An interview with Jordan Page- An early childhood instructor advises us about play & best practices in early childhood classrooms. Interview conducted by Dr. Sam Bommarito
As I was preparing for the Young Years Conference in Missouri (that’s two weeks away!) I talked to many of my friends and colleagues about best practices in early childhood settings and the role using play as a teaching tool should have in those settings. One of the folks I talked to was Jordan Page. She is an adjunct instructor at the University of South Carolina and a supervisor to pre-service elementary teachers. Because she had so much great information to share, I wanted to interview her, and she agreed. In this interview, Jordan uses her extensive knowledge of early literacy to help her students understand the research and put that research into practice. She has a knack for giving lots of practical tips in the process. Here is a little more information about Jordan.
These are highlights from the interview. In case you want to jump to a particular topic, the highlights are time-stamped.
HERE IS A LINK TO THE VIDEO:
Here are the books Jordan recommends for early childhood teachers.
Play: How it Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul
Kids 1st from Day 1: A Teacher’s Guide to Today’s Classroom
Dr. Sam’s reflections & his schedule in the next few weeks:
I’ll present at the Write to Learn Conference in Jefferson City, Mo, next week. The week after, I’m presenting at the Young Years Conference held at Tan-Tar-A. I’m encouraging folks I’m presenting to at that conference to look at this interview in advance- lots of valuable information and teaching tips. I’d also recommend my readers of the blog consider all that Jordan has said. If we are to follow the research- that means making sure the instruction for our youngest children fits their age and stage. Specifically, that means that the move by some to exclude play as a major teaching tool for our youngest children does not consider all the research. Next week I will interview Jan Richardson about her book The Next Step Forward in Guided Reading. That’s one you won’t want to miss. Until then-
Happy Reading and Writing.
Dr. Sam Bommarito (aka, the guy in the middle taking flak from all sides)
Copyright 2023 by Dr. Sam Bommarito. Views/interpretations expressed here are solely this author’s view and do not necessarily reflect the views of any other person or organization.
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Here is a complete list of the speakers at the conference:
Keynotes: Josh Varner, Ron Shuali, Dr. Adolph Brown, Eric Litwin and Jim Gill.
Featured: Jill Molli, Sharron Krull, Dr. Sam Bommarito, Vladimir Sainte and Ernesto Rodriguez.