Ashley Passfield and Mickaela Atkins
Heartland Community College Child Development Lab
Spring 2026
Beginning in February of 2026 our preschool class at the Heartland Community College Child Development Lab (CDL) in Normal, Illinois became interested in hockey. Within our lab school, we are one of two preschool classes.
This classroom was made up of 19 children ranging between the ages of three and five years old. Of those 19, four children had disabilities and an individual education program (IEP). The makeup of the class also consisted of children and families who use a home language in addition to English, including Spanish, German, Turkish, Ukrainian and Russian. Four of the 19 children attended half days, typically in the mornings, while the other 15 attended full days. The classroom was staffed by two lead teachers – Ashley Passfield and Mickaela Atkins, and one student teacher – Monique Robinson. The project went from mid-February through mid-May.
Phase 1: Beginning the Project
During the month of January, we were talking about the different sports associated with the Winter Olympics. To do this, we checked out library books and created different ways to play some of those sports within the classroom. Our community’s local hockey team, the Bloomington Bison, was also in the midst of their season. Some of the children and teachers attended the games.
We noticed that by looking at the books and talking about winter sports, hockey kept coming up in conversation. At this point, we decided to create a teacher web. While the teachers were working on that, the children were also tasked with coming up with a web of things they knew about hockey.
After creating the children’s web, we worked with the children on coming up with a list of things they wanted to know about hockey. The children dictated their questions, and a teacher wrote them on a piece of paper. This is a document that we revisited often to see if any of our activities had answered the questions or if they needed to be saved for our meeting with a hockey expert. Some of these questions were specific to our local hockey team, The Bloomington Bison. During our meeting with Bison experts, teachers planned to record answers given to the questions written. If additional questions surfaced, the teachers would add questions to the paper.
Phase 2: Developing the Project
Phase two included a variety of investigative activities that helped the children learn more about the Bloomington Bison and hockey in general. These activities included: conducting surveys, interviewing an expert, exploring hockey media, involving families, journaling and stenciling, learning through experimenting and games, wearing and creating hockey gear, and learning about foods that fuel hockey players.
Conducting Surveys
Our class decided to investigate what other people at the CDL knew about hockey. They came up with the questions, “Have you ever played hockey?” and “Have you ever been ice skating?”. Some children wrote the question own their own, while teachers wrote the question for others. Children then asked people the question and put a tally mark under the answer that corresponded with their response.
Interviewing an Expert
Due to lack of transportation, we were unable to conduct a field visit. However, we were able to have people from the Bloomington Bison come in and speak with the children. This included the broadcaster, who is also a former hockey player, along with the director of community relations. Prior to their visit, we sent them a list of questions the children had not only about the local team, but about hockey in general. This gave them time to look over them and make a plan of action for answering them.
While talking to the experts, we noticed a shift in the questions that children were asking. They turned from general questions to more specific questions, directed toward the game play and preparation. This gave us information for when we created our own gear and set out to play our own game.
Exploring Hockey Media
The children showed a preference for Bison media (videos, photos, experts) over other non-team related materials, such as our generic dress up hockey gear and pictures of other teams. One parent was very invested in Bison hockey and wrote a short story with the Bison players in it. The children were interested in it and favored it over other library books. Since we were unable to go to the arena, we showed the children a short clip of someone giving a tour of the locker room along with a breakdown of what the pyrotechnics team does.
Involving Families
During this process we encouraged families to talk daily to the children about what they had been learning. We also tasked them with helping their child create a hockey stick that would then be used during our culminating project. To avoid putting any constraints on families and children, we simply asked them to create a hockey stick, with no parameters around size or materials (given they were classroom safe). We told parents that if they were unable to do this, we would help them. We also encouraged families to join us during our visit with the experts along with attending our culminating project.
Journaling and Stenciling
One way children represented learning was through journaling. At different points throughout the project, children were able to draw what they had learned already or what they still wanted to know about hockey.
At the art center, we also provided children stencils of different hockey items (helmets, skates, sticks, mascots, players) that they could trace or use to create something else hockey related.
Learning Through Experiments and Games
We did many different science experiments using real and makeshift hockey pucks to see what would work if a puck was not available. We predicted what materials would work best and recorded results.
The children created miniature ice rinks on different surfaces such as large metal pans, small lunch trays, and even the floor.
We also created two math games.
- The first game involved player placement to learn how many players could be on the ice at one time.
- In the second game. children made estimations of how long their stick would be. Using a tape measure, they measured their stick and had to decide if their guess was correct, too long or too short.
Wearing and Creating Hockey Gear
A former child in our class now plays hockey, so we were able to obtain some child sized gear for students to wear. They were given skates, jerseys, helmets, chest pads, shoulder pads, and knee pads. These items remained available for exploration in our housekeeping center.
The creation of jerseys and helmets was another way the children showed they learned about gear that the players must wear. For helmets, children decorated a milk jug with whatever art supplies they could find in the classroom, including handmade decals they designed. Once they were dry, they cut the top or bottom off depending on how they wanted to wear it. Each child was also given a plain shirt and some fabric markers to create a jersey. We first created a design blueprint on paper and then tried to replicate the design onto our jersey. The sticks were the ones created at home as a family project.
Learning about Foods that Fuel Hockey Players
In talking about what types of food gives players fuel, the children came up with a fuel up snack to have before their game. We saw a picture in a video where the players had access to all types of Gatorade so the children thought that would be a good drink to have. Oranges and Veggie Straws were also provided.
Learning the Rules of the Game
This preschool class learned the setup of a hockey rink, how many positions are needed on the ice, and that only one goalie is needed per team (although the game in the culminating event was not played with goalies, as this is not recommended for scrimmages below age 6).
The children learned how to play in a way that is effective in the sport but mindful of keeping each other safe; during practices and game play they learned how to turn their hockey sticks in such a way to scoop the puck but not hit their friends, and how to get close to the puck but not push others. The children were able to get such a grip on this concept that the penalty box wasn’t even used during scrimmage!
Phase 3: Concluding the Project
Planning the Culminating Event
Our culminating event was holding a hockey game, completely planned and designed by the children. We discussed with the class that it was not possible to travel to an ice rink for our game, so we brainstormed about what space to use instead. We talked about where some wide-open spaces were on campus and decided on our open field in the back of our center, called The Prairie. We took a vote for our team’s name and chose the Lions. We voted on team colors and worked together to draw up a big team banner that was displayed during the game.
Students wore the helmets and jerseys designed in class, along with their homemade hockey sticks. As a group, the children decided who they wanted their rivals to be, and what other roles they wanted their teachers to play. They voted that they would like the rivals to be the other preschool class within our center, teachers were to be coaches and referees, and parents and families were to be the spectators and fans.
Upon choosing the other class to be our rivals, our class chose a student to accompany a teacher to verbally invite the other class to the game. After they accepted, we came up with rules for the game together. We wrote them on a white board as the children dictated them and then consolidate them on the same white board. The children then gathered with the other classroom during morning outside play and went over the rules of the game with the class. The children, with the help of the teachers, answered questions about the hockey game from the other class.
The children designed a playlist for warm up before the game and chose how to use the equipment we had to create a field hockey rink. We decided to use our outdoor benches for both team bench areas and for a penalty box on the other side of the rink. We used outdoor wooden building slats laid on the grass to create the boundary of the field. A large tub was used to store hockey gear. The children prepared some small bottles of Gatorade that were served during the half point of the game.
To create the full hockey game experience, teachers created a concession stand that was provided to the team at the end of the game. Teachers also created a poster showing the snack of the day and its price. The children were provided with play money to count out for the snack. They practiced words needed to place an order.
Sharing the Event
The class’s goal was to get as many fans and people to the hockey game as possible. To start, the teachers invited other classrooms, teachers, and staff to attend the hockey event as spectators. Teachers sent out a mass email as an invitation, along with an additional email the day before to remind attendees. Teachers also sent an email to parents, encouraging them to bring their family, siblings, and friends to the event. Some parents who work for the college even invited others out of their offices to join! The class also displayed the team poster for all to see so that everyone could be reminded of the upcoming game. Once the game had started, there was a mix of families, colleagues, fellow teachers, younger children, and even upper administration from the college in attendance.
Teacher Reflection
The length of the Hockey project surprised us, as typical project work in our preschool will last around four to eight weeks, but this project lasted from January to May. We realize this is not a typical project length, but the children were so invested in their learning that this project remained strong, making it a very great topic choice for our class.
Throughout this project, the children not only gained knowledge on how the game of hockey works; they also learned skills on how to safely cooperate with each other during high intensity play. The children were extremely receptive to learning the rules of the game and how to keep each other safe by giving each other space during play. They learned the approach of the game and all about the gear it takes to keep your body safe. They learned that the best way to score a goal is to work together, and no one player can win the game on their own. Among many other lessons of the project, children learned how to respect each other’s abilities, and how to cooperate with each other to make the game fun and enjoyable for everybody.
Through this project we learned if children are given the full creative power to put together a culminating project, they will absolutely deliver. What we found to be especially meaningful was the dedication to completion the children showed us. They were so eager to have a say in each of the details of game day, which gave them a great sense of ownership. They played safe and fair, and they won the game! We believe they not only found an appreciation for hockey, but an appreciation for what teamwork can do for all of us.
What was difficult for us was securing an expert for a hockey talk. We had a few paths we could take in order to secure an expert, but we really wanted to get a representative from the Bison, since this is the team the children cared for so much. While we couldn’t get a player to speak with us, we still got two experts who work for the team to come speak with the children, and they answered a lot of the children’s big questions.
There were a few children who benefitted especially from this project. One child who loved to engage in rough play but was still exploring the appropriate boundaries of this (especially within a school setting) was able to find an outlet for how he enjoys playing. Another child who typically engages in individual play and struggles to join large groups was able to remain in the game vicinity during game play, despite loud stimuli and an atypical environment to him. Children who were not able to create a stick at home also benefited, since some families created additional sticks for this need.
This project has been one of our most robust and successful with our current group of children. If we were to do this project again, we would love to find ways to involve more experts in the learning process, and also find a workaround to getting an on-site hockey experience. Since field trips aren’t always possible within our center, we would have enjoyed something like an informal trip outside of school hours. Perhaps the teachers would be available to meet families and children for an hour to have a small skate lesson and some free play involving child friendly hockey materials.