Well here it is! There were so many great questions and so little time! I’ve supplemented with some links below. Please add your links and input in the comment section as well!
(By the way, on my computer the video seems a bit smoother over at YouTube for some reason. It won’t hurt my feelings if you watch it there– just promise to come back and join in the discussion!)
On-Task Behavior and Developmentally Appropriate Practice (0:10)
As a parent, how do I know what is DAP in my child’s various classrooms? (1:27)
Resources for Developmentally Appropriate Practice:
Basics of Developmentally Appropriate Practice by Carol Copple and Sue Bredekamp
DAP: What Does it Meant to Use Developmentally Appropriate Practice (From right here at NJC!)
Should food be used as sensory or art medium? (4:22)
Letter of the Week Dilemma (8:33)
Why Don’t You Teach Reading? A Look at Emergent Literacy
A Culture of Literacy: Teaching Preschoolers the ABC’s and More (More articles linked there.)
Preschool Tattle-Tells (10:23)
How do I stay consistent with my child’s behavior when I know it’s caused by physical factors? (11:50)
Parenting with Positive Guidance: Building Discipline from the Inside Out
Children and Nature (14:01)
Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv
Blogs:
Add your links and tips below as well! And keep those First Friday Questions coming to notjustcute@hotmail.com, with Q&A in the subject line!
Jill, a colleague of mine, sent me an email when she saw the topics on-tap for today. She’s a smart one, that Jill, so I was relieved to see some similarity in our answers. She touches on some things I didn’t, so I asked her if I could paste her comments in here. Hopefully it gets the discussion going!
“Food in sensory and art… the dilemma: is it culturally and socio-economically sensitive and will it teach our children good values surrounding food versus it being an inexpensive and non-toxic sensory or art experience???? I say use it for that reason- that it is safe and usually inexpensive, but perhaps do not use it in a way that is readily noticeable to children as food. Good food item are cornmeal, dry rice, play dough, colored dry pastas etc. My experience is that children who use food item in art and sensory are not more messy at meal times because they allowed to use food in play. I think children understand the difference. Problem item may be using pudding as finger paint; it is a bit of a mixed message. I do admit I loved stringing fruit loops on string when my children were younger. It was the only time they were allowed sugar cereal and we ate our result… so it was a treat and art experience!
Letter of the week- this is directly addressed in the NAEYC DAP book. It is not a meaningful introduction to writing. Start with children’s names, Mom, Dad, and other whole words that are meaningful to children.
DAP- this is a big one! Good Luck 🙂
Tattle telling- Hmmm I do not have a lot of parenting experience with this one. However, I have told my kids (and maybe I am wrong) that they should not tell on each other unless someone is hurt. When it comes to siblings, I think they need to know that they can trust each other… friends too! When a child does tell on another child I would listen to them carefully and help them problem solve i.e. (go tell your friend you saw what they did and that it is not OK) a balance of being there for a child but not feeding into a cycle of tattling or using it to get attention. Think about why a child might be tattling… to get attention, feeling inadequate, unmet needs. Determine whether a child is tattling or may need support to problem solve a situation.”
Hi Amanda! I think it would be really helpful for you to post a list of the questions you are addressing in your video, in the order that you are discussing them, perhaps even with times. That way, someone who might not have 15 minutes to spare could pinpoint sections that are relevant, or someone who wants to go back and rewatch a specific section can find it more easily.
Thanks for adding this fun feature to your blog!
Great suggestion! Thanks for bringing it up!
Hi. Let me start by saying that I love your blog. It is always informative and I’ve gotten so many ideas here. Thank you. I am a pre-school teacher and recently our theme was: Our Five Senses. One of our art activities was fingerpainting with chocolate pudding! After seeing your video I am feeling slightly guilty about this! The children absolutely loved the pudding activity. I gave them each their own cup (it was a small group activity-3 chidren at a time)and let them fingerpaint.(I put a dollop of the pudding on their paper) We do a lot of fingerpainting in our classroom and I felt like the pudding painting would just take it to a new level of sensory experience. I did hesitate a bit because of the “playing with your food” aspect but I couldn’t resist the “taste” experience. (when they were done painting they were able to eat what was left in their cup…with a spoon.) Full disclosure: We used colored cooked spaghetti in our Texture Table, too! Yikes! I feel like I broke a lot of “rules” this week! (they loved that activity, too!) I think I may modify these activities in the future because you raise some very valid points. It’s a bit of a quandary though because I feel that the sensory/fun experience was so worth it. Hmmm. Thanks again for your blog. I learn something new here every time I visit!
Thanks for reading, Jo! And no guilty conscience required! Like I said earlier, I think this is one of those subjects where you have to come to your own conclusion. I think there are times for an exception to almost any rule, as long as you can make purposeful, thoughtful justifications. Intention can vary even when the action or actiity looks the same. Sometimes you just have to weigh out the objectives and benefits against the inconveniences and imperfections. Thanks again for reading/watching!
Thanks! This was very helpful, especially having specific things to look for what is going on in a classroom.
Thanks for submitting a great question!