Early Childhood Education and Care

This collection of articles discusses the importance of early childhood education and care in developing critical thinking skills in children. It explores strategies to enhance critical thinking and assess its level of accomplishment. The articles also highlight the utilization of critical thinking skills in higher education.

Running Head: EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND CARE
Early Childhood Education and Care
Student’s Name
University Name
Author’s Note

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Article 1: https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/tyc/oct2015/using-blooms-taxonomy-
questioning
This article begins with an interesting story of how early life learners can be enticed towards
innovation and learning. When they engage in group discussion regarding what different could
have been done in context to the story so that the tree did not fall over, they automatically share
their ideas with other as well as inherit others’ ideas so that they could understand the flaws in
their own ideas. The story ends with a hope where Mr. Benson mentions that might be some day
during the choice time of the play school, the students will also be able to come up with the
Innovative ideas where buy they might easily find out some idea by which it will be possible to
strong the hold all the letters and still make the tree stand erect. As a consequence of this activity,
the story refers in the end that most of the children are feeling enthusiastic to go to the earth
centre in order to develop model of the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom tree which we can make to
stand is it with all the letters on it. This is the zest for innovation that this innovative study
session was able to instil into them. The article evidently questions that after reading this story
The Reader who is a preschool teacher will definitely ponder whether he or she conducts a
preschool session which is sufficiently interactive in order to make new ideas Bloom in the mind
of the students. The efficiency of the article lies in the fact that it identifies the nature of
interaction needed to be conducted with children in Play School or preschool which is not
common place and which can efficiently Kindle the Quest of finding and answer to any question
which the students are not able to solve with their immediate intellect. The article argues that
questions like “what colour is this?” or “how many are there?” and “what is this?”definitely
serves a purpose. However, it has been analysed by researchers like Strasser and Bresson (2019),
identify that efficiency of a child's brain, in the 21st century grows more with the increased

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exposure to critical thought processes. This is why higher order questions like “if 6 children are
having supper, how many bowls, we might need?”can be a more in-depth question which will
not only required the children to remember numerical information but rather explore in their
mind the whole arrangement that the question is presenting before them.
In context to the above presented idea in the article, there is also the specific description of
bloom's taxonomy which present 6 levels of questions which makes the students remember,
understand, reply, synthesise, analyse as well as evaluate. Immediately after the development of
this taxonomy, in 1956, which became popular among the teachers, to question the students
based on this technique and the arrangement of learning curriculum as well as assessment
framework of students there also based on this taxonomy.
However, based on the research conducted in this article and drawing inspiration from the ideas
of……..it can be argued that it is necessary that apprehending how the learning of a child is
being accomplished, the educator will have to keep on making the difficulty level of the
question, higher. This will require further deep thinking for the child to respond to the question.
This process has been experimentally performed in many social setting and the most evident
outcome of this process is that maximum of the three year old learners are measured and
concrete thinkers. 3 year old learners might not be able to answer complicated questions, but
they show the attitude of Thinking out of the box for finding solution to Complex questions.
However, the researchers in this article depict that it is possible for 4 year old students to relate
one scenery with another, in order to deliver solutions to Complex problems.
However, the article would have been incomplete, if it would have not provided a concrete
process of recording the progress of a child. It is not essential to track the progress of the child by

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accessing him or her. Rather this article suggests that in order to assess the learning
accomplished by the child, the same complex question is needed to be asked, in the initial part of
the learning course and once in the interim period and again during the conclusion period. The
difference in the answers provided by him or her each time will help the teacher to analyse the
level of learning that he or she has accomplished.
Article 2: https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/tyc/feb2019/asking-questions-stretch-children
%27s-thinking
The main argument in this article is that when we ask broad and open ended question to the
children, we offer them the scope of language development as well as developing the skill of
critical thinking. in this context, the arguments of researchers like…….. can be specified. they
argue that such questions should mostly offer them scope for reflective Answers regarding their
day to day play things are materials they are using, their ideas to solve any regular issue that they
might be phasing out the thing that others might be coming across.
Analysing the kind of questioning that is supported in this article, it can be commented that this
article highly famous conversations with children.
This article also advocates bloom's taxonomy in order to frame questions for the children.
However, this article compulsorily holds that the teachers should intentionally ask questions that
will allow the scope of analysing, evaluating as well as creating a new solution to challenges for
the students. In case if they do so, that children’s thought process will enhance. Nevertheless, the
level of critical analysis of the learning process of children developed in this article is understood
in the argument presented in the article that the teachers duty does not end by only asking
challenging question to the children. On the contrary the article argues that the educators should

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constantly criticize the answers of the children in such a way that they are convinced that they
have not given the best answer to the question. This will further pinch the children on their mind
and they will keep on pondering on the question.
however, the efficiency of the article lies in the fact that it does not only describe the Strategies
for the best learning processes of the children, which discusses the case studies where children
have been actually put into such conversations. Free instances of conversation serving chosen for
display study, the first being a conversation about developing a zoo inner block area , the second
being conversation regarding coding with robots, and the last being a conversation, simply in
order to stretch dramatic play of words with the children. The first is a easy issue regarding
which the children will have many ideas to offer. The second is a complex problem regarding
with the children will generally have absolutely no idea and the teacher will be required to guide
them to have a primary conception regarding coding with robots (Strasser 2019). After becoming
aware about the conception, they will implement their thinking capacity in order to find solution
to a problem. The last challenge will be ostrich of dramatic played which will be confusing the
children and this is going to be a test of their mental endurance against any challenge. The factor
that will be tested here is that will the students are still able to find out innovative ideas in face of
confusion and whether they are able to hold onto linguistic composition, in that situation also.
However, specific ideas in the controlling section of the article also deserve mention. the article
processes that it will not be correct to blindly follow any model, rather it argues that it depends
absolutely on the understanding of the educator to understand what should be the level of the
challenge of question to put before the children which will keep them in analysing, valuation as
well as creating new ideas.

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Article 3: https://www.scholastic.com/parents/family-life/creativity-and-critical-thinking/
learning-skills-for-kids/abstract-thinking-skills-kindergarten.html
The main argument of this article is that abstract thought process is the characteristic feature of
children in the kindergarten time period. That is why it is not only enough to ask Complex
questions for analysing the level of expansion of the thought process of the children. In this
context this article argues that it is also necessary to concentrate on the regular dramatic play of
the children and emphasize on what objects they are using for what kind of movements that
making in order to overcome any challenge they are facing. thinking from the perspective and
psychological prospect of the child, the educator have to to provide critical situations before him
in context of playing. Evidence the educator might ask him to play the role of the driver of
ambulance. In this context he might question him, in an abstract way what different role do he
need to play as the driver of ambulances which would make his position different from the driver
of any other car. In this context, the article argues that it will be best if the educator can provide
props to the children. This is because, it makes it easier for the children to draw a map of the
situation in their mind if they are using props for toys which can link them with the situation.
However, this article is different from the other two articles in the fact that in the previous
articles there have been no further development Idea presented. This implies that after
accomplishing and enhancement of the critical thinking skill among the child's no further Idea
have been presented regarding how to utilise that skill of the students this is where the
conception of saving the road of making the student to learn reading and writing comes in.
Whenever a critical situation is presented before a child, He will try to plot the scenario in his
mind. This is where the educator will forge him or her to make a small sketch of the situation or
write the particular terms on a copy that will help him to memorize the situation. this can be the

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first step towards making a child learn to read or write. Initially, even if they are having the
knowledge of alphabets, they can be only scripting over the pages in a same way over and over
again. However, this article steps towards language learning also (Scholastic.com 2019).
Summary of the three articles
All the three articles, ponder over situational learning of the children. The main thing is to
develop critical thinking process among the learners. various strategies have been offered by all
the three article regarding how to accomplish the target of increasing the level of critical thinking
in the children. This is really essential, considering the fact that the self learning model is the
most advanced education model that is followed in most of the countries nowadays. In absence
of critical thinking skills, the students will not be able to use this model in order to decide the
best career path for them. it is in this context, that the students need to understand how to analyse
Complex situations from a very early age. This will help them to learn concepts, as well as make
them efficient in taking critical decisions about life in the later stage also. Nevertheless, the
articles also layout various strategies that can be used by the educators in order to assess the level
of critical thinking accomplished by the children. Lastly, the articles also highlight how to utilize
the level of critical thinking accomplished by the students in order to indulge them towards
higher education.

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Reference List
Scholastic.com, 2019. Abstract Thinking Skills in Kindergarten: Understanding and boosting
your kindergartner's learning abilities. Available at: https://www.scholastic.com/parents/family-
life/creativity-and-critical-thinking/learning-skills-for-kids/abstract-thinking-skills-
kindergarten.html [Accessed: 6th May 2019]
Strasser and Bresson, 2019. Using Bloom’s Taxonomy Questioning to extend Preschoolar’s
thinking. Available at: https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/tyc/oct2015/using-blooms-
taxonomy-questioning [Accessed: 6th May 2019]
Strasser, 2019. Conversations with Children! Asking Questions That Stretch Children’s
Thinking. Available at: https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/tyc/feb2019/asking-questions-
stretch-children%27s-thinking [Accessed: 6th May 2019]