Re: Play is a child's work

[Shelley Tellez <prevez@PRODIGY.NET>]

Allen,
Fortunately my daughter's first experience in kindergarten was a good
one..Her kindergarten teacher howled when she gave the children a coloring
sheet and my kiddo colored in all around the outside creating a negative
space concept!  of course, she also howled when she "wrote" her first story
complete with pictures...goes like this.....picture of child standing under
an umbrella, "I wik wane"  (and she still likes rain)

It is important to work at every level with "school reform" and encourage
everyone to do the "right thing" for children no matter at what level they
are working...education is for a life time and I am not ready to let that go
:-)

----- Original Message -----
From: "Allen Flanigan." <Allen.Flanigan@USPTO.GOV>
To: <ARN-L@LISTS.CUA.EDU>
Sent: Monday, March 19, 2001 10:08 AM
Subject: Play is a child's work


> My children's cooperative preschool is based on ideas taken from Reggio
> Emilia.  Their motto is play is a child's work.  Unfortunately, there
seems
> to be a wide disconnect between the nurturing, developmentally appropriate
> approach they thrived in at this school and the approach encountered in
our
> local public school.  It's a shame, and I attribute it at least partially
to
> the whole mentality of teaching kids to be grade grubbers, "college begins
> in kindergarten", preparation H, and test score anxiety on the part of
> teachers and administrators (not to mention realtors and status conscious
> parents) on top of it all.  We have conscientious teachers and principals
> here in our schools, but I am afraid they are fighting a losing battle
> against the "more academics earlier" crowd and the inappropriate practices
> they are forcing on children.  The recent threads regarding testing
> kindergarteners is but another sad, cringe-inducing example of madness
being
> promulgated under the guise of concern for children.
>
>
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: prevez@PRODIGY.NET [SMTP:prevez@PRODIGY.NET]
> > Sent: Monday, March 19, 2001 11:01 AM
> > To:   ARN-L@listsrva.CUA.EDU
> > Subject:      Re: two cents about DAP
> >
> > Juanita, no one is accusing anyone of being a bad parent.  It is only
that
> > early childhood educators (especially those involved for 25 years) feel
as
> > rabid about coloring pages, etc. as those involved in the war against
> > standardized testing for schoolage children.
> >
> > In my years as an early childhood teacher, director, regulator and now
as
> > an
> > early childhood consultant, I have had to face the same battles as all
of
> > you (and me) against high stakes testing.  The road is difficult because
> > many parent's ideas of "schooling" come from the years of sitting behind
a
> > desk and not in a DAP early childhood classroom.  We hear "do not let my
> > child get dirty," "no finger-painting,", "why do you take them outside
all
> > day?" "make sure they finish everything on their plates," and various
and
> > sundry other practices that make us cringe like fingernails on the
> > standardized testing blackboard.
> >
> > Educating parents at the preschool level is where we can start to make a
> > difference with those who think that standardized testing is OK.  We
need
> > to
> > start with parents who think that it is good for children to read at
three
> > and to sing their ABC'S at two, and never get dirty and follow the
> > examples
> > for everyone's art work to look the same so that the parents will think
> > that
> > they did "real work" during their day at preschool...heaven for bid that
> > they would PLAY ALL DAY, GET DIRTY, AND BE CREATIVE!
> >
> > The average parent believes that their child comes to preschool as
> > "gifted"
> > and wants them to be reading and writing before they leave the early
> > childhood classroom.  They dress them in designer clothing and want them
> > to
> > stay clean.  They think about Harvard or Yale and college entrance
exams.
> > The role of the early childhood educator is to help these children "be
> > smart."  My promise to these parents was to tell them that I could help
> > these children to be "a little smart" or "a lot smart."  If these
parents
> > wanted "a lot smart" they would need to allow me to let their children
get
> > "a lot dirty"...for the parents who wanted their children to remain
clean,
> > I
> > could only promise "a little smart." LOL!!  Small children experience by
> > doing and not in receiving tacit approval by pleasing adults.  It is
> > unimportant for the young child to please adults by following the
> > structure
> > of an art project model or by being busy doing a coloring exercise from
a
> > coloring book.  What is important is that young children begin to do
what
> > they need to do to become whole, well rounded students for life...that
> > way,
> > they can over where we leave off in fending off high stakes standardized
> > test fanatics when we are all long gone, for they will raise their ugly
> > heads again....
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Juanita Doyon" <Jedoyon@AOL.COM>
> > To: <ARN-L@LISTS.CUA.EDU>
> > Sent: Monday, March 19, 2001 9:23 AM
> > Subject: Re: two cents about DAP
> >
> >
> > > Excuse me while I scream my, just-a-warped-parent-who-gave-her-
> > > 2-year-olds-color-books, lungs out!  THERE IS NO EVIL IN COLORING
PAGES!
> > > PARENTS UNDERSTAND COLORING PAGES!  WE ARE NOT GRADING THE COLORING
> > PAGES!
> > > They expose children to print and pictures at an early age.  Please
give
> > this
> > > dumb, but practical, parent a break!
> > > Juanita
> > >
> > > PS My kids and I were potty trained at one.  I am a bad mother!  Does
> > anyone
> > > know how to say, "I'm more than a test score," in Spanish?
> > >
> > >
>
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