Reflective Analysis of Portfolio Artifact

Rationale/Reflection
NAEYC Standard:
STANDARD 5. USING CONTENT KNOWLEDGE TO BUILD MEANINGFUL CURRICULUM
Candidates prepared in early childhood degree programs a) use their knowledge of academic disciplines to
design, implement, and evaluate experiences that promote positive development and learning for each and
every young child. Candidates understand the importance of developmental domains and academic (or
content) disciplines in early childhood curriculum. They b) know the essential concepts, inquiry tools, and
structure of content areas, including academic subjects, and can identify resources to deepen their
understanding. Candidates c) use their own knowledge and other resources to design, implement, and
evaluate meaningful, challenging curriculum that promotes comprehensive developmental and learning
outcomes for every young child (NAEYC, 2010).

Brief Description of Evidence:

During the fall semester of 2014 during my ECED 243 - Cognitive Curriculum course, I worked collaboratively
and individually on a Brain Menu. The project was broken up into parts that we got to choose: appetizers, first
course, side dishes, and desserts. The appetizers were group projects about curriculum types. The first course
was about curriculum planning. The choices were putting together ten teacher made activities, writing a unit
plan, and posting ten pins to eight Pinterest boards. The side dishes was about lesson implementation. The
choices were writing and implementing a math lesson plan, writing and implementing a science lesson plan,
and writing and implementing an invitation to learn. The dessert was extra credit.

Analysis of What I Learned:

Through completion of this brain menu, I have learned about the different types of curriculum, which
ones I like and would like to implement into my own classroom. I have learned about different activities to
teach all of the children in my classroom. Also, I have learned how to plan a lesson and implement it with a
group of children. I have also learned how to document everything and put that together into a finished
product.

How This Artifact Demonstrates my Competence on the NAEYC Standard:

This project was one where I worked both collaboratively and individually. I designed, implemented,
and evaluated my experience with this artifact. By implementing meaningful, challenging curriculum, I
developed learning outcomes for every young child.