CREATIVE, MONTESSORI, AND

HIGH SCOPE CURRICULUM

MODELS: THE COMPARATIVE
STUDY

Jourdyn B. Pansoy
CURRICULUM COMPARISON:
CREATIVE VS. MONTESORRI
 Historical Perspective

The Creative Curriculum  The Montessori Curriculum

Evidence-based framework developed by the Created by Dr. Maria Montessori, first female
Teaching Strategies company founder, Diane Trister physician in Italy, who founded her first
Dodge. ​ Children’s House, the Casa dei Bambini ​

To encourage creative and independent thinking in The importance of the prepared environment, respect and

children.​ support for the child, and self-education for
their development​
 Alignment with NAEYC’s principles of
developmentally appropriate practices

The Creative Curriculum The Montessori Curriculum

 
A practice aligned with NAEYC’s key principles. It explicitly Aligned with NAEYC’s principles of developmentally appropriate
emphasizes all developmental domains while focusing on building practices. In particular, children’s learning environment and processes
relationships and a strong social‐emotional foundation” are organized accordingly to their physical, social, emotional, and
cognitive developmental needs. The NAEYC’s principles of increased
complexity and cumulative learning are applied, promoting children’s
development and self-learning.

Children are encouraged to learn actively and interact with the

environment appropriately for different age groups. 
Learning experiences are provided as appropriate to encourage
learning and confidence in children. 
 Methods for inclusion of students with disabilities and
modification for English Language Learners

The Creative Curriculum The Montessori Curriculum

 
Promotes the inclusion of students with special needs by adjusting Prioritizes the child’s needs and abilities over impersonal and generalized
educational experiences to meet children’s particular needs. Students standards. The freedom of choice and movement, along with the support of
with physical disabilities, learning disorders, or special needs are deep concentration periods and self-selected activities, are essential methods
integrated into the classroom through individualized lesson of inclusion in the Montessori

The modifications for

English Language Learners adjusting instructions and including context Modifications for English language learners (ELLs) include differentiated
into learning activities.  instructions and materials that introduce concrete representations and move
on to abstract concepts, allowing children to build upon their knowledge. 
What Are The Negatives Of Montessori?

While there are many positive aspects to Montessori education, there are also some potential
negatives. One potential negative is that there may not be enough opportunity for social
development and interaction through group activities. Additionally, some critics argue that
creativity may be quelled and childhood taken away from students due to early use of
cognitive thinking and too much time spent on practical life skills.

What Are The Cons Of Creative Curriculum?

Disadvantages of creative curriculum can include a lack of structure and

organization, which can lead to chaos in the classroom. Additionally, this
style of teaching can miss out on key areas of knowledge. Teachers may also
feel uncomfortable teaching in this style, as it can be time consuming to
plan and be original.
 C
la
ss
ro
o
m

E The Creative Curriculum

n
vi
ro
The Montessori Curriculum n
m
e
nt
 Which is better?
• Creative Curriculum, is a teaching strategy that goes beyond the Montessori approach.  The
curriculum takes the best from the Montessori methods and then adds to them from other
approaches based on the very best research in early childhood learning and development.   In
other words, CC choose not to be limited to only one approach as in a Montessori school,
but rather to take the best from what research shows is most effective in early childhood
education.

Both systems offer a lot of flexibility to teachers, so the

more proactive and responsive the teacher, the better
the classroom experience.
 WHO CREATED THE HIGHSCOPE
APPROACH?
• The HighScope approach was created from the work of the Perry Preschool Project, a
research study conducted in the 1960s in Ypsilanti, MI. The focus of the project was to
determine whether a high-quality preschool program can affect outcomes in later life.
 WHAT ARE THE MAIN PRINCIPLES
OF HIGHSCOPE?
• The main principles of HighScope are active learning, hands-on exploration of materials,
shared control between teachers and children, and a whole-child approach to learning.
Children are encouraged to plan which materials to use and how to use them while teachers
support and scaffold their learning.
 WHAT ARE THE KEY
COMPONENTS OF HIGHSCOPE
CURRICULUM?
• Active learning is at the core of the HighScope curriculum, supported by
the daily routine, assessment, adult-child interaction, and the
learning environment. Routines are kept consistent. Anecdotal records
on a variety of developmental indicators are recorded as the assessment
tool. Adults and children work together to share control, and the learning
environment is organized carefully for children's use.
 HIGHSCOPE CONTENT
The HighScope curriculum is based around Key Developmental Indicators, or KDI. The 58 KDI (42 for infants
and toddlers) are essential skills for early childhood education, organized into eight categories:
• Approaches to Learning
• Social and Emotional Development
• Physical Development and Health
• Language, Literacy, and Communication
• Mathematics
• Creative Arts
• Science and Technology
• Social Studies

In each of these categories, teachers strive to incorporate the specific KDI in their lesson planning, in the types
of materials available to the children, and in the way they guide children in their social-emotional development.
Assessment incorporates these KDI and reflects the child's progress in each of the eight categories in the Child
Observation Record.
 DAILY ROUTINE
A key component of the HighScope classroom is the daily routine. The routine is kept consistent from day to day,
and generally includes the following components:
• Greeting Time
• Large Group Time
• Small Group Time
• Planning Time
• Work Time
• Recall Time
• Clean-Up Time
• Snack Time
• Outdoor Time
• Read Aloud Time
• Rest Time
 ASSESSMENT
• Assessment is conducted informally using anecdotal records. Teachers often keep a small
notebook at hand to jot down observations during the day showing evidence of each child's
growth across the content areas. These observations are compiled in the Child Observation
Record, or COR, which is shared with parents and serves as a journal of each child's
progress.

ADULT-CHILD INTERACTION
Adult-child interaction is key to HighScope's goal of shared control. With the help of
caring adults, children are encouraged to make choices in their play, while teachers
scaffold learning, help children make and review their plans for their play, and assist in
mediating conflicts.
LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
The learning environment should include three to four interest areas, clearly labeled and stocked with materials. Possible

interest areas include:

• art area
• book area
• house area
• writing area
• toy area

Specific materials are not required, so programs are free to develop their areas using the materials they have available or

are of interest to the children in their group. Children may select materials freely, as opposed to programs that focus on

a "centers" approach where children rotate through activities. Areas should be laid out in a manner that considers how

they will be used. For example, having the house area near the building area may provoke children to use blocks to build

a restaurant using dishes from the house area. Similarly, having the book area in a quiet part of the room creates a cozy

place for tired children to relax.

 HighScope Curriculum vs. Creative Curriculum

HighScope and Creative Curriculum are successful

methods of preschool programming that are intended to
create the best learning environment possible in the
classroom. Each is centered around well-researched
philosophies of growth and development of children.
Both are widely used in public and private preschools as
well as Head Start programs.
 Theory
Creative Curriculum is a teacher-directed method of classroom planning.
Keeping in mind children's interests, the teacher plans the daily activities and
areas of learning.

HighScope allows children to develop their own daily schedule and

learning interests with the teacher as a facilitator who guides the process.
The Classroom Environment

Both HighScope and Creative Curriculum classrooms are arranged into

clearly-defined areas of interest requiring different sets of skills, such as art,
dramatic play, science and blocks.

HighScope teachers carefully design the areas to promote a process called

"active learning."

Creative Curriculum teachers pay special attention to community-building and

social problem-solving during play.
What Children are Learning
HighScope and Creative Curriculum are both designed
to give adequate attention to important skill
development in the fields of language and literacy,
social studies, math and science, and the arts. Many
states have adopted early childhood education
standards or ways to measure how preschool programs
incorporate these critical subjects into their curriculum.

Benefits

Both HighScope and Creative Curriculum have research-based

assessment tools to track each child's growth and development
in the classroom. This gives teachers the ability to see an
individual child's progress and/or focus on areas that need
attention.
Considerations

HighScope teachers obtain certification in the correct use of the curriculum in

the classroom. Creative Curriculum teachers do not need certification, but
ongoing trainings keep teachers informed of successful teaching strategies.

Comparison of Models

While both recognize the role of physical, social and emotional

development for children, The Creative Curriculum square
attention on “the vital role of the teacher” while HighScope
emphasizes the importance of planning and reflection through
its plan-do-review strategy
It is true that The Creative Curriculum places emphasis on the teacher and his or
her role while HighScope commits to more the personal choices of every child, but
both approaches are appealing because they both subscribe to the idea that children
need both careful nurturing and personal respect. The difference between them in
this capacity is only a matter of emphasis and does not constitute true
differentiation.

In HighScope, “teachers establish a safe and nurturing classroom environment where children
can be happy and busy pursuing their interests” and in The Creative Curriculum, teachers
emphasize “responsiveness to children’s strengths, interests, needs and learning syles
Which is better:
CREATIVE?
MONTESORRI?
HIGH SCOPE?
CREATIVE, MONTESSORI, AND
HIGH SCOPE CURRICULUM
MODELS: THE COMPARATIVE
STUDY

Jourdyn B. Pansoy, LPT, Top 2

CREATIVE, MONTESSORI, AND
HIGH SCOPE CURRICULUM
MODELS: THE COMPARATIVE
STUDY

Jourdyn B. Pansoy, LPT, Top 2

Jourdyn B. Pansoy, LPT, Top 2