"Helm emphasizes the concept of ‘deep’ project work. Throughout the book, the examples and suggestions she provides make clear the important distinctions between the deep investigations involved in project work versus the fairly common superficial theme activities too often seen in preschool and elementary school classes." —From the Foreword by LilianG. Katz, past president of the National Association for the Education of Young Children(NAEYC) and professor emerita at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Becoming Young Thinkers: Deep Project Work in the Classroom  builds on the bestselling Young Investigators: The Project Approach in the Early Years, 2nd edition, to show teachers how to build intellectual capacity by incorporating deep investigations in the formative early years (preschool through early primary grades). The book begins with research and
instructional guidelines for all learning experiences from the new field of Mind, Brain, and Education Science, and then connects it to the rich foundation of the project approach. Practical and specific strategies for deepening project work are provided including

• how to select meaningful topics,
• plan for projects,
• integrate standards (including the Common Core State Standards),
• support children's questioning,
• interact and ask supportive questions,
• create provocations to promote engagement and deep thinking, and
• help children represent or render their ideas.

Deep project work is defined through vivid examples from real classrooms. The book shows not only why curriculum in early years needs to focus on building intellectual capacity but also how to make that happen. You can order Becoming Young Thinkers from Teachers College Press or Amazon.com .

This bestselling book has been completely updated and expanded to help teachers use the project approach in child care centers, in preschools, and in kindergarten, 1st grade, and early childhood special education classrooms. For those new to using projects, the book introduces the approach and provides step-by-step guidance for conducting meaningful projects. Experienced teachers will find the teacher interviews, children’s work, photographs (including full color), and teacher journal entries used to document the project process in actual classrooms very useful.

This popular, easy-to-use resource has been expanded to include these new features:

•Explicit instructions and examples for incorporating standards into the topic selection and planning process.
•A variety of nature experiences, with examples that show how project work is an excellent way to connect children to the natural world.
•An update of the use of technology for both documentation and investigations, including use of the Web as well as and video and digital cameras.
•More toddler projects that reflect our increased knowledge from recent mind/brain research about toddler understanding and learning.
•A study guide for pre- and in-service teachers.

Judy Harris Helm heads her own educational consulting and training company, Best Practices, Inc., in Brimfield, Illinois, and is the author of numerous books, including Windows on Learning, The Power of Projects, and Teaching Your Child to Love Learning.Lilian G. Katz is past president of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and professor emerita at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Praise for the First Edition

“Everything you could possibly need to start a project is covered in this book, so start investigating!”
—Association for Childhood Education International

“A readable and extremely valuable book…includes a planning journal with step-by-step guidance for doing a first project with young children.”
—Child Care Plus

“Along with tips on how to get started and successfully carry out this approach, readers will find methodologies for maintaining curricular standards and utilizing technology.”
—ENC Focus

“This practical book is full of good ideas for teachers developing investigative projects with the youngest children. A powerful resource, it combines sound educational theory with many ways to support and document learning.”
—Sylvia C. Chard, University of Alberta, Canada

“In this beautifully written book, the reader takes a journey, discovering the many answers to the why, what, and how questions about the project approach. In addition to providing the essential how-to guidebook for projects, Helm and Katz address today’s burning issues—standards, evaluation, special populations, and relation to the larger curriculum.”
—Sue Bredekamp, Council for Professional Recognition

This book is available in Chinese, Greek, Korean and Polish translations. Click here to request information on how to obtain these translations