Developing Constructivist Early Childhood Curriculum

This timely volume provides a constructivist interpretation of developmentally appropriate curriculum in early childhood education. Rheta DeVries, one of the founders of constructivist early education, and her colleagues provide the theoretical rationale and practical advice for conducting specific activities in the classroom. Descriptive vignettes are used to show how children’s reasoning and teacher interventions are transformed in the course of extended experience with a physical phenomenon or group game. Throughout the book, constructivist teaching is illustrated and contrasted with the approaches found in three other classroom types.

Rheta DeVries is a developmental psychologist, Professor of Curriculum and Instruction, and Director of the Regents’ Center for Early Developmental Education. Betty Zan is Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction. Carolyn Hildebrandt is Associate Professor of Psychology. Rebecca Edmiaston is Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction. Christina Sales is a Research Associate. All are at the University of Northern Iowa and the Regents' Center for Early Developmental Education.

"This is a practical and theoretically strong book. Going beyond the generalities of 'developmentally appropriate practice,' it focuses especially on the teacher's role and gives excellent principles of teaching about specific activities over time."
—Constance Kamii, University of Alabama at Birmingham

"The authors have done an excellent job of clarifying the constructivist approach to curriculum and instruction as compared to traditional approaches and to the conventional approach to developmentally appropriate practice. Rich with examples of constructivist teaching and learning, this is a unique and valuable contribution to the field of early childhood education."
—Rosalind Charlesworth, Weber State University