Posted by Chip on February 2, 2010
In my entries about children’s positive attributes, you can find details about the kinds of strengths children seem to display at different ages and stages of their development. No two children are the same, of course, and each will gravitate to different interests at the same ages because different things excite different children, energize them, [...]
Categories: Parent Questions and Concerns, Positive Attributes |
Tags: children's positive attributes, children's strengths, observing children, parent concerns, parent questions, Parent Questions and Concerns, Positive Attributes, Strength Awakening, The Affinities Program | 
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Posted by Chip on January 22, 2009
Teachers: As the second half of the school year gets underway, it’s a good time to take a look at that “developmental cluster” age of your class you may have explored in the fall. Those who read this blog regularly or have read my book Yardsticks will be familiar with developmental clusters. If not, you [...]
Categories: Developmental Needs, Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum, The School Year |
Tags: birthday cluster, developmental changes, Developmental Education, Developmental Needs, Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum, observing children | 4 Comments »
Posted by Chip on September 9, 2008
As a new feature ot the Yardsticks blog this year, I’ll be highlighting the developmental journeys of the same two young children once each month. My goal is to share some true-life examples of children’s passages through a single school year within the context of the developmental expectations you can read about in my book [...]
Categories: Developmental Needs, Diversity, The School Year |
Tags: observing children, The School Year | 4 Comments »
Posted by Chip on March 25, 2008
Here in New England we call it Mud Season or Sugaring Season, depending on how hard the sun is shining or the snow or rain is falling in mid-March. The other day, at the end of what looked like a long afternoon in one third grade class being led by a substitute (or what we [...]
Categories: The School Year |
Tags: Developmental Needs, observing children, The School Year, third grade, third graders | 1 Comment »
Posted by Chip on February 12, 2008
I had picked up and put down this book in one of the education sections of a chain bookstore several times over the last couple of years, but just couldn’t quite believe the endorsement by Lynne Cox on the front that reads, “There are books…that stay with you all your life—Elaine’s Circle will be one [...]
Categories: Books, Developmental Education |
Tags: develop, Elaine's Circle, inspirational books about teaching, Lynne Cox, observing children, Responsive Classroom approach, Robert Katz | 1 Comment »
Posted by Chip on January 17, 2008
Remember learning to play the piano or a specific move in gymnastics or dance, or keyboarding, or cooking?
How did you know you were getting better at what you were learning and who helped you see your developing abilities?
It’s important that children, as well as their parents and teachers, have some concrete awareness of their own [...]
Categories: Developmental Education, Developmental Needs |
Tags: developmental changes, Developmental Needs, observing children | Post a Comment »
Posted by Chip on January 10, 2008
A Welcome Back notice on our cyberspace newsletter and calendar alerts parents to a school-wide literacy activity that we hope will open discussions at the dinner table and in the car about a book everyone grades 3-5 in the school is reading:
Happy New Year!
A new reading activity for a new year:
This week we are beginning [...]
Categories: Books, Holidays and Traditions, Schoolwide Initiatives |
Tags: favorite children's books, Holidays and Traditions, observing children, read-alouds, reading with children, Schoolwide Initiatives | Post a Comment »
Posted by Chip on January 2, 2008
Our children’s emotional, social, physical and cognitive growth has as its ultimate goal mature independence for life. “Mature independence” is acquired in small steps over time, day by day, month by month, year by year.
Maria Montessori understood that such independence was attained by providing carefully constructed experiences for children under the watchful eye of teachers [...]
Categories: Developmental Education, Developmental Needs, Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum |
Tags: Developmental Education, developmental teaching, Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum, Maria Montessori, observing children | 3 Comments »
Posted by Chip on December 18, 2007
During the frantic holiday season let’s pause once in a while to watch the children in their moments of sheer joy beyond the moment of opening gifts or our viewing them through the lens of a digital camera.
We see the word JOY everywhere during the holidays. After all, it rhymes with …__ __ __, a [...]
Categories: Holidays and Traditions |
Tags: celebrating holidays with children, Holidays and Traditions, observing children | Post a Comment »
Posted by Chip on November 27, 2007
All of a sudden you notice that your happy and friendly five-year -ld is acting cranky and oppositional and is sometimes downright defiant. You, of course, are the same loving parent or teacher, but your patience is running thin. What to do?
It’s important to remember that children’s approaches to the world between the ages of [...]
Categories: Developmental Education, Developmental Needs |
Tags: developmental changes, developmental teaching, Managing Behavior, observing children, Yardsticks | 1 Comment »
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