Extending children's ideas: Concept webs and early childhood curriculum

Abstract

The children in a preschool class are exploring the topic of houses. They have drawn houses, refurbished a dog house, and visited construction sites. The carpentry center has provided opportunities for their own building and the resulting structures become part of a village drawn on a shower curtain--an experience in mapping. This experience with threedimensional mapping is extended as children build two-dimensional towns on the computer. Now they are designing an ant farm Wait a minute! Are they exploring houses or earth? Earth becomes adobe, and suddenly they're back doing construction work. This time the house topic results in a life-size hogan built by the children from cardboard. A Navajo teacher brings her infant. Now they're exploring the concept of babies! These activities have occurred, one or two or three a week, with groups of children over the course of seven months. The possibilities and connections inherent in the series of related webs this teacher uses could last for