Active Learning For Infants and Toddlers

1
Active Learning For Infants and Toddlers
Day 1
2
Objectives

• Identify the components of the HighScope Infant
  and Toddler Wheel of Learning.
• Characterize sensory-motor learners.
• Identify the Ingredients of Active Learning and
  discuss why it works.
• Distinguish the Key Developmental Indicators
  (KDIs) as outcomes of active learning.
• Discuss Brain 101.

3
Oh, You Beautiful Baby!

• Listen to this story by Jamie Lee Curtis called
  When I was Little
• Think back when you were little and with the
  materials on the table, create your own birth
  announcement (name, date, weight, length, etc.)
• Consider these questions
• When you were under the age of 2, what did your
  parents or other adults say about you? What
  words have people used to describe you as an
  infant/toddler?
• As an infant/toddler, what were your favorite
  things to do? Who were your favorite people? What
  were your favorite play things? Your first words?

4
Summary

• Get in touch with when we were Infants ad
  Toddlers.
• Babies are real human beings.
• Totally dependent on us.
• Needing love and security.
• We are privileged.
• We have real intimate relationships with them.
• We have the most important job!

5
What Do You Know, What Have You Heard?
6
HighScopes Infant and Toddler Wheel of
Learning
Adult-Child Interactions
Observation

Active Learning
Learning Environment
Schedules and Routines
7
HighScopes Infant and Toddler Wheel of Learning
When we use a comprehensive curriculum, we become
intentional teachers and our plans and
interactions are more purposeful!
8
Infant-Toddler vs. Preschool
9
Summary

• Caregiving routines should not be the driving
  force of our work with infants and toddlers.
• Caregiving routines are perfect opportunities for
  establishing strong relationships.
• We can choose to provide only custodial care or
  provide high-quality experiences throughout the
  day.

10
Lets Discuss

• What elements contribute to a high-quality infant
  and toddler program?
• Or what is it that we need to do to provide the
  best high- quality experiences for infants and
  toddlers?
• Record your answers on page 9 in TB.

11
Elements of High-Quality Early Childhood Programs

1. A child development curriculum
2. Low enrollment limits
3. Staff trained
4. Supervisory support and inservice training
5. Parent Involvement
6. Developmentally appropriate evaluation procedures
   (child and program)
7. Sensitivity to non-educational needs of children

12
Characteristics of High-Quality EC Programs

• Interactions are most important
• Need warm friendly and respectful relationships
  between child and caregivers and parents. This
  contributes to healthy social-emotional
  development.
• Child development curriculum grounded in child
  initiated activities.
• Small group sizes means, lower staff child ratio
  and limited number of children per classroom.
• Thoughtful and purposeful planning for infants
  and toddlers.

13
On the Floor

• In the infant seat
• In the play pen
• Out and about

What did you learn from this experience?
14
Points to consider
Active learners need direct physical actions
stretching, reaching, grasping, mouthing,
banging, rolling, sitting, crawling, pulling,
walking, climbing, carrying

• Learning occurs when children can manipulate and
  choose materials and can freely use their whole
  bodies (all senses).
• This is different for non-mobile and mobile
  infants and toddlers.
• Non-mobile infants learn just as much as mobile
  infants if they are not confined in a seat or
  play pen and interesting materials are within
  reach.

15
Key Developmental Indictors (KDIs)

• Take a look at page 3 of your TB.
• These are HighScopes curriculum content areas
  for infant and toddler development.
• They are statements of what young children do
  when they are actively engaged.
• Which KDIs were evident as children in each of
  the three experiences?

16
(No Transcript)
17
(No Transcript)
18
(No Transcript)
19
(No Transcript)
20
(No Transcript)
21
Summary of KDIs

• Describe the kinds of discoveries young children
  make as they strive through their own actions and
  interests to make sense of their world.
• Framework for interpreting child development
  based on child observations, developmental theory
  and research.
• A series of statements describing all areas of
  ITs development essential to their construction
  of knowledge.

22
Summary Cont.

• Provides us with a child development filter for
  observing and choosing appropriate interactions
  and activities.
• Helps us interpret what infants and toddlers say
  and do.
• Helps us maintain reasonable expectations.
• Legitimizes childrens play.
• Allows us to daily plan more purposefully.

23
Active Learning Supports Brain Development
24
A Handy Brain
Brains are built over time and from the bottom
up. Early experiences determine whether the
brain circuits are strong or weak for all
learning, health and behavior that follow. The
Science of Early Childhood Development

• Cortex
• Cerebrum
• Limbic System
• Reptilian Brain

25
Brain Facts

• The brain grows in the way it is nurtured.
• The brain is two and half times more active from
  birth to three than it will ever be again in a
  lifetime.
• Pam Schiller, Ph.D.

26
The Early Years

• We are born with over 100 billion brain cells,
  but have relatively few connections.
• Neurons form and re-form connections at a rapid
  rate in response to experiences

27
Brain Cells

• Neurons
• Brain Cells, Building Blocks of the Brain
• Dendrites
• Receives Incoming Electric Signals
• Axon
• Sends Out Electric Signals

28
SynapsesThe connection between brain cells
29
Neural Pathways
Synapses
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
30
Neural Pathways
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
Brain Cell
31
How Do We Learn?

• We have some sort of stimulus
• Something new
• Make new neural pathways
• Something we already knew
• Neural pathways become more and more efficient
  mylenation

32
More About Synapses
Emotional well-being and social competence
provide a strong foundation for emerging
cognitive abilities The Science of Early
Childhood Development

• The synapses that are not used die out
• The synapses that are used repeatedly are
  strengthened
• Prolonged stress can destroy neuron synapses
• Being cared for in a loving consistent
  relationship can reverse the effects of stress

33
Neuro-Developmental Principles

• Sequential development
• Use-dependent development
• (Use it or lose it)
• Windows of opportunity

34
The richer our sensory environment and the
greater our freedom to explore it, the more
intricate will be the patterns of learning,
thought and creativity.

• Carla Hanaford, PhD
• Smart Moves

35
Watch the following videotape
The HighScope Approach for Under
Threes Choosing and Doing

• Why is choice such a part of doing
• for infants and toddlers in this
• setting or in general?

36
Characteristics of Infants and Toddlers

• With your group, discuss words and phrases that
  describe infants and toddlers.
• Discuss as a whole group.
• Infants and Toddlers are Sensory-Motor Learners!

37
Summarize

• Infants and toddlers need to have real
  experiences with real objects.
• We need to keep these characteristics in mind
  when we plan for infants and toddlers
• Environments
• Daily schedules and routines
• Developmental levels
• We dont want to push preschool down on infants
  and toddlers.
• Structure our goals around the developmental
  needs of this age.

38
Principles Guiding HighScope IT Curriculum

1. Infants and Toddlers are sensory-motor learners.
2. Learning develops over time.
3. Key developmental indicators describe what
   infants and toddlers learn.

39
Active Learning Ingredients

1. Materials
2. Manipulation
3. Choice
4. Child Communication Language, and Thought
5. Adult Scaffolding

40
Some thoughts

• Choice is not typically offered to infants and
  toddlers as good caregivers we tend to make
  most of the choices for them.
• In doing so, we set ourselves up for power
  struggles with toddlers who are establishing
  autonomy.
• Choice helps to reduce many frustrations and
  discipline problems we experience with
  nonverbal children, (with any age).

41
Identifying Active Learning

• With a partner, look through Tender Care.
• Choose 2 pictures that represent the ingredients
  of active learning.
• Share 1 picture with the whole group
• Describe what is happening and give what
  ingredients of active learning are represented.

42
What is something that you as an adult have done
recently that you enjoyed, learned from, and
will continue to do?
43
What is something that you as an adult have to
do but dont enjoy doing?
44
Motivation?

• Which activity is an example of
• Intrinsic Motivation
• Drive comes from within
• Extrinsic Motivation
• Drive comes from outside
• What are some ways adults typically motivate
  young children to do something?
• Bribes
• Rewards
• Stickers
• Verbal manipulation

45
Intrinsic Motivation

• There are 5 factors of Intrinsic Motivation
• Interest
• Enjoyment
• Sense of control
• Probability of success
• Feelings of competence

46
The Learning Cycle
Repeat Play
Enjoy
Play
Risk taking
Mastery
All is well
47
Thoughts About Active Learning

• Part of active learning is to recall and think
  about what you are learning.
• Individually, turn to page 17.
• Reflect on today discussions on Active Learning
• Record what you have learned and want to remember
  about our discussions.
• Remember to use Parking Lot