Ramps and Pathways: A Constructivist Approach to Physics with Young Children

If you think the words young children and physics don’t belong together, think again.

Based on the theories of Piaget and the work of DeVries and Sales, this book successfully makes the case for building a constructivist approach to physical science learning in the early childhood classroom. Ramps and Pathways:

• Reviews how children “construct” content knowledge and the mental ability to organize knowledge (intelligence) 
• Explains why ramps activities engage children deeply in reasoning about physical objects and phenomena such as force and motion, across a range of ages and developmental levels, even over several years 
• Provides a rationale you can use to explain and defend the educational value of children’s play and exploration 
• Shows you how to apply the 10 principles of constructivist teaching in your classroom 
• Includes dozens of full-color photographs of children’s amazing structures

Rheta DeVries retired as professor of curriculum and instruction at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI), where, as director of the Regents’ Center for Early Developmental Education, she led the effort to build and develop Freeburg School, a demonstration school for constructivist education. Previously, she held faculty positions at the University of Houston, the Merrill-Palmer Institute, and the University of Illinois at Chicago. DeVries has received many awards, including for significant contribution to the application of constructivist principles in education from the American Educational Research Association (AERA), and for outstanding faculty research from UNI and the University of Houston. Her eight books include Developing Constructivist Curriculum in Early Education: Practical Principles and Activities (Teachers College Press, 2002) and Moral Classrooms, Moral Children: Creating a Constructivist Atmosphere in Early Education (Teachers College Press,1994). She received a PhD in psychology from the University of Chicago, and was a postdoctoral fellow of the National Institute of Mental Health for work and study at the University of Geneva, Switzerland.

Christina Sales, an assistant professor at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI), taught young children for more than 20 years. At UNI, she helped establish Freeburg School, where she served as a teacher and curriculum coordinator. Sales has made numerous presentations throughout the world on the education of young children, and is a coauthor of the book Developing Constructivist Early Childhood Curriculum: Practical Principles and Activities (Teachers College Press, 2002). Her current focus is working with classroom teachers, developing constructivist early childhood curriculum, and conducting research on early childhood activities. She received an EdD in curriculum and instruction from UNI.