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objects created by adults removed opportunities for children to be actively engaged in
their own learning. When children act on objects and are encouraged to think, theorize,
and problem solve they are building knowledge. Worksheets remove the opportunity for
children to make decisions. When worksheets are corrected by the teacher, the children
learn that the teacher is the only one who determines which answers are right.
In my practice, I was modeling a curriculum prescribed by others. I was voiceless
within my own classroom. I now understand why the Reggio educators prefer the label of
“approach” rather than model. A theme is a content organizer that can exist within the
conceptual framework of a particular curriculum model. An approach exemplifies a
process involving a dynamic exchange between teaching and learning. Models operate
from predictable representations of teaching and learning. They rely on fixed
interpretations of children and teachers. Models have been created and codified to be
replicable curricula in any setting (Goffin & Wilson, 2001). An approach cannot present
a predetermined curriculum, it must emerge.
Theory-building.
It is very difficult to abandon the script that represents the practice of the past. It
is even more complex to see a future where the teacher is the creator of the theories of
teaching and learning which evolve from practice. As the creator of theories, the early
childhood educator goes well beyond a custodial function. It is thus hard to speculate
about why so many are still tied so closely to a predetermined curriculum represented by
the theme of the week. I have tried to build my own theories that explain the reasons why
teachers remain so closely attached to predetermined curriculum.