June 15, 2022 / Blog
A road map for pre-K success: curriculum for 2-year-olds
A curriculum for 2-year-olds may sound intense or overwhelming – but its goal is to make teaching and learning easier, and fun!
Consider it a resource, like a road map or a menu for what each day should be like. It provides structure and guidance as it connects instruction thematically throughout the day in engaging and developmentally appropriate ways.
Typically, 2-year-olds are seeking a sense of identity and observing what makes them similar to and different from others. It’s important for instruction to foster learning through individual exploration, shared experiences and direct guidance to meet each child’s needs with support from a high-quality curriculum.
Why do we need a curriculum for 2-year-olds?
A child’s brain begins wiring the foundation for all learning at birth. In fact, by age three, the brain has 80 percent of the wiring needed for vision, emotional stability, language development, motor development, thinking skills and more.
Having a high-quality curriculum for 2-year-olds ensures children receive intentional instruction that develops foundational skills for lifelong learning success.
Curriculum for 2-year-olds:
- Uses early brain development research as the framework for instruction.
- Offers strong daily routines that develop key social and emotional skills.
- Balances intentional instruction with child-directed play.
- Values individual differences.
- Provides comprehensive, integrated, thematic activities in all domains.
- Encourages caregivers and child interactions.
- Provides materials and strategies for healthy parent partnerships.
- Offers professional development.
- Embraces the joy of learning!
Playtime = Learning!
Children learn through the experiences and interactions they have as they play. That learning is enhanced when they are actively engaged and having fun.
The curriculum uses thematic strategies to engage children and help them connect instruction to real life through teacher-guided play. A story about a blue bird in the morning can carry throughout the day. What else is blue that we see? Let’s all sing like birds! Where are good places to look for birds? Does anyone have a pet bird at home? Birds fly fast – what else flies in the air very fast? Birds’ feathers are soft and their beaks are hard! What would you do if you could fly like a bird?
Benefits of 2-year-old curriculum
A curriculum is extremely beneficial for successful instruction and learning. It removes guesswork for teachers and creates needed structure for everyone. Curriculum also supports an intentionality mindset for teachers to adhere to for children’s best learning development.
The brain is never more ready to learn than before the age of three. Using a curriculum feeds a child’s need for consistent and engaging learning experiences as they prepare for kindergarten and beyond. They learn the social dynamics of a classroom, how school routines work, and that instruction can be fun!
The journey to lifelong learning success
As an administrator building a program, a teacher providing instruction, or a caregiver searching for a high-quality learning experience for their 2-year-old, the core of a successful educational experience is in the curriculum. Early learning should be focused on the whole child – cognitive, physical, social and emotional, language and literacy – and most of all, fun! It’s a major step on the road to lifelong learning.
Looking for an ideal curriculum for 2-year-olds? Consider Frog Street’s Toddler Curriculum, which is designed around the latest scientific early brain development research that focuses on enhancing the simple joy of childhood while equipping caregivers to nurture curiosity through exploration.
