Newsletter #21: Thinking With Littles: Ideas for Using Thinking Routines in Early Childhood Classrooms

Five year-olds are terrifying. They are the Bogeyman, the monster under my bed, the Sully to my Boo. To an educator who spent the first eleven years of her career in secondary education, I still vividly remember my first class of kindergarteners. Crying, panic, and a lack of skill ensued — and I’m not talking about the kids.

I quickly learned that five year-olds have a LOT to say. About everything. They had thoughts on the weather, birthdays, pizza, bugs, and crayons. They had ideas about friendship, kindness, bullying, and the best way to care for a worm stuck on the sidewalk. In short, they know how to share ideas and are generally open to trying anything. They are the perfect students to begin thinking visibly with.

Thinking routines like See, Think, Wonder and What Makes You Say That? are part of Project Zero (PZ), from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Thinking routines help our youngest students learn to explain themselves, place their ideas in context, and make connections.

When practicing thinking routines with younger students remember the following:

• Have great expectations! They will surprise you with the depth of their thinking.
• Use the routines as they are, try them routinely, before adapting them.
• Match the routines to projects that are important to the children. The routines aren’t the content, they are a method of learning the content.
• Model thinking language with children. Say things like, “I see how you made a connection there” and “Your point of view is interesting.”
• When possible, document the student's thinking. This sends a clear message to students that you value what they think — and you can revisit or refer to it later.
• Focus on the thinking you want to promote and why it is important.
• Involve parents: ask parents to use thinking phrases and words to support their thinking at home. “What makes you say that?” is great parenting and visible thinking.

In working through thinking routines in the classroom, be an active participant, open to the new thoughts and ideas young children observe. Choose an interesting, innovative, or unpredictable piece of music to listen to. Find a piece of artwork that is less well known, or made of unusual materials. Ask children what they see. Encourage evidence-based thinking. Ask students what they think — allowing for differing viewpoints. Conclude with wondering. Model creative thinking and open-ended questions. Be patient with yourself and with your students; visible thinking takes time. With practice, your students — even the youngest — will begin thinking out loud.