Education Commons^™

Multicultural Picture Books And The Hard Conversations They Invite: Do Minnesota’S Early Childhood Educators Feel Prepared To Talk About Race During Shared Reading Experiences?, Julie Rech

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Influenced by the researcher’s own experiences being confronted with young children’s curiosities about race during storytimes, this work investigates educator attitudes, approaches, and abilities as they pertain to broaching race topics in early childhood classrooms. Specifically this work seeks to understand To what degree do early childhood educators in Minnesota feel prepared to engage in discussions of race during shared reading experiences with their students? It reviews existing literature on bias and attitudes towards race topics within early childhood education, multicultural picture books and critical literacy, and anti-bias and anti-racist education. Employing constructivist and transformative paradigms and grounded in the …

To What Extent Do 3- To -6-Year-Olds Demonstrate Connection To Nature At A Montessori School In The Upper Midwest, Natasha Yates

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Yates, N. (2023). To What Extent Do 3- to -6-Year-Olds Demonstrate Connection to Nature at a Montessori School in the Upper Midwest.

Young children are born into a world today with a drastically changing environmental climate. When young people develop an emotional attachment and sense of identity with nature, they may be more likely to behave in less destructive ways towards the planet and possibly live with a sense of responsibility and respect for nature. This mixed method study aimed to measure to what extent 3- to 6-year-olds demonstrated environmental sensitivity, awareness, and preferences at a nature-based Montessori school in …

Trauma, Trust, And Academic Achievement Stories Shared By High School Dropouts, Vicci Una Johnson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative research study is based on interviews with twelve adults who dropped out of high school before earning their diploma. Participants were asked several semi-structured open-ended questions. The Primary research question is: How do adults earning their high school diploma describe what stopped them from graduating on time? The participants shared stories of family trauma. The Secondary research question is: Who did you trust in your family or at school to ask for advice or help with any issue? Nine of the twelve participants responded they would not trust a parent, teacher, counselor, or school social worker to advise …

Early Childhood Education In Ethiopia: A Case Study With Implications For Ethiopian Immigrants, Fadila Adam

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research study analyzed early childhood education in Ethiopia. The objective of this study was to find out about early childhood education in Ethiopia in order to effectively support Ethiopian families in St. Paul, Minnesota. The following are the research guiding questions: 1) What are the early childhood teaching methodologies being used in the Ethiopian education system? 2) What are the teachers’ qualifications in Ethiopian early childhood education? 3) What are teachers’ perceptions of early childhood education in Ethiopia? Studies from the Center on the Developing Child found that learning in early childhood sets the foundation for future learning and …

Getting More Young Children Outdoors By Supporting And Encouraging Their Teachers, April Greibrok

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This capstone thesis used an Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods (ESMM) research design to answer the question, How do we support and encourage teachers to take their early childhood classes outdoors? While anecdotally, and through literature review, there appear to be barriers to outdoor activities, e.g., policies and regulations, or lack of safe clothing or equipment, there also is an abundance of research on the benefits of having children spend time in nature, or with natural elements. In the early childhood setting the mixed method survey research identified actual-stated common barriers to spending time outside with a class. An initial quantitative …

Perceptions Of Adult-Child Collaboration In Toddler Environments In A Midwestern Montessori School, Anne Estes

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate adult perceptions of adult-child collaboration in two Montessori toddler environments and how it affects language, independence, and social interaction development. The study took place in one Midwestern Montessori school. The study was conducted on perceptions of adult-child collaboration through an electronic survey and intensive interviews. Five Montessori toddler assistants took the survey and two Montessori toddler guides completed intensive interviews. Once data were collected, qualitative theory methods were utilized to code, evaluate, and analyze all data. After data were re-analyzed, new theories and insights emerged surrounding how adult-child collaboration in a Montessori …

Building Background Knowledge To Fill The Gaps, Jaclyn Semlak

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this study was: How does curriculum support early intervention strategies of at risk preschoolers? Topics explored in the review of the literature include early intervention, literacy and language, oral language and vocabulary, school readiness and vocabulary instruction. Curriculum was designed for teachers instructing 4 year olds to specifically target language instruction through a tiered approach. The Understanding by Design model was used in order to create desired results, how progress will be measured, and specific lessons falling into categories of read aloud, guided group and active learning. Limitations, implications, and recommendations for future research are …

Reducing Your Water Footprint: An Activity Packet On Water Conservation For Young Children, Mallory A. Colegrove

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This curriculum guide capstone sought to answer the question of, how can young children reduce their water footprint? In order to achieve this, it was determined that the form of an activity packet focused on water conservation would allow for young children to be introduced to, and habitually practice, water conservation methods. The author researched child development theories that were most effective in educating the widest possible audience of children while dually causing the instilling of environmental values; the science of habits was also examined. Additionally, the author examined preexisting activity packets and curriculums regarding the environment that had been …

What Effect Does A Spanish Vocabulary-Through-Music Instructional Intervention Have On The Development Of Early Literacy Skills Of Preschool Students In A Bilingual Setting?, Natalie Ehalt-Bove

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This study measured the effects of a music-based Spanish instructional intervention on the Spanish vocabulary acquisition of four- and five-year-old students of varying language backgrounds who were enrolled together in a dual immersion preschool program. Research by Christ & Wang (2010), Schwartz (2014) and others concludes that young, pre-reading children with underdeveloped vocabulary can encounter difficulties achieving literacy. Thus, this project set out to determine the effectiveness of one specific vocabulary teaching strategy, in an effort to aid teachers in choosing effective instructional methods. Twenty participants were divided into two groups, including a control group receiving a nonmusical instructional intervention …

Case Studies Of Nature-Based Preschool Models In The Midwest, Janelle Dawn Phillips

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The main motivation behind this capstone research project was to more fully understand the four major program models of nature-based preschools. This qualitative, multiple case study sought to uncover the benefits and challenges of these models and apply these benefits and challenges to opening a diverse, nature-based preschool in South Bend, Indiana. Data collection included interviews and site visits to four nature-based preschool program models in the Midwest and two interviews with local early childhood experts. The study concluded each nature-based preschool program model had both benefits and challenges unique to that model. Two additional differences were found as well. …

The Effects Of The Press Intervention On Kindergarteners With Limited Early Literacy Skills, Lindsey Peterson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this Capstone is: What impact does the PRESS intervention have on Kindergarteners with limited early literacy skills? Many students enter Kindergarten with limited literacy skills and are in need of learning the basic skills of reading before they can learn to read.The action research that was conducted involved seven students and an intervention focused on phoneme segmenting. The students were given a phoneme segmenting pre assessment before the ten day intervention. A post assessment was administered after each ten day intervention. The data revealed that after two, ten day interventions that 100 percent of the …

Developing An Educational Toolkit For Caregivers Of Six-To-Eighteen-Month-Olds Mixing Developmental Milestones And Outdoor Education, Jessica K. Hillstrom

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This capstone addressed the research question, Would the creation of an environmental, outdoor education toolkit help significantly benefit very young children reach their childhood milestone goals? It documents the creation of an educational toolkit for children aged 6 – 18 months old, which integrated age appropriate developmental milestone games and activities with outdoor themed activities. The goal was to prove that proving parents and caregivers with a toolkit for this age group of 6–18-month-old children would help make parents interested in spending more time outdoors, provide a cost-affective method for early outdoor exposure, and help parents save time by using …

What Instructional Strategies Are Effective For Increasing Vocabulary For English Language Learners In A Preschool Classroom?, Nicole Carter

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this project is What Instructional Strategies are Effective for Increasing Vocabulary for English Language Learners in a Preschool Classroom? Teaching students who are limited in their understanding of the English language can be a daunting tasks; since students speak their native languages at home, making it difficult for teachers to communicate with them. This topic is significant because there has been a rapid increase in English language learners in the United States with the gap in achievement between ELLs and their English speaking peers. The purpose of the research is to find ways to increase …

Using Literacy Centers To Support A Balanced Literacy Program In A Pre-K Classroom, Jacquelin Ann Rowan

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The question addressed in this research project was, how can using literacy centers support a balanced literacy approach in a Pre-K classroom? The author’s motivation for completeing this capstone was to learn more about balanced literacy and how the use of balanced literacy could support her student’s learning. This capstone describes, in detail, what balanced literacy is, what literacy centers are , and how to use both to create an engaging learning environment for Pre-K students. It also provides guidelines for how to manage literacy centers both in organization of materials and the literacy center time block. Finally, the capstone …

The Influence Of Parent Language Use On The Dual Language Development Of Simultaneous Bilinguals, Berit Erin Gelvez

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This study included bilingual families who have the goal of raising their child to be 5 bilingual. The purpose was to examine how parents use both English and Spanish with 6 their child and whether that resulted in their child being bilingual. This research used a 7 mixed methods approach, which included an interview with parents to learn how they use 8 each language with their child. The second part included a vocabulary assessment with 9 the child in both English and Spanish. Results of the vocabulary assessment and 10 information from parent interviews were analyzed to see if there …

A Nature Adventure Chapter Book For Early Readers And How It Can Influence Children's Interest In And Desire To Explore The Natural World, Keith Marshall

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

With the increase in screen-time, children are spending less and less time outside in nature. Many studies are finding significant negative impacts upon their mental, physical and emotional well-being. The author attempted to develop an age-appropriate fictional story based upon accurate and appropriate nature and science lessons. The book, The Adventurers…Journey to the Crooked Forest was created to test if children would be more interested in going outside in nature as well as if the book could increase children’s knowledge of nature and science topics through storytelling. The effectiveness of the book was tested on fifty 1st -3 rd grade …

The Effects Of The Image-Making Within The Writing Process On Kindergarten Writing, Samantha Dee Merrell

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this capstone was how Image-Making within the Writing Process can affect kindergarten student’s writing. Students were surveyed prior to exposure to the Image-Making within the Writing Process about their feelings toward writing. They were asked the same survey questions after the Image-Making within the Writing Process was introduced and the results were analyzed. Students were also interviewed and observed throughout the process. The results of both were analyzed as well.

Increasing Number Sense At The Preschool Level, Sarah Marie Koenig

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This capstone addresses the question, “What strategies can be used to increase number sense at the preschool level?”. Current research states that preschoolers need opportunities to learn about numbers and math concepts through a balance of natural play and exploration, intentional teaching, and structured learning activities embedded in their daily routines. Through the process of curriculum design using McTighe and Wiggins’ Understanding By Design framework, the author created a learning plan that includes lessons, resources, and parent/child activities using a variety of instructional strategies to teach number sense at the preschool level. The learning plan includes a sequence of activities …

Journey To Inclusion: A School’S Perspective From Self-Contained Ecse Classrooms To Inclusive Preschool Programs, Allison Marie Hirsch

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this project was, How can a school effectively transition from a self-contained Early Childhood Special Education classroom to a full inclusion preschool program? What I have done in this capstone is set out with the objective of defining what is a successful inclusive preschool program, what are the best strategies for these programs, the benefits and barriers to the programs and how to best implement these programs into a school setting. This study details questions and answers from parents and teachers who are currently part of a full-inclusion preschool program.

Developing The 21st Century Skills Of Creativity, Collaboration And Information Fluency In A Kindergarten Classroom, Corrine Marie Schmidt

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this project was, how can kindergarten students develop the 21st Century Skills of creativity, collaboration and information fluency through technology integration? It documents one teacher’s creation of a literacy based curriculum unit that gives kindergarten students opportunities to grow their 21st Century Skills, using the iPad as the learning tool. Key influences for this capstone include the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s new standards for technology integration in early education classrooms, as well as the International Literacy Association’s new standards for literacy education. Richardson’s research on the change in learning and teacher’s …

Mentor Texts Ability To Boost Young Writer’S Confidence, Paired With Mini-Lessons And Explicit Instruction, Allison Juanita Koester

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed is, how can mentor texts, paired with mini-lessons and explicit instruction, boost young writer’s confidence? The motivating factor for this research was young writer’s lack of confidence and inability to identify themselves as a writer. Through the influence of key figures in this area, such as Lynne Dorfmann, Rose Cappelli and Katie Ray Wood, these researchers supported the use of mentor texts in the classroom paired with an appropriate writer’s workshop framework. They felt that mentor texts would bolster young writer’s confidence and skills, when used with explicit whole group and small group instruction . Through …

Environmental Education In Pre-K Child Care Settings, Kathryn Allison Galloway-Thoele

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed is, how does environmental education and nature play in child care settings benefit children? A key influence was the author’s interest in providing stimulating environmental education for her young daughter and evaluating the environmental programs of local child care providers and the perceived benefits for children. Six child care centers of differing teaching philosophies were the focus of the study with each completing a 28 question survey about the environmental activities and sustainability programs in place at their facilities and the early childhood development traits observed in the children. Results from the study showed that child …