[Vicky]

I work with 4 year olds so my curriculum development is geared toward their next step of kindergarten. I also keep in mind, they need to be silly and have fun too. I ask them what kind of things they would like to do as well. Envolving them makes them feel a sense of control and choice which is building their self esteem. We sneak in learning in everything we plan.

[Kiyaria Coleman]

When you develop lesson plans, how do you decide on your learning goals? Do you base them on children’s developmental levels, interests, school readiness skills, or something else? Share one example of how you adjusted a lesson to meet the needs of your specific group of children.

[Danielle]

When I develop lesson plans I use a mix of our pre made lesson plans and finding the childrens interests within the themes as well as making sure the plans are fun and met the children where they are and also push them a little out of their comfort zone.

[Danielle]

I have adjusted my lesson plans to childrens attention spans and interest adding in more movement and songs and different textures to help grow their interest and attention spans.

[Kira]

This is for a mixed age preschool and junior kindergarten class – At the beginning of each school year, we determine which units we will be using and then plan accordingly with the teachers rotating planning per week. I always think about what is developmentally appropriate and what the unit is, but I really love picking out projects and lessons that interest this particular group of students. Due to the age range, when I plan I take into consideration being able to modify the lesson for those students who are more advanced specifically in fine motor skills. For example in an activity that requires cutting with scissors, I will provide some templates that have already been cut as to not have the three year olds become overwhelmed and stop the activity because they aren’t yet able to cut, or I will have some simpler templates available with less intricate cutting available. Also, having templates for those students who have mastered scissor and want to further develop their mastery that can lead to them being able to feel proud about their abilities. For example one winter activity is snowflakes. I will provide both a template and also show how to cut one from just folding the paper. Then we decorate. It is a fun window hanging.

[Kira]

Our activities are informed by the units in our curriculum which rotate on an every other year schedule. We have the ability to refer back to previous lessons in our teaching software so we are able to repeat successful activities and also see the notes and reflection on the lessons from teachers. This allows us to gain insight into what worked and what didn’t, as well as how we might adjust the lessons to the specific needs of the children that school year. For example, this past school year we went through a transportation unit. We were able to include new types of transportation such as hot air balloons. I developed a lesson that included reading a book about the inventor of hot air balloons and then we decorated our own balloons and hung them from the ceiling of the classroom.

[Breanna Harthan]

Deciding a lesson goal with children involves using the backward design process: start with the final skill or understanding you want them to achieve, and then plan engaging, age-appropriate activities to ge there. Tailor the goal to be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound), while keeping it conversational and interactive.