Curriculum is what is taught in a classroom.
An early childhood curriculum outlines what children will learn, how they will learn it, and how their progress will be assessed in an early childhood education setting.
Quality curriculums give teachers/educators:
- A guide that shows how to teach children new skills that are age-appropriate.
- A way to organize activities in themes, by routine, or in free play.
- A plan to reference what children will learn each week and throughout the year.
Curriculum has many supports for teachers/educators.
A curriculum includes lesson plans that detail classroom activities and learning goals. It can include many materials to support teaching, such as:
- Instructions for the teachers/educators
- Organized layout of teaching materials
- Learning goals and objectives for the age level of children in the classroom
- A list of materials needed to prepare for and complete activities
- Assessment materials for tracking the learning progress of children
- Information and activities to send home to families
Curriculum helps keep track of children’s learning.
When a curriculum is used in a classroom, it provides a guide for teachers/educators to understand what children learned during a period of time. Educators can use the curriculum materials to make activities simpler or more challenging to help children learn skills over time. Many curricula come with assessment tools to help teachers/educators learn what children know at different time points and pick activities to meet each child’s learning needs.
Curriculum is part of VQB5.
VQB5 is Virginia’s system for measuring and supporting quality in early childhood programs so that children enter kindergarten ready to learn. Curriculum is one of the two things measured in VQB5 to make sure a classroom is high-quality. You can find more information about curriculum choices by visiting