1801 East
Main Street, Waynesboro PA 17268
Telephone 717-762-9711, FAX 717-762-5088
Mind in the Making
The science of early learning
Mind in the Making, developed by the Families and Work Institute, and supported by the PA Department of Public Welfare, is a collaborative effort to communicate the science of early learning to families, teachers, and the general public. Initially, Pennsylvania was one of only six states chosen to pilot the Mind in the Making series.
Through an application process, Waynesboro Day Care Center was one of 70 facilities chosen to participate in this professional development model. WDCC teachers and staff are using the early learning principles in this program to plan children's learning, and make changes in their own teaching, by applying the early learning principles. Our teachers improve when they are more engaged as learners, are more mindful of their own practice in promoting children's learning, and understand and use the best child development knowledge.
Basic early learning principles of the program
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Children are active learners and the more involved they are in
their own learning, the better they learn. Children’s powerful drive to learn is based on
their need to make sense of the world and
understand their own experiences. Some researchers have compared children’s
learning to that of scientists. Children try
to figure out what is happening to them and what effect they have on others by
testing their ideas and theories, discarding those that don’t fit their
experience and building on those that do.
Children learn through their important relationships (social learning).
They learn when they feel good and are engaged and motivated in what they are learning (emotional learning).
They learn when they are making sense of their world (intellectual learning).
One type of learning (such as learning numbers, letters or the like) is not more important than another, since for children to learn—social, emotional and intellectual learning all go together.
Childhood is a journey, not a race
The public has been told to read,
sing and talk to their children, making every moment a teaching moment.
While reading, talking and singing to children are truly important, how these
activities happen are what’s most important. Adults
who bombard children with factual information every moment—like colors or numbers or
letters, or who feel that they must entertain children non-stop,
are likely to over-stimulate and turn children away from learning, just as much
as if they criticize or ignore children’s engagement in learning.
Learning should help your child understand his or her experiences, not fill
their heads with facts through "drill and kill." Children
remember more when they are actively involved in what they are learning in a
hands-on way.
Children, like adults, need quiet, "just hang out" times, and active times to explore, reflect, imagine, and learn. We know that we can't be connected all the time. Learning for young children should focus on the here and now--as a way or interacting with the world, not just on what learning can do for children in the future.
Learning should include joy, it should be fun. If learning is engaging and fun, children will be motivated to keep learning in the same way that we learn best when the learning is motivating and meaningful. This does not mean that children should not face challenges. That's what learning is all about. The important message is to encourage a child's natural drive to overcome challenges.
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You can't stop a young child from learning to talk or
walk. Nor can you keep a young child from observing what happens when she
or he throws something on the floor or plays peek-a-boo and hide-and-seek to
understand when things disappear and reappear. Children are born engaged
in learning. And adults can either keep this engagement in learning alive
or shut it down.
Children are most likely to learn:
When they are
interested and actively engaged.
When they are connected to the significant adults in their
lives.
When the adult follows the child's lead, extending,
elaborating, and building upon what the child is working on.
The best ways for adults to promote early learning are to:
Connect -- relationships are the "engine of development." This connection needs to be authentic. We need to connect with children as the people we are, as their family members or caregivers, not in the "role" of super teacher. Relationships give a child confidence to go out and explore the world.
Watch and listen -- understanding what children are trying to understand, figure out, and do is essential to promoting their learning. See the world through their eyes and notice what they are curious about and are trying to learn and do.
Extend -- furthering children's inquiries and building on their interests are the keys to maintaining their engagement in learning. We all learn more when we are learning something that we care about.
We encourage the use of these early learning principles in the home.
Photographs on this page are typical.
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