Linking Assessment of Basic Concepts to Early Childhood
Linking Assessment of Basic Concepts to Early Childhood Education Standards Bruce A. Bracken, Ph. D. The College of William & Mary
What this Webinar Will Cover • • A definition of basic concepts The importance of basic concepts Challenging assumptions about concept acquisition Categorizing basic concepts – An in-depth understanding of basic concepts – Basic concepts in state educational standards • Resources – Assessing and teaching basic concepts – 50 States’ educational standards article and Excel database
A Definition of Basic Concepts A basic concept in all languages is: … a word, in its most elementary sense, that is, a label for one of the basic colors, comparatives, directions, materials, positions, quantities, relationships, sequences, shapes, sizes, social or emotional states and characteristics, textures, and time. Basic concepts are basic in the sense that they represent the most rudimentary concepts in these specific categorical areas… Concepts are the ‘foundation of intelligence’ Jerome Kagan
A Definition of Basic Concepts Conceptual Levels • Basic Concepts: The most rudimentary words used to describe the environment (e. g. , rough, hot, blue, hard). • Topical Concepts: Conceptual terms used within specific content or subject areas (e. g. , desert, marsh, jungle). • Over-arching Concepts: Concepts that span and go beyond basic and topical concepts (e. g. , systems, change, patterns).
Categorizing Basic Concepts Conceptual Categories, Concept Examples, and Early Childhood Educational Standards
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Colors Sub-domain – Primary Colors – Secondary Colors • Combination of two primary colors – Absolutes – Tertiary Colors • Combination of a primary color and a secondary color Concept Examples – Red, Yellow, Blue – Orange, Green, Purple – White, Black – Violet, Heather
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Colors Show me which color is… purple
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Letters and Letter Sounds Pre-Literacy Skill • Recognition – Upper-case – Lower-case • Naming – Upper-case – Lower-case • Letter Sounds • Letter Blend Sounds Concept Examples • Recognition – Point to M, B, S, D – Point to u, v, c, b • Naming – Name this letter, W, P, R, E – Name this letter, a, e, g, k • What sound does b make? • What sound does ch make?
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Letters and Letter Sounds Show me… K Show me the… G
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Numbers Math Literacy Skill Concept Examples • • Rote Counting Place Counting • • Counting without place value Counting with one-to-one correspondence • Number Identification – Point to the 1, 5, 8, 0 – Point to the 22, 58, 95 – Point to 138, 395, 783 – 0 -9 – Double Digits – Triple Digits • Number Naming – What is this number? 2, 6, 9 – What is this number? 44, 78 – What is this number? 234, 783
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Numbers Show me… the ninety-five Show me… three flowers
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Sizes/Comparisons Dimensions and Size • Three-Dimensional Size • Two-Dimensional Size – Vertical – Horizontal • Comparative Sizes Concept Examples • Big, Large, Small, Little – Tall, Short – Long, Short • Similar, Same, Different
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Sizes/Comparisons Show me… which animal is big Show me… which fence is tall
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Sizes/Comparisons Show me… which boats are alike
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Shapes • Linear (vertical/horizontal) – Curvilinear Line – Diagonal Line – Angular Line Concept Examples • Line, Straight – Curve – Diagonal – Angle • Two-Dimensional Shapes • Circle, Square, Triangle • Three-Dimensional Shapes • Sphere, Cube, Pyramid
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Shapes Show me… the star Show me… the curve
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Shapes Show me… which children are in a line Show me… the pyramid
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Relational Concepts Direction and Position • • • Three-dimensional Internal/External Relative Proximity Self/Other Perspective Front/Rear Specific Locations Concept Examples • • • Under, Over, Right, Left Inside, Outside, Around Near, Far, Beside My Right, My Left, Your In Front of, Behind Edge, Corner
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Relational Concepts Show me… which child is behind the chair Show me… which clown is up-side-down
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Self and Society Personal and Cultural • • • Affective Feeling Health/Physical Gender Familial Relationships Age • Mores Conceptual Examples • • • Happy, Sad, Excited Healthy, Sick, Tired Boy, Girl, Woman, Man Mother, Father, Sister Old, Young • Right, Wrong, Correct
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Self and Society Show me… which person is sad Show me… which child is wrong
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Textures / Materials Environmental Conditions • • States of Matter Textures Material Characteristics • Temperatures Concept Examples • • • Solid, Liquid, Gas Rough, Smooth, Sharp Cloth, Wood, Metal Wet, Dry, Shiny, Dull Hot, Cold
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Textures / Materials Show me… which one is a gas Show me… which rock is smooth
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Quantity Concept Examples Quantitative Characteristics • • • Part/Whole Relations Relative Quantity Volume Multiples Comparatives/Superlatives Fractions • Math Signs/Symbols • • Whole, Part, Piece Lots, Few, Some, None Full, Empty Pair, Double, Triple, Dozen More, Less, Most, Least Half, One-Third +, -, x
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Quantity Show me… which tree has many apples Show me… where neither child has a balloon
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Time / Sequence Relative Time • • • Mathematical Seriation Frequency Natural Occurring Events Temporal Absolutes Temporal Order Speed Relative Age Temporal Nuances Larger Temporal Periods Concept Examples • • • First, Second, Third Once, Twice Morning, Daytime, Before, Never, Always Early, Late, Next, Arriving Fast, Slow New, Old, Young, Old Nearly, Just, Waiting Days, Weeks, Months, Seasons
Categorizing Basic Concepts: Time / Sequence Show me… which person has quit working Show me… which child is waiting
Resources • Early Childhood State Educational Standards: – Bracken, B. A. , & Crawford, E. (2010). Basic concepts in early childhood educational standards: A 50 -state review. Journal of Early Childhood Education, 37, 421 -431. – For a complete 50 -state review of concepts embedded in early childhood states’ standards, cut and paste: http: //faculty. wm. edu/babrac/Standards. xls
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