The first learning expectation is: Discriminates likenesses and differences in black and white shapes, figures, and designs with subtle differences in detail or orientation. The performance indicator for this one is: Selects the figure(s) or design(s) that differ based on fine, internal difference or orientation. Some four year olds conquer this one and some have great difficulty with this one. Four year olds that have had practice with this concept as three year olds usually conquer this one easily. Four year olds that have never been exposed to this concept will sometimes really struggle especially if he/she has a right brain dominance. This is a left brain activity and left brain dominate children will have an easier time with this than right brain dominant children. However, even children that have a left brain tendency but have never been exposed to paying attention to detail may still require direct instruction before understanding this concept.
The next learning expectation for the component Visual Discrimination is: Discriminates likenesses and differences in symbols. The performance indicator for this one is: Correctly sorts letters and numerals and can find words that match; names a few letters and numerals. Most four year olds can sort letters and numerals except for the really confusing ones like "b" "d" and "p" by the time they are five years old. However, as a preschool teacher I believe it to be of much more importance whether or not they can name the letters and numerals rather than matching words that they may not even be able to read. Remember, I am in the phonics camp not the whole language camp. I believe being able to decode words is of much more importance than being able to recognize a word by sight. We have a phonics based language. It is crazy to me that we would try to teach our language by sight like one would learn Chinese (which is not phonics based) rather than decoding it. Many school systems are now switching to a more phonics based approach to reading. Therefore, we as preschool teachers should spend more time on learning the names and sounds of letters than on the "popcorn word" method of the past. Believe me, by the time they are third graders, phonics learners can read circles around the their whole language counterparts. Make sure these children visually discriminate and know the name of the letters and numbers.
The next component is: Visual Whole-Part-Whole Relationships. The learning expectation for this one is: Further develops awareness of relationships of parts and wholes using more abstract figures. The first performance indicator for this one is: Completes puzzles of 8-20 pieces. Five years ago more children conquered this particular indicator, but I have seen with every passing year a drop in the amount of four year olds that cannot even conquer a simple puzzle much less a more complex puzzle. Puzzles take time and patience both of which is lacking severely in our present culture in adults not to mention children. A great deal of the emotional situations we are experiencing in greater amounts contribute to the decline in some of these cognitive development milestones. Ask any kindergarten teacher and he/she will tell you that it takes a good month or two to pull up the emotional maturity of the children coming through the doors before they can even begin to conquer academic concepts. As a preschool teacher I had to spend 3/4 of my time on emotional development in order to be able to teach the basics of academic content. I had to directly teach children to do puzzles and most of that involved learning to keep going even when it was hard. It is not that the children do not necessarily have the cognitive ability to figure out puzzles. They simply do not have the emotional maturity to stay after a task they find difficult. Puzzles may bring hissy fits but a smart teacher understands that staying after this one kills two birds with one stone.
The second performance indicator for this component is: Reproduces a 2-dimensional design with parts that vary by color and shape; constructs representations of objects from parts, with no model. This one is not conquered by most kindergarteners much less four year olds. Many, many children struggle horribly with abstract concepts especially when dealing with recreating without modeling. I have found that children that are not exposed to academic content at three years old will not conquer abstract concepts until they are five or six years old. A foundation must be laid for their brains to assimilate information in this way. If they do not get the foundation at three, it must be laid at four. If they do not get the foundation at four, it must be laid at five. This is why many children arrive at kindergarten not ready for academic content.
The last component for this post is: Visual Sequencing (Patterning). The learning expectation is: Uses left-to-right and top-to-bottom scanning; observes and reproduces a pattern with 3-dimensional objects by using a 2-dimensional paper model. The performance indicator for this one is: Reproduces simple color, size, and shape patterns from a paper model. I have had four year olds that conquered this one but not many. Many, many children today struggle with patterns. I have found this to be one of those areas I have had to teach directly, and it usually takes the children 3-6 months to conquer the concept. They must first be able to replicate a pattern using 3-dimensional objects before you can expect them to use a model to replicate a pattern. I will start with connecting blocks and do simple 2 color patterns until they understand what makes a pattern. Then I will move on to more elaborate patterns using 3-dimensional manipulatives. Once I see that they fully understand the concept, then I will move on to paper models and 3-dimensional materials.
I hope you have enjoyed this post. Goodbye and God bless!! https://linktr.ee/natawade
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