January 2019
Making a choice at Choice Time
Classrooms are filled with materials that encourage and support learning. Toys, manipulatives, and loose parts are available to children to support their interests and help them learn new skills.
The teachers often make the choice about what materials to put out in the room. The children make the choice of where they will go and what they will do in that learning center.
That is why we have come to refer to that time of the day, when different centers are open to the children, as “Choice Time.” We sometimes call it “center time” or “work time” as well. Years ago, in many preschools, the time was referred to as “Free Play.” Free play implies that the children have no direction or intention in their play.
Each day at Choice Time, children choose to play with blocks, paint at the easel, work at a light table, read a book, or visit dramatic play. These are just some of the choices children make that help them build cognitive skills, motor skills, and socio-emotional skills.
Before the choice time begins, an important skill is being ! practiced as well – The skill of making the choice. In the book “The Self-Driven Child” by Dr. William Stixrud, the author writes extensively about the importance of giving our children a sense of control in their actions. He talks about the significance of early childhood teachers giving students the “opportunity to make decisions about how to spend their time and what is important to them.”
Outside the classroom, children need time for unstructured play so that they are “making autonomous decisions about how to spend their time.” If we respect young children and let them know that they are capable, we communicate that we believe in them and honor their choices.
As teachers and parents, we offer a limited number of safe and appropriate choices. We can ask a child if they want the blue sweatshirt or the orange sweater. We need not give a choice of shorts and a T-shirt on a winter day. At the playground, we can give the choice of slide or the see-saw. The more we look for opportunities for children to make their own choices, the more independent and confident our children will be.
