Early Years Bulletin
Summer 2018 vol 5 no 4
Focus on Pre-K & K editor: Jennifer Baumgartner
The Importance of Service Learning in the Early Years: Taking Ownership of Your Own Community By Wendy L. Hardy, Associate Professor, Early Childhood, University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg
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ervice learning can be an impactful pedagogy in the early childhood classroom, as it supports children’s learning and allows them to contribute to their communities. During one service learning project in our community, kindergarten students worked with local college students to make screen-printed works of art that were sold to raise funds for underprivileged children in El Salvador. Through this experience, the children learned arts skills (screen printing and fine motor skills) while also learning, through thought-provoking discussion and well-chosen literature, about human rights and why education is something all children should have. Service learning teaches young children how to apply classroom learning to real life, promoting the development of knowledge and then giving them opportunities to practice those skills in the real world. Additionally, it links this learning to the curriculum and learning standards in authentic ways. Fair and Delaplane (2015) tell us that service learning is beneficial in numerous ways. We know that service learning positively impacts students’ self-concept, helps them gain a greater sense of self-responsibility and a deeper understanding of the world, and benefits the community. Additionally, service learning often doesn’t require a substantial amount of funding (Fair & Delaplane, 2015). The intent of service learning, ultimately, is to be useful for both the recipient and the provider; hence, everyone benefits (Alvarez, 2009). English and Moore (2010) describe the benefits of service learning as enriching the learning experience,
and strengthening communities. Service learning is different from community service because it links learning standards and goals of the curriculum. It differs from “just volunteering” by building extensive, ongoing partnerships and facilitating strong connections between the students and community (Montgomery, Miller, Foss, & Tallakson, 2017). Many times, teachers plan service learning projects that are one-time projects. These aren’t quite as effective as longer projects that cultivate deeper thinking and connection to community. Service learning can be as simple in concept as creating an urban garden and sharing the food grown with community members, making blankets for veterans in a hospice facility, or making cards and taking them to the local Meals on Wheels to distribute with the daily lunches for senior citizens. The focus of the projects is both on the service provided and the learning experience. If students were studying a unit on the history of the United States and what it meant to serve in the armed forces, they may decide to integrate the service project of making the blankets for military veterans.
Contents
p. 4 - Focus on Infants & Toddlers p. 11 - Activities for the Classroom