For a guy with a heart that is two sizes too small, the Grinch sure brought a lot of smiles to the Child Development class at BHS on December 12.  The high schoolers hosted a Developmental Preschool Project, themed around How the Grinch Stole Christmas and had the opportunity to see first-hand what goes into teaching little ones.

 

Gone are the days of simply lecturing to students.  The newest ideology points to project-based learning as the ideal setting for students to learn knowledge and skills. “The Developmental Preschool Project fully immerses the students into the content, involving them in activities and tasks that demonstrate the content,” said Child Development teacher Anita Horner.  “The project was fully developed by the high school students and involved different learning centers for the preschool students to rotate through.”  Those stations included storytelling, visual arts, crafts, active games, music and nutritional snacks.

 

“The experience really opened the high school students’ eyes as to what goes into planning and implementing a quality thematic educational activities,” said Horner.  “A lot of work went into the project, and they learned that the first step is to make the preschoolers feel safe and comfortable to ensure a successful class.  The younger students loved being involved in the games and the familiar green face in the room and the activity proved to be a success worthy of helping the Grinch’s heart grow three sizes that day.