My name is Tammy and
until recently I taught at an urban elementary school. I am now teaching at a
private college in the education department. I teach early childhood curriculum
and instruction and methods courses. It is very exciting to work with
pre-service teachers. I knew one day I would work on the college level. After years
of teaching at the elementary level and working with such inspirational teachers,
my hope was to bring our collective knowledge and expertise to future teachers.
As a 2nd grade
teacher I always had high academic expectations for my students. Although I
ensured that my teaching was developmentally appropriate, I encouraged my
students to think critically. I focused on essential questions that focused
beyond the knowledge level and focused on the evaluative and analysis level of
Blooms. Now, I have the same expectations for my pre-service teachers. In
teaching them to think critically, they will in turn teach their students.
I am now interested in
fostering critical thinking through play in early childhood. What are your
thoughts about this concept? Do you think it is possible to develop critical
thinking skills while playing?
“It is possible to store
the mind with a million facts and still be entirely uneducated” - Alec Bourne
