The Guidance Center

Head Start

HighScope Preschool Key DEVELOPMENTAL Indicators (KDIs) and Supportive strategies

HighScope Key Developmental Indicators (KDIs), are the building blocks of thinking and reasoning at each stage of development (Epstein, 2007 Essentials of Active Learning in Preschool).

Using the KDIs as a guideline for planning will ensure that childrens developmental needs are being addressed in our classrooms. Remember that each child is unique and will have differing interests and abilities; the Learning Plan needs to be individualized for each child and reflect the active participatory learning approach.

Resources used in the development of this strategy list include, but are not limited to: Me, You , Us: Social Emotional Learning in Preschool (Epstein 2009), Getting it Right for Young Children from Diverse Backgrounds (Espinosa 2010), Small-Group Times to Scaffold Early Learning (HighScope Early Childhood Staff 2009), Real Science in Preschool: Here, There and Everywhere (Neill 2008), I Know Whats Next!: Preschool Transitions Without Tears or Turmoil (Evans 2007), Im Older than You. Im Five!: Math in the Preschool Classroom (Epstein and Gainsley 2005), 50 Large Group Activities for Active Learners (Boisvert and Gainsley 2006)

APPROACHES TO LEARNING

1. Initiative: Children demonstrate initiative as they explore their world.

Children are eager to learn. They exhibit curiosity, independence, and self-direction as they learn about relationships, materials, actions, and ideas. They take reasonable risks as they investigate the environment.

2. Planning: Children make plans and follow through on their intentions.

Children make plans and decisions, and express choices and intentions based on their interests. Their plans increase in detail and complexity. Children follow through on their plans.

3. Engagement: Children focus on activities that interest them.

Children sustain involvement and concentration in their play. They are persistent, motivated, and able to stay engaged.

4. Problem Solving: Children solve problems encountered in play.

Children are inventive and flexible in solving a variety of problems. They progress from using trial and error to more systematic attempts at problem solving.

5. Use of Resources: Children gather information and formulate ideas about their world.

Children use all their senses and a variety of tools to explore and gather information about the world around them. They ask questions and try to explain their ideas about the things they encounter.

6. Reflection: Children reflect on their experiences.

Children use their experiences to draw conclusions about people, materials, events, and ideas. They make connections between what they already know and what they are doing and learning.

Strategies Throughout the Daily Routine to Build Approaches to Learning

Greeting:

Use pictures on a message board for children to figure out messages for the day. This may include how many days are left of school, who is having a birthday, special events or changes to the daily routine, new materials added to the learning environment, etc. The message board has the potential to increase childrens interest and excitement about the day ahead

Make sure to display and refer to the daily routine in picture format for children

Greetings can include, but are not limited to:

Special hellos / I Love You ritual / Greeting song

Nametag (Letterlink) activities / Signing-in

Changing a clip from home to school

A commitment board / Class meeting

Joke of the day

The Message Board can reflect:

How many days are left of school for the week

Any special event/changes in the daily routine

Special news about a child

Weather conditions

Something new in the environment

A visitor to the class room

An absent teacher

Please refer to the HighScope resources, From Message to Meaning, (Gainsley, 2008) and Essentials of Active Learning in Preschool (Epstein, 2007) for additional ideas and clarity in practice.

Planning and Recall:

Use a variety of planning and recall strategies to keep children interested. Relying on 1 strategy will eventually bore the children and decrease their engagement in planning and recall. The goal is to increase childrens thinking and ability to verbalize it. Asking questions like, What will you use? (to complete your plan), or How will you use (the materials)..? will encourage higher order thinking, interest , vocabulary and initiative to complete the planned activity.

Use planning boards, or books (children indicate where they plan to play by pointing, placing a name card, magnetic letter, or number, or some other object on the picture of the area where they plan to play)

Children go to the area they want to play in and bring back an object from that area to describe their plan (variation: the teacher gathers favorite items from different areas to help children formulate plans)

Use props to plan with (based on childrens interests, examples include: a stuffed toy, telephones, microphones, small toys, etc)

Have children get in line, pretending to be a train. Choo-choo around the room stopping in each area. Children get off the train in the area they plan to play in.

Recall works-in-progress children may not have finished from previous days

Use a tape recorder to record plans, play it back for recall

Create a map and allow children to indicate where they want to play by driving a small car to that area on the map

Use songs (ex: Jingle, jingle, jingle jive, clap your hands and count to five change numbers, rhymes and movements as needed, children plan after they complete the movement)

Please refer to the HighScope resources, Essentials of Active Learning in Preschool, (Epstein, 2007), for support strategies and clarity in practice.

Clean-up Time:

Ensure that the classroom supports childrens independent find use return cycle of play. Make sure that how to use the spaces and materials are clear (Ex: if the easel is separated from the paper and brushes, its use may not be clear to young children). Also make sure that shelves and containers are clearly labeled so that children know where to find and return items.

Allow children the choice about where and with whom to clean as oftenas possible. Use a variety of strategies that engage children in cleaning. Acknowledge childrens attempts and involvement , ex: You two are working together to put this block away or Look, you put all of the dolls away and now this area is clean and safe! This builds childrens decision making, problem solving and sense of mastery.

Clean-up like (dogs, dinosaurs, robots, teddy bears - what ever children are interested in)

Have a clean-up parade (put music on and parade around the room, when the music stops clean-up where you are)

Wear pretend binoculars and go on a toy hunt to spot items that need to be put away

Play Beat the Clock. Turn a timer on and encourage children to race the timer by cleaning up a specified area, amount or item before the timer goes off

Work Time:

Add props and materials to build on childrens interests and skills

Allow children the choice about where and with whom to play. Allow children to use materials in novel ways. Children may take the sorting toys over to the house area to cook, or the play dough to make cookies. Support children by thinking how you can allow them to accomplish their plan while still maintaining the daily routine and safety of the classroom.

Example: Children want to take ALL of the sorting toys over to the House Area to cook with. The teacher tells the children that he/she is concerned because this will be a lot to clean-up during clean-up time. The teacher engages children in problem solving about the potential clean-up to develop a group agreement about how and when they will clean-up the toys before they begin their play. The teacher then follows through on the group agreement at the end of work time. Group agreements might include: that each child will assist with clean-up, they will begin cleaning at the 10 minute warning, they will clean until the job is done, etc.

Allowing children choice and flexibility builds their sense of autonomy, mastery, problem solving and initiative.

Practice S.O.U.L. Stay silent, observe, understand and listen before entering childrens play. Try to understand what the purpose of the play is, what roles are being recreated, the level of representation and language and finally, how you can scaffold childrens current levels of development.

Note: Being ardent observers help educators assess childrens development, interests and emotional states. The information garnered is vital for individualizing, developing intentional learning plans for children and remaining responsive to childrens needs. Educators who practice this art of observation and are responsive to the needs of the children have classrooms where children feel safe, acknowledged and capable which compounds positive cognitive and emotional outcomes for children assuring constructive approaches to learning.

Use the HighScope Steps to Conflict Resolution in response to childrens social conflict or problems with materials

Please refer to the HighScope resources: Essentials of Active Learning in Preschool, (Epstein, 2007); Lesson Plans for the First 30 Days, (Marshall, 2007); You Cant Come to My Birthday Party (Evans, 2002), for strategy ideas and clarity in practice.

Small Group:

To support childrens approaches to learning