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the project determined its direction. In contrast, Mary determined the activities that were
presented everyday which related to the project on animals.
All the participants viewed their projects as an opportunity for children to acquire
knowledge on their respective topics. The children in Layla’s class were able to identify
common weather patterns as well speculate upon cause and effect. In Felicia’s classroom,
the children were able to identify artistic elements and characteristics of the great masters
of the art world. When the children in Rose’s program arrived after attending school for a
full day, they encountered resources and activities that engaged their sense of wonder and
discovery about snakes. In Mary’s classroom, the children seemed to have an abundance
of knowledge related to the Lion King movie.
The topic of animals represents a very broad course of study. In contrast, Felicia
had asked the children to decide on a small number of great artists thereby reducing the
vastness of that topic. Her assumption was that the children would learn more if the topic
were specific. If a project only allows for a surface level of learning then the difference
between a topic and theme is almost inconsequential. It was only with the prolonged
efforts of Layla and her coworker that the children’s interest in weather was piqued and
their corresponding knowledge enhanced. The children were encouraged to explore,
discover, inquire, predict, and theorize. The topic of weather was not so much a content
organizer, but an opportunity to reveal children’s thinking processes.
Layla looked to the evidence of knowledge acquisition as the visual
representation of children’s learning. This she shared with parents whenever questions
about “what is my child learning” would come up. It was the documentation of the
children’s learning that supported Layla’s efforts with the parents. The classroom