Room 4

    Ms. Linares                          Ms. Hoppe

  313-593-5424                            313-593-5424

The classroom follows the educational philosophy of the Reggio Emilia approach.  The curriculum focuses on child-centered, long-term investigations that follow developmentally appropriate practice and engage both the children and the adult teachers.  These investigations are cross-curricular in scope, and facilitate the development of math, language, literacy, art, science, and social skills. 

Each day contains opportunities for both large and small group activities.  Group activities include songs, reading stories, discussing the progress of long-term projects, and raising questions.  Small group activities occur primarily during constructive play exploration time, where children are invited to explore materials, engage in activities based on their interests, and continue their investigations.  Teachers are intentional in planning these activities and materials to extend learning over the course of time. 

Children are encouraged to engage with both children and adults within their environment, as teachers work to create a collaborative environment where all can interact in a warm and caring way.  Learn more about the Reggio Emilia philosophy.

Overview of the Daily Schedule

Free Play Activities

This is a portion of the day where children choose what and where they would like to play. Self-Initiated play usually occurs during drop-off and pick-up times.

Large group/Whole Group Meeting

Large group time is the portion of the day where we meet as a whole class and plan for the day. It is during this time that teachers may introduce a new concept, read and discuss a book, reflect on a previous experience or lead the children in a group game. Our group time has a fairly consistent routine. We begin with a few songs, complete the large group activity that the teacher or intern has planned and introduce the center activities for the day. 

Learning Group Exploration Time

These are experiences planned by the teacher or the intern based on interests and thoughts of the children. They may include content area curriculum, such as literacy or math and often involve problem solving, critical thinking, observation skills and language. Some activities that you might see in the classroom are:

• Material explorations
• Exploring science materials
• Painting using a variety of media & materials 
• Retelling familiar stories with props
• Observation and documentation of natural

 materials and phenomena  

• Sorting and grouping objects 
• Exploring 
• light/ shadows 
• Block building 
• Dramatic Play
• Symbolic representation by building, drawing, use of clay, etc