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Early Childhood Education Commons

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Northwestern College, Iowa

Series

2023

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Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Early Childhood Education

Promoting More Play In Kindergarten, Sarah Hofland Oct 2023

Promoting More Play In Kindergarten, Sarah Hofland

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

Kindergarten has changed immensely over the years. It is currently driven by academic standards. Kindergarten teachers use much of the day to implement direct instruction and seat work to meet the higher demands in reading and math. The problem is that this type of learning is not developmentally appropriate for kindergarteners. Research shows that play is the central way in which children at the kindergarten age learn. To be developmentally appropriate, this school improvement plan aims at initiating more time spent playing during the kindergarten day.


Supporting Play In The Preschool Classroom With Visuals, Jessica Luetkemeier Apr 2023

Supporting Play In The Preschool Classroom With Visuals, Jessica Luetkemeier

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

Early childhood classrooms in the United States look very different today than they did a decade ago. There are a number of reasons why this changing portrait is the case; however, students entering preschool classrooms today are coming to school with less social and academic skills than in the past. Preschool teachers are feeling the pressure to have students “school ready” while also implementing developmentally appropriate practices. After surveying the research around challenges incorporating play in preschool classroom’s today, this school improvement plan suggests how to justify and support play in the preschool classroom using visuals, such as play scripts.