Complete Each Sentence So It Best Describes Your Early Childhood Teaching Philosophy

Chapter 1

Complete each sentence so it best describes your early childhood teaching philosophy.

1.The early education profession is important because

______

2.Quality early education means

______

3.To ensure a successful early educational experience, children should have

______

4.Children learn best by

______

5.The physical environment of the early education classroom should

______

6.The most important quality that a teacher can have is

______

7.The most important thing a teacher needs to know about a child is

______

8.Play is important for young children because

______

9.Curriculum and classroom planning are important because

______

10.Schedules and routines in an early childhood setting are important because

______

11.Active participation of families in an early childhood program is important because

______

12.I want to be a teacher (or I am a teacher) because

______

Chapter 2

ANECDOTAL RECORD

Name of observer: ______

Date: Beginning time: ______Ending time: ______

Behavior Observed / Subjective interpretation

Chapter 3

Two-year-olds are still learning through their senses and require a variety of materials to enhance their developmental needs. This form can be utilized to evaluate the types of developmental opportunities that are available from the toy selection in a particular classroom.

Evaluating Toys and Materials in a Classroom for Two-Year-Olds

Developmental Task / Name of Toy, Number Available, and Comments
Promotes large-muscle coordination
Promotes small-muscle coordination
Fosters auditory discrimination
Encourages response to sounds
Emphasizes tactile or multisensory stimulation
Promotes eye/hand coordination
Encourages two-handed coordination
Emphasizes tactile stimulation
Emphasizes color discrimination
Builds vocabulary
Encourages autonomy
Builds self-confidence

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

NURSERY RHYME BOOK

You will need to start a collection of 10 nursery rhymes to do with the children. They need to be in a format that allows for easy access and which can be utilized by children. One suggestion I have is to go on the Internet and search for nursery rhymes. To find pictures of the nursery rhymes you can do an image search and type in the name of the nursery rhyme you want. You will then have to copy and paste to a document and then print it off. A requirement is that the pictures are in color-not black and white!!!!

Mount the picture on a study piece of poster board [can use manila folders cut in half], laminate the picture [you can put words on one side, picture on the other], and then punch a hole through a spot and lace a piece of ribbon, yarn, or metal ring through it for a handy song file. Make sure the print size you use is large enough to be read when you are holding the picture at a distance of 18 inches.

Make sure you credit the website address you retrieved the picture from and place a © symbol at the end of the address. This is a requirement because of copyright infringement laws.This information must be placed under each one of the pictures you use.

You may come up with your own creative way to display your nursery rhymes. Try it out on the children at your practicum site. Make sure your idea is practical and durable.DO NOT USE COLORING BOOK PAGES!!!

If you do not know many nursery rhymes, look in books at the library or do a web search by typing in the words “Nursery Rhymes.” Also, there is a difference between children’s songs, children’s fingerplays, and children’s nursery rhymes. You need to focus just on NURSERY RHYMES.

REQUIRED MINIMUM- 10 OF EACH

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Possible Book Suggestions for Story Mapping

Carle, Eric. The Very Hungry Caterpillar. (1979) (Collins) Philomel
Caseley, J. J. (2002). On the Town: A Community Adventure. New York: Greenwillow.
Dooley, N. (1991). Everybody Cooks Rice. Illustrated by P.J. Thornton. Minneapolis, MN:Carolrhoda Books
Galdone, P. (2001). The Gingerbread Boy. New York: Clarion.
Galdone, P. (2001). Little Red Hen. New York: Clarion.
Gilliland, U. H. (1990). The Day of Ahmed’s Secret. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard.
Gresko, M. S. (2000). A Ticket to Israel. Minneapolis, MN: Carolrhoda Books.
Hutchins, Pat. The Doorbell Rang. (1986) Greenwillow
Heiman, S. (2004). Mexico ABC’s: A Book About the People andPplaces of Mexico. New York: Picture Window Books.
Johnson, C. (1955/1983). Harold and the Purple Crayon. New York: HarperTrophy.
Marshall, James. (1998). Goldilocks and the Three Bears. New York: Puffin.
Marshall, James. (2000). Little Red Riding Hood. U.S.A.: Grosset & Dunlap.
Numeroff, Laura. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. ( 1985) Harper & Row
Robart, Rose. The Cake that Mack Ate. (1986.) Little, Brown, Sis, P. (2000). Madlenka. New York: Groundwood Books. (Available in English and Spanish).

Propsfor Spontaneous Dramatic Play

Write a dramatic play theme that comes to mind for each of these props.

Flowers
Stamps
Mirror
Timer
Pail
Envelopes
Play money
Eggbeater
Cookie cutter
Quilt or wall hanging
Rubber stamp and ink pad
Empty refrigerator box
Furry brown blanket
White twinkle lights
Feather
Long, flowing scarf
Large empty cardboard carpet roll
Sea shell
Wooden picnic basket

Add 10 more ideas!

______

Just look around you, in every corner and closet. Props are waiting to be found.

Chapter 8

Sensory Awareness

Chapter 8 underscores the point that young children are much more in touch with their senses then adults are. In some ways in order to live in our current society, adults must turn off their senses to a great degree in order to accomplish the daily tasks of living and meet the responsibilities of work and studies. If we continued to be ruled solely by our senses we might always be late and not capable of completing anything because we would have stopped to smell the roses-constantly!

However, if you are to appreciate the child’s view of the world, it is necessary that you become more aware of your own senses. If you truly concentrate on taking in information through your senses do you perceive information differently? In a way this activity requires you to turn off your analytical mind and turn on your aesthetic perception.

For this activity, you will do the following:

Read some information regarding sensory awareness in children. Some of the following links might be helpful:

Infants and Toddlers: How Children Develop Sensory Awareness
Promoting Sensory Development
Using Sensory Activities to Teach Wonder, Investigation, and Discovery

Explore Your Environment
Directions: Spend 15 minutes outside or inside your home or school. Use your senses to answer these questions:

List everything you see.
Breathe in and describe what you smell.
Close your eyes and list the sounds that you hear. Where did they come from?
Touch something (not another person) close by and describe how it feels. How did it feel to slow down and just utilize your senses?

Spend at least 30 minutes in an infant or toddler room experiencing what the child experiences in the classroom. This will entail you to be on the floor, so dress for comfort. Try to follow the child’s lead. Note how the child uses his or her senses to make meaning of the world.
Share your feelings about your experience with your classmates.

Chapter 9

Natural Scientists

Visit a preschool, kindergarten, and primary class during free time. Observe the children and identify any of the inquiry skills below that you witnessed. Decide if what you observed is child-directed, teacher-guided (supported), or teacher-directed. Briefly describe what you observed under each skill and note the overall amount of time children spent utilizing process skills. Can you conclude whether children are natural scientists or if they have opportunities to be natural scientists?

Process Skill / Description / Setting (child-directed, etc.)
Observing
Comparing
Classifying
Measuring
Communicating
Inferring
Predicting
Recording data

Overall Conclusion:

Chapter 10

Math Knowledge and Competencies Rating Scale

Rate (on a scale of 1 to 10) your knowledge and competency for each of the identified mathematical content components and process skills listed below.

For the knowledge scale: What is your confidence level regarding your ability to be able to explain to someone else what each of these terms mean? As you observe children, would you be able to identify if their play demonstrated involvement in any of these content components?

For the competency scale: What is your skill level for each of these mathematical content components? Do you feel that you would know what kinds of materials you could use with children to enhance their skill level in each of these categories? How confident to you feel about your ability to take advantage of teachable moments or to design lessons that would enhance children’s knowledge and skills for these mathematical content components and process skills?

Rating Scale: Poor (1) to Excellent (10)

Knowledge Competency

Number sense and counting
One-to-one correspondence
Classifying and sorting
Patterns, functions, algebra
Geometry (shapes) and spatial sense
Seriation
Measurement
Data analysis and probability
Problem Solving
Connecting
Reasoning
Communicating
Representing

Memories

Describe memories of your early math experiences and how they might have affected your current knowledge level and competencies in the different categories.

Plan of Action

If you are an individual who has math phobias, had unfortunate experiences with math, or found your ratings to be on the low side, discuss how you plan to resolve those issues.

What do you think are the positive and negative aspects of learning about mathematical content and process skills?

Can you envision preparing yourself as a teacher who has developed math competencies and knowledge? Identify potential barriers that you might have to overcome.

Outline an initial plan to institute a developmentally appropriate math curriculum that would encompass teaching mathematical content components and the utilization of process skills. To start, identify at least 2 Goals for yourself and 2 Goals for your potential classroom.

Books on Mathematical Concepts

Books on Numbers, Counting, Equations, & Fractions from

Other Books on Counting:

1 2 3 Pop! by Rachel Isadora
Arlene Alda's 1,2, 3by Arlene Alda
City By Numbers by Stephen Johnson
Cookie Count, A tasty pop-up book by Robert Sabuda
Countby Denise Fleming
Counting Wildflowers by Bruce McMillan
Each Orange Had 8 Slices - A Counting Book by Paul Giganti, Jr. illustrated by Donald Crews
Farm Counting Bookby Jane Miller
Have You Seen My Duckling?By Nancy Tafuri
How Many Feet In The Bed?by Diane Hamm
I Can Count 100 Bunnies, and so can you!by CyndySzekeres
Jelly Beans For Saleby Bruce McMillan
Look Whooo's CountingSuse MacDonald
Mouse Count by Ellen Walsh
My Red Umbrella by Robert Bright
One Two, One Pair!Bruce McMillan
One Two Three: An Animal Counting Bookby Marc Brown
Over In The Meadow by Olive A. Wadsworth and illustrated by Mary Maki Rae
Roar! A Noisy Counting Bookby Pamela D. Edwards and illustrated by Henry Cole
Roll Over! A Counting Song Illustrated by Merle Peek
Splash by Ann Jonas
Ten in A BedMary Recs
Ten Black Dotsby Donald Crews
Ten, Nine, Eight by Molly Bang
The Bad Babies Counting Bookby Tony Bradman and illustrated by Debbie van der Beek
The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins
The Icky Bug Counting Bookby Jerry Pallotta and illustrated by Ralph Masiello
What Comes In 2's, 3's, and 4's?by Suzanne Aker
When We Went to the Parkby Shirley Hughes

Picture books that introduce different math concepts:

Bigger and Smaller by Robert Froman
Jim and the Beanstalk by Raymond Briggs
Kathy's First Haircutby Gibbs Davis
The Line Up Book by Marisabina Russo
When Is Tomorrow? by Nancy Dingman Wilson
The Wing on a Flea by Ed Emberly

Books on Measurement (Comparison):

Adams, Pam, Ten Beads Tall
Alborough, Jez, Tall
Aker, Suzanne, What Comes in 2’s, 3’s and 4’s?
Allen, Pamela, Who Sank the Boat?
Barner, Bob, Parade Day
Bernhard, Durga, Earth, Sky, Wet, Dry
Clark, Emma Chichester, Mimi’s Book of Opposites
Eastman, P.D., Big Dog…Little Dog
Gordon, Sharon, Just the Opposite: Fast/Slow
Gordon, Sharon, Just the Opposite: Up/Down
Harper, Dan, Telling Time with Big Mama Cat
Hoban, Tana, Big Ones, Little Ones
Hoban, Tana, Exactly the Opposite
Hoban, Tana, Is It Larger? Is It Smaller?
Hoban, Tana, More, Fewer, Less
Jenkins, Steve, Actual Size
Jenkins, Steve, Biggest, Strongest, Fastest
Jocelyn, Marthe, and Slaughter, Tom, One Some Many
Lillie, Patricia, When This Box is Full
McBratney, Sam, Guess How Much I Love You
Miller, Margaret, Big and Little
Minters, Frances, Too Big, Too Small, Just Right
Murphy, Stuart J., The Best Bug Parade
Murphy, Stuart J., The Greatest Gymnast of All
Murphy, Stuart J., A House For Birdie
Murphy, Stuart J., Just Enough Carrots
Murphy, Stuart J., Mighty Maddie
Nathan, Cheryl and McCourt, Lisa, The Long and Short of It
Rathmann, Peggy, 10 Minutes till Bedtime
Rosa-Mendoza, Gladys, Opposites/Opuestos
Russo, Marisabina, The Line Up Book
Schreiber, Anne, Slower Than a Snail
Serfozo, Mary, What’s What: A Guessing Game
Stickland, Paul and Henrietta, Dinosaur Roar!
Tompert, Ann, Just a Little Bit

Books on Algebra (Patterns):

Adams, Pam, There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly
Arenson, Roberta, One, Two, Skip a Few: First Number Rhymes
Arnold, Tedd, Five Ugly Monsters
Andrews-Goebel, Nancy, The Pot that Juan Built
Baer, Gene, Thump, Thump, Rat-a-Tat-Tat
Baker, Jeannie, Window
Bartlett, Alison, and Wilson, Anna, Over in the Grasslands
Beaton, Clare, Daisy Gets Dressed
Benton, Linda, I See Patterns (Creative Teaching Press)
Berkes, Marianne, Over in the Ocean: In a Coral Reef
Brown, Marc, Hand Rhymes
Boynton, Sandra, Doggies
Boynton, Sandra, Hippos Go Berserk!
Burris, Priscilla, Five Green and Speckled Frogs
Cabrera, Jane, Over in the Meadow
Cabrera, Jane, Ten in the Bed
Christelow, Eileen, Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed
Christelow, Eileen, Five Little Monkeys Sitting on a Tree
Cole, Henry, Jack’s Garden
Dunn, Opal, Number Rhymes to Say and Play!
Durango, Julia, ChaChaChaChimps
Ellwand, David, Ten in the Bed
Emmett, Jonathan, Through the Heart of the Jungle
Evans, Michael, Over in the Meadow
Freeman, Tina, Ten Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed
Geddes, Anne, Ten in the Bed
Gunson, Christopher, Over on the Farm
Harris, Trudy, Pattern Bugs
Harris, Trudy, Pattern Fish
Henkes, Kevin, Shhhh
Ives, Penny, Five Little Ducks
Kalan, Robert, Jump, Frog, Jump!
Kimmelman, Leslie, How Do I Love You?
Kelly, Martin and Learis, Phil, Five Green and Speckled Frogs
Kubler, Annie, There Were Ten in the Bed
Langstaff, John, Over in the Meadow
Lass, Bonnie, and Sturges, Philemon, Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?
Lorenz. Juergen. Let’s Look at Patterns (Anness Publishing Limited, 2001)
Martin, Bill, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
Martin, Bill, ChickaChicka Boom Boom
Miller, Margaret, Now I’m Big
Miranda, Anne, Let’s Get the Rhythm
Morozumi, Atsuko, One Gorilla
Murphy, Stuart J., Beep Beep, Vroom Vroom
Murphy, Stuart J., A Pair of Socks
Peek, Merle, Roll Over! A Counting Song
Roberts, Sheena, We All Go Traveling By
Scherer, Jeffrey, The Ants Go Marching
Sharratt, Nick, My Mom and Dad Make Me Laugh
Singer, Marilyn, Quiet Night
Stockham, Jess, Ten Little Speckled Frogs
Sweet, Melissa, Fiddle-I-Fee
Swinburn, Stephen R., Lots and Lots of Zebra Stripes
Taback, Simms, There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly
Taback, Simms, This is the House that Jack Built
Tuxworth, Nicola, Let’s Look at Patterns
Ward, Jennifer, Over in the Garden
Webb, Steve, Tanka Tanka Skunk
Westcott, Nadine Bernard, I Know and Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly
Williams, Rozanne Lanczak, Mr. Noisy’s Book of Patterns (Creative Teaching Press)
Yaccarino, Dan, Five Little Pumpkins
Zelinsky, Paul O., The Wheels on the Bus

Picture Books for Patterns

See Carol Hurst's Children's Literature Site at Click on “Curriculum;” Scroll down to Math and click on “Picture Books for Patterns.”

Shapes/Geometry

A Wing On A Flea: A Book About Shapes by Ed Emberley
Baby Bop Discovers Shapes by Stephen White
Boxes! Boxes! by Leonard Everett Fisher
Circles, Triangles, and Squares by Tana Hoban
Magic Monsters Look For Shapes by Jane Belk Moncure
Pancakes, Crackers, and Pizza: A Book of Shapes by Marjorie Eberts and Margaret Gisler
Shapes by John Reiss
Shapes and Colors by Denise Lewis Patrick
Shapes, Shapes, Shapes by Tana Hoban
Shopping Spree Identifying Shapes by Monica Weiss
Spence Makes Circles by Christa Chevalier
Wilbur Worm by Richard and Nicky Hale and Andre Amstutz

Geometry

Position and Space

Baicker, Karen, I Can Do It Too!
Carle, Eric, From Head to Toe
Cauley, Lorinda Bryan, Clap Your Hands
Cohen, Caron Lee, Where’s the Fly?
Crews, Nina, A High, Low, Near, Far, Loud, Quiet Story
Dodds, Dayle Ann, Wheel Away!
Ellwand, David, Clap Your Hands
Hartman, Gail, As the Crow Flies: A First Book of Maps
Hill, Eric, Where’s Spot?
Hoban, Tana, All About Where
Hoban, Tana, Over, Under and Through
Hutchins, Pat, Rosie’s Walk
Martin, Bill and Archambault, John, Here Are My Hands
Marzollo, Jean, Pretend You’re a Cat
Newcome, Zita, Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes and Other Action Rhymes
Portis, Antoinette, Not a Box
Reasoner, Charles, Who’s Hatching?: A Sliding Surprise Book
Rosen, Michael, and Oxenbury, Helen, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt
Walton, Rick, How Can You Dance?