Developmentally Appropriate Practices

Five Guidelines For Developmentally Appropriate Practices

1. Creating a Caring Community of Learners 2. Teaching to enhance development and learning 3. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum 4. Assessing Children’s Learning and Development 5. Establishing Reciprocal Relationships with Families

3. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

Provides for all areas of a child’s development: physical, emotional, social, linguistic, aesthetic, and cognitive Constructing Appropriate Curriculum Example for Infants/toddlers: Toys are scaled to a size that enables infants to grasp, chew, and manipulate them (clutch balls, rattles, teethers, and soft washable dolls and other play animals). Example for 3-5 Year Olds: Curriculum content from various disciplines such as math, science, or social studies, is integrated through themes, projects, play and other learning experiences, so children develop an understanding of concepts and make connections across disciplines. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: Curriculum develops children’s knowledge and skills in all areas and helps establish a foundation for lifelong learning.

Curriculum includes a broad range of content across disciplines that is socially relevant, intellectually engaging, and personally meaningful to children. Example for Infants/toddlers: Open shelves within infants’ reach contain toys of similar type, spaced so that infants can make choices. Caregivers group materials for related activities on different shelves. Example for 3-5 Year Olds: Teachers plan curriculum that is responsive to the specific context of children’s experiences. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: The content for the curriculum is integrated, so learning often occurs through engaging activities that reflect current interests of children. Ex: field trips are planned that teach the concept they are learning. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

Curriculum builds upon what children already know and are able to do. Example for Infants/toddlers: Adults have appropriate expectations for toddlers and are supportive of toddlers as they acquire skills. Caregivers watch to see what the child is trying to do and provide the necessary support to help the child accomplish the task. Example for 3-5 Year Olds: Teachers plan and implement curriculum drawing upon their knowledge of the content, what is likely to interest children of that age, and the context of the children’s experiences. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: Teachers adapt instruction for children who are ahead of or behind the age- appropriate expectations. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

Curriculum plans help children make meaningful connections with traditional subject matter divisions. Example for Infants/toddlers: Healthy, accepting attitudes about children’s bodies and their functions are expressed. Example for 3-5 Year Olds: Teachers use a variety of approaches and provide daily opportunities to develop children’s language and literacy skills through meaningful experiences, such as listening to and reading stories, field trips, etc. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: Children acquire deeper understanding of key concepts, skills, and tools of inquiry of each subject area, and understand the connections between and across disciplines. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

Promotes the development of knowledge and understanding, processes and skills, as well as how to use and apply them later. Example for Infants/toddlers: Toddlers’ artwork and other creative projects are hung at a level just above the toddlers’ reach but low enough for them to look at. (promoting sharing skills with others) Example for 3-5 Year Olds: Teachers design activities for children to seek solutions to concrete problems, classify objects for a purpose, and record changes in the environment. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: Social studies topic allows for in-depth work for an extended period of time. This work will allow them to develop needed skills for the future. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

Reflects the key concepts and tools of inquiry of recognized disciplines in ways that are accessible and achievable for young children. Example for Infants/toddlers: Toddlers are given appropriate art materials, such as large crayons, watercolor markers, and large paper. They are expected to explore and manipulate the art materials, not come up with a finished project. Example for 3-5 Year Olds: The curriculum is designed to help children explore and acquire the key concepts and tools of inquiry for the various disciplines in ways that are accessible for their age. For ex: science experiences include opportunities to explore and directly observe changes and phenomena. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: Each of the curriculum areas (math, science, art, music, etc) are approached using varied activities and hands on experiences so that the children can explore their environment. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

Curriculum provides opportunities to support children’s home culture and language while developing all children’s abilities to participate in the shared culture. Example for Infants/toddlers: Caregivers ask parents what sounds and words their toddler uses so that the caregiver will understand what the child is saying when she uses beginning speech or a home language that is not understood by the caregivers. Example for 3-5 Year Olds: Teachers enrich the lives of all the children with respectful acceptance and appreciation of differences and similarities. Books and pictures include people of different races, ages, and abilities, and of both genders in various roles. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: Books and other learning materials reflect the great diversity of the community, country, and world. The activities are culturally diverse and nonsexist. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

Curriculum goals are realistic and attainable for most children in the designated age range for which they are designed. Example for Infants/toddlers: Children are acknowledged for their accomplishments and helped to feel increasingly competent and in control of themselves. Example for 3-5 Year Olds: Teachers are knowledgeable about the continuum of development and learning for preschool children in each content area. Ex: the teacher understands emergent literacy and supports the child as she learns to recognize letters and initial sounds. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: In the area of math, children learn concepts through solving meaningful problems. Skills are also fostered through spontaneous play. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

When used, technology is physically and philosophically integrated in the classroom curriculum and teaching. Example for Infants/toddlers: When preparing children for naptime, music is provided for those that are having troubles falling asleep. Example for 3-5 Year Olds: Teachers use a variety of strategies to help children develop new concepts. This can include computer programs, music, and books on tape. Example for 6-8 Year Olds: In learning about language and literature, children are allowed to listen to recordings or view films of children’s books. Constructing Appropriate Curriculum

Class Activity for Constructing Appropriate Curriculum Music and Movement 1. Music Fun Participate in using the instruments and doing the actions to the songs that we play in class. 2.Sound Bingo Using the Bingo cards provided, listen carefully to the sounds on the tape and try to be the first to get “bingo”.