Building Independent Learners Through the HighScope Curriculum
“Children learn best when they are active participants in their own learning.”
At Children’s Day Preschool & Family Center, we want our children to become confident, curious, and independent learners. One of the ways we support that growth is through the HighScope Curriculum.
HighScope gives children opportunities to make choices, explore their interests, solve problems, and learn through hands-on experiences. In our classrooms, children are active participants in their learning, while teachers are there to guide, encourage, and support them along the way.
Learning Through Choice
Young children learn so much when they are given the opportunity to make decisions for themselves.
Throughout the day, children choose materials, decide where they would like to play, work with classmates, and explore activities that interest them. These everyday choices help children build confidence and begin to understand that their ideas matter.
Our teachers carefully observe children and use their interests to help extend learning in meaningful ways.
Plan, Do, Review
An important part of HighScope is the Plan-Do-Review® process.
Children first think about what they would like to do. They then have time to carry out their plan through play and exploration. Later, they have an opportunity to talk about what they did and what they discovered.
For a young child, this process builds many important skills. They are learning how to make decisions, follow through with an idea, communicate, remember experiences, and reflect on their learning.
There Is Learning in Play
When you walk into one of our classrooms, you may see children building with blocks, painting, pretending to run a store, looking at books, counting objects, or working together on a project.
It may look like play—and it is—but there is also a great deal of learning happening.
Children are developing language, math, social skills, creativity, problem-solving abilities, and independence through these experiences.
Our teachers help children make connections, introduce new ideas, and encourage them to think a little deeper while still allowing children to take the lead.
Building Independence Every Day
Independence is something we work on throughout the entire day.
Children are encouraged to put away materials, participate in routines, communicate what they need, try new things, and work through small challenges.
Of course, our teachers are always nearby to help when needed, but we also want children to have the opportunity to try things for themselves.
Those small moments—putting on a coat, cleaning up a center, choosing an activity, or solving a disagreement with a friend—help children develop confidence in their own abilities.
Meeting Children Where They Are
No two children develop exactly the same way, and that is something we value.
Our teachers observe children throughout the day to better understand their strengths, interests, and areas where they may need additional support. Those observations help us plan experiences that are meaningful and appropriate for each child.
We want every child to feel successful while also being gently challenged to continue growing.
Preparing Children for What Comes Next
Preparing children for kindergarten is about much more than knowing letters and numbers.
Children also need to know how to ask for help, work with others, solve problems, follow routines, express their ideas, and keep trying when something feels difficult.
Through the HighScope Curriculum, we are helping children develop those skills every day.
At CDP, we want children to leave our classrooms knowing that they are capable learners. When children are given opportunities to make choices, explore, and take ownership of their learning, they begin to develop the confidence they will carry with them into kindergarten and beyond.