ECE 330 Discussion 2-4 - Essay Example

ECE 330 Discussion 2-4 ECE 330 Discussion 2-4 Discussion 2 Experiences which support children in connecting knowledge domains impact on their neural works in the brain. This implies that early childhood educators must plan their classroom curriculum and environments in ways that cater for their thinking as it develops (Robeson, 2012). Therefore, to apply higher-order thinking, a suggested method would be one that links thinking to memory. Agreeably, thinking may not just entail recalling of memories, but researchers have also shown that thinking is difficult to do without the involvement of past memories.

In this manner, as the children’s thinking is developed, it is crucial to include items or materials in the classroom environment and curriculum that links to or facilitates the recalling of past lessons. Educators may observe and document what they see by placing children in their natural environments which include classrooms, the outdoors or home, mainly because the children will express more in actions that they would in words. Their actions, such as frustration by ripping pages, may be documented in anecdotal records that briefly describe specific incidents.

Discussion 3 Through pretend play, children are able to develop linguistic competence because they can first of all make sense out of their world and after developing cultural and social understandings, can express their feelings and thoughts. When a child pretends to be another person in play, he is able to construct statements and metacommunication appropriate to that role in order to maintain the episode of play. Through this, they will be able to internalize rule systems related to the language of the pretend play as well as ways of generating multiple forms of expressing thoughts (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000).

Through an observation made from teaching experiences in which non-French children were learning basic French, a student expressed linguistic competence by noting another, who pretended to be a French baker, was not stressing the sound ‘R’. By playing with language, this student was already feeling in control of it and was showing competence in understanding the concept of sounds and syllables. That shows the significance of pretend play in supporting linguistic competence through focused verbal interactions.

Discussion 4 Not all the Field Experience sites give children opportunities to present their learning. However, it was observed that children can present their learning through pictures, numbers, athletics, music and words. Therefore, as educators it is important to first allow the students discover their own interests out of the many presented by the curriculum and learning environment as well as the home and social places. This will expose them to a wide range of experiences to chose from and, most importantly, activate hidden talents.

In presenting their learning, they should be allowed to make mistakes, which will encourage them to take risks and act as naturally as possible. The application of what was learned about the early childhood classroom will entail understanding that every child is gifted differently, therefore an educator may have high expectation although keep them realistic. This means understanding that the educator is the link between the real world and a student’s potential to develop. All this will be applied in an anti-discriminatory way that values and protects all children equally, whether legally or ethically.

ReferencesRobeson, S. (2012). Developing thinking and understanding in young children: An introduction for students (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge.Shonkoff, J. & Phillips, D. (2000). From neurons to neighborhoods: The science of early childhood development. Washington D.C.: National Academy Press. Retrieved from http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=9824