We believe that young children learn through experience and participation. Likewise, assessment of young children should be play-based and observed in the natural flow of the day. As children play, create, discover and explore with Experience Curriculum, educators can record their learning and validate their observations by saving child work samples. Experience Curriculum kits provide everything you need to teach and assess skills through play.
Playful learning and intentional teaching.
Experience Curriculum uses an authentic assessment approach to observe and document a baby’s, toddler’s, or preschooler’s progress over time as they naturally play and participate in the daily routine. READ: How do I know my child’s learning level?
The Purpose of Assessment
The purpose of assessment is to inform the planning of meaningful and developmentally
appropriate learning experiences for children (Donovan, Bransford, & Pellegrino, 1999).
The Experience Curriculum assessment tools help record observations of individual children
and allow the process of their learning to be visible and easily shared with families. Our
assessment methods give both parents and teachers the information necessary to move
forward in helping each child reach individual goals as well as insights needed to inform
instruction and future planning.
The Experience Curriculum assessment model invites educators to:
- Observe through authentic strategies.
- Record child’s developmental progress over time.
- Make learning visible and inform planning.
- Use technology to organize and share documentation.
Observation and documentation help us answer these questions:
- What can the child do?
- Why isn’t the child participating? How can I help?
- What should I share with families about the child’s progress?
- Am I a good teacher? Is what I do helping the child? What could I do better?
- Is the room set up effectively? How could I improve it? What can the child do?
- What is the next step for the child’s learning?
Experience Curriculum offers a linked assessment system. This is means that assessment and curriculum planning are aligned. Experience Curriculum’s lesson plans clearly identify which skills are integrated within a given learning activity. As children participate in the activity, educators observe the child’s use of the identified skills and document their observations with anecdotes, work samples and progress monitoring reports.
Because the system can be used for children who developmentally function between birth and 8 years of age, it can be used in classrooms that serve children with a wide range of developmental goals and needs.
Experience Curriculum recognizes that each child is unique and develops at his or her own rate. A child may master certain skills quickly, while taking more time to master others.
Our curriculum uniquely provides lesson plan content and hands-on teaching materials with embedded assessment guidance for an optimal teacher and child experience!
REFERENCES
Donovan, M. S., Bransford, J. D., & Pellegrino, J. W. (Eds.). (1999). How people learn: Bridging research and practice. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.