Stress the importance of reading aloud to children with an early childhood literacy workshop for preschool teachers. Review the professional literature and research that emphasizes the importance of reading aloud to children. Ask workshop participants to share their tips and strategies for reading activities in their classroom and brainstorm more ideas, including ideas for involving parents in the classroom-reading program. Talk about how to encourage parents to expand the program to their own homes. Work together to create lists of suggested reading materials that the workshop participants have found successful in their classrooms and review lists of suggested books for preschoolers.
Chart a graph showing which gross motor activities teachers can expect preschool children to do at each age level. At which age can preschoolers stand on one foot? Jump on two feet? Jump on alternating feet? Which gross motor developmental milestones occur at ages two, three, four and five? Work with the preschool staff to list different activities that preschool teachers can do with their students at each age level, according to the children's developmental abilities.
Review the sensory-motor, fine motor and cognitive stages of development of each age level of preschoolers. Discuss these preschool developmental milestones and their implications for teachers. For instance, a preschool teacher of three-year-olds would include small manipulative blocks, measuring only an inch or two in diameter, in the classroom. However, a teacher of four-year-olds would start out the year with blocks of at least two inches or more in diameter, since four-year-olds can manipulate larger or more intricate objects. Similarly, children under the age of two will find it difficult to work with clay, as they do not yet have the coordination to shape it. However, by age two, most children can create shapes with clay. Each teacher should consider the age-level that he works with and how to include age-appropriate toys and materials in his classroom. Teachers should share their decisions with the entire group of workshop participants.
Work together to plan out the physical layout of a preschool classroom. Preschool classrooms should have a structure that allows children the freedom to explore and discover while engaging in activities tailored to their developmental level. A staff activity may include creating a sketch of a preschool classroom. Map out the classroom so that learning centers whose activities overlap, such as the "housekeeping corner" and the "block corner" sit near each other; for example, children playing in the block area may build furniture for the dolls. A preschool teacher should set up an art center in close proximity to a sink so that the children can quickly wash up after a messy project. Place the library center in a far corner, providing a quieter area for children who want to look at books.