In my first grade classroom, I constantly find myself conflicted between pushing on through the curriculum and teaching my students life skills, or simply giving them more time to be kids. How can a teacher make more time for thinking, questioning, and play while still fitting in all the curriculum? I know I’m not alone in this feeling, but then why is this such a tricky thing to navigate? After grappling with this thought for the last 3 years I’ve been teaching, I’ve since realized that it is a wicked problem – there is simply no single solution to the problem.
In an effort to try to begin to solve this wicked problem, I turned to some trusted resources to help me – my colleagues! I sent out a survey to the staff of my suburban elementary school to gain insight into what they do in their classrooms in relation to thinking, questioning, and playing, while also considering completing the required curriculum. I also took a look back at some books (see below) that have been recommended to me over the years, which lend themselves to solving this problem as well. Check out my video below to see my attempt at starting to solve this wicked problem!
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