Emergent curriculum and kindergarten readiness

Childhood Education, Summer 2003 by Cassidy, Deborah J, Mims, Sharon, Rucker, Lia, Boone, Sheresa

Bookmaking

In December, many of the children began to make their own books by stapling, taping, and gluing paper together. Some children cut pictures from magazines and glued them into their books, while others drew their own pictures. Teachers capitalized on this interest and enhanced literacy skills by planning bookmaking activities related to other activity strands, such as creating a book about feelings.

The children remained primarily interested in creating their own books, and so the teachers followed their lead. Many of the children were becoming interested in learning letters and writing words/stories in their books. The children began asking the teachers to write the words in the books as they dictated the story. They also asked teachers to write words for them on separate paper, and then they copied the letters into their books. Some children who were familiar with letters asked teachers to spell the words orally while they wrote the letters. Others were ready for the teachers to help them sound out words phonetically, so that they could try to write the words on their own. Some of the children could spell many common words, and used a rich vocabulary to tell their stories.

The children used different tools to assist them in the bookmaking process. Some children cut and glued pictures from magazines, while others drew their own pictures. Some asked teachers to write dictated stories, others copied letters and words teachers wrote for them, while still others only needed the word to be spelled orally or sounded out for them. Scissors, pencils, and crayons were used by most of the children. These tools were useful in helping the children create individual products.

As the children continued to extend their own ideas, repeat similar stories, and observe others' books, they developed more advanced skills. This strand allowed the teachers to observe and naturally extend literacy skills, such as letter recognition, writing development, and top-to-bottom and left-to-right orientation. The activity also boosted children's phonetic awareness and their understanding of story development. Many of the stories were drawn from the children's personal experiences and generated a sharing of ideas and interest in the work of others.

Classroom Garden

In December the children continued to talk about a garden they had grown on the playground the previous year. They were extremely interested in using the spray bottles to water the new plants that one of the teachers had donated to the classroom. The children began to compare the different types of plants found in the classroom-how they grew, or the similarities and differences in their appearance. They also observed that certain plants produce food, and others do not.

The teachers wanted to build on the children's skills of observation and their appreciation of nature. As it was not possible to grow an outdoor garden during that time of year, they assisted the children in sprouting beans in the classroom. In January the children and teachers planted bulbs and began to chart their growth. The children's discussion of different types of seeds and uses for them led to art activities in which they used seeds to make necklaces, collages, media table experiences, etc. The class also made plans to grow a vegetable garden the next month, and they began to plant some of the plants in the classroom. The children discussed when they needed to plant indoors and why, as well as when plants could be planted outdoors.