Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/helping-teachers-address-academic-learning/5020118/
The terms preschool and Head Start suggest that children need group settings where adults give them a jump start for the world of academics and for the behavior that is expected in school. Indeed, the expanding research on brain development suggests that the earliest years are where children get wired for learning everything: physical, language, social, emotional, and cognitive development. Many educators and curriculum developers believe this indicates early childhood programs should move away from play-based activities to a more academic curriculum. Still others resonate with the extensive body of literature describing the value of play in young children’s learning, resisting a push-down academic curriculum that adds stress to children’s lives and robs them of their right to self-directed play. I believe these different perspectives are tricky waters to navigate and require us to move beyond simplistic either/or thinking.Children are natural learners, but they need to have their internal, intrinsic motivation to be lifelong learners re-inforced. You see their eagerness to learn beginning in infancy. But in today’s media-driven, pressure cooker world, children don’t always know how to engage in the complex play that leads to deeper learning. They often need adult intervention to help them move from simplistic, repetitive play ...