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Using a Theme-Based Curriculum for Planning Daily Activities |
Themes can provide a framework for planning daily activities in the preschool classroom for all children. Although daily activities may cater to the population of children in your preschool setting, keep in mind that all children have the right to be exposed to new ideas and concepts, like to play and be silly, and perform better when they know what to expect (through the use of an established routine!).
Using a theme-based curriculum allows the teacher to:
1) plan fun and creative activities
2) target specific goals and objectives for children with special needs in an organized and systematic manner.
In addition, it provides therapists with an opportunity to easily integrate individual goals of a child into meaningful activities that reinforce concepts taught in the classroom and can be generalized to the classroom. Thematic units vary as widely as teaching styles; some popular topics include: seasons, holidays, shapes, colors, foods, animals, bears, cultural celebrations, fairy tales, books, manners, healthy habits, and transportation, to name a few. Thematic units permit children to develop skills and gain new information about a particular topic in a fun and developmentally-appropriate manner. Different themes are typically chosen for each week or month, depending on the teacher’s preference.
Here are two examples of how to incorporate a theme into the daily activities of a preschool classroom with adaptations for children with low incidence disabilities. These activities would be appropriate for any of the low incidence populations (D/HOH, VI, MH, AUT) but some activities, as listed, are more ideal than others for particular populations.
| Activity | Theme 1: Bears | Appropriate Population | Theme 2: Sunflowers | Appropriate Population |
| Science | Have a "tasting party" of bear foods (i.e., honey, nuts, raw vegetables, porridge) | HOH | Have the children plant sunflower seeds in a plastic cup. A book can be made to chronicle the phases the sunflowers goes through (i.e., seed, seedling, plant, blooming flower) | Child Mental Health |
| Music/Movement | Pack an old suitcase with items needed on a bear hunt, and act out "Going on a Bear Hunt." | Autism | Have the children get down on the floor in a ball with their hands down, and then slowly move to a kneeling position and then stand tall and have sunflower faces that they can put on their heads. This could be done to a rhyme about sunflower seeds turning into beautiful sunflowers. | HOH - provide pictures to demonstrate each step |
| Art | Glue cotton balls to outlines of bears to make them furry. | Visual Impairment | Make a sunflower face using carpet scraps for the brown part of the sunflower and silky material to simulate the petals. These can be glued onto a sunflower outline if the children need a guide. | Visual Impairment |
| Outdoor Activity | Play "Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, Turn Around" with the children waving a parachute up and down from all sides. | Child Mental Health | Visit a local farm that has a variety of sunflowers in bloom. If not available in your area, you could coordinate with a local florist or greenhouse to provide an opportunity for the children to see various types of sunflowers. | Autism |
There are several great resources that are useful guides in creating theme-based units. These resources can be found in your local bookstore in the children’ section. Here are a few places to start:
Feldman, J. R. (1991). A Survival Guide for the Preschool Teacher. West Nyack, NY: The Center for Applied Research in Education.
Peterson, E.A. (1995). Practical Guide to Early Childhood Planning, Methods and Materials: The What, Why and How of Lesson Plans.
Warren, J., Shimono, J. (1991). In G. Bittinger (Ed.) Toddler Theme-a-Saurus: The Great Big Book of Toddler Teaching Themes.
Warren, J. In G. Bittinger (Ed.) Theme-a-Saurus II: The Great Big Book of More Mini Teaching Themes.