Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood integrates nature-based exploration, art, literature, math, music and movement, and outdoor play into early childhood education programs. It allows children to explore, discover, and communicate in expressive ways. The PLT Early Childhood program has three major components:
1) Professional environmental education development for Early Childhood Professionals
2) The PLT Early Childhood Activity Guide for Early Childhood providers
3) A PLT Music and Movement CD that supplements the Early Childhood Activity Guide.
Project Learning Tree's Early Childhood
Experiences Helps Children:
- Go Outside Often
- Involve the Use of all Senses
- Begin with Simple Experiences
- Let Children Use their Imagination
- Provide Choices Whenever Possible
- Emphasize the Experience – Not the facts
- Integrate Music and Movement, Art, and Literature
- Keep Children Actively Involved – They learn from play
- Engage Parents to Continue Learning Activities at Home
e exploring nature is a complete sensory experience, early experiences with the natural world excite children’s imaginations and foster their inborn sense of wonder and curiosity, and are important motivators for lifelong learning. The introduction of environmental education at the early childhood level reaches children at a key developmental period in their lives and has the potential for influencing lifelong attitudes, values, and patterns of behavior toward the natural world.
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According to an article published in Education Week (Published Online: January 13, 2010), the National Research Council recently issued influential recommendations for improving K-8 science education, it included recommendations for introducing scientific study with children as young as 4, stating that decades of research in cognitive science and developmental psychology has discounted the commonly held view that young children are concrete and simplistic thinkers.
A study by University of Miami researcher Daryl B. Greenfield found that science is one of the areas in which children show the least learning growth during their preschool years. And while there is worry that a growing emphasis on academics is crowding out the playtime that children need for healthy development, efforts to expand preschool science teaching need not necessarily be a conflict as science can be taught in the context of play.
Researchers say introducing science in preschool also go hand in hand with the growing emphasis on developing children’s language skills. According to Nancy Clark-Chiarelli, a principal research scientist at the Education Development Center, in order to have good discussions, you have to have something to talk about.
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