I decided to compare two Kindergarten textbooks, since I am interested in this particular grade.  The teacher addition textbooks that I looked at

are Here I Am and Kindergarten Place.  The Kindergarten curriculum focuses on introducing these children to learning about themselves and others

and how it relates to everyone as a whole.  They learn how they are expected to act in society.

    I liked the layout of the Teacher’s Guide in Here I am.  I think that the main concepts and ideas that are taught in each lesson are easy to locate.  I

like how this book illustrates the examples of the projects so that the teacher can have an idea and can make their own example so that the children in

the class can visually see what is expected of them.  I think that it is very important for children at this age to see an example so that they can

understand how to go about doing the project without frustration.  The format of each lesson is laid out so that the teacher can easily guide herself

through the lesson using the key concepts throughout the entire lesson.  For example, the lesson is called, “At Work and the lesson overview is,

Family members earn a living by working.  The key concepts that will be used throughout the lesson are job, money, and worker (p.63)”.  At the end

of each unit there is a checklist, which I think can be very useful for teachers.  They will be able to see if they have met all of the requirements by

checking this list along with the Standard Course of Study.  Before the unit begins there is a unit organizer, which lets the teacher know the unit

overview and assessment opportunities.  There is also a unit bibliography that gives the teacher ideas about what books to read aloud, how to

incorporate technology and multimedia, and additional teacher books that may be useful.  Using all of these ideas and diverse approaches can make

a lesson a lot of fun.  It can open up many options and creative ideas for lessons.  This book also comes with a book of worksheets that can give

teachers ideas for additional assessment.

    I did not like the layout as much in Kindergarten Place.  These authors decided to take a totally different approach.  This book does not use

illustrations to demonstrate the ideas that are laid out in the book.  At the beginning of each theme (unit) the book briefly talks about the big theme

ideas and theme materials.  Each lesson has a list of questions that are supposed to challenge the children’s thinking.  This book demonstrates a lot of

ideas for the teacher by dividing them into different centers.  The teacher will receive ideas for reading centers, writing centers, math, music/listening,

building and construction, art, drama, and discovery.  If the teacher’s style does not consist of centers then I think that this book will not be as helpful

for that particular teacher.  I like how Here I Am went into their units by talking about Starting School and meeting families, instead of this book,

which jumps right into A Walk Through My Community.  I thought that the projects demonstrated were not as creative and fun for the children, but I

do think that this book can be helpful for different activities that teachers may choose to include in their lessons.

    I believe that the layout of a book is real important to the reader, especially if the reader has to teach what they learn to a class.  I think that if the

educator is not excited about the material and is not able to follow it, then there may be a tendency for them to disregard the subject or leave it out as

much as possible.  The children will sense if a teacher is not excited and interested in what they are teaching.
 
 

Work Cited

Banks, Beyer, Contreras, Craven. Here I Am. Macmillan/McGraw-Hill, 1997.

Wassermann, Selma. Kindergarten Place. Silver Burdett Ginn, 1995.