Engaging Children's Minds: The Project Approach

Now in its third edition, this book shows teachers how to incorporate the Project Approach into early childhood curricula, engaging children intellectually and heightening their capacities for thinking, hypothesizing, reasoning, and expressing their natural curiosity.

Why has the Project Approach proven to be so successful for engaging young children intellectually and supporting their capacities to think, predict, hypothesize, reason, and express their natural curiosity? Simply put, because project work provides meaningful contexts in which young learners can readily apply and grasp the usefulness of their growing academic skills. This book provides a brief history and overview of the Project Approach and a thorough explanation of how to implement this method for best effect in a wide range of educational contexts.

Intended for those who work with young children as well as caregivers and students in training to do so, readers will understand how to apply this approach in order to gain the interest of children and facilitate their mental growth. The book's chapters articulate the process and benefits of the project approach, identify and detail the three typical phases of project work, and provide specific suggestions for implementing each stage. The importance of documentation of the children's work to record the story of their investigation and findings is also discussed.

Lilian G. Katz, PhD, is professor emeritus and staff member of the Clearinghouse on Early Education & Parenting at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Sylvia C. Chard, PhD, is professor emeritus of elementary education at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. Her published work includes Engaging Children's Minds: The Project Approach, coauthored with Lilian G. Katz.

Yvonne Kogan, MEd, is the early childhood and elementary head principal, and co-owner of Eton School in Mexico City. She is a consultant for institutions interested in implementing the Project Approach as a schoolwide program for children ages 2 to 12. Kogan has published several articles about the Project Approach, and is coauthor with Sylvia C. Chard of From My Side: Being a Child.