Week 3 Discussion 1 - Guidelines for Curriculum Planning

What guidelines for curriculum planning will ensure that the curriculum content you have chosen provides students with experiences that enhance their feelings of competence during the fourth stage of the life cycle (school age)?

Eric Erickson’s fourth psychosocial  crisis, involving industry vs. inferiority occurs during childhood between the ages of five and twelve.  During this stage fantasy begins to subside and students want to be engaged in real tasks that they can carry out to completion.  When teachers curriculum plan, they are planning for students to do reading, writing assignments, math skills like sums, and making things on their own. The students in turn are developing a sense of industry.  Teachers are really important to students at this stage because they are the ones who are teaching the skills deemed important.  Therefore, it will be important to encourage and support student’s efforts and abilities.  However, teachers also need to be working with the student on areas of weakness. Also, during this time peer groups are   important.  So as a teacher, it is important to plan for recess and for students to work in peer groups.