1.3 Interaction and Conversation as Curriculum
Interactions and conversations throughout the day model for young children the expected ways of communicating with and being with members of the group or community. Through the ways in which they interact and talk with young children and guide children’s behavior, teachers support children in learning the code of behavior and the language of the education and care community. Children rely on family members and teachers to provide the experience of expected patterns of behavior, interactions, and language. At home, children experience interactions and language that are grounded in their family’s culture. In the early care and education setting, they encounter what might be a different expected pattern of behavior, interaction, and language from what they experience at home.
The following vignette offers an opportunity to observe and listen to learning from the children’s point of view and to see what the teacher intentionally does to guide the children’s thinking.
Vignette
Mr. Ravi and his group of preschool children enter the play yard on Monday morning. As several children run to the sandbox, Vicente shouts with dismay, “Oh, look! Somebody ruined our fort and messed up all the hiding places we dug for our food! That was mean!” Mr. Ravi comes over quickly to join them. He surveys the logs and boulders strewn around in the sand and notes the children’s distress and sense of outrage.
Mr. Ravi responds sympathetically, “You all spent so much time working together to build this last Friday. It does seem unfair that it has been destroyed. Do you have ideas about what to do?”
Vicente suggests, “I know! We can make it over again and then you can write a sign that says, ‘Keep Out. This is OUR fort.’” The other children agree.
Mr. Ravi says, “It sounds like you have a plan to rebuild and protect your project. I know that Marcos can write words and likes to make signs. Why don’t you ask him if he would be willing to make the sign you need?” The children agree with this idea, and Mr. Ravi accompanies them to talk to Marcos, who sits alone on the stairs. “This is going to take a lot of teamwork,” comments Mr. Ravi.
“Yeah, but we’re getting really good at teamwork,” responds Vicente confidently.[1]
This experience illustrates what is referred to in the California Preschool Curriculum Framework as a teachable moment. It was not planned, and the teacher had no way of knowing that it was going to occur. It was a spontaneous encounter, but when planning at an earlier time, the teacher had wondered whether one like it would occur and had considered how he would respond in such a moment. Having in mind how to respond to various situations, especially moments of conflict or misunderstanding, emerges from the reflective curriculum planning that early childhood teachers do. It also allows the teacher to think about how to include a child who was not participating with other children and may not have had the social skills