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uniqueness and “it does not empower children to become part of the planning process”
(Crowther, 2003, p. 40).
Thematic units are a way to organize learning around a key concept or idea that
should be relevant and interesting to children. Thematic units can enable children to link
their learning from different subject areas, generalize knowledge and skills from one
experience to another, and connect what they are learning to real life (Caine & Caine,
1997; Kostelnik, Soderman, & Whiren, 1999). According to Jalongo and Isenberg (2000)
the difference between projects and themes is not so profound especially when
considering the thematic approach supports that “curriculum allows for focus on a
particular topic or content while allowing for integration across traditional subject-matter
divisions by planning around themes and/or learning experiences that provide
opportunities for rich conceptual development” (Bredekamp & Rosegrant, 1992, p. 16).
The common issues and concerns about teaching children using themes involve
planning themes in advance and choosing themes with questionable meaningfulness.
Often teachers use seasons and holidays as the guide to curriculum planning with themes.
Holiday themes run the risk of being little more than a convenient backdrop for
classroom decorations and craft displays. Young children usually come away from such
experiences without having expanded their concepts or increased their skills across the
curriculum (Jalongo & Isenberg, 2000). It is suggested that the key to early childhood
education curriculum should be an emphasis on “meaning making.” A meaningful
curriculum is relevant to children (Wortham, 1992). When themes are chosen without
consideration of children’s interests and development they run the risk of being
meaningless. Children need to be involved in the process and there needs to be