Goals and Outcomes

For my EDGE project I created four thematic units for a preschool curriculum. To achieve this goal, I first had to study and learn the Utah Early Childhood Core Standards. This are a list of standards that preschoolers and early kindergartners will be able to do or will know after being in their curriculum at school. After becoming more familiar with these standards, I used my experience working in a childcare and volunteering in multiple preschools throughout Cedar City to find activities that fit these core standards. I then formatted these ideas into a lesson plan template, so they are easily organized and accessible.

            I now have great building blocks to be able to teach four different weeks in a preschool classroom. To teach a full week I will need to expand upon what I have in my thematic units, but using all the activities I have in my units will ensure I teach a standard from each of the five categories each week.

            I also will now be able to show future employees these thematic units, and use this on my resume as a way to increase my chances of being hired in a preschool. Showing that I am trained in early childhood education, but also have experience planning and executing activities.

            An outcome that happened from this project I did not initially realize would happen is how much more my brain thinks like a preschool teacher now. I have a much easier time thinking of how to teach the standards in developmentally appropriate ways, and I find many ideas coming to me often now. A few months ago, I could not have said that about myself, I struggled knowing how to teach the standards. This outcome came as a result of reading the standards as often as I did, and it has also come from how many hours I have spent in preschool classrooms since my time started at SUU.

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Deliverables

Original proposed deliverable: At the end of my project I will have four thematic units, either hard copy or digital word documents of each of the activities. My thematic units will be in a unique format, specific to my units to show creativeness and that the activity pages have been done by me.

            The process of my creating my lesson plans was so internal in my mind. I constantly had my mind thinking of how I could teach the standards, and when I would need inspiration I would search the internet for blogs from either former or current teachers for ways they have taught the standards. All my classes at SUU have helped me train my mind to think like a preschool teacher, and volunteering in preschools helps so much as well. This is how I created my lesson plans.