EP

Overview

This Assessment is a Work Product in which you will design a set of learning experiences that could be implemented as part of an effective curriculum for preschool children (ages 3–4). Ideally, curriculum planning is a collaborative process. For this Work Product, you will interview a teacher to learn more about his or her curricular goals and find out how you can collaborate with one another to achieve those goals. You will also observe in the teacher’s classroom in order to learn more about the children in the setting. If you are currently working as an early childhood teacher, collaborate with a colleague in your setting to complete this Assessment.

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You will collaborate with a colleague or early childhood teacher to design three learning experiences that are appropriate for the children in the preschool classroom that you observed. (Implementation is not required, but it is important that you have a real setting in mind as you plan.)

Your response to this Assessment should:

1. Reflect the criteria provided in the

Rubric

, which provides information on how the Assessment will be evaluated.

2. Adhere to the required assignment length.

3. Use the APA course paper template available here. All submissions must follow the conventions of scholarly writing. Properly formatted APA citations and references must be provided where appropriate.

Professional Skills: Collaboration and Written Communication is assessed in this Competency. You are strongly encouraged to use the

Writing Checklist

and to review the Rubric prior to submitting.

This Assessment requires submission of one (1) document, with the learning experiences included as an Appendix. Save this file as EP002_firstinitial_lastname (for example, EP002_J_Smith). When you are ready to upload your completed Assessment, select Submit Attempt.

Instructions

Before submitting your Assessment, carefully review the rubric. This is the same rubric the assessor will use to evaluate your submission and it provides detailed criteria describing how to achieve or master the Competency. Many students find that understanding the requirements of the Assessment and the rubric criteria help them direct their focus and use their time most productively.

Rubric

Access the following to complete this Assessment:

Interview Guide
Learning Experience Plan Template

Curriculum Planning

Identify a preschool setting that provides educational programs for 3- and 4-year-olds. Arrange to visit and interview a teacher and to observe in his or her classroom for at least two hours. Use the “Interview Guide” document to inform your questions during your scheduled interview.

Keeping in mind all you have learned about the context of the preschool program and the standards that inform its curriculum, plan three learning experiences around a central theme chosen in collaboration with the teacher you interview. Use the template provided in the “Learning Experience Plan Template” document.

Taken together, the learning experiences must include all content areas addressed in the Rubric (literacy; math, science, and technology; health; and the arts) and must address all domains of development (cognitive, social, emotional, and physical). Remember that, because your learning experiences are designed around an integrated theme, multiple content areas and domains of development will be represented within each learning experience.

Write a 7- to 10-page narrative analysis of your Learning Experiences Plan that includes a brief description of the central theme and explanations of the following:

How the learning experiences, taken as a whole, reflect at least three indicators of effective curriculum

How the learning experiences reflect appropriate learning standards and the goals identified by the early childhood teacher you interviewed

How knowledge of the children and families informed the learning experiences

How the learning experiences promote language and literacy

How the learning experiences promote math, science, and technology learning

How the learning experiences promote learning in the arts

How the learning experiences promote social, emotional, and physical development

How the assessment strategies used in the learning experiences informed your understanding of children’s learning and development

How play is incorporated into your learning experiences and why this is a vital component of the early childhood curriculum

How the learning experiences you planned can be differentiated to meet the needs of individual children, including those with exceptionalities (Note: Include a description of at least two strategies.)

How you collaborated to develop the learning experiences, including:

An explanation of the value of collaborating in the curriculum planning process
A description of any challenges you experienced
An example of ways you compromised, demonstrated respect, and/or shared responsibility to develop the learning experiences

Note: Include the three “Learning Experience Plan Template” documents as an Appendix to your Learning Experiences Plan.

EP002 Curriculum Planning Alternative Assessment

The alternative assessment is for students who, due to the Coronavirus, do not have access to visit and collaborate with another educator. The content in red font, is the content that differs from the competency assessment instructions.

Using Facetime, Skype, smart phone or other device interview a colleague who teaches 3 – 4 year olds. Use the Interview Guide document to inform your questions.

If you do not have a colleague to interview and collaborate with, use the “Learning Experience Plan Template” document and create three learning experiences.

How the learning experiences you planned can be differentiated to meet the needs of individual children, including those with exceptionalities (Note: Include a description of at least two strategies.)
If you interviewed a colleague, discuss how you collaborated to develop the learning experiences, including:
An explanation of the value of collaborating in the curriculum planning process
A description of any challenges you experienced
An example of ways you compromised, demonstrated respect, and/or shared responsibility to develop the learning experiences
If you did not interview a colleague, discuss
An explanation of the value of collaborating with colleagues in the curriculum planning process
A description of any challenges you might experience in collaborating with colleagues in the curriculum planning process
An example of ways you could compromise, demonstrate respect, and/or share responsibility to develop the learning experiences

Note: Include the three “Learning Experience Plan Template” documents as an Appendix to your Learning Experiences Plan.

Learning Experience Plan Template

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

Identify the content area(s) and developmental domain(s) you will address in this learning experience.

1–2 paragraphs

State/District/Professional Standards

Identify one early learning standard that informed your planning of this learning experience.

1–2 sentences

Learning Goals

Briefly describe your goal(s) or desired outcome(s) of the learning experience.

1 paragraph

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

List texts, websites, writing/art supplies, props/artifacts, assistive technology, computer software, Internet resources, audio/visual media, and other tools and materials needed for this experience.

Length will vary.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

Describe initial teacher-and-child activities that establish a warm connection and capture children’s attention. Answer the following:

· How will you build a sense of relationship and connection with children during the introduction?

· How will you relate the lesson to children’s interests, prior knowledge, and families/communities?

2–3 paragraphs

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

For each activity, explain how the activity might be differentiated to meet the needs of individual children, including children with exceptionalities. Give specific examples related to particular children in the classroom that you observed.

3–5 paragraphs

Assessment

· Utilize and document observation to assess children’s learning.

· Make sure all assessments are aligned with your goal(s) for the lesson.

2–3 paragraphs

Closure

Learning Activities:

Closure is the conclusion of your learning experience. It is a time to wrap up the experience by summarizing, reviewing, and/or reflecting on the learning that has taken place. Describe all activities and strategies you will use in the closure of your learning activity.

1–2 paragraphs

Interview Guide

Ideally, curriculum planning is a collaborative process. For this Work Product, you will interview a teacher to learn more about his or her curricular goals and find out how you can collaborate with one another to achieve those goals. If you are currently working as an early childhood teacher, collaborate with a colleague in your setting to complete this Assessment.

Share the list of Indicators of Effective Curriculum (Bredekamp, p. 316) with the teacher in the preschool setting you have chosen. Ask him or her to share information about their curriculum design process, including:

· Examples of how their curriculum reflects the Indicators of Effective Curriculum

· Any standards that guide their curriculum and why these are important

· An explanation of specific curricular goals for the children in the classroom across content areas and developmental domains

· Information related to cultural and linguistic characteristics of the children, family, and community, as well as socioeconomic background, family structures, and children with exceptionalities who may attend the school

· Examples of how knowledge of the children, families, and community helps to inform certain indicators and provides a context for learning

· Examples of how learning experiences are differentiated to meet the needs of individual children

· The teacher’s perspectives on collaboration in curriculum development

· How you and the teacher can collaborate to design effective learning experiences for the children in the classroom

Reference: Bredekamp, S. (2014). Effective practices in early childhood education: Building a foundation (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Theassessment is a work product and includes the following:

1. Submit as one document three learning experiences using the “Learning Experience Plan
Template” and a 7 – 10 page narrative. Be sure to develop three learning experiences
using the template provided.

2. Collaborate with a colleague or early childhood teacher to design three learning
experiences.

3. Interview a teacher to learn more about his or her curricular goals and find out how you
can collaborate with one another to achieve those goals. Discuss this in the paper you
submit. Review the rubric criteria.

4. Write a 7- to 10-page narrative analysis of your Learning Experiences Plan that includes a
brief description of the central theme and explanations of the following:

a. How the learning experiences, taken as a whole, reflect at least three indicators
of effective curriculum. In this section discuss the indicators you used to develop
the three learning experiences. Review the indicators below.

b. How the learning experiences reflect appropriate learning standards and the
goals identified by the early childhood teacher you interviewed. Which standards
did you use as you developed the three learning experiences? For example, many
students use their state’s early learning standards. Students need to provide an
example. Below is an example. This level of detail is not required for all learning
experiences.

The Arizona Early Learning Standards are used to develop the three learning
experiences. The Arizona Early Learning Standards are classified as Strands and
Concepts. For example, Strand 3: Measurement and Data and Concept: Sorts and
Classifies were used to develop the first learning experience. And the Science
Strand 1: Inquiry and Application and Concept: Exploration, Observations, and
Hypotheses was used to develop the first learning experience. The art activity in
the first learning experience is developed to incorporate the Arizona Early
Learning Standard Strand 1: Visual Arts and Concept: Creates and Understands
Visual Arts

c. How knowledge of the children and families informed the learning experiences.
In this section identify knowledge about the children and their families in the
class for which you are designing the three learning experiences. For example, if
the students are ELL students and English is not spoken in the home, you could
use this information to design a language or literacy lesson. Discuss how you
used the information to develop the three learning experiences.

After collaborating with the teacher I learned many children in the class live in houses
and not apartments. I also learned two children have fine motor skills and none of the
children’s families speak a language other than English in the home.

d. How the learning experiences promote language and literacy. Summarize how
the learning experiences supported language and literacy. This is not a review of
literature or activities the teacher implements in the classroom; it is a summary
of the learning experience that includes language and literacy.

e. How the learning experiences promote math, science, and technology learning.
Same as comment above.

Math and science were incorporated in two of the three learning experiences. In
the first learning experience students used math counting and sorting skills as
the children will count and sort the seeds to plant the garden activity. Before
planting the seeds the children will make hypotheses as to how high the different
plants will grow.

f. How the learning experiences promote learning in the arts. Same as comment
above.

In the first learning experience, after students’ hypothesize as to how high each
plan will grow, the students will draw pictures of their hypotheses of the height
of the plants.

g. How the learning experiences promote social, emotional, and physical
development. Same as comment above.

h. How the assessment strategies used in the learning experiences informed your
understanding of children’s learning and development. What assessments did
you use to assess the student goals of each learning experience? For example did
you use observation to evaluate students’ gross motor skills in a physical
development learning experience? In this section, identify the assessment for
each learning activity. For example, “In the first learning experience I used an
observation checklist to assess children’s knowledge of letters.”

i. How play is incorporated into your learning experiences and why this is a vital
component of the early childhood curriculum. Same as comment above.

j. How the learning experiences you planned can be differentiated to meet the
needs of individual children, including those with exceptionalities (Note: Include
a description of at least two strategies.) For example, if a student in the class has
delays with fine motor skills, the student may use a thick pencil to write, or color
rather than write. Each strategy is tailored to the student(s) in the class for which
you develop the learning experience.

Two of the students in the class have difficulty with their fine motor skills. I
pasted the seeds on index cards so the children could sort the cards. Next, the

children will use specifically designed scissors to cut out pictures of plants of
different sizes to support their hypothesis rather than draw the plants.

k. How you collaborated to develop the learning experiences, including:
i. An explanation of the value of collaborating in the curriculum planning

process
ii. A description of any challenges you experienced

iii. An example of ways you compromised, demonstrated respect, and/or
shared responsibility to develop the learning experiences Review the
rubric to ensure each of these areas and the rubric criteria is included in
your discussion.

Learning Experience Plan Template 1

The theme of the three learning experiences is Planting a Garden.

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains
Identify the content area(s) and developmental domain(s) you will address in this learning

experience.

1–2 paragraphs

Content areas might include math, science and the arts. Domains include physical (fine motor)
and cognitive domains.
The domain is cognitive (counting, sorting and hypothesizing) and physical (fine motor for
creating the art project).

State/District/Professional Standards
Identify one early learning standard that informed your planning of this learning experience.

Clearly identify the state, district or professional standard. For example: Arizona Early Learning
Standards, 3rd Edition

Math Strand 3: Measurement and Data and Concept: Sorts and Classifies
Science Strand 1: Inquiry and Application and Concept: Exploration, Observations, and
Hypotheses
Art Strand 1: Visual Arts and Concept: Creates and Understands Visual Arts

1–2 sentences

Learning Goals
Briefly describe your goal(s) or desired outcome(s) of the learning experience.

Sample Goals
Goal: Students will count from 1 – 10
Goal: Students will sort up to 10 seeds in different categories
Goal: Students will hypothesize as to the height seeds will grow into plants
Goal: Students will create an art project based on their hypothesis.

1 paragraph

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources
List texts, websites, writing/art supplies, props/artifacts, assistive technology, computer software,

Internet resources, audio/visual media, and other tools and materials needed for this experience.

Length will vary.

1. Book about gardening
2. Planting seeds video

Lesson Sequence

Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

Describe initial teacher-and-child activities that establish a warm connection and capture children’s

attention. Answer the following:

 How will you build a sense of relationship and connection with children during the introduction?

 How will you relate the lesson to children’s interests, prior knowledge, and families/communities?

2–3 paragraphs

First I will ask the children if they have a garden at home or if a family member has a
garden……

Next I will …..

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

Describe specifically, and in a step-by-step fashion, what you and the children will do in all activities and

transitions that are part of this learning experience. Make sure each activity is meaningful and supports your

goal(s). Be sure to consider specific content areas and developmental domains that are relevant to the learning

experience.

1. In this section describe the counting and sorting of the seeds activity.
2. Next describe the science (hypothesize activity).
3. Next describe the art activity.

For each activity, explain how the activity might be differentiated to meet the needs of individual

children, including children with exceptionalities. Give specific examples related to particular children in the

classroom that you observed.

In this section include specific strategies for differentiating instruction. Paring students
with disabilities or ELL students with peers is not a differentiation strategy. It can create
dependency.

Example:

For the art project strategies for the student delayed with fine motor skills includes.

1. Provide the student with the opportunity to cut out a picture of a plan.
2. Paste the seeds on index cards. Let the student sort the index cards.

3–5 paragraphs

Assessment

Assessment is the process by which early childhood professionals gain understanding of children’s

development and learning. Describe strategies you will use to assess children’s learning. Consider how you will:

 Utilize and document observation to assess children’s learning.

 Make sure all assessments are aligned with your goal(s) for the lesson.

Provide specifics.
Observation:

1. Identify what you will observe. Explain how you will record the observations. For
example, use observation checklist to assess if the student could count up to 10 seeds.
Or, use an observation checklist or photograph of each children’s sorted piles of seeds.

2. I will student portfolios to assess the students’ art work.

2–3 paragraphs

Closure

Learning Activities:
Closure is the conclusion of your learning experience. It is a time to wrap up the experience by

summarizing, reviewing, and/or reflecting on the learning that has taken place. Describe all activities and

strategies you will use in the closure of your learning activity.

1–2 paragraphs

Indicators of Effective Curriculum

1. Goals are clearly defined and communicated. Is there a written plan that addresses
important goals and can be shared with all who need to know about it?

2. Curriculum is comprehensive. Does the curriculum address “the whole child”—all
domains of children’s development (cognitive, social, emotional, and physical)—as well
as all content areas such as literacy, mathematics, science, social studies, health and
physical education, and the arts?

3. Curriculum is evidence based. Is there research evidence of its effectiveness with a
similar group of children—for example, the same age or speaking the same language?

4. Professional standards validate the curriculum subject matter content. Does the
content of the curriculum reflect the content standards recommended by the subject-
matter disciplines, such as math educators or reading specialists?

5. Children are active and engaged. Do the teaching and learning experiences provide
opportunities for children to be active both mentally and physically?

6. Valued content is learned through investigation and focused teaching. Is the
curriculum delivered through experiences that include both child-initiated exploration
and teacher-guided instruction?

7. Curriculum builds on prior learning and experiences. Is the curriculum sequenced in
logical and reasonable ways? Because children’s prior learning experiences will vary, this
requires that the teacher individualize the curriculum as much as possible.

8. The curriculum is developmentally appropriate. Are the developmental and learning
goals challenging and achievable? That is, are the learning outcomes reasonable
expectations for most children within the age range for which it is designed?

9. The curriculum is culturally and linguistically appropriate. Does the curriculum promote
positive images of children’s cultural identities and home languages and also recognize
and build on their competence?

10. The curriculum can be adapted for individual differences in children. Is the curriculum
flexible enough for teachers to adapt to individual variation in children? Can the
curriculum be adapted for children with disabilities and special needs?

11. Curriculum is likely to benefit children.

Running head: LEARNING EXPERIENCES IN CHILDREN
1

Learning Experiences in children

Malodree Johnson

EP002: Plans Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum

Instructor: Carol Todd

April 21st, 2020

The theme of the learning experiences: Field Trip to the Local Factory

Only double space your paper.

Foundations of Lesson Plan

The learning experience will cover the following content areas math, art, science, and social studies. During the field trip, the children will take part in activities that will touch on each of the subjects. The developmental domains in this field trip will include physical, cognitive and social domains. The cognitive domain will include (researching, counting, and collecting), the physical domain will involve fine motor skills which the children will use in mapping, and the social domains will involve the children talking about their experience on the field trip.

State/District/Professional Standards

2013 Illinois Early Learning and Developmental Standards (Zinsser, Weissberg, & Dusenbury, 2013).

Mathematics: will involve tallying, classifying, and sorting

Science: will involve observation and exploration

Social studies: will involve architectural designs, role play

Art: will involve drawing architectural designs and industry personnel.

Learning goals

The young graders will have these set goals for them during the field trip.

The students will tally and match architectural designs during the field trip

The students will sort the architectural designs of each kind together

The students will observe workers in a local company doing their specific tasks

The students will draw what they learned during the field trip

The students will role-play the tasks of the workers from the local factory

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

For the field trip, these are the materials and resources vital to the success of the trip

Name tags for the students and teachers during the field trip

Emergency and safety equipment e.g. consent by a parent for emergency care for their children, first aid supplies, paper towels, hand sanitizers, bottled water, etc.

Special materials and arrangements for students with special needs.

Books about field trips.

Camera for taking photos.

Transportation means

Foodstuff for the trip

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

The initial step is to identify the student’s familiarity with field trips. This can be done by asking the students simple questions about the various places they visit with their parents on holidays. Introducing the students to questions like why are we going to the local factory? What do we hope to learn during the field trip? In advance to the trip will prepare the students and get them ready and eager for the trip. The teacher can improve the connection to the students by teaching on related topics. Discussing the objectives of the trip with the students will give them an idea of what to expect.

Familiarizing the students with the materials to be used for the field trip will go a long way in improved experience and efficiency of the field trip. Introducing a bulletin board, instructional displays, and interest centers are a great way to capture the student’s attention, raise their interest, and help them to relate the field trip to the learning standards and communities. Encouraging the students to reminisce about the field trip will also improve their readiness for the trip. To relate the learning experience to the student’s prior knowledge, I will develop a field trip web. This field trip web will improve focus thinking. Questions that will be answered during the trip can also be raised and developed at this stage (Roure, et al 2006).

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

The first activity to carry out during the field trip will be identifying the architectural designs along the way. This includes houses, buildings, homes, and corporate buildings. The task for this event will be tallying these architectural designs. The children will be provided with tallying sheets where they are allowed to count and record the architectural designs. The content area for this activity is math and social studies. The students are allowed to identify, count, and tally up to ten buildings. The tallying process is targeted to take place mainly during the trip to the local factory. This tallying process will make use of the math content area as the students will improve their counting skills. The field trip is also a social experience for the students. This will social aspect taps into the social studies content of students interacting with other members of society. The developmental domains incorporated by this activity are the cognitive and social domains. Students will engage in research, identification, tallying, and collecting data which taps into their cognitive functions. The student’s interactions and cooperation will tap into the social domain. This activity will finesse the students counting skills as well as interpersonal skills. The students will sort the architectural designs into categories of houses, homes, corporate buildings, and other buildings. This is a cognitive process that will assist the students to tone their observation skills. This activity can be differentiated to meet the needs of students with special needs by including pictorial tally sheets with clear images of the buildings to be tallied (Levy, 2008).

The next activity during the field trip will be the observation of the local industry specialists perform their tasks. This task is crucial and intricate because it demands the keen observation attention from the students. Students can at this point ask the questions they had prepared before the field study. The content area of this task involves science and social studies which is a major learning standard for the students. The students can identify the process of product produced in a factory. The basic science lessons are supplemented to great lengths when the students identify firsthand how it happens. The students are urged on the importance of this task because it will aid in the completion of the third task which includes role playing and art activities. The student’s interaction with professional practitioners improves the social developmental domain in the students. The camera from the materials brought to the field trip can be used to record important scenes while at the factory. This will act as a great retrieval tool when the students get back to school. In this task the students will record the mode of attire by the industry personnel, the various tasks each professional performs, and the differentiation from these various tasks is critical for the role-playing session in the third task. This activity can be differentiated for students with disabilities by adjusting the observation time frames for the cognitively dysfunctional students. These exceptional students can be allocated fewer observation times spread over a long period. This will improve the concentration span of these exceptional students (Savage, 1993).

The final learning experience in the field trip to the factory will involve role-playing and an art activity. The students will identify the various professionals and workers at the factory. The students will then replicate the factory scene back in class where each student will assume a certain role they identified. The next step after identification is for the students to enact the various roles and tasks the industry personnel performed. This task will make use of the cognitive and social developmental domains in the students. The memory retrieval of the tasks the industry personnel performed by the students will improve their remembrance capabilities while in class and other subjects. The other task in this learning experience is an art activity that will involve the students drawing the various items and elements they identified during the field trip. Whether it be architectural designs, vehicles, industrial machinery, and personnel. The students are allowed to be dynamic and creative. This task will utilize the student’s cognitive and physical domains. The student’s motor skills are finessed while the student’s memory and cognitive functions are enhanced. The differentiation strategy the teacher can use for exceptional students is to allow them to access the images for the art activity from the camera images taken during the field trip. This way, the exceptional students can easily remember the field trip activities and choose which one to draw.

Assessment

Observation is the major tool used in the assessment of the students learning process. The students tallying process will be observed and the conclusion recorded into the register. This will aid in identifying the student’s ability to transfer mathematical equations out of class. An observation checklist will be essential for storing the record of which students had an easy time tallying the architectural designs and also identify the students who had a hard time tallying the architectural designs. Another assessment method is the use of the field trip web which contained assessment questions. Some of these questions include the research questions asked to the industry professionals during the observation learning experience. This field trip web is important in identifying what the children understood from the observation activity (Hara, & Kling, 2001).

Another effective assessment model is the use of photos taken from the field trip. The photos will be used to assess the various instances and events that occurred during the field trip. The pictures will be used to talk about what is taking place in each photo. The children can provide their ideas about what is happening. The teacher can include some advanced creativity tasks by asking the students to draw an imagery photo of tasks and events that were not captured in any of the photos.

Closure

The field trip learning experience is a great way to capture multiple content areas and developmental domains. This learning experience made use of the children’s cognitive, physical, and social domains. Tallying tasks of identifying and counting architectural designs improved the student’s cognitive comprehension of mathematical figures. Moreover, the observation process will enhance the student’s social skills when they interact with industry personnel. Content areas like math, social studies, and art are enhanced in the learning experience of taking a field trip to a local industry. The student’s participation in role-playing enhances their social developmental domains because they can identify with the various roles of professionals in their community.

The various closure activities that can be conducted for this learning experience are creating and designing a hallway display of the field trip events and ideas that were learned during the trip. This will help the students who did not attend the trip to grasp something from the trip. Additionally, the students together with the teacher can write thank you letters to the local industry and personnel thanking them for the granted chance to learn at their premises. The students may also include original drawings of their experiences into the letters to the industry personnel. This would make the industry men and women happy.

a. How the learning experiences, taken as a whole, reflect at least three indicators of effective curriculum

The learning experiences i.e. tallying of architectural designs, observation of industry personnel at work, and role-play of industry personnel and drawing of the elements identified during the field trip by the students touched on student motivation guidance by teachers, professional development opportunities, and efficient leadership and supervision. The students are motivated to participate in the field trip by the teacher.

b. How the learning experiences reflect appropriate learning standards and the goals identified by the early childhood teacher you interviewed.

2013 Illinois learning standard includes content areas like social studies, physical development, and health, the arts, language arts, mathematics. The learning experiences used to make use of the content areas of mathematics (tallying and counting), social studies (role play), science (observation and exploration), and arts (drawing activity).

c. How knowledge of the children and families informed the learning experiences.

The student’s lack of attendance to local industries informed the teacher of the learning experience for the children. The children get professional advice from real practitioners in the field.

d. How learning experiences promote language and literacy.

The children’s interaction with each other during the field trip improved their literacy level and pronunciation. The student’s interaction with industry personnel provides real-life attributes of employment work.

f. How the learning experiences promote learning in the arts

The students drawing the events and elements that took place during the school trip improve learning in the arts while in school. The student’s motor skills are also improved.

g. How learning experiences promote social, emotional, and physical development.

Interaction with industry personnel and the general community helps the students understand and recognize the existence of a whole new world out there. Field trips also improve physical development through exercises conducted on the field trip.

h. How the assessment strategies used in the learning experiences informed your understanding of children’s learning and development

Observation used helped to identify the slower students in the tallying process, the use of the field trip web helps identify if the students understood the purpose of the learning experience.

i. How to play is incorporated into your learning experiences and why this is a vital component of the early childhood curriculum

Play is incorporated through the use of role-play which is one of the learning experiences in the study. The students implement and enact the roles they observed and identified from the industry personnel. Play is important because it improves the cognitive and physical functioning of the students.

Students who lost concentration easily during the observation process were allowed observation breaks to allow them to rejuvenate. This breaks helped the students to be concentrative throughout the field trip. Also, students with art issues and retrieval problems are issued with real photos from the even to help them draw their findings.

k. How you collaborated to develop the learning experiences, including:

i. An explanation of the value of collaborating in the curriculum planning process

Collaboration provides an extensive overview of ideas on learning experiences. Teacher collaboration also helps them overcome challenges faced during new learning experiences.

ii. A description of any challenges you experienced

Challenges in such a field trip are weather i.e. when it rains during the field trip. lack of enough personnel to look over and monitor the children during the field trip.

iii. An example of ways you compromised, demonstrated respect, and/or shared responsibility to develop the learning experience

Delegation of responsibilities to assistants during the field trip will allow the teacher to take photos in the field trip event.

References

Levy, H. M. (2008). Meeting the needs of all students through differentiated instruction: Helping every child reach and exceed standards. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues, and Ideas, 81(4), 161-164.

Halloran, J., Hornecker, E., Fitzpatrick, G., Weal, M., Millard, D., Michaelides, D., … & De Roure, D. (2006, June). The literacy field trip: using UbiComp to support children’s creative writing. In Proceedings of the 2006 conference on Interaction design and children (pp. 17-24).

Zinsser, K. M., Weissberg, R. P., & Dusenbury, L. (2013). Aligning Preschool through High School Social and Emotional Learning Standards: A Critical and Doable Next Step. Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning.

Savage, G. M. (1993). U.S. Patent No. 5,202,680. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Hara, N., & Kling, R. (2001). Student distress in web-based distance education. Educause Quarterly, 24(3), 68-69.

Learning Experience Plan Template

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

Identify the content area(s) and developmental domain(s) you will address in this learning experience.

1–2 paragraphs

State/District/Professional Standards

Identify one early learning standard that informed your planning of this learning experience.

1–2 sentences

Learning Goals

Briefly describe your goal(s) or desired outcome(s) of the learning experience.

1 paragraph

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

List texts, websites, writing/art supplies, props/artifacts, assistive technology, computer software, Internet resources, audio/visual media, and other tools and materials needed for this experience.

Length will vary.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

Describe initial teacher-and-child activities that establish a warm connection and capture children’s attention. Answer the following:

· How will you build a sense of relationship and connection with children during the introduction?

· How will you relate the lesson to children’s interests, prior knowledge, and families/communities?

2–3 paragraphs

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

3–5 paragraphs

Assessment

· Utilize and document observation to assess children’s learning.

· Make sure all assessments are aligned with your goal(s) for the lesson.

2–3 paragraphs

Closure

Learning Activities:

1–2 paragraphs

Learning Experience Plan Template

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

Identify the content area(s) and developmental domain(s) you will address in this learning experience.
1–2 paragraphs

State/District/Professional Standards

Identify one early learning standard that informed your planning of this learning experience.
1–2 sentences

Learning Goals

Briefly describe your goal(s) or desired outcome(s) of the learning experience.

1 paragraph

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

List texts, websites, writing/art supplies, props/artifacts, assistive technology, computer software, Internet resources, audio/visual media, and other tools and materials needed for this experience.
Length will vary.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

Describe initial teacher-and-child activities that establish a warm connection and capture children’s attention. Answer the following:
· How will you build a sense of relationship and connection with children during the introduction?
· How will you relate the lesson to children’s interests, prior knowledge, and families/communities?
2–3 paragraphs

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

Describe specifically, and in a step-by-step fashion, what you and the children will do in all activities and transitions that are part of this learning experience. Make sure each activity is meaningful and supports your goal(s). Be sure to consider specific content areas and developmental domains that are relevant to the learning experience.
For each activity, explain how the activity might be differentiated to meet the needs of individual children, including children with exceptionalities. Give specific examples related to particular children in the classroom that you observed.
3–5 paragraphs

Assessment

Assessment is the process by which early childhood professionals gain understanding of children’s development and learning. Describe strategies you will use to assess children’s learning. Consider how you will:
· Utilize and document observation to assess children’s learning.
· Make sure all assessments are aligned with your goal(s) for the lesson.
2–3 paragraphs

Closure

Learning Activities:
Closure is the conclusion of your learning experience. It is a time to wrap up the experience by summarizing, reviewing, and/or reflecting on the learning that has taken place. Describe all activities and strategies you will use in the closure of your learning activity.
1–2 paragraphs

Learning Experience Plan Template

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

Identify the content area(s) and developmental domain(s) you will address in this learning experience.
1–2 paragraphs

State/District/Professional Standards

Identify one early learning standard that informed your planning of this learning experience.
1–2 sentences

Learning Goals

Briefly describe your goal(s) or desired outcome(s) of the learning experience.

1 paragraph

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

Assessment

Closure

Learning Experience Plan Template

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

Identify the content area(s) and developmental domain(s) you will address in this learning experience.

1–2 paragraphs

State/District/Professional Standards

Identify one early learning standard that informed your planning of this learning experience.

1–2 sentences

Learning Goals

Briefly describe your goal(s) or desired outcome(s) of the learning experience.

1 paragraph

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

List texts, websites, writing/art supplies, props/artifacts, assistive technology, computer software, Internet resources, audio/visual media, and other tools and materials needed for this experience.

Length will vary.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

Describe initial teacher-and-child activities that establish a warm connection and capture children’s attention. Answer the following:

· How will you build a sense of relationship and connection with children during the introduction?

· How will you relate the lesson to children’s interests, prior knowledge, and families/communities?

2–3 paragraphs

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

3–5 paragraphs

Assessment

· Utilize and document observation to assess children’s learning.

· Make sure all assessments are aligned with your goal(s) for the lesson.

2–3 paragraphs

Closure

Learning Activities:

1–2 paragraphs

Running head:

LEARNING EXPERIENCE FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Learning Experience for Preschool Children

Malodree Johnson

EP002: Plans Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum

Instructor: Carol Todd

July 10th, 2020

Learning Experience for Preschool Children

The curriculum reflects on the principles and beliefs that the children will learn. The Preschool curriculum has been often confused due to the evolution of early childhood education (Sharon Lynn and Kristie Kauerz, 2012). The curriculum should be supportive of the behavior and skills of the children. According to an article Where we stand a curriculum should be well thought, planned, challenging, and engaging before being implemented to promote positive results for children. A study was conducted with a session with a preschool teacher. The session with the preschool teacher was sufficient to complete the assessment. The main goal of the assessment was to find the best learning experiences for the children. The content areas addressed in this assessment of the learning experiences are mathematics, English language, fine arts, science, social studies, technology, physical education, critical thinking, and problem-solving.

The learning experience went along way in helping me understand the criteria for preschool children. The assessment involved preschool children from all backgrounds. The study categorized the ages of preschool children into three categories. These categories are infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. It depended on the age of the children when they were brought to school. Children with disabilities were also considered in my study. The willingness of the school and the preschool teacher in the study session helped me in a great way and made it easier for me to conduct the study. The learning experiences discussed in my study reflected on the indicators of an effective curriculum.These indicators include clear goals, an effective learning environment, and teacher and student motivation. There were clear goals set which were used to develop the learning experiences. The teacher discussed the goals with me during the interview. Another indicator that was used to develop learning experiences as an effective learning environment. The learning experiences were supposed to provide a conducive learning environment for the children. Teacher and student motivation was another indicator that was used to develop learning experiences. The learning experiences were supposed to improve motivation among teachers and children.

The Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards were used to develop the three learning experiences. The Illinois Learning and Development Standards are classified. The first category is mathematics which involves classifying, sorting, and tallying. This category was used to develop the first learning experience. The second category is Science which involves exploration, observation, and hypotheses. This category was used to develop a second learning experience. The final category is Arts which involves visual arts and drawing of objects. This category was used to develop the third learning experience.

During the interview session, the teacher identified various goals that were important in my assessment. The main goal was to improve the learning standard involved in early childhood school. The learning standards, I identified above helped me set goals which if achieved would give good results for this paper. The overall goal was to give the teachers and parents an understanding of the development of the child and also develop activities that would improve development and growth in the children. Another goal was to develop motor skills in preschool children which will help improve their development and growth. The knowledge gained would also enable me to give better information to my peers regarding early childhood learning. The goals of the learning experiences were the children to sort different types of rocks and count them, the children to learn about farm animals, and to create art based on their observation and hypothesis.

According to Resources for Early Learning article, assessment plays a major part in the quality of an early childhood program. Assessment of a childhood program involves observing and gathering information on the child and its work over some time. Assessment is important because it provides information about the development and growth of the child. In this assessment, I used various ways to collect data, analyze data, document, and present the information from the learning process. The materials used for this study were journals, websites, texts, interviews, technology, internet, books, articles, and observation methods. Books of alphabets and animals and also animal videos were the materials used in the learning experiences I developed. These materials were essential to the assessment been conducted because it helped reduce the workload. For the assessment of the learning experiences I developed, I proposed to use various methods of assessment. The first method of assessment was an observation which involved observing the children without interfering in the activities of the children. The other method would be to use standardized tests. These tests would test the performance of the children. The last method of assessment I proposed to assess the learning experiences I developed was teacher ratings. The teacher ratings would help assess the abilities of the children in the learning experiences developed.

In my study, I had to interview a preschool teacher from a certain school due to the pandemic which could not allow me to visit the school to see how the children learned. I interviewed the teacher through face time application and asked him to help me in knowing the learning experiences of the preschool children. The preschool teacher was collaborative in helping me identify the learning experiences he used with the children. The teacher gave me elaborate learning experiences he did with the children in the classroom. The learning experiences were great and this was contributed by the teacher’s experience of many years dealing with preschool children. This was helped me identify ways that I will use to make a connection with the children.

After collaborating with the teacher, I developed three learning experiences. The first learning experience developed involvesmathematics where children were involved in sorting and tallying. The activity involved the children writing alphabets on rocks which turned out to be a fun activity because it involved outdoor activities. The activity involved going out to the compound of the school collect small rocks and write alphabets on them. First, I will ask the children if they know how to write alphabets. Next, I will divide the children into three groups. One group will be responsible for collecting the rocks and bring them to the class. The children together sort the rocks to identify the rocks which would be good to paint alphabets on them. The childrenwillthen count the rocks they collected to twenty-six. This will help the children develop mathematical skills thatare important in their growth. The second group will be responsible for washing the rocks with water to remove dirt to enable them to write alphabets on them. The last group will be responsible for writing the alphabets on the rocks. The children then paint both the uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabets on both sides of the rock. I arrange the rocks to allow them to dry. While children arewaiting for the painting to dry up, Igivethem toys to play with. After the painting was dry, I ask the children to read out aloud the alphabets written on the rocks. This learning experience will help develop mathematical and literacy skills in children.

The second learning experience involves the category of science. First, I will ask the children if they have an animal farm or if any of their family members have an animal farm. The children were involved in an activity that involved exploration and observation. For this learning experience, I decided to take the children to a local animal farm where they could see and learn about the farm animals. The activity at the animal farm involvesthe children exploring the farm animals they learned in previous classes and observe the physical features of the farm animals. I also help the children to identify the animals and answer any questions they had about the animals. For the children who had difficulty with understanding the features of the animals, I provided them with books that describe the animals on the farm. This learning experience will help the children develop observation and exploration skills.

The third learning experience involved the category of arts. The children were involved in drawing activities. After the field trip to the animal farm, Ifirst ask the children if they enjoyed the trip to the animal farm. Next, I ask the children to draw the animals they saw at the farm. I then give crayons to the children to color their drawings. For the children who had a problem with motor skills during the art session, I provided them with a picture book where they could cut out a picture of the animal they saw at the farm. This learning experience will help develop motor and art skills in the children. After collaborating with the teacher, I identified that many children lived in poor backgrounds. I also identified a few children who had fine motor skills and some families of the children spoke other languages other than English at home.

The learning experiences promoted the content areas of the learning standards used. The first learning experience promoted language and literacy where the children were asked to read out the alphabets painted on the rocks. The involvement of the children reading the alphabets also improved their pronunciation. The first and second learning experiences promoted learning in mathematics and science. The children used sorting and tallying skills where the sorted and counted the rocks they collected. The children also used exploration and observation skills on the field trip to learn about farm animals. In the third learning experience, the children were asked to draw pictures of the animals they saw. This promoted learning in arts. In general, all the learning experiences promoted social, emotional, and physical development. Play is incorporated where children are allowed to play with toys or outside the classrooms. This is important because it helps improve the physical development and motor and cognitive skills of the children.

The learning activitiesI developed involved all the students actively. Although, all children are the same some have exceptionalities and need to be handled individually. The major exceptionality the teacher identified is that the children are abled differently according to their intelligence. Some children responded slowly to the activities given to them by the teacher. Others were quite sharp and responded quickly to the activities given to them by the teacher. Another exceptionality the teacher identified was others carried themselves confidently while others were shy. All children should be treated equally including those with exceptionalities. The teacher can change the setting of the activities given to the children to increase the levels of concentration for the children. The teacher can also give breaks to the children when they seem to lose concentration, this will help get their attention back. The teacher can also organize outdoor activities for the children. These outdoor activities will help develop the motor and physical skills for the children. The preschool teacher can also organize outdoor activities in a way that children with exceptionalities will learn. The teacher can give separate outdoor activities to children with exceptionalities different from other children so they do not feel left out.

The learning experiences given in this paper were all based on assessment. According to the Utah Education Network article, the functions of assessment are to identify the knowledge and skills of children, evaluate the growth of the child, evaluate the effectiveness of the educational program and provide information to parents about their children’s progress. Assessment is a good way to look at the learning and development of a child (Neaum, 2016). It is mainly done through observation and analysis to understand the development of children. Learning is observed when children play and their interaction.

In this study, I preferred to use various methods of assessment. These include observation, portfolios, parent ratings, teacher ratings, and standardized tests. All these methods help inform the teachers and parents about the development and growth of a child. Observation is a great way of assessment because it does not intrude on the activities of the children. It can be used to observe all the areas of development of a child over time. I will use the observation method to assess if the children could count up to 26 rocks.

Portfolios are collections of children’s works over some time. Portfolios show the progress of the development of a child. It helps bring the teacher and parents closer and form a partnership. I will use portfolios to assess the artworks of the children. Parents’ ratings can also be a good method of assessment of the development and growth of children. Parents observe their children and get to know their behaviors. Teacher ratings are also a good way of assessing the development and growth of children. Teachers base their ratings on tests and other tools of assessment. Teacher ratings help assess the abilities of the children. Standardized tests are usually given to the children and marked in a standard way. The performance of the children isassessed by these tests. I will use the standardized test to assess the knowledge the children gained about the farm animals.

In conclusion, I can say this study was informative and gave me a good experience in early childhood development. The learning standards from the study were helpful to identify the learning experiences of children in preschool. The learning standards also helped me realize the goals of the study that I set at the beginning of the study. The various activities that the children carried out helped in the development of motor skills, language, physical health, and general development. From my interview with the preschool teacher, I can recommend to parents to be involved in the activities of the children and learn their behaviors. This helps them participate in the growth and development of their children.

References

Sharon Lynn, Kristie Kauerz, December 2012. Preschool Programs: Effective Curricula. Retrieved from

http://www.child-encyclopedia.com/preschool-programs/according-experts/preschool-programs-effective-curricula

Where We Stand on Curriculum, Assessment, and Program Development. Retrieved from

https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/downloads/PDFs/resources/position-statements/StandCurrAss

Early Childhood Assessment. Retrieved from

http://resourcesforearlylearning.org/fm/early-childhood-assessment/

Assessment in the Early Childhood Classroom. Retrieved from

https://www.uen.org/k-2educator/assessment.shtml

Neaum S, 2016. Observing and assessing children’s learning and development. Retrieved from

https://study.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/Neaum%2C%20S.%20%282016%29%20Observing%20and%20Assessing%20Children%27s%20Learning%20and%20Development.%20London%2C%20Sage._

Appendix

Learning Experience 1.

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

The content areas of the first learning experience are mathematics and literacy. The developmental domainsare motor and cognitive skills.

State/District/Professional Standards

What is the standard?

GOAL 8

Identify and describe common attributes, patterns, and relationships in objects.35

LEA RNING STANDA RD 8.A

Explore objects and patterns.

Preschool Benchmarks

8.A.ECa Sort, order, compare, and describe objects according to characteristics or attribute(s).36

https://www.isbe.net/Documents/early_learning_standards

https://www.decal.ga.gov/Prek/GELDS.aspx

Learning Goals

The math goal of the learning experience is the children to sort different types of rocks and count them. Another goal is the children will learn about the letters of the alphabet. This is also literacy. The literacy goal is the children to learn how to read alphabets.Read the alphabet or recognize letters?

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

The materials used for this lessonare books and other materials. In the first learning experience, I will use books about alphabets, paint, paintbrushes, and rocks.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

After collaborating with the teacher, I developed three learning experiences. The first learning experience involves mathematics where children were involved in sorting and tallying.These are two different templates

During the first learning experience,I will ask the children if they know how to write alphabets. I will ask them if they have ever sorted and tallied rocks. I will show them books with alphabets to familiarize them.Maybe ask them to write their names or show an alphabet book and if they can recognize letters.

		Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills
For the first learning experience,I will divide the children into three groups. One group will be responsible for collecting the rocks and bring them to the class. The children together willclassify the rocks according to their sizes and sort them from the smoothest to the roughest. The children will then count the rocks they collected to 26. This will help the children develop mathematical skills that are important in their growth. The second group will be responsible for washing the rocks with water to remove dirt to enable them to write alphabets on them. The last group will be responsible for writing the alphabets on the rocks. The children then paint both the uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabets on both sides of the rock. I arrange the rocks to allow them to dry. While children are waiting for the painting to dry up, I give them toys to play with. After the painting was dry, I ask the children to read out aloud the alphabets written on the rocks. This learning experience will help develop mathematical and literacy skills in children. I will give books with alphabets to children that are unable to read the alphabets painted on the rocks.The activity is good. Have all children complete all parts of the activity. Maybe paint their name or self-portrait on a rock.If they write the first letter of their name they can put the rocks in ABC order. How will the lesson be differentiated for ESE or ELL children?
		Assessment
In this study, I preferred to use the observation methodof assessment for the first learning experience. I will use the observation method to assess if the children could count up to 26 rocks. I will also use the observation method to assess if the children recognize the letters of the alphabets when painting and reading them.

		Closure
carried out helped in the development of motor skills, language, physical health, and general development.While important not included in your lesson. From my interview with the preschool teacher, I can recommend to parents to be involved in the activities of the children and learn their behaviors. This helps them participate in the growth and development of their children.Why?Your lesson did not include social emotional development.

Learning Experience 2.

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

The content area of the second learning experience inthe science. The developmental domains are physical and cognitive skills.

State/District/Professional Standards

Learning Goals

The science goal was the children willidentify different farm animals. Another goal the children will learn about the physical features of the different farm animals. The other goal of the second learning experience is the children will identify the different sounds made by the farm animals.

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

The materials used for this lessonare books and videos. Books about animals and animal videos were the materials used in the second learning experiences I developed.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

During the second learning experience, I will ask the children if they have visited an animal farm or if any of their family members have an animal farm. I will show them books and videos of farm animals and if they can name them.

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

Assessment

For the second learning experience, I will take the children to a local animal farm where they will see and learn about different farm animals. The activity at the animal farm involves the children exploring the farm animals they saw in the books and videos of farm animals. I will also help the children to identify the animals and answer any questions they have about the animals. For the children who have difficulty in understanding the features of the animals, I will provide them with books that describe the animals on the farm. This learning experience will help the children develop observation and exploration skills.

In this study, I preferred to use a standardized test method of assessment. I will use standardized tests to assess the children’s recognition of farm animals they saw at the farm. I will also use standardized tests to assess the children’s recognition of animal physical features and sounds.

Closure

Learning Experience 3.

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

The content area of the third learning experience is the arts. The developmental domains are motor and art skills.

State/District/Professional Standards

Learning Goals

The art goal of the third learning experience is the children will create art of animals based on their observation and hypothesis. Another goal is the children will understand the features of different farm animals. The other goal is the children will develop motor and art skills.

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

The materials used for this lessonare books, pencils, crayons, and articles. Books about animals and drawing books were the main materials used in the third learning experience I developed.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

During the third learning experience,I will ask the children if they enjoyed the trip to the animal farm. I will ask them if they can remember the animals they saw on the farm and draw them. I will also ask them if they can imitate the sounds of the animals they saw at the farm.

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

Assessment

For the third learning experience, I will ask the children to draw the animals they saw at the farm. I will provide drawing books and pencils for the children to draw the animals based on their hypothesis. I will give crayons to the children to color their drawings. For the children who had a problem with motor skills during the art session, I provided them with a picture book and articles with farm animals where they will cut out a picture of the animal they saw at the farm. This learning experience will help develop motor and art skills in the children. After collaborating with the teacher, I identified that many children live in poor backgrounds. I also identified a few children had fine motor skills and some families of the children spoke other languages other than English at home.

In this study, I preferred to use the portfolio method of assessment. I will use the portfolio method to assess the art drawn by the children. This will help assess the art skills of the children.

Closure

Running head:

LEARNING EXPERIENCE FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Learning Experience for Preschool Children

Malodree Johnson

EP002: Plans Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum

Instructor: Carol Todd

July 19, 2020

Learning Experience for Preschool Children

The learning experience went a long way in helping me understand the criteria for preschool children. The assessment involved preschool children from all backgrounds. The study categorized the ages of preschool children into three categories. These categories are infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. It depended on the age of the children when they were brought to school. Children with disabilities were also considered in my study. The willingness of the school and the preschool teacher in the study session helped me in a great way and made it easier for me to conduct the study. The learning experiences discussed in my study reflected on the indicators of an effective curriculum. These indicators include clear goals, an effective learning environment, and teacher and student motivation. There were clear goals set which were used to develop the learning experiences. The teacher discussed the goals with me during the interview. Another indicator that was used to develop learning experiences as an effective learning environment. The learning experiences were supposed to provide a conducive learning environment for the children. Teacher and student motivation was another indicator that was used to develop learning experiences. The learning experiences were supposed to improve motivation among teachers and children.

After collaborating with the teacher, I developed three learning experiences. The first learning experience developed involves mathematics where children were involved in sorting and tallying. The activity involved the children writing alphabets on rocks which turned out to be a fun activity because it involved outdoor activities. The activity involved going out to the compound of the school collect small rocks and write alphabets on them. First, I will ask the children if they know how to write alphabets. Next, I will divide the children into three groups. One group will be responsible for collecting the rocks and bring them to the class. The children together sort the rocks to identify the rocks which would be good to paint alphabets on them. The children will then count the rocks they collected to twenty-six. This will help the children develop mathematical skills that are important in their growth. The second group will be responsible for washing the rocks with water to remove dirt to enable them to write alphabets on them. The last group will be responsible for writing the alphabets on the rocks. The children then paint both the uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabets on both sides of the rock. I arrange the rocks to allow them to dry. While children are waiting for the painting to dry up, I give them toys to play with. After the painting was dry, I ask the children to read out aloud the alphabets written on the rocks. This learning experience will help develop mathematical and literacy skills in children.

The second learning experience involves the category of science. First, I will ask the children if they have an animal farm or if any of their family members have an animal farm. The children were involved in an activity that involved exploration and observation. For this learning experience, I decided to take the children to a local animal farm where they could see and learn about the farm animals. The activity at the animal farm involves the children exploring the farm animals they learned in previous classes and observe the physical features of the farm animals. I also help the children to identify the animals and answer any questions they had about the animals. For the children who had difficulty with understanding the features of the animals, I provided them with books that describe the animals on the farm. This learning experience will help the children develop observation and exploration skills.

The third learning experience involved the category of arts. The children were involved in drawing activities. After the field trip to the animal farm, I first ask the children if they enjoyed the trip to the animal farm. Next, I ask the children to draw the animals they saw at the farm. I then give crayons to the children to color their drawings. For the children who had a problem with motor skills during the art session, I provided them with a picture book where they could cut out a picture of the animal they saw at the farm. This learning experience will help develop motor and art skills in the children. After collaborating with the teacher, I identified that many children lived in poor backgrounds. I also identified a few children who had fine motor skills and some families of the children spoke other languages other than English at home.

The learning activities I developed involved all the students actively. Although, all children are the same some have exceptionalities and need to be handled individually. The major exceptionality the teacher identified is that the children are abled differently according to their intelligence. Some children responded slowly to the activities given to them by the teacher. Others were quite sharp and responded quickly to the activities given to them by the teacher. Another exceptionality the teacher identified was others carried themselves confidently while others were shy. All children should be treated equally including those with exceptionalities. The teacher can change the setting of the activities given to the children to increase the levels of concentration for the children. The teacher can also give breaks to the children when they seem to lose concentration, this will help get their attention back. The teacher can also organize outdoor activities for the children. These outdoor activities will help develop the motor and physical skills for the children. The preschool teacher can also organize outdoor activities in a way that children with exceptionalities will learn. The teacher can give separate outdoor activities to children with exceptionalities different from other children so they do not feel left out.

Portfolios are collections of children’s works over some time. Portfolios show the progress of the development of a child. It helps bring the teacher and parents closer and form a partnership. I will use portfolios to assess the artworks of the children. Parents’ ratings can also be a good method of assessment of the development and growth of children. Parents observe their children and get to know their behaviors. Teacher ratings are also a good way of assessing the development and growth of children. Teachers base their ratings on tests and other tools of assessment. Teacher ratings help assess the abilities of the children. Standardized tests are usually given to the children and marked in a standard way. The performance of the children is assessed by these tests. I will use the standardized test to assess the knowledge the children gained about the farm animals.

References

Sharon Lynn, Kristie Kauerz, December 2012. Preschool Programs: Effective Curricula. Retrieved from

http://www.child-encyclopedia.com/preschool-programs/according-experts/preschool-programs-effective-curricula

Where We Stand on Curriculum, Assessment, and Program Development. Retrieved from

https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/downloads/PDFs/resources/position-statements/StandCurrAss

Early Childhood Assessment. Retrieved from

http://resourcesforearlylearning.org/fm/early-childhood-assessment/

Assessment in the Early Childhood Classroom. Retrieved from

https://www.uen.org/k-2educator/assessment.shtml

Neaum S, 2016. Observing and assessing children’s learning and development. Retrieved from

https://study.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/Neaum%2C%20S.%20%282016%29%20Observing%20and%20Assessing%20Children%27s%20Learning%20and%20Development.%20London%2C%20Sage._

Appendix

Learning Experience 1.

As per the rubric, in one learning experience you must also include technology, social emotional skills and play. Refer to the rubric.

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

The content areas of the first learning experience are mathematics and language arts and art. The developmental domains are motor and cognitive skills.

State/District/Professional Standards

The Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards were used to develop the three learning experiences. The Illinois Learning and Development Standards are classified. Learning Standard 8. A was used to develop the first learning experience which involves sorting, order, compare, and describing objects. Learning Standard 5. A was also used to develop the first learning experience which involves language arts. Ok

Learning Goals

The math goal of the learning experience is the children to sort different types of rocks and count them. The literacy goals are the children will learn about the letters of the alphabet and the children to learn how to recognize letters. Ok

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

The materials used for this lesson are books and other materials. In the first learning experience, I will use books about alphabets, paint, paintbrushes, and rocks. Name the books.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

How will you introduce the lesson to the students? Will you read a book, view a video, etc.?

		Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills
For the first learning experience, I will give the children three activities. In the first activity, I will ask the children to collect rocks and bring them to the class. The children together will classify the rocks according to their sizes and sort them from the smoothest to the roughest. Ok The children will then count the rocks they collected. This will help the children develop mathematical skills that are important in their growth. In the second activity, the children will then wash the rocks with water to remove dirt to enable them to write their names on them. In the third activity, I will ask the children to paint their names on the rocks . Ok I will then ask the children to arrange the rocks alphabetically based on the first letter of their names and allow them to dry. Ok While children are waiting for the painting to dry up, I give them toys to play with. After the painting was dry, I ask the children to read out aloud the alphabets written on the rocks. This learning experience will help develop mathematical and literacy skills in children. For the children having difficulty in arranging the rocks alphabetically, I will give them books with alphabets to recognize the order of the alphabet. OK For children having difficulty in writing their names on the rocks I will ask them to spell their names and I will write them on the rocks. OK

		Assessment
In this study, I preferred to use the observation checklist method of assessment for the first learning experience. I will use the observation checklist to assess if the children could arrange the rock alphabetically based on the first letter of their first names. I will also use the checklist to assess if the children recognize the letters of the alphabets when painting and reading them. OK

		Closure
In conclusion, this learning experience helped me achieve the goals set for the lesson. The learning experience helps the children to develop mathematics and literacy skills. The incorporation of such a lesson plan will help in the development of preschool children.

Learning Experience 2.

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

The content area of the second learning experience in science. The developmental domains are physical and cognitive skills.

State/District/Professional Standards

The Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards were used to develop the three learning experiences. The Illinois Learning and Development Standards are classified. The Learning Standard 12.A.ECa was used to develop the second learning experience which involves exploration, observation, and describing living things.

Learning Goals

The science goal was the children will identify different farm animals and plants. Another goal the children will learn about the physical features of the different farm animals. The other goal of the second learning experience is the children will identify the different structures of plants at the farm. Ok

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

The materials used for this lesson are books and videos. Books and videos about animals and plants were the materials used in the second learning experiences I developed. Name the specific books and videos.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

I will ask the children if they have visited an animal farm or if any of their family members have an animal farm. I will show them books and videos of plants and farm animals and if they can name them. Name the books and videos. Be sure these are also included in the Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources section.

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

For the second learning experience, I will take the children to a local animal farm where they will see and learn about different farm animals and plants.
The activity at the animal farm involves the children exploring the farm animals they saw in the books and videos of farm animals. I will also help the children to identify the features of the animals and answer any questions they have about the animals. The activity will also help the children identify different features of the plants on the farm and observe their stages of growth over time
. For the children who have difficulty in understanding the features of the animals, I will provide them with books that describe the animals on the farm. For children having difficulty in identifying the growth stages of plants, I will provide them with books that show the growth stages of familiar plants. This learning experience will help the children develop observation and exploration skills.

Assessment

In this study, I preferred to use a standardized test method
of assessment. I will use standardized tests to assess the children’s recognition of farm animals they saw at the farm. I will also use standardized tests to assess the children’s recognition of animal physical features and sounds.

Closure

In conclusion, this learning experience helped me achieve the goals set for the lesson. The learning experience helps the children to develop science skills. The incorporation of such a lesson plan will help in the development of preschool children.

Learning Experience 3.

Foundations of Lesson Plan

Content Areas and Developmental Domains

The content area of the third learning experience is the arts. The developmental domain is visual art skills. As per the rubric, in one learning experience you must also include technology, social emotional skills and play. Refer to the rubric.

State/District/Professional Standards

Learning Goals

The art goal of the third learning experience is the children will create art of animals based on their observation and hypothesis from visitng the animal farm?. Another goal is the children will understand the features of different farm animals. The other goal is the children will develop visual art skills. How?

Materials/Technology/Equipment/Resources

The materials used for this lesson are books, pencils, crayons, and articles. Books about animals and drawing books were the main materials used in the third learning experience I developed. Name the books.

Lesson Sequence
Align all activities with the standard(s), goal(s), and context.

Introduction/Anticipatory Set

During the third learning experience, I will ask the children if they enjoyed the trip to the animal farm. I will ask them if they can remember the animals they saw on the farm and draw them. I will also ask them if they can imitate the sounds of the animals they saw at the farm. OK

Building/Applying Knowledge and Skills

For the third learning experience, I will ask the children to draw the animals they saw at the farm. I will provide drawing books and pencils for the children to draw the animals based on their hypothesis. I will give crayons to the children to color their drawings. For the children who have a problem drawing during the art session, I will provide them with a picture book and articles with farm animals where they will cut out a picture of the animal they saw at the farm. I will provide them with glue to stick the pictures they have cut out on a book. This learning experience will help develop visual art skills in the children.

Assessment

In this study, I preferred to use the portfolio method of assessment
. I will use the portfolio method to assess the art drawn by the children. This will help assess the art skills of the children.

Closure

In conclusion, this learning experience helped me achieve the goals set for the lesson. The learning experience helps the children to develop visual arts skills. The incorporation of such a lesson plan will help in the development of preschool children.

�Add art to the content area above.

�What kind of toys? To align with the lesson the toys should teach the ABCs, sorting, etc.

�OK

�You will also need a book or video on plants.

�How will you teach this concept?

�Name the test.

�OK

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