Increasing the Power of Instruction: Integration of Language, Literacy, and Math Across the Preschool Day

by Judith A. Schickedanz

Overview

A day in a preschool classroom can be hectic, and with so many learning goals to be met, it’s no surprise that teachers sometimes wonder how they will get it all done. This accessible book by Judith Schickedanz shows teachers how to maximize the scope and power of their instruction through integration—across content domains and across learning contexts. With a focus on language, literacy, and mathematics, Schickedanz introduces strategies that will bolster instruction in all subjects. Engaging vignettes demonstrate effective integration throughout the schedule, including during story time, center time, and large and small group sessions. She writes that integration can "help us better manage our time and make instruction more powerful—and learning more meaningful—for children." This wonderful book shows you how to do just that.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781928896517
Publisher:	National Association for the Education of Young Children
Publication date:	04/14/2008
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	120
Product dimensions:	8.38(w) x 10.88(h) x (d)

About the Author

Judith A. Schickedanz is Professor of Education at Boston University. She has been a preschool teacher and has worked closely with practicing preschool teachers throughout her career. Currently, she is a member of the Early Literacy Committee within the International Reading Association and is coeditor of the Asia-Pacific Journal of Research in Early Childhood Education. Among her publications are Writing in Preschool, with Renée M. Casbergue (International Reading Association, 2004); Much More Than the ABCs (NAEYC, 1999); and Curriculum in Early Childhood (Allyn & Bacon, 1997). She received her doctorate in early childhood education from the University of Illinois.

Read an Excerpt

A day in an early childhood classroom can be hectic. There is so much that we could choose to do, so many skills and concepts on which to work. How can a teacher do it all? Over the past few years, I have heard many preschool teachers’ concerns that teaching and learning have become too fragmented by subject curriculum areas and devoid of meaningful context. There are hardly enough hours in a day to teach everything we are asked to teach. This is especially true when the instruction for one time period addresses only one content domain. If done well, however, increasing the integration of learning within multiple content domains and various instructional contexts can help us better manage our time and make our instruction more powerful—and learning more meaningful—for children.

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Part I. Integration Across Content Domains
• Chapter 1. Integrating Learning Across the Domains Through Story Reading
• Chapter 2. Reading Inch by Inch: Effective Integration in Action
• Chapter 3. Strategies to Enhance Learning During and After Story Time
• Chapter 4. Using Predictable-Text Books with an Explicit Math Focus
• Part II. Integration Across Learning Contexts
• Chapter 5. Integration in Whole Group/Circle Time
• Chapter 6. Integration in Teacher-Organized Small Group Time
• Chapter 7. Integration in Center Time
• Concluding Thoughts
• Appendices
• A. Math-Related Children’s Books
• B. Mathematics Expectations for Prekindergarten Through Second Grade
• C. Learning Paths and Teaching Strategies in Early Mathematics
• References

Editorial Reviews

"An outstanding resource for early childhood educators! Judith Schickedanz addresses an important and complex instructional challenge in ways that are highly accessible, for inexperienced and longtime teachers alike. Filled with vivid examples of highly effective teaching, this book is an excellent tool for professional development."

—Dorothy Strickland, professor, Rutgers University
Author, Literacy Leadership in Early Childhood

"This book is full of useful examples of how to effectively integrate mathematics with language and literacy—such as how repeated readings of the same story can allow you to introduce mathematical concepts at increasingly sophisticated levels. A helpful book for teachers!"

—Beth Casey, professor emerita, Boston College
Creator and author, ’Round the Rug Math series

"Teachers can pick up this book and discover plenty of wonderful ideas for classroom activities, but it’s the strategies modeled and explained—such as methods for integrating mathematics learning into a story reading while ensuring children’s comprehension of the plot—that make this book such a valuable resource."

—Annemarie Blaney, teacher, Boston Early Learning Centers

From the Publisher