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(Unit 4) Topic 1: Cultural Competency and Responsiveness​

3 Clock Hours of Early Childhood Education

Applying Intentional Teaching Strategies 

​Topic 1 Page 18

Infants
The daily routines provide infant teachers with opportunities to interact with each infant. During diapering encourage language development by naming body parts or singing songs.

Toddlers
Toddler teachers spend a great deal of time on the floor with the children engaged in various activities. Sit down on the floor with something of interest and the children will usually join you. Once you have the children’s attention you might focus on fine motor skills by building with blocks or language development by reading a story and naming pictures. Toddlers are built with a curiosity to figure out the world around them. Your best strategy in working with toddlers is to observe what interests them and what they want to do. You can then provide an appropriate experience for them to explore that concept. For example, if a toddler is throwing books, give the child some soft balls to throw and maybe add a basket for him/her to aim the ball.

Preschool and Pre-Kindergarten
Planning for preschool and pre-kindergarten begins with observing the children during their daily activities. Observations may be recorded and compared to the development checklist or learning standards. Talk to your center director about the process for using observations, developmental checklists, or learning standards to plan curriculum for young children.

Teachers should combine the developmental activities with activities based on the children’s interests. As an example: A classroom of 4 year olds visits the zoo. Returning from the field trip the children continue to talk about the zoo animals. The teacher responds to the children’s interest by adding zoo animals to the block area, gathering books on zoo animals for the book area, and having the children write stories about the trip to the zoo.

School Age
The teacher’s role as a facilitator increases as the children begin school. Teaching strategies for school age children include providing a child-centered environment that builds on the children’s strengths, provides them with opportunities to be independent, and develops self-esteem through successful learning experiences. School age children develop social and emotional skills by interacting in their environment with peers and adults. Hands-on exploration and activities that encourage questioning and exploring are teaching strategies that work well with school age children. Involving the school age child in the planning and development of the program builds relationships between the teachers and the students and encourages the development of a collaborative environment. School age teachers can involve the children in planning by allowing them to:

• decorate the classroom
• create classroom rules
• plan weekly or monthly themes and specific activities
• assist the cook in planning afterschool snacks

​Providing school age children with opportunities to be involved in the planning and implementation of the before and after school program is a key strategy in building relationships with the children and creating a sense of community. Also, it allows them the independence and control they need during this developmental stage.

(Unit 4) Topic 1: Cultural Competency and Responsiveness​ * Navigation Menu