Article Review #2

“What has happened to preschool and kindergarten classrooms?” the authors ask (p. 34).  Once a place where play was a major part of the day, more frequently is becoming a place where children do worksheets and teacher driven activities.  Is this right?  Research says no; teachers need to find a way to teach the whole child and give them plenty of time for play.  This is most important for boys.  This article talks about the importance of the social-emotional development of boys, suggests ways that teachers can plan their daily schedule, and encourages teachers to collect data as a way of identifying and better meeting boys’ needs (p. 35).

        Early childhood pioneers formulated theories that encouraged teachers to support students’ “physical, cognitive, and social-emotional growth by providing hands-on materials, manipulatives, indoor and outdoor play spaces, props for dramatic play, construction toys, and more” (p. 35).  It was widely accepted that through play, children could obtain skills that would prepare them for formal learning tasks required later on in school.  More recently, a number of schools have changed focus to a more “academic driven” philosophy - structured lessons, seat work and worksheets, missing the need for students, especially boys, to learn needed skills in a natural way through play and relationship building.  “When active learning through play is the primary mode for interaction, children evidence notable strides in cognitive and linguistic domains (Rowen, Byrne, & Winter 1980: Miller & Almon 2009)” (p. 40).

        I have seen this time and time again in personal experiences with preschoolers.  Generally speaking, boys are more likely to be engaged in active play over sitting down drawing or writing.  Giving them a chance to explore a variety of centers allows the students to learn in a hands-on manner that is more interesting, engaging, and cognitively challenging than having the students be taught from worksheets or teacher directed lessons. Doing observations and assessments in the play environment often gives me a truer picture of what the students’ strengths and weaknesses are, than had I taken them out of the environment into a situation where they might not feel as comfortable and safe. 

        I think it is important for teaching programs to emphasize the importance of play and the role it plays in the development of young learners’ social, emotional, and academic skills.  Perhaps advocates of structured preschool and kindergarten classes will come to see the important skills that are being left out of the students’ education and how that will affect the students later on in life.

Gropper, N, Hinitz, B, Sprung, B, & Froschi, M. (2011). Helping young boys be successful learners in today's early childhood classrooms. Young Children, 66(1), 34-41.

Article Review #1

Heidi Puckett

Upper Iowa University

        Is it important for children to learn to communicate?  Not only is it important, but it is an essential part of development.  In “Strategic Teaching- Fostering Communication Skills in Diverse Young Learners” Jennifer J. Chen and Suzanne H. Shire state that “communication is a fundamental human ability and experience” (p. 20)” and that communicating effectively is a social skill that contributes to “children’s school readiness, social adjustment and academic success” (p. 20).  In the preschool years, children need to learn how to express needs, thoughts, and feelings and how to respond appropriately to others and it is important for teachers to intentionally teach these skills, and this is especially important for dual language learners and children with special needs.  Teachers need to develop new knowledge and skills in order to adapt teaching strategies to better serve these students (p.21). Adults and peers both have roles in supporting this learning through scaffolding, assessment and effective teaching strategies.

To help students communicate, Ms. Shire develops hands-on materials and visuals and places them around the classroom where students can access them.  The students use them to help communicate needs, wants, and feelings.  Shire then models appropriate vocabulary and full sentences for the student and encourages them to use verbal responses.  She provides frequent opportunities for the children to practice the modeled behaviors.  I feel that this process would be very helpful in a classroom where students who are having difficulty communicating, whether it be from a language barrier, special needs, or a lack of verbal skills.

The article reinforces quite a bit of what we have talked about in class.  The authors emphasize how important it is that we build respect and make positive connections, model appropriate behaviors and communication skills, and make sure our teaching strategies cover a wide range of needs allowing for lots of time for practice.  A number of teaching strategies for developing communication are suggested and a number of them would be very worthwhile to implement in my classroom.  We have discussed in class how frustration can lead to misbehavior, and by teaching children how to communicate, we can often eliminate misbehavior.  When children know how to communicate effectively, the whole environment runs smoother.

Chen, J, & Shire, S. (2011). Strategic teaching fostering communication skills in diverse young learners. Young Children, 66(2), 20-27. (Chen, & Shire, 2011)

Maslow

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