THE PRINCIPLES BEHIND MY LESSON PLAN FOR A GROUP OF EIGHT TODDLERS
My lesson plans are a tool to help the kids and me to have a good day. When children are busy developing their skills, they are happy and so am I. It should never be something to stress about. I made it clear to myself years ago, the children under my care here and now are my priority at all time. I plan during nap but nap is not always quiet. If a child needs my attention I drop whatever I'm doing and give attention to him or her. If they are quiet during the day I might start to sit at the table and plan or prepare an art project but if the atmosphere of the classroom gets hectic I invite them to cut with me at the table or draw with me, or dropping everything and march with them instead of running, whatever I think that might help to channel their energy and engage them with me.
If I didn't have time to make a lesson plan, I improvise or do again what worked yesterday or the week before. There are some life saver activities too like: crayons, scissors, bubbles, "Ring around the rosie" and more.
Each day I try to cover every aspect of the development of young children: Cognition, Social & Emotional, Fine Motor, Gross Motor, Language and Art.
Language includes Literacy, Receptivity, Expression, Print concepts and Phonological. Cognition is divided in nine sub categories : Flexibility, Initiative, Engagement in Learning, Logic, Counting and Cardinality, Number Operations, Measurement, Geometry and Science. Social & Emotional is divided in five: Regulation, Emotional Expression, Sense of self, Relationships with adults and with Peers. Every day I also plan a fine and gross motor activity, art and social and emotional. They don't have to be complicated. When you are a children lover a lot of those activities come to you naturally. When you read or sing you teach language. When you show a child how to fit a puzzle piece you are working on cognition and fine motor. When you talk about your emotions your are teaching social skills. When you chase them it's a gross motor activity. When you draw next to them you teaching appreciation of Art.
But lesson plans are useful though and I try very hard to make them. First thing in the morning I look at it and get things ready before all the kids are in. If it's not done I work on it.
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