Block Play Best Practices
ANSWERS to Follow up Quiz
Phoenix Children’s Academy 2011 Training
1) The first developmental stage of Block Play that a child goes through is called
_____ a. Bridging: the child connects two blocks with a space between them with a third block
_____ b. Enclosures: the child puts blocks together to enclose a space
_____ c. Road Making: the child lays blocks on the floor in rows
__X__ d. Tote and Carry: the child piles the blocks together and/or carries them inside something
Phoenix Children’s Academy 2011 Training
Phoenix Children’s Academy 2011 Training
2) _____ TRUE __X__ FALSE A four year old child with no experience in block play usually begins by building enclosures. Children without experience in Block Play will start in Stage 1: Tote and Carry
Phoenix Children’s Academy 2011 Training
3) Name three of the ways photographs taken of children involved in the Block area can be used:
a) Sent home with the individual child along with a note from the teacher explaining what he/she was learning
b) Used as an “Evidence of Learning” display containing what the child was learning or experiencing
c) Used to “decorate” the Block Play area so that children can refer back to constructions they’ve made earlier
4) One of the bi-monthly curriculum themes for January is “Dinosaur Discoveries. List three enrichments a preschool teacher can add to her Block area so the theme is evident:
a) Plastic dinosaurs (remove the farm animals and cars) of various sizes
b) Tree branches and twigs
Phoenix Children’s Academy 2011 Training
c) Sand or dirt
d) Rocks and pebbles
e) Toy volcano
f) Pictures and posters of dinosaurs
Phoenix Children’s Academy 2011 Training
5) As a teacher you recognize the importance of constantly enriching and changing the materials in your Block area but your school is on a very limited budget. You know there’s no money to buy props to add for the “Dinosaur Discoveries” theme. Name two ways of obtaining materials for little or no cost.
a) Provide parents and the community with a Wish List that requests donations and loans of needed equipment
b) Visit the Dollar Store or Thrift store
c) Contact a local museum for kits and/or educational materials that can be checked out
6) Briefly describe why it’s important to label the shelves in the Block areas in twos, threes, fours, PreKindergarten and Schoolage classrooms with the shape outlines of the blocks: Cleaning up blocks can become a great time of learning as children match the blocks to the shape outlines. Without these labels, the Block area becomes cluttered and uninviting.
7) According to Best Practice standards, the Block shelf in any toddler or Twos classroom should (check all that apply):
__X__ be out of the traffic flow of the classroom
__X__ contain blocks that are at least 2”
_____ contain lots of hard, wooden blocks
__X__ have accessories and blocks sorted and stored by type
8) A preschool teacher approaches the Block area and notices several of her students building a barn for the plastic animals. What should she do? (check all the apply):
__X__ Locate the camera and snap a few photos of the structure to display in the Block area.
_____ Say “Wow! That’s a cool farm. I like what you’ve built!”
__X__ Sit down with the children and say “You’re all working so hard. Tell me about what you’re building!”
_____ Walk away quietly. The children are working so diligently that they don’t really need her/him right now.
9) What’s the most important thing you learned from this training and how will it impact your teaching practices?
______
______
______
Phoenix Children’s Academy 2011 Training
______
Phoenix Children’s Academy 2011 Training