Major Theories in Early Childhood Education:
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Theories exist to try to explain the WHY
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Theories exist to give us a framework to explain human growth and development (why do people think and act the way they do?)
You will be working on a research project to answer the following questions:
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What is the name of the theorist?
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What is the background information of your theorist?
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Does this theorist mostly focus on researching the Physical, Intellectual, Emotional or Social aspect of the development of children?
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Explain this theorist’s developmental theory. *If the theorist has more than one theory, choose one (or two) of their most famous work.
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Do you agree with and/or like this theory? Why or why not?
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Describe a time you have seen this theory observed using children you know. *If you haven’t observed enough children at play, check out MN Help Me Grow videos or others on YouTube.
Theorists to choose from:
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Albert Bandura
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Arnold Gesell
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BF Skinner
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Erik Erikson
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Jean Piaget
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John Bowlby
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John Watson
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Lev Vygotsky
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Maria Montessori
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Sigmund Freud
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Urie Bronfenbrenner
You will need to research and then write an essay of your findings. Then, as a group, you will need to create a slide presentation of your research. You will need to include a bibliography in MLA format, accurate information written in your own words