Kindergarten Document
►Research demonstrates that kindergarten programs contribute to:
►school readiness ► improved literacy achievement in higher grades ►narrowing the gap in achievement levels for low SES students ►improved retention rates ►better integration of kindergarten into the elementary school community
This frame encompasses children’s learning and development with respect to: -Communicating thoughts and feelings through gestures, physical movements, words, symbols, and representations, as well as through the use of a variety of materials -Literacy behaviors, evident in the various ways they use language, images and materials to express and think critically about ideas and emotions, as they listen and speak,view and represent, and begin to read and write -Mathematics behaviors, evident in the various ways they use concepts of number and pattern during play and inquiry; access, manage, create, and evaluate information; and experience an emergent understanding of mathematical relationships, concepts, skills and processes-An active engagement in learning and a developing love of learning, which can instil the habit of learning for life
Expression (demonstrating literacy and mathematics behaviors)
Principles of Play-Based Learning p. 12-13?
. Play is recognized as a child’s right, and it is essential to the child’s optimal development
2. All children are viewed as competent, curious, capable of complex thinking, and rich in potential and experience
3. A natural curiosity and a desire to explore, play, and inquire are the primary drivers of learning among young children
4. The learning environment plays a key role in what and how a child learns
5. In play-based learning programs, assessment supports the child’s learning and autonomy as a learner
Flow of the Day, Transitions, Children with Diverse Needs
and Inclusion P. 95-102?
Providing children with a full day of learning in kindergarten gives educators time to support and enhance the children’s learning, and allows children time to become absorbed more deeply in what they are exploring and investigating -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 the child. The flow of the day can also be adopted to meet the changing needs of the children in the class.
What are the 4 frames of the Jk document?
1- Belonging (belonging and contributing)
2- Well-Being (Self-regulation and well-being)
3- Engagement (problem-solving and innovating
4- Expression (demonstrating literacy and mathematics behaviours
Explain the domains in ELECT to the frames OE and SE in jk document?
Developmental Domain= Frame. First where you start, anecdote -Root Skill = overall expectation Second -Specific Indicator = specific expectation Third
Inquiry Process p. 20-28?
lements of the child’s inquiry process – Initial engagement, Exploration, Investigation, Communication
The educators engage with the children in inquiries that enable the children to explore their questions and wonderings as co-learners with the educators. The educators offer provocations that build on the children’s thinking or invite the children to engage in new ways of learning.
The focus of inquiries emerges out of children’s thinking, wonderings, and theories, as well as ideas that pique their interest. • The duration of inquiries is not predetermined, and is flexible. • Experiences, materials, thinking, and learning are co-constructed with the children. • Educators focus on the overall expectations as they co-construct learning with the children. • Learning is personalized and differentiated. • There is a focus on providing opportunities for children to test their own theories and explore answers to their own questions and wonderings. • Children explore their own questions and ideas more deeply and directly, and so engage more readily in higher-level thinking (e.g., How does water move? Where do people read? Where do we find numbers?) • The concepts of citizenship and social justice emerge out of an inquiry stance (e.g., How does my behaviour affect my friends and family and other people in my community?).
Research suggests that students are more likely to develop as engaged, self-directed learners in inquiry-based classrooms. 21 Inquiry allows students to make decisions about their learning and to take responsibility for it. Educators create learning contexts that allow children to make decisions about their learning processes and about how they will demonstrate their learning. They encourage collaborative learning and create intellectual spaces for students to engage in rich talk about their thinking and learning. They create a classroom ethos that fosters respect for others’ ideas and opinions and encourages risk-taking… Collectively, these actions lead to a strong sense of student self-efficacy
RECE IN JK CLASSROOM ROLE/RESPINSIBILTIIES?
The Early Childhood educator works together with the certified teacher as a team to create a “seamless program for children whether they attend a half, full, or extended day” (Pascal, 2009, p.35) An ECE provides more “individualized attention for children” (Pascal, 2009, p.35) while allowing the teacher to do more standardized assessments and evaluations. An ECE specializes in the early development of children and “age-appropriate, developmentally appropriate, and culturally responsive program planning, to facilitate experiences that promote each child’s physical, cognitive, language, emotional, social, and creative development and well-being” (Ontario, 2010, p. 1) The ECE is involved with observing each child and contributes to the child’s “assessment and evaluation”.
This frame
encompasses children’s learning and development with
respect to:
-Their sense of connectedness to others
-Their relationships with others, and their contributions as
part of a group, a community, and the natural world
Their understanding of relationships and community, and of
-the ways in which people contribute to the world around
them
Belonging (belonging and contributing
Vision, purpose and goals pg 8: what are the goals of the kindergarten prgram?
The Kindergarten program is a child-centred, developmentally appropriate,integrated program of learning for four- and five-year-old children. The purposeof the program is to establish a strong foundation for learning in the early years,and to do so in a safe and caring, play-based environment that promotes thephysical, social, emotional, and cognitive development of all children.
The primary goals of the Kindergarten program are:
• to establish a strong foundation for learning in the early years;
• to help children make a smooth transition from home, child care,
or preschool settings to school settings;
• to allow children to reap the many proven benefits of learning through
relationships, and through play and inquiry;
• to set children on a path of lifelong learning and nurture competencies
that they will need to thrive in the world of today and tomorrow.
The learning environment (includes the outdoors)
Pages 29-35+ pp??
The learning environment is often viewed as “the third teacher”: it can either enhance learning, optimizing students’ potential to respond creatively and meaningfully, or detract from it. Researchers and practitioners in a wide range of disciplines, including early childhood education, developmental education, psychology, cognitive science, and school architecture and design, have come to understand that a key to learning in today’s world is the social space in which it occurs, more than the physical space. -A classroom that is functioning successfully as a third teacher will be responsive to the children’s interests, provide opportunities for children to make their thinking visible, and then foster further learning and engagement
OCT/TEACHER- ROLE AND RESPONSIBILTIIES IN JK CLASSROOM?
Certified teachers have a broader knowledge of the elementary curriculum, assessment, evaluation and reporting, and child development. Their responsibilities are focused more on the student's learning, providing effective instruction and provides formal evaluation and reporting to parents based on observations made by
the ECE's and themselves (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2013).
Both teachers complement each other within the classroom to provide quality care by applying their strong knowledge of early child development while continuing to maintain a safe and healthy environment for all children (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2013).
This frame encompasses children’s learning and development with respect to: -Their own thinking and feelings, and their recognition of and respect for differences in the thinking and feelings of others-Regulating their emotions, adtapting to distractions and assessing consequences of actions in a way that enables them to engage in learningTheir physical and mental health and wellnesss The educator should consider -The interrelatedness of children’s self-awareness, sense of self, and ability to self-regulate -The role of the learning environment in helping children to be calm, focused, and alert so they are better to learn
well being ( self-regulation and well being)
The Importance of Early Learning and A Shared Understanding of Children, Families and Educators P.9-11??
The kindergarten document focuses on children aged 4-5 years old within the kindergarten classroom. Children, educators and families surrounding the kindergarten classroom are all capable, curious and competent learners. The kindergarten age is a critical period where the foundation for a child’s life is built. In the classroom, the pedagogical approach is based on development. The educator must understand that learning is reciprocal between the educator and the student. The kindergarten document has found that this approach can be a shift for educators, but the primary goals and pedagogy discussed within the document is of utmost importance.
Assessment p.36-45??
Assessment and learning in kindergarten: Making children’s thinking and learning visible -Assessment is the process of gathering and interpreting information that accurately reflects the child’s demonstration of learning in relation to the knowledge and skills outlined in the overall expectations of The Kindergarten Program. The primary purpose of assessment is to improve learning and to help children become self-regulating, autonomous learners
This frame encompasses children’s learning and development with respect to:-Exploring the world through natural curiosity, in ways that engage their mind, the senses and the body -Making meaning of their world by asking questions, testing theories, solving problems, and engaging in creative and analytic thinking -The innovative ways of thinking about and doing things that arise naturally with an active curiosity, and applying those ideas in relationships with others, with materials, and with the environment
engagement (problem solving and innovating)
Pedagogical Approaches P. 11?
Responsive relationships-
Learning through exploration, play and inquiry-
Educators as co-learners-
Environment as the third teacher-
Pedagogical documentation-
Reflective proactive and collaborative inquiry
Self-Regulation Pages 54-57 and link?
Thinking about self-regulation and well-being description of the frame This frame encompasses children’s learning and development with respect to: 1. Their own thinking and feelings, and their recognition of and respect for differences in the thinking and feelings of others
2. Regulating their emotions, adapting to distractions, and assessing consequences of actions in a way that enables them to engage in learning
3. Their physical and mental health and wellness. In connectionwith this frame, it is important for educators to consider… the interrelatedness of children’s self-awareness, sense of self, and ability to self-regulate
4. The role of the learning environment in helping children to be calm, focused, and alert so they are better able to learn. What children learn in connection with this frame allows them to focus, to learn, to respect themselves and others, and to promote well-being in themselves and other