As early childhood professionals, we often do the same things over and over again without questioning why. I don't think this is because we don't care. It is because we assume that it must be right, or we wouldn't have been asked to do it in the first place.
Over the 28 years I've been working in the field of education, I've gotten better at being a reflective practitioner, a teacher who thinks about the work they do. During this reflective process, I focus on different areas of my teaching, questioning why I continue certain practices and whether they truly benefit the children in my care.
One area that we need to reflect on more is the rote activities we do during circle time each day. Why in the world do we teach calendars the way we do? Is it actually developmentally appropriate for young children to recite "today is Tuesday, September 16th, 2025"?
You might be surprised to learn that this practice is actually developmentally inappropriate. Children cannot developmentally understand time in that way - it makes no sense to them at all. If we used a calendar with young children the way we use a calendar as adults, the children would have a better understanding of the concept of measuring time.
As adults, we use the calendar to keep track of events, when our dentist appointment is, when the mortgage payment comes out of our bank account, etc. Young children LOVE keeping track of when something exciting is happening! Counting "how many sleeps" till the farm field trip is the perfect opportunity for young children to learn to measure time in a way that makes sense to them.
While it can feel challenging to make changes to our daily teaching practices, it is necessary to ensure we are providing the best care for our youngest learners. You can read more about calendar time here. Curious about how you can rethink your daily discussions on the weather? Click this link!
