1. The Kindergarten Program: Learning Module
EDU slide format
Welcome to the Ministry of Education Kindergarten Program learning module.
This is one of several modules intended to support educators in learning more about some of the essential components of a high-quality Kindergarten program. This module is intended to support learning on the topic of the flow of the day.
Slides 3-7 in this module are repeated in other learning modules in order to allow for educators to begin their learning where they see fit. If you have completed other modules you may want to refresh your learning or you may want to go to slide 8 after the Introduction slide to begin learning about the Kindergarten program.
An accompanying Facilitator’s Guide is available for group facilitation, discussion and further practical applications to assist in learning of the program revisions. Please see the Facilitator’s Guide tab under Training Resources.
To ensure the best possible learning experience for this module, allow a minimum of 40 minutes. The following equipment and resources are required:
The Kindergarten Program, 2016: The Flow of the Day, pages
A computer with internet access and functioning speakers
Individual copies of the Reflection and Next Steps organizer (slide 18)
The Kindergarten Program: Learning Module
The Flow of the Day
Fall 2016

2. Introduction: Flow of the Day
The “flow of the day” refers to a flexible and fluid plan that includes a variety of contexts for learning and a minimum of transitions, resulting in a more integrated and connected day for children.
The Kindergarten Program, 2016 p. 95
Notes
Read and consider the quote on the slide from The Kindergarten Program, 2016.
Reflection
What are some typical transitions you’ve had in the past in your context?
What are some typical contexts for learning? Consider the ways that you make them more fluid.
For further learning and reference:
The Kindergarten Program, 2016 p. 95

3. Our View of Children
All children are competent, capable of complex thinking, curious and rich in potential and experience.
The Kindergarten Program, 2016
All students can succeed.
Each student has his or her own unique patterns of learning.
Learning for All, K-12, 2013
Notes
The Kindergarten program reflects the belief that all four- and five-year-olds are capable and competent learners, full of potential and ready to take ownership of their learning. It approaches children as unique individuals who live in and learn within families and communities.
When educators recognize children as competent, capable and curious, there is greater likelihood that programs value and build on their strengths and abilities. This belief invites a more complex view of children and the contexts in which they learn about the world around them.
Seeing children from a “strengths-based” perspective, helps focus educators on what children can do rather than what they can’t do. As a result, decisions, actions, interactions with and between educators, children and parents become richer and more intentional.
Reflection
In what ways are you a co-learner and how do you engage in a reciprocal relationship with other learners? How do you share your journey of learning in your context?
For further learning and reference:
The Kindergarten Program, 2016 p
Video: “Impact of our View of the Child” (Think, Feel, Act: Lessons from Research about Young Children, 2013) 3

4. Our View of Educators
Educators are competent and capable, curious, and rich in experience. They are knowledgeable, caring, reflective, and resourceful professionals. They bring diverse social, cultural, and linguistic perspectives. They collaborate with others to create engaging environments and experiences to foster children’s learning and development.
The Kindergarten Program, 2016
Notes
Educators are competent and capable, curious and rich in experience. They are knowledgeable, caring, reflective and resourceful professionals that bring diverse social, cultural and linguistic perspectives to their work. They collaborate with others to create engaging environments and experiences to foster children’s learning and development.
Educators are also lifelong learners. They take responsibility for their own learning and make decisions about ways to integrate knowledge from theory, research, their own experience, and their understanding of the individual children and families they work with.
Reflection
How do you benefit from a collaborative reflective partnership with other educators?
How do your skills complement those of other educators to create meaningful learning opportunities?
How do you contribute to an atmosphere of mutual respect, trust and open communication?
For further learning and reference:
The Kindergarten Program, 2016 p
Early Learning Framework: Principle 6
Videos: “Reflective Thinking” and “Relationships” (Think, Feel, Act: Lessons from Research about Young Children, 2013)

5. Our View of Families
Families are composed of individuals who are competent and capable, curious, and rich in experience. Families love their children and want the best for them. Families are experts on their children. They are the first and most powerful influence on children’s learning, development, health, and well-being.
The Kindergarten Program, 2016
Notes
Parents and families play an important role in their children’s learning and are an integral part of Kindergarten program. Studies show that children perform better in school if their families are involved in their education.
Parents and families bring diverse, social, cultural and linguistic perspectives and are their children’s first teachers. Knowing their children as well as they do, parents and families are able to provide educators with important information that allows educators to better meet the needs of individual children.
Reflection
How do you encourage parents and families to share their knowledge and understanding of their children so they can be supportive of their children’s learning?
How do you create mutual respect and reciprocal learning between you and the parents and families?
For further learning and reference:
The Kindergarten Program, 2016 p. 9-10,
Video: “Parent Engagement: How to Encourage it? (Think, Feel, Act: Lessons from Research about Young Children, 2013)

6. Learning through Relationships
Learning and development happen within the context of relationships among children, families, educators, and their environments.
The Kindergarten Program, 2016
Notes
Learning and development happens within the context of relationships among children, families, educators and their environments. The understanding that children, families and educators share about themselves and each other, and about the roles they play in children’s learning, has a profound impact on what happens in the kindergarten classroom.
Since young children’s learning and development take place in the context of social relationships, responsive relationships are of central importance in their early learning experiences. Young children make sense of the world around them through interactions with other children, their parents and other family members, educators and members of the community in which they live. All these relationships affect their learning, sense of belonging and well-being.
Reflection
How do you collaborate, engage and learn with other educators, and with children and families?
In what ways do you engage in critical reflection and inquiry, test theories, discuss and question approaches?
For further learning and reference:
The Kindergarten Program, 2016 p. 29,
Video: “Positive Relationships and Brain Development: Quality of Interactions” (Think, Feel, Act: Lessons from Research about Young Children, 2013)

7. A Continuum of Learning
Notes
Ontario’s vision for the early years is that children and families are well supported by a system of responsive, high-quality, accessible and increasingly integrated early years programs and services that contribute to healthy child development today and a stronger future tomorrow. It envisions a continuum of learning from child care, child and family programs to kindergarten, the primary grades and beyond into all grades of elementary and secondary schools, as well as in adult learning.
The graphic on the slide from page 16 of The Kindergarten Program, 2016, highlights this continuum of learning founded on a common view of children and shared, common pedagogical approaches across early years programs and settings from infancy to age six and beyond.
Reflection
How do you incorporate the pedagogical approaches into your practice: responsive relationships, learning through exploration, play and inquiry, educators as co-learners, environment as third teacher, pedagogical documentation, reflective practice and collaborative inquiry?
For further learning and reference: The Kindergarten Program, 2016 p. 11, 16
Ontario Early Years Policy Framework, 2013, p. 2

8. Goals for the Session
To deepen understanding of the flow of the day and its impact as reflected in The Kindergarten Program, 2016
To reflect on flow of the day through examination of photos & video
To identify next steps in the classroom context
Notes
Read the goals identified for this module.
Reflection
Take a moment to consider and possibly record any questions you may have regarding the flow of the day in kindergarten.

9. Interesting ideas or concepts
Minds On…
Read A Flexible Approach to Learning: The Flow of the Day pages of the Kindergarten Program, 2016
As you read, code the text with either an I, a C or a Q
I =
Interesting ideas or concepts
Q = Question(s)
I have
C = Connection(s)
I am making
Notes
Read pages of The Kindergarten Program, 2016.
Code the text as your read using either a pencil or post-it notes to flag interesting ideas or concepts (I), any connection you are making (C) and any questions you may have (Q).
Reflection
If you are working with a partner or as a team, share and discuss your reflections.
If you are working with a partner or as a team, share and discuss your reflections.

10. Thinking about Time and Schedules
At the beginning of the year, the educators work around daily school schedules (e.g. times for gym, lunch, recess, library) in order to provide as much uninterrupted time as possible for children’s play and inquiry both indoors and outdoors to minimize transitions.
After the plan has been devised, it is adjusted in collaboration with the children, as necessary and in each instance, to meet the children’s changing needs.
Notes
The flow of the day is based on a schedule the educators develop together with a focus on meeting the needs of all children. While the schedule has to accommodate various administrative and practical needs and functions, it must also be designed to allow for large blocks of time for play that are necessary for deep learning and to minimize transitions for children.
Reflection
Read the slide and consider how you can begin to create the most optimal schedule for the children.
Consider what this means in your context and how you can best accomplish a flexible and responsive flow of the day with your children.

11. Maximizing Learning Time for Children Throughout the Day
whole class community
small groups with each other
independent
Notes
In kindergarten, educator teams consider their local context when making decisions and planning the flow of the day. Kindergarten educators consider various contexts for learning through the day. These may include learning opportunities for the whole class (with minimum time and maximum focus) small groups (with educators and/or with other children) and independent or individual learning.
Reflection
How flexible are the schedules you set up in your context?
one-on-one with educator
small groups with educator

12. Considering the Educator Team
In most kindergarten classrooms, there is an educator team with a teacher and an early childhood educator working together to plan and implement the program. How can two educators working in a program effectively maximize time for children to be engaged in learning?
Notes
In most kindergarten classrooms, there is an educator with a teacher and an early childhood educator working together to plan and implement the program and maintain a healthy physical, emotional and social learning environment. The team members have the benefit of a collaborative and reflective partnership. They provide numerous and varied opportunities for children to develop and refine their learning strategies, skills and knowledge.
Having two qualified professionals working together in the classroom allows for a more flexible approach in considering the flow of the day. It allows consideration for various opportunities or contexts for learning through the day. For example, one educator may be documenting learning for a small group of children at the block centre while the other educator may be focused on supporting another small group of children with an inquiry. In another scenario, one educator may be focusing on entry routines while the other educator may be focused on the other children who are already in the classroom.
Reflection
How can two educators working together in the kindergarten program effectively maximize time for children to be engaged in learning? Consider what this may look like in your context.

13. Minimizing Transitions for Children
How can transitions be minimized throughout the day for children?
Consider:
entry/departure routines
washroom routines
movement from one learning opportunity to another
clean up or tidy up routines
snack, lunch, rest or quiet time routines
Notes
Kindergarten educators endeavor to maintain a sense of calm in the classroom and provide large blocks of time with minimal disruptions to engage children's attention in sustained, complex play and inquiry. Minimizing transitions for children throughout a full day of learning is critical. This requires careful planning and consideration of:
entry/departure routines,
clean up or tidy up routines,
snack, lunch or rest/quiet time routines,
washroom routines and,
the movement between various learning opportunities (e.g., visiting the school library, gym time, outdoor play).
Reflection
Considering your context, think about and discuss the following questions:
How might transitions be minimized for children?
How can the planning-time teacher be effectively incorporated into the day so that there is minimal interruption in children’s learning?
What challenges (that impact the flow of the day) may require a discussion with the principal? Some challenges may be school announcements or a number of different educators children interact with during the course of a day/week.

14. Rethinking Flow of the Day
Moving From Towards
Moving towards…
providing opportunities for children to self-regulate according to their needs
educators and children negotiating and co-constructing the learning that happens during the day
minimal transitions for children
large blocks of uninterrupted time for play and inquiry-based learning
Moving away from…
every child having rest or snack at the same time
a series of educator pre-planned activities or events for the day with many transitions
An adult-focused perspective on the sequence and timing of the day
Notes
Moving from an adult-focused perspective of time towards a day that flows, creates opportunities for deeper learning.
Reflection
Reflect upon your current understandings about the flow of the day while reading the shifts outlined in the slide. 14

15. Watch, Reflect and Discuss
View the Flow of the Day video: What are educator teams repeating or rethinking about while engaging children in the flow of the day?
Notes
At this time, you are invited to watch the video of an educator team describing their process and their reflections on how they engage with children in the flow of the day.
Reflection
Consider the following questions as you view the video:
How are the educators and children co-constructing the flow of the day?
How does rethinking the flow of the day impact learning?
Right-click on the link on the slide to access the video or cut and paste the following link in your browser:

16. I’m worried about my child being outdoors in cold weather….
A Parent May Wonder….
Think about the following curiosities a parent may have about the flow of the day. How might you use these to help create opportunities that build understanding as well as develop partnerships with parents?
I’m worried about my child being outdoors in cold weather….
My child tells me all she does at school is play all day. When will she learn to read and write?
My child is bringing home unfinished snack and lunch. I’m concerned that he is not eating. How long is lunchtime or snacktime?
My child needs time to rest during a full day at school, what does nap time look like?
Notes
It is important to value parent’s voice and curiosities about their children’s learning.
Reflection
Consider some of the wonderings presented in the slide. How might you respond?
How might you leverage parent questions to build relationships with them?
How might you create a context where parents have an opportunity to build understandings about our current pedagogies?
Consider other wonderings a parent may have about the flow of the day and how these also may be used to create opportunities for parent participation and engagement in their child’s learning.

17. Consolidation What have you learned about…
a flexible approach to time and schedules based on children’s input and actions?
the co-construction and use of visual schedules?
minimizing transitions for children?
maximizing time for children to be focused on learning in different contexts?
Notes
Consider the questions on the slide and your current context.
Reflection
Reflect on your approach to time outside of your teaching context.

18. Reflection and Next Steps
Notes
Use the reflection organizer to record next steps for your own professional practice.
Identify what supports you think you might need as you move forward.
Reflection
If you are exploring these modules with other educators, consider how you might continue to collaborate until your next session together and any artifacts you might bring to share your learning.

19. Opportunities for Further Learning
View: The Flow of the Day (Early Primary EduGains)
View: “The Learning Environment: Rethinking Time” (Think, Feel, Act: Lessons from Research about Young Children, 2013)
If you are interested in opportunities for further learning about the flow of the day, please consult the resources listed on the slide or copy and paste the following URL addresses into your browser: