First Steps Towards Teaching the Reggio Way. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

UNB Early Childhood Centre Papers, Newsletters, WebSite

UNB Early Childhood Centre, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB

Selected Readings and Videos

NB Department of Education, UNB Early Childhood Centre Lecture Series.

Journals: Young Children Learning

Canadian Young Children

PART B

From the weeks of November 2 - November 30^th our work will be more school focused. We will look seriously across the curriculum at various "subjects" and how these are intended to be taught in a developmentally appropriate manner. The in class and field component will be co-constructed with your strengths and knowledge. You will select a curricular focus for study in the second half. Work may be done on your own or in pairs or triads.

Main Texts:

Department of Education: (1991) Young Children Learning: A Teacher's Guide to Kindergarten. Fredericton: Queens' Printer and Department of Education

Anne Haas Dyson (1993) Negotiating A Permeable Curriculum

Atlantic Area Curriculum Documents

Selected Readings/Videos

Early Childhood WebSites

Journals from Subject Areas

Assignments:

1) Weekly reading and writing assignments will be given in class.

Triple Focus: Self Learnings/Field Notes/Professional Readings and Response

2) Attendance in class and informed class participation

3) Two individual meetings with Prof: Review, Self Evaluation, course Evaluation.

(Weeks of October 12^th and one week in early-mid November)

4) Final presentation based upon selection of curricular focus for Part 2

Metaphor for Learnings

Criteria and grade weighting for assignments will be developed and evaluated in class.

Requirements and Readings for Part ONE

Week of September 14^th

In class:

A)

• Introductory Activity: Personal Views:
• Early Childhood - what is it?
• What is good education for young children?
• Influences on your views
• Your strengths - inside and outside of work/school
• Your needs in this area
• (Self-Learnings)

B)

• Review of the Syllabus Comments/Questions/Clarifications
• Parenting for a Literate Community
• (Field Work)

C)

• Newspapers: children, family, community, schools
• View newspapers/create a display for this room 220
• Work to be done in Room 209/Early childhood environment.
• (Class Learnings)

D)

• Books for young children
• Select and Read
• (Pedagogical Content)

E)

• Videotape of Lecture on Influences on how children come to reading.
• Aiden Chambers (Professional Thought)

Assignments:

Pedagogical

Take home a children's book and rad with another person - child and/or adult.

Have a conversation about the book.

Record the reactions to the book.

Field Work: In the classroom/centre

Upon leaving the room:

Describe in point form - your observation and your interactions

- physical setup and preparedness of the environment (time, day, activity and any other significant to your observation)

- interactions - catch the talk - around the materials, persons in the environment

- your response - consider your feelings - delights/apprehensions etc.

- your thoughts/your questions/puzzlements

Professional Readings:

Jane Meyer: (199-) Literacy is Child's Play Canadian Children pp 7-10

Anne Haas Dyson (1988) Appreciate the Drawing and Dictating of Young Children.

Young Children 43(3) pp. 25-32

Agreements/Disagreements - surprises/annoyances

What you learned and your emerging questions.

Any links to the field experience?

Week of September 21^st

Sherry Rose will be teaching this class as I am at an International Teacher Education Conference in Prague, Czech Republic

A)

• Introductory Activity:
• Poetry with and for Kids

B)

• Follow-up of last week's assignment
• The Book experience
• The Field experience
• The Readings
  

C)

• Dept. of Education Video on Reading: Partial viewing with conversation
• (Professional Conversations)

D)

• Discussion of next week's assignments

E)

• Visit to Kingfisher Books:
• Children's Books
• Importance of knowing a good book store

Assignments:

A) Self-Learning Journal

B) Field Observations/Interactions/Notes:

C) Professional Readings

Reggio:

Chapter One: pp. 2-8

Chapter Two: Foundations of the Reggio Emilia Approach

**Chapter Fifteen: Observing, Recording, Understanding: The Role of Documentation in Early Childhood Education

September 28^th

A)

• Introductory Activity:
• Books related to Parenting for Literacy
• Training Program.
  

B)

• Follow up of last week's class and assignment.
• The field trip - Kingfisher
• The field site
• The readings
  

C)

• Looking at Kindergarten: Video - Observation Exercise

Assignments:

Self-Learnings

Field Focus

Readings: from Reggio.

Chapter Seven: Conversations with Children

Chapter Three: Lessons from an Art Exhibition

On Reserve: Choose One.

Judith Schickendanz: Preschoolers and Storybooks

Susan Ervin Tripp: Play in Language Development

October 5^th

A)

• Introductory Activity

B)

• Follow-up

C)

• Literacies: Katelyn's Literacies/Music-Website

D)

• Next Week's Assignment
• Set up meeting for week of October 12

Assignments:

Field Site - Observations/Interactions/Field Notes

Readings:

On Reserve: Reggio: The Garden Project

October 12^th

No class

Have a thankful thanksgiving.

Assignments:

Meet with me - Self Evaluation/course Feedback.

Field Work

Readings: Reggio

Chapter Six: Education as Collaboration

Chapter Nine: The Challenge of Reggio Emilia's Research.

October 19^th

A) Video

B) Follow-up to last week's work

C) In class guests

Assignments:

Field site and observations notes:

Reading:

On Reserve:

Council for Mathematics: Mathematics is more than counting

Constance Kamii: Beyond Worksheets and Drill

October 26^th

Assignments:

Self Learnings

Field Site and Field Notes

Readings: On Reserve

Reifel, Stuart: Action, Talk and Thought in Block Play

Joanne Piscatelli Milstein: Building with Blocks: An Observation in my Kindergarten Classroom.

Pam Whitty, Blocked Out: No Girls Allowed