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“There is a felt dilemma between the traditional approaches to skill-oriented teaching and the desire to foster play-based learning. On one hand, early childhood educators want to promote play-based experiences and open-ended, creative opportunities with loose parts and multiple entry points, because teachers know that children learn through play and hands-on exploration (Copple and Bredekamp, 2009). On the other hand, teachers are under increasing pressure from administrators and funders to teach academic content and discrete skills linked to assessments that measure children’s learning. Teachers feel caught in an either/or choice between play and skill-building, and they can become immobilized.” Lisa Porter Kuh and Iris Chin Ponte make this point in the opening of their new book, Complementary Curriculum Approach: Transform Your Practice Through Intentional Teaching, now available from Exchange Press.

Reframing the play-vs-skills dilemma, Porter Kuh and Chin Ponte offer four “intentional practices that teachers can use to structure the environment, design learning experiences, offer materials and establish routines in ways that create settled classrooms. A settled classroom is one where children are free to choose materials and experiences that interest and delight them, have the time and space to concentrate on meaningful, interesting activities, and work and play joyfully as part of a community of learners. The adults in a settled classroom are equally delighted as they thoughtfully guide children in their pursuits, following children’s interests to deepen learning.”

Porter Kuh and Chin Ponte ground their exploration of these four intentional practices with a refreshing reprise of their theoretical inspirations: John Dewey, Maria Montessori, Lev Vygotsky and Loris Malaguzzi, acknowledging, “A common thread linking all these theorists is respect for the child’s intellect and a commitment to every child’s right to rich experiences. This is at the heart of the Complementary Curriculum Approach.”

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