Early Childhood Education Commons^™

Methods Used In Developing Financial Awareness Among Primary School Children As Perceived By Parents, Lina S. Bashatah Ph.D., Afnan M. Alshahrani

International Journal for Research in Education

The study aimed to identify the methods used to developing financial awareness and the obstacles among children in the primary classes as perceived by parents. Besides, it showed the differences among the sample according to the parent's gender, their educational qualifications, the student's gender, and the school type (public, private). Therefore, the study used the descriptive survey method, and the two researchers developed a questionnaire that was applied to a sample of (357) parents of primary pupils in public and private schools at Abha city. The results showed that experiential learning and storytelling were the methods that sample used with …

A Scientific Approach To Sight Word Acquisition In Early Childhood, Emma J. Powers

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Teachers have commonly taught sight words through viewing the word as a whole unit and committing it to memory through repetition, but this practice bears little connection to phonics. While this method may work for some, for many students, especially those with specific learning disabilities (SLDs), it is not enough. Through this honors project, the teacher candidate will research new instructional methods based in the Science of Reading, which utilize orthographic mapping, or letter-sound connections, to chunk sight words into recognizable and phonetically regular spelling patterns (Ehri, 2014). To do so, she will investigate a body of evidence from relevant …

Movement In Math - Integrating Movement-Based Activities Into Kindergarten Math, Katelyn Belch

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

Gross-motor movements have shown promising effects on student academic achievement and engagement especially in kindergarten classrooms. The purpose of this study was to examine what happens when movement-based mathematical activities are introduced into a kindergarten math curriculum and its implications on how kindergarteners engage during math time. Using surveys, observational and reflective data, and semi-structured interviews of students and my cooperating teacher, this study aimed to examine student and teacher perceptions of incorporating movement-activities. When movement activities were introduced into math time, the students were more engaged in math. The movement activities served as form of play-based learning and relied …

Progressive Virtual Learning For Our Youngest Learners, Erica B. Held

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This study addresses how teachers build a progressive curriculum online for our youngest learners. Our youngest learners learn through play and the author sought to gather data in order to understand how teachers approached this age group in an online space. To conduct the research, ten observations were made of a pre-k class and a first grade class. Throuobservation and recording, four main themes were identified that progessive educators were using to create progressive curricula: Building Community, Progressive Pedagogy, Student Voice and the Home-School Connection. To build community the teachers observed had students bring objects from home, offered consistent morning …

The Impact Of Creative Movement Presentations On Dance Participation And Student Attitudes Towards Dance In A Montessori Early Childhood Classroom, Ruth Flowers

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This action research study examined the impact of creative movement presentations on dance participation and student attitudes towards dance in one outdoor Montessori early childhood classroom during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were 13 kindergarten and lower elementary students, ages 5-8, and the researcher, their teacher. Students were presented creative movement activities eight times during circle time over four weeks. They were also given opportunities to dance freely once a week for six weeks and asked three times to respond to statements regarding their attitudes towards dance; pre-intervention, mid-intervention, and post-intervention. Data was collected using observations of dance participation, field notes …

Looking For Trouble And Causing Trauma, Marquita D. Foster

Occasional Paper Series

The purpose of this paper is to examine the genuine but misguided efforts to address the behaviors of Pre-K students in a Texas public school. After espousing the concept of building strong children through correction, evaluation, and intervention in my role as assistant principal, I began to question how these methods tended to lead to pathologizing the behaviors of Black pre-kindergarteners in my school. In an attempt to find solutions to the children's perceived misbehavior, Pre-K teachers were charged with utilizing PBIS strategies and the RTI process for behavior. Social and emotional learning (SEL) was also considered. We discovered that …

Light And Shadow Lab: Interest, Experimentation, Collaboration, & Wonder, Mollie Peoples

General Human Environmental Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Abstract

This creative project focuses on the experimentation and exploration of light and shadows with the children at the Jean Tyson Child Development Study Center (JTCDSC). The creation, development, and implementation of the light studio was influenced by many approaches and concepts that surround early childhood development. It incorporated inspiration from my travels to Italy, where I studied the Reggio Emilia approach in context. In Reggio Emilia, I had the opportunity to visit the Loris Malaguzzi International Centre, local schools that implement distinct child guidance approaches, and The Creative Recycling Centre Remida. The light studio at the JTCDSC incorporates both …

Social Emotional Learning: Presence And Prevalence In Early Care And Education Programs And Effects On Teacher Self-Efficacy, Gabrielle Humble

Undergraduate Honors Theses

A large pool of reviewed literature and studies suggest that Social Emotional Learning (SEL) provides a multitude of developmental benefits to early childhood-aged children. The focus of this study was to assess whether SEL techniques were utilized within early care and education programs throughout the East Tennessee region and to investigate the relationship between SEL techniques and teacher self-efficacy. Sixteen early childhood teachers in the East Tennessee region completed a survey that gauged both their exposure and usage of SEL techniques in the classroom and their teacher self-efficacy. Findings showed that teachers primarily implemented self-studied SEL techniques in the classroom …

Power To Change: Math As A Social-Emotional Language In A Classroom Of 4 And 5 Year Olds, Elinor J. Albin, Gretchen Vice

Occasional Paper Series

Tells the story of how mathematics influenced a long term investigation around feeling powerful within an early childhood classroom. Written by Early Childhood Teacher, Elinor J. Albin, and Dean of Faculty, Gretchen Vice, this essay outlines the guiding questions by which teachers at The Advent School in Boston, MA connect mathematics to overarching themes and social-emotional learning. “Power to Change” concludes with observations about how and why mathematics provided a language for building social-emotional intelligence in four and five year olds.

Educación Para La Primera Infancia En Un Contexto De Desarrollo Humano Y Formación De Capital Social En Bogotá, Jonathan Andrés Bejarano Vásquez

Economía

Ante un entorno económico y social evidentemente desigual, inequitativo y con insuficientes oportunidades de movilidad social vertical ascendente, la educación para la primera infancia se presenta como una necesidad en el enfoque de la política pública. Para orientarse a la solución de dichas problemáticas sociales, es pertinente desde la perspectiva del presente trabajo crear capacidades en los individuos desde los primeros años de vida como un mecanismo de formación de capital social, desarrollo humano y justicia social. Desde una perspectiva teórica interdisciplinar se busca evaluar, por medio de indicadores de cobertura, calidad, inclusión y pertinencia, la estructura educativa producto de …

Sliding Into An Equitable Lesson, Kelley E. Buchheister 6872059, Christa Jackson, Cynthia E. Taylor

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

A kindergarten teacher uses Gutierrez's four dimensions of equity to design and facilitate geometry instruction.

Equitable instruction is reflected in how students are positioned in the classroom and how their identities evolve through purposeful interactions that value and recognize the intellectual capacity of each student (Gutiérrez 2013; Lemons-Smith 2008). These integral interactions occur when teachers and students exchange problem-solving strategies, discuss relations among various mathematical representations, and listen to the viewpoints of others (NCTM 2000; 2014).

The Emergence Of Friendships And Social Groups In Kindergarten, Denae Shake

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

The school classroom is an inherently social setting where students interact with each other for seven hours, five days a week. The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of how students select their friends and how social groups begin to form and emerge. The author collected data through student and teacher interviews, dictated drawings, a sociogram, and a parent survey. After analyzing the data by using the constant comparative method, the author found four major themes. The first was that each social clique came equipped with unique characteristics that the clique members embodied. Second, there were …

Teaching My Child To Resist In Kindergarten, Christine Ferris

Occasional Paper Series

Ferris describes how she taught her son to resist in his kindergarten classroom while drawing on her own experiences as an educator. Their experience draws attention to common teaching methods that do not promote socialization or free thinking. This also highlights the issues that can arise when the value system of a school does not align with a family's own beliefs - especially when alternative schools are not a viable option.

An Examination Of Kindergarten Readiness Perceptions From Prekindergarten Teachers, Kindergarten Teachers, And Parents: A Quantitative Study Of Kindergarten Readiness Perceptions, Angela Cross

Education Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the perceptions of kindergarten readiness for kindergarten teachers, public prekindergarten teachers in both public and private settings, and parents. Data were collected and analyzed through a quantitative method using an inferential approach. A Likert-style survey was distributed to current kindergarten teachers, prekindergarten teachers, and parents; and the data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The data collected from the surveys indicated differences in kindergarten readiness perceptions in the areas of social/emotional skills, literacy skills, and communication between kindergarten parents and teachers and between public and private prekindergarten participants. There were also differences in …

Multiple Perspectives On Cognitive Development: Radical Constructivism, Cognitive Constructivism, Sociocultural Theory, And Critical Theory, Meir Muller, Kelley E. Buchheister, Gloria Boutte

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

This multi-vocal article represents the work of three teacher educators. In conjunction with Glasersfeld’s (1996) description of Radical Constructivism, we agree that any theory “cannot claim to be anything but one approach to the age-old problem of knowing. Only its application in contexts where a theory of knowing makes a difference can show whether or not it can be considered a viable approach.” (von Glasersfeld, 1996, p. 309). In this conceptual piece, we examined the relationship between Radical Constructivism and three distinct, yet sometimes overlapping, theories: 1) Cognitive Constructivism 2) Sociocultural Theory; and 3) Critical Theory. First, we discuss the …

Maths Games: A Universal Design Approach To Mathematical Reasoning, Kelley E. Buchheister, Christa Jackson, Cynthia E. Taylor

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

By incorporating math games into the classroom, through the principles of Universal Design teachers are able to address mathematical content, reasoning and problem solving, as well as tailoring games to address students' individual needs.

Music And Words: Connecting The Love Of Music With Language, Eileen P. Kennedy, Raymond Torres- Santos

Publications and Research

Children from different cultures have a natural affinity for rhymes, rhythm and music. Imagine if students were able, from the beginning of their education and experiences with academic writing and literacy, to access their unconscious and original selves from which to create their writing. The study of music can help to access this aware, inventive side that can enhance anyone’s writing. As an early childhood writing teacher and a composition teacher, we draw on our experiences with young children with words and music. We examine the relationship between music and words in an effort to bring the primitive drive of …

A Little Change Can Make A Big Difference, Kelley E. Buchheister

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The opportunity to teach mathematics through service learning projects provides a relevant and connected experience that encourages concept development and problem solving proficiency while also developing students’ feelings of generosity and altruism. In this article I describe a prior project that helped my students, many of whom struggled with mathematics, become engaged in mathematical thinking and reasoning. Additional specific connections are made toward extended projects surrounding current events, as well as state and national standards.

The Comprehensive Emergent Literacy Model: Early Literacy In Context, Leigh Rohde

Leigh Rohde

Parent Involvement In Reading: Parent Workshops To Promote Critical Thinking, Rachelle Kristine Skeen

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to create an at-home reading program that would encourage parent participation and promote the development of critical thinking skills necessary for our children. The project implements a program that emphasizes using higher level questioning strategies in order to develop critical thinking skills. The project's focus is on educating and training parents as to the importance of their involvement and the importance of using higher level questioning strategies when they read with their children. Parents are educated and trained during two parent workshops. During these workshops, parents will also be introduced to the Read Together …

Curriculum Based Measurement And Portfolio Assessment: An Effective Evaluation System, Johanna Roberts

All Graduate Projects

The researcher reviewed current literature regarding curriculum based assessment, curriculum based measurement (CBM) and portfolio assessment. The researcher developed a curriculum based measurement for kindergarten prereading and premath skills as a part of a portfolio system. A first grade math curriculum based measurement was designed collaboratively with two first grade teachers. A beginning reading assessment was also designed for the first grade. Results showed that a portfolio assessment with CBM's is an effective evaluation tool.

Activities For Teaching Letter Identification, A. Kristin Seibel

All Graduate Projects

The focus of this project was to compile and design research based letter identification activities. Emphasis was placed on the highly confusable letters "b-d", "p-q", and "n-u". The activities were for use in the first grade curriculum. Learning objectives were stated for each activity. The activities, utilizing a variety of materials, were chosen and designed for hands-on application. Needed materials were listed, directions and patterns for construction were included, directions for use were provided, and classroom management was suggested. Use of the activities was divided into three parts: whole group introduction, guided practice, and small group activities.