High Scope

[purpled]

I have worked in daycare/preschool for almost 5 years. At my new job they subscribe to the theory of High Scope. The head teacher wants more descriptive lesson plans but at the same time doesn't want you telling the children what to make.
I can make my lesson plans more descriptive but then she says we can't tell them they are making flowers (last weeks theme was flowers), but I feel that if I just write a list of materials that we may use to make projects on their own then that is less descriptive than the lesson plans I have already been writing in which she wants more description.

For example : I had the children make windsocks by cutting out strips and glueing them onto a piece of construction paper (They picked color as well as how to decorate (using stencils, tissue paper, cut up paper, stickers etc.). Some children didn't want any strips others cut out enough to go around the whole paper. But since they were several windsocks even though they were all different they still must have been given the suggestion to make windsocks.

Another project we made were Chicka Chicka boom boom Trees. We read the story and then using green/brown paint the children painted trees and some did coconuts. Then the next day after they were dry I let the children either write letters or cut/glue letters out of magazines. The head teacher liked this project but didn't feel it was high scope as someone must have suggested doing trees as there were about 15 pictures up on the board.

Any suggestions on how to make lesson plans more detailed but yet not having a concrete thing that the children are making would be helpful. The age group that I am working with is 4 yr olds with some early 5 yr olds.

[Linda/NE]

This wouldn't happen to be a Head Start center would it? It sounds a lot like when I worked with Head Start. My student teaching we did high scope--that was quite a while ago though.

That sounds difficult to plan to have children make something if you can't tell them what they're doing. When I was at Head Start we couldn't have any bulletin boards (not even border!) that wasn't child created because supposedly this would make the children feel their creations were inferior. We also couldn't trace shapes for children to practice cutting skills --children had to draw the shapes themselves to cut them out. It seemed to me that the purpose for the activity was not being understood by the coordinators.

This sounds like a tough situation. Do you read a story that relates to your project? Could you possibly be able to talk with the kids about items (flowers) in the story and then say--"this book makes me want to make some pretty pictures like I see in this book. Shall we all make some pictures?" and just hope they decide to do flowers?

I personally feel it's okay for all children to make flowers(since that was the intended activity) I think the problem occurs when it becomes a craft activity where they all basically look alike and are done step by step.

Hope someone is able to give you some better suggestions.