Developmentally-+and+Culturally-Based+Experiences


 * PRACTICES FOR DEVELOPMENTALLY-BASED EXPERIENCES :
 * I work in a diverse classroom of 20 3, 4, & 5 year olds all in one room. Because there are mixed ages, it is extremely important to create developmentally appropriate curriculum for my classroom that all ages can participate in. This doesn't necessarily mean that because they're 3 years old, they won't be able to participate in the activities for the 5-year-olds. Age doesn't necessarily match development. This is why it's important to create curriculum that all developments can participate in.
 * For example, we do a "letter of the week" during the school year to learn the alphabet. Each week the children learn a song to teach them the letter sound, and practice writing the letter on the white board. All ages (3, 4, & 5) participate in these activities but learn different things from them. Younger children learn speech, language & movement skills by learning the songs and practicing the movements. Older children already recall the song from the year prior and now can understand that the sounds belong to a letter that, when put together, make words. When writing the letter on the white board, the younger children are practicing holding the marker with a tripod position and receive help from the teacher. The older children practice writing the upper and lowercase letters on their own.
 * Developmentally appropriate curriculum for all ages is never black & white. If younger children have accomplished a level of learning, they can and should move on to a higher level of learning during activities. If they are older but need more practice, then these activities can help them with beginning skills.


 * CULTURALLY-BASED EXPERIENCES
 * When working in very culturally diverse atmosphere, it is extremely important to create a safe learning environment for all my students no matter the race, gender or culture. I've developed a few simple practices that have helped to create an open, accepting classroom:
 * Parent partnerships are extremely important at any age, but especially in the early childhood setting. Creating solid parent partnerships is vital for learning about your students and understanding where they come from. I created a survey for the parents of my students to better understand them and their families-- I ask them what languages they speak at home, what holidays they celebrate & what special days are important to them (birthdays, chinese new year, etc.).
 * Create a very open classroom in which we invite parents to come to the class to teach us about a holiday/tradition that is important to their culture. For example, invite a parent to teach the class about Hanukkah-- we read a book, sing songs, and participate in an activity to learn about their special day. Sometimes families bring pictures of their children participating in the tradition-- they feel proud to share something that makes them special and unique. In the past, we also have had a "All Around the World" night in which we invited families of different cultures to cook dishes with the class from their culture and share a little about themselves.
 * It is important to understand your personal biases as a teacher and to understand your students' cultures to better understand their actions. Something you may thing is disrespectful, for example not looking a teacher in the eye may be a cultural tradition as a sign of respect.
 * Also, including different languages or cultures throughout the classroom is important in creating this accepting atmosphere in the classroom. If you have pictures of shapes hung up in the classroom, include the English word of the shapes as well as the words in the other languages of your students (Chinese, Spanish, etc.). We have a collage of family pictures in dramatic play, so that as they're playing "house" they can observe the various forms of families they all have. Also, if your students speak another language it is important to try to learn some simple phrases to better communicate -- asking parents to translate or help with these phrases helps!