Early Learning Project
Dr. Katz
Thanks for your interesting question about how to get a whole group of 20 children involved in a project.
First, much depends on the ages of the children. For the youngest preschoolers, 3-year-olds, it is unlikely that all of them would be equally interested in the same topic. Some teachers of 3-year-olds have several different project topics being investigated by perhaps three or four small groups in the class.
Keep in mind that the children's involvement with and enthusiasm for their work on the project has a great deal to do with the topic under investigation. Take full advantage of all possible opportunities to listen to the children as they play and work, because what they say and do can be a source of ideas about what might interest them. That way, you are more likely to identify a topic that they will respond to with enthusiasm.
When you are considering a topic, take time to note which of the children in the class show an interest in it. Then ask those who seem uninterested what they would like to explore or find out about. If they don't suggest any topics, offer them a short list of possibilities that you have prepared in advance. If some of the children still seem uninterested, then it might be best to just let them engage in their usual available activities for a while.
Teachers of older preschoolers report that some 4- and 5-year-old children might show less interest than their peers or might not become involved at all in the investigation. In that case, the teacher could matter-of-factly say something like, “I am sorry that this topic/project/etc., isn't one that interests you. I hope that the next project will be one that really does interest you. But, in the meantime, I suggest you go over there where X and Y are working and see if there are some ways you can help them.”
If a group of children who are engaged in a project make good progress, invite them to give their classmates a report of what they have been doing and to show them their work (e.g., drawings, constructions, etc.) and encourage them to solicit suggestions or questions from classmates who are not directly involved. In that way, others might get a clearer understanding of what an investigation can be like, and then become more positive about getting started on one themselves.
I am attaching a brief list of criteria for topic selection that might be of help. But I don't know your children as you do!
Criteria for Selecting Topics for Projects for Young Children
A topic is appropriate if…
- It deals with events or phenomena that are directly observable in the children’s own environments (real world).
- It deals with events or phenomena within many of the children’s experiences.
- Firsthand direct investigation is feasible and safe.
- Local resources (sites, experts) are readily available or accessible.
- The topic has good potential for representation in a variety of media (such as role play, construction of models, drawing and painting, collage, graphic organizers).
- Parental participation, involvement, and contributions are likely.
- It is sensitive to the local culture and is culturally appropriate.
- It is potentially interesting to many of the children, or it reflects an interest that adults consider worthy of developing in children.
- It is related to curriculum goals of the school, district, state or national standards, etc.
- It provides ample opportunity to apply some basic skills (appropriate to the ages of the children).
- It is optimally specific—not too narrow and not too broad (e.g., a study of the teacher’s own dog or “buttons” at one end, and the topic of “music” or “the seasons” at the other). However, the narrow topics could provoke good mini-projects, and the broad topics might be a source of good subtopics.
Resources
- Illinois Projects in Practice: Project Examples
http://illinoispip.org/examples.html - Projects that Strengthen Children’s Sense of Their Communities
http://illinoispip.org/blogs/katz/2009oct14.html - The Project Approach and the Early Learning Standards
http://illinoisearlylearning.org/chat/beneke2005/index.htm - Changing Classroom Practice to Include the Project Approach
http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v8n2/clark.html - Classroom as a Learning Environment
http://www.projectapproach.org/classroom-as-a-learning-environment-s18 - Project Approach Catalog
http://ceep.crc.uiuc.edu/eecearchive/books/project.html - Project Approach Catalog 2
http://ceep.crc.uiuc.edu/eecearchive/books/projcat2.html - Project Approach Catalog 3
http://ceep.crc.uiuc.edu/eecearchive/books/projcat3.html - Project Approach Catalog 4
http://ceep.crc.uiuc.edu/pubs/projcat4.html - Helm, Judy Harris, & Katz, Lilian G. (2001). Young investigators: The project approach in the early years. New York: Teachers College Press.
Abstract: The Project Approach allows in-depth investigation of a topic worth learning more about. Projects are undertaken by a child, a small group of children within a class, or sometimes by the whole class, as a research effort deliberately focused on finding answers to questions about a topic posed by the children, the teacher, or the teacher working with the children. This book illustrates how all children, even those considered at risk, may benefit from the exploratory and child-initiated nature of project investigations in order to achieve mastery of basic literacy skills.
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