Approaches to Planning

Approaches to Planning

You probably already know what kind of planning style might suit you best. Think about how you might approach planning a road-trip vacation. Your goal is to see places you have not visited before and your objectives are what you want to accomplish each day of the trip; there is more than one way, however to plan this journey. You might be the kind of person who would predetermine the places you will visit; research information about sights, attractions, and restaurants; map out your route to determine how far you will drive each day; and make hotel reservations ahead of time.

Or maybe you would prefer to pack the car with plenty of provisionsfood, drinks, snacks, your bike and camping gearwith a general starting direction but no destination in mind, mapping out your trip as you go, and stopping at places you find interesting. Either way, you may have fellow travelers and encounter other people, developments, or events that challenge your plan or cause you to modify it as you go along. But you may also arrive home feeling entirely satisfied that the trip was worthwhile and lived up to or exceeded your initial expectations regardless of which plan was followed.

Teacher planning is in many ways analogous to the road tripwe have common goals for what we want or expect children to ultimately accomplish but different ways of getting there. The first approach described above represents one end of the planning continuum, a linear (or “top down”) sequential process that begins with identification of standards and objectives and determines how each step or stage of an activity or series of activities will be carried out. The second approach represents the other end of the continuum, a global (emergent or “bottom up”) process, with anticipation and preparation for a range of possibilities, developing direction through facilitation and negotiation of child-directed explorations and documenting how standards are being met over time.

Many teachers approach to planning will fall somewhere in between. While the planning styles represent different approaches, teachers planning both kinds of experiences will keep in mind the principles of developmentally appropriate practice, so that learning is meaningful and provides a balance between child-directed and teacher-initiated activities.

All approaches to teacher planning in early childhood should place a high value on structuring the environment and activities to integrate, or connect, learning across all areas of the curriculum. Good planning also relies on teacher flexibility to make ongoing decisions based on the knowledge and observation of children, adapting the curriculum to maximize learning opportunities. In this section, we will follow two long-term studies with preschool and kindergarten children to illustrate the planning continuum. This type of learning can be planned as a thematic unit or emergentstudy.

Long-term investigations offer the opportunity to focus on a topic in depth, especially if the teacher maintains an open-ended time frame rather than a rigid schedule (Katz & Chard, 2000; Pearlman, 2006). Topics can come from the children, teachers, supplied curriculum materials, or ideas that emerge from studying state standards and objectives. Planning for either a thematic unit or emergent study represents a comprehensive investment of time; therefore it is very important that topics be relevant to the cultural contexts and experiences of the children. A study of the ocean and marine life makes a great deal of sense for children who live in coastal areas. It may not be as relevant to the daily lives of young children who live in landlocked states like New Mexico or Colorado. However, children are interested in many things they have no hands-on experience with (dinosaurs, space travel, and so forth) and are exposed to a great deal of information vicariously through media sources; therefore any topic that captures their interest should be open for discussion.

Thematic Unit: Ladybugs, Butterflies, and Bees

As described above, a thematic unit is a long-term investigation of a topic intended to capture and engage childrens interest and provide opportunities to develop skills and knowledge in multiple areas. Typically, planning for a thematic unit represents a top-down approach, with the teacher making most or all of the decisions about how to proceed according to a general decision-making sequence that includes the following:

1. Identifying goals: learning standards and objectives to be addressed.
2. Identifying important considerations about childrens developmental and cultural characteristics, interests, and needs.
3. Selecting a topic or theme that provides opportunities to meet goals.
4. Brainstorming ideas for activities that support and connect different areas of the curriculum.
5. Creating and scheduling plans for lessons and activities.
6. Planning for a balance of individual, small-group, and large-group activities.
7. Planning for accommodations to address the needs of individual children.
8. Deciding on how to evaluate childrens learning to determine the extent to which the unit objectives and learning standards are met.
9. Preparing materials and resources.
10. Arranging the environment.
11. Making adaptations to the plan as the unit progresses based on observations about learning and interests.
    

    Place Your Order Here!