Principles Of Child Development & Learning
...early preschool period. „h Associative Play ˇV limited interaction between children. Children may exchange toys or imitate one anotherˇ¦s actions, but all participants pursue their own goals. „h Cooperative Play ˇV involves an organized activity in which children act together to accomplish a common agreed upon goal. 5. Emotional Domain ˇV Young Childrenˇ¦s Emotional Development Also Follows A Predictable Sequence Applying this principle to meet childrenˇ¦s needs: „h Know and understand the development sequences „h Create environments that support children in all development domains. „h Know and understand each domain for the age range and developmental stages for the children in your care. „h Understand the ways where children need adult help and guidance to master each stage of development in each domain. „h Observe and record each childˇ¦s development in each domain on a regular basis. „h Be sure your expectations are reasonable and appropriate for each child. „h Provide appropriate help and guidance to ensure that children achieve their own highest possible degree of success at each level of development. „h Avoid pushing children to accelerate their progress through developmental sequences. „h If a child is experiencing difficulty or frustration at a particular level in a sequence, look for deficits the child may have had in the past. * Each child develops according to his or her own individual timetable and according to his or her own individual priorities. All children do not develop at the same rate. They all progress at the same pattern of development. Children tend to concentrate on learning one task at a time. It is extremely important that adults not compare one childˇ¦s development with that of another child. Children also show individual differences in personality, temperament, interests, strengths, and learning styles. Applying this principle to meet childrenˇ¦s needs: „h Expect variations in childrenˇ¦s rate of development „h Observe each child closely to discover how best to meet the current developmental needs of each child „h Keep continuous records of your observations of each child „h Provide self-paced activities for children every day „h Provide activities that have multiple learning objectives „h Repeat activities at appropriated intervals to give children opportunities to learn at different levels „h Program flexibility is essential in order to meet individual childrenˇ¦s current needs „h Consider each childˇ¦s overall level of development at the best measure of the childˇ¦s progress and potential „h Avoid using developmental ˇ§Normsˇ¨ to evaluate children Lesson 2: Every child is a unique individual and each childˇ¦s characteristics have a major impact on all aspects of the childˇ¦s learning. There are five basic principals of childrenˇ¦s learning that should guide teachers in planning a high-quality early childhood program. 1. Children Are Active Learners. Children Learn Best From What They Themselves Experience. Young children are driven to reach out and explore the world around them. They learn form their own firsthand experience with objects and other people. Young children learn from what they see, hear, touch, taste, and smell. Doing and developing are more important than arriving at a correct answer. Children are compelled to seek stimulation. They cannot ˇ§Just sit quietly while I finishˇK.ˇ¨. The expectation, not the child is at fault. Or consider the typical preschoolerˇ¦s reaction to mundane ˇ§seatworkˇ¨. Chances are, after a few minutes; the child will become bored and turn his energies to something more interesting. Again, the child is not being naughty. Early childhood programs that do not recognize, respect and indeed celebrate the active nature of childrenˇ¦s learning can do them great harm. Applying this principle to meet childrenˇ¦s needs: „h Make hands-on experiences „h Allow children to select their own activities „h Allow children to move about freely „h Allow children to be in control of their play „h Ask children questions and encourage them to experiment „h Give children plenty of time to work out solutions to problems on their own „h Follow the childˇ¦s lead „h Respect childrenˇ¦s natural focus on the process of learning „h Provide daily opportunities for large motor activities both indoors and outdoors „h Alternate periods of active play and periods of quiet play during the day „h Include outdoor play in each dayˇ¦s schedule (weather permitting) „h Work with each individual child to help that child meet his or her own needs 2. Children Learn More From Experiences That Involve Several Senses Than From Experiences That Involve Only One Sense. For example, a child can see what a ball is from a picture, but they will develop more brain network connections involving more different parts of the brain with a real ball. Children get an accurate concept of what a ball is by what they see, touch, roll, drop, and throw as they hear the teacher label it. Applying this principle to meet childrenˇ¦s needs „h Include many opportunities for a variety of multi-sensory hands- on experiences for children everyday „h Provide new sights, sounds, tastes, smells and things to touch to stimulate childrenˇ¦s senses and give them new experiences „h Encourage children to experiment with new ways to use play materials 3. Childrenˇ¦s Learning Moves In A Predictable Direction, From A Lesser To A Greater Level Of Complexity, Organization And Internalization. Childrenˇ¦s learning proceeds from the simple to the complex. First, wheeled vehicles are all cars. Later, they will recognize more categories including trucks and buses. Still later, children can differentiate between may varieties of cars and the many types of trucks. Each child is the center of his or hers own world. They first develop a sense of themselves. Children become very possessive which is very natural. Children must have a sense of ownership before they can develop generosity. Childrenˇ¦s learning proceeds from concrete (meaning experiences directly through physical contact with tangible objects) to the abstract (meaning experiences involving thought only). It is important to remember that real learning includes understanding not simply repeating words. Children learn through trial and error. To a child, a mistake is just another step on the exciting road of discovery. Children need to feel free to experiment and test their ideas without fear of being what adults call ˇ§wrongˇ¨. The process of problem solving is more important to childrenˇ¦s learning than arriving at a ˇ§correctˇ¨ answer. Applying this principle to meet childrenˇ¦s needs: „h Plan activities from less mature and complex skills and concepts to more mature and complex skills and concepts. „h Make sure your expectations of children are realistic based on their level of development „h Discover what the children in your care know and can do before introducing new concepts and activities „h Realize individual children will be in different places along the development continuum 4. Children Have Multiple Types Of Intelligence And Different Learning Styles There are eight types of intelligence. Every individual has all eight, but in different proportions. One or more will be dominant in each individual. How an individualˇ¦s intelligences are developed depends on the personˇ¦s biological endowment, life experiences, and interactions with other people and cultural and historic background. Verbal Linguistic Intelligence ˇV Children who are word smart. They are sensitive to words and have the ability to use words effectively. Logical Mathematical Intelligence ˇV These children may be good at logic and reasoning. They may have the ability to work well with numbers or recognizing and manipulating abstract patterns and relationships. Spatial Intelligence ˇV Children smart with pictures and images. Musical Intelligence ˇV Children smart with music have a good sense of rhythm and pitch, talented at singing or playing an instrument, humming, tapping, or listening to music. Bodily Kinesthetic Intelligence ˇV Children good at athletics or dance, good with hand. Naturalist Intelligence ˇV Children especially sensitive to the natural world. They relate well to pets or animals, plants and may be interested in environmental issues. Interpersonal Intelligence ˇV Children gifted in understanding and working with other people. They make friends easily and are usually leaders. Intrapersonal Intelligence ˇV Children who understand themselves well and know who they are. They understand their own emotions, goals and intentions. They are often highly motivated to achieve goals of their own choice and can learn from their mistakes. Each childˇ¦s learning style is influenced by the preferred sensory channel. Visual ˇV learners learn best through their sense of sight. Auditory ˇV learners learn best through their sense of hearing. Tactile/Kinesthetic ˇV learners are hands on learners. Applying this principle to meet childrenˇ¦s needs: „h Provide activities that help all children develop each of their intelligenceˇ¦s everyday „h Provide opportunities for children to lean skills and concepts in a variety of learning styles „h Provide choices of activities and let children select the activity that suits their own way of learning „h Emphasize the importance of all eight intelligences „h Avoid labeling a child „h Remember that exploration is the foundation of all understanding 5. Childrenˇ¦s Learning Occurs In And Is Influenced By The Social And Cultural Contexts Of Their Lives. There are two learning styles typical of different cultures. Field Dependent ˇV Children who prefer to work in groups. They do best on verbal tasks and are greatly influenced by the opinions of others in the group. Field Independent ˇV Children who are more analytical and focus on factual details. They are not influenced by opinions of others. Applying this principle to meet childrenˇ¦s needs: „h Provide activities that reflect both learning styles „h Show respect for each style „h Help children learn to interact comfortably with people whose cultural background is both similar to and different from their own. Lesson 3: The quality and variety of learning opportunities that adults provide for young children have a profound effect on the individual childˇ¦s development. 1. In Order To Learn And Develop, Children Need Opportunities To Practice Their New Skill. As children practice skills they have mastered, they feel a sense of success and are motivated to move ahead. Practicing motor skills helps children continue learning to a higher level ˇV crawl to walk ˇV walk to run ˇV run to skip ˇV skip to hop, etc. They get better and mor...