Starting a Curriculum

Hi there! I have been doing daycare for 8 months and I am basically only a babysitter. This frustrates me because the kids are going nuts and so am I. I started watching a 2 kids 15hrs a week and then it grew to a full 7 kids daycare full time Mon-Fri. I want to start teaching them things, activities, crafts.. I just have NO idea where to start of how! I want to go from free-play all day to a schedule and system. Please HELP!

[Kim]

Start at the beginning and get the kids into a flexible daily routine. A routine doesn't mean a strict schedule ruled by the clock. A routine means one event follows another and the kids have some predictability throughout the day. Getting them into a daily routine will make things much smoother. Start with a short circle time. You can base it on preplanned themes and/or the children's interests. Keep in mind that freeplay is a very important part of a child's development. Kids learn best through play and it should still be a large part of your routine. This site is a great resource to help you get started- http://greenfishchronicles.org/2011/...iculum-part-i/

[shelby]

There is a site called letter a day. com . It has great ideas for learning abc's.

Thank you I will check that side. I just started and I would like to develop my curriculum