When teachers use an emergent curriculum, they are following the interests of the children to determine which materials and activities they will provide so that the choice of learning topics emerges from the children themselves. One common misconception about emergent curriculum is that teachers are constantly altering their focus in a random manner following the children’s every whim. While it is true that the lesson plan does sometimes get moved aside to take advantage of unexpected teachable moments, the majority of the children’s time is spent exploring a central concept, theme, or idea. The teacher’s knowledge of child development, their observation and understanding of each individual child, and their ability to plan developmentally appropriate materials and activities are crucial components of our emergent curriculum.

Play-based programs use play as their medium of instruction. They take advantage of children’s natural curiosity and interest in exploring and interacting with the world around them. The teacher’s role includes both preparing a stimulating environment (in which materials are frequently rotated and changed) and interacting with children during their play in ways that promote their learning and development. Children are allowed to make their own choices about activities because when their actions are self- directed, they are more motivated to engage for longer periods of time and to reach higher levels of thinking and understanding. Teachers also encourage and promote specific types of play and activities connected to their educational goals for children.

This depends on what is being called “academic”. Many early childhood programs that describe themselves as academic are actually using practices not supported by the modern understandings of child development derived from research. Overly structured programs with a focus on desk work have actually been shown to stifle young children’s natural curiosity and can create negative school associations. While play-based activities may not look like traditional academic tasks, they are important to children’s scholastic achievement because they provide the foundational pieces children need to build more complex understandings. In this way, play-based activities are truly academic.

In our program, we focus on individual and small group interactions to maximize learning opportunities. Our teachers observe and interact with each child so that they really get to know and understand where each child is developmentally. This allows the teacher to tailor their interactions so that they are meeting each child’s specific needs. In elementary school settings, this is often referred to as “differentiated instruction”. When teaching only occurs with large groups, teachers must “teach to the middle” as they say, missing the point for the majority of the children. Our teachers do provide at least one time each day for a large group Community Gatherings so that the children receive the experience of participation in a large group and the sense of community that can bring.

The challenge with flashcards is that they promote memorization over understanding while worksheets primarily promote tracing over emergent writing. The research also shows that children quickly tire of these type of experiences and begin to resist or dread being asked to do them. We focus on “hands-on learning” activities that are primarily “open-ended”. We prioritize materials and activities in which the children are fully engaged. Rather than just being told or shown, the children are able participate and interact using all of their senses. The majority of our materials and activities are open-ended in that they can be explored and used in a variety of ways.