| The following study probes reasons for behavioural difficulties exhibited by children in Junior and Senior Kindergarten in the structure of an externally imposed standardized curriculum and its impact on how teachers design the school day of kindergarten children. The thesis documents an alternative approach---the Reggio Emilia Approach to Early Childhood Education for a specific project. The children's ideas and designs for a play garden were solicited through conversation, drawings, paintings and documentation. The children developed an original design which was created by a landscaper with the children involved. The researcher interviewed parent volunteers and teachers afterwards. The main findings show the high level of excitement, animation and engagement of the children when presented with a meaningful learning experience; teachers discovering alternative ways of interpreting the standardized curriculum through the children's explorations; and the parents' excited response to the "de-institutionalizing" schools, to create a stimulating and fascinating learning environment for staff, children and parents. |
