Laura Buchanan

Developmentally Appropriate Practice

A Guide For Parents

Child Development

What is Developmentally
Appropriate Practice?
Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP) is
an approach to teaching young children. It is
designed to promote a childs optimal learning
and development. It means teaching to the level
and skills a child has, while helping the child meet
challenging and achievable learning goals. It
emphasizes a childs individuality, their
background, culture, the importance of play, and
the idea that learning is a long-term progression.
For more information visit the National
Association for the Education of Young Children
website:
https://www.naeyc.org/DAP

How a child develops is very important to

how they learn. There are seven levels of
Blooms Taxonomy that children develop
through to have the most optimal
learning experiences. These seven levels
build off of each other and include:
Knowledge, Comprehension, Application,
Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation. All of
these are important for a child to master
and understand so they can have the
most optimal learning. Blooms taxonomy
teaches children different ways of
learning and how to process information.
It follows steps to help your child develop
higher level learning skills and help them
fully understand the materials he/she is
learning. For more information on
Blooms Taxonomy visit
http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd
/bloom.html

DAP

SPRING 2014

Child Development:
Standards

The Ohio Department of Education has created a set

of standards for children age birth to five that they
are required to meet before they enter
kindergarten.

What are the standards?

Most of the standards for birth through two years, the
child develops naturally with the encouragement and
help from his/her parents. Starting around age three
children must now start to understand basic math,
science, and reading skills. They must understand basic
skills in all of these fields, and be able to complete them.
For a complete list of the standards that need to be met
visit
http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/EarlyLearning/Early-Learning-Content-Standards/TheStandards
How Can You Meet these Standards?
It is important to keep up with the standards to make sure your child is
on track. Observe your childs actions and behavior. Quiz them verbally
on materials you covered and on the standards they need to learn. Work
with them for a set period of time each day. Practice the different subjcts
and remember to be encouraging and patient with your child. You can
even enroll your child in a local daycare or preschool to make sure they
meet standards.
Who Should You Collaborate With?
It is important to talk to people who will be working with your child
the most, so you know where your child stands on every issue. You
should be collaborating with:

Teachers: if your child is in preschool or daycare.

Doctors: Physical development is just as important as mental

development.

Other parents: Get ideas and tips from other parents

Librarians: Talk to them about reading programs and fun

educational books to read with your child.
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DAP

SPRING 2014

How To Create a DAP Home

It is crucial to create a home environment that follows

developmentally appropriate practices. If you have a DAP
home, then it will provide a consistent learning
environment for you child, and will create the most
optimal environment. Think about what young kids like
and emphasize those to enhance their learning.

4.) Ask Questions: Continually ask your child

questions. They are constantly willing to learn new
things. Asking questions will help them learn about
everyday life and provoke your childs thoughts.
5.)Explore! Try New Things: Dont be afraid to go
outside or to various places to learn something new!
Use everyday household items! Anything and
everything can be used to learn from. Your child can
learn from any adventure they go on! Dont use the
same activity day after day. Challenge your child with
new things!

1.) Set Aside Time Each Day: Every day take at least half
an hour and work with your child. Especially working on
reading skills. Work on different subjects. This will
provide repetition and consistency. Children learn more
effectively this way.
2.) Create a Learning Area: Set aside a space in your
home where you can work with your child. Have supplies
and activities near for easy access. It will help your child
focus and provide a school-like environment. Make sure
it is quiet, organized and accessible.

6.) READ: One of the most important skills you will

work on with your child is their reading skill. It is
crucial to develop them early on. Set aside time each
day to read with your child. Also, include them in
everyday activities that involve some type of print.

3.) Be a Role Model: Be a role model for your child. Act

and behave like how you want your child to. Children will
imitate the adults in their lives. Also, set up play dates
with other children and siblings for other types of role
models

7.) Positive, Encouraging Atmosphere: Be sure to

encourage your child. They need encouragement at
this stage in their lives. Have patience; it may take
them awhile to understand a topic. Dont be too easy
on them
Here is a website on suggestions on developmentally appropriate practices for young children:
though.
http://www.readingrockets.org/article/231
Make sure
to challenge

Activity Websites

These are websites that will help you vary the activities you do
with your child. They each have different activities for different
subjects
1.) Scholastic: This is a great site for reading activities to do
with your child.
http://www.scholastic.com/parents/
2.) Education.com: This site has activities for every grade level
and subject. The activities are easy and fun to do!
http://www.education.com/activity/
3.) Pinterest: Create an account; there are endless ideas on DIY
crafts and educational activities that are fun easy!

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SPRING 2014

Extra Information
Reading Is Crucial
Reading anything and everything is the most important and influential
activity you can do with your child. Encourage your child to read boxes,
recipes, lists, and anything with print to help the develop language and
reading skills. Read out loud with your child and have them help with
everyday activities. Children are more than willing to help and are eager to
learn. Make sure they have access to reading material all the time! Reading
skills are crucial to develop well and early on.

Pay Attention
Pay attention to your childs actions and habits. Look for signs if
they are struggling with anything. Look for actions that are not
developmentally normal. Now is the time to look and see if there
are any signs of learning exceptionalities. These could be positive or
negative exceptionalities. Pay attention to developmental
milestones. For a list of milestones visit:
http://nichcy.org/disability/milestones

Get Involved
Get involved in your childs life. Interact and play with them. That is the
most effective learning style. Children will imitate your actions. If you
make learning a priority, so will your children. Get involved with any
preschool or day care they go to. Take them to the library and to
community programs. The more hands-on activities, the more your
child will learn and develop.

Gardners Multiple Intelligences

Be Creative and Have Fun

Every child learns a different way, and excel in different

intelligences more than others. Howard Gardner states that the
different types of intelligences include Linguistic (word smart),
Logical (number smart), Spatial (pictures), Bodily-Kinesthetic (body
smart), Musical (music smart), Interpersonal (people smart),
Intrapersonal (self smart), and Naturalist (nature smart). These are
the categories that people will excel in. They can easily relate and
learn these intelligences. It is helpful to develop multiple
intelligences and to use a childs strong
intelligences to help them learn.

Anything and everything can be a lesson. Use simple,

everyday tasks to help your child learn. They will be
able to relate to it easier. Make learning fun for them
and yourself! Learning is an adventure that should last
a lifetime!
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