EXAMPLE CLASSMAT POST AND REPLYBrittany Felder posted Oct 4, 2.docx

EXAMPLE CLASSMAT POST AND REPLY
Brittany Felder posted Oct 4, 2017 11:39 PM
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PERFECT COMPETITION
Industry: McDonald’s
Menu: You Pick 2 (i.e. 2 items for $5.00)
You can order a Big Mac and a Quarter Pounder, or a
Cheeseburger and a Filet-O-Fish. Either way you’re getting 2
items for $5.00. As we know there are many McDonalds’ within
blocks of each other and they all have You Pick 2 on the menu.
This would be an example of Perfect Competition because the
McDonalds franchise cannot (or does not) charge anything
additional because everyone knows the price is 2 for $5.00. This
makes it a level playing field for all the McDonalds’.
This is considered Perfect Competition because there is a
plethora of sellers in the fast food industry. Regarding barriers
to entry, McDonalds has created a huge barrier to entry in the
fast food market through all their spending and advertising
throughout the years; they have been around long enough to
establish stronger barriers and therefore have higher economic
profit potential. As far as attributes go, much of its success
more than likely stems from working closely with suppliers and
staying on top of market trends. They know what consumers
want, hence the deals they always have on the menu. Most
Americans enjoy burgers and fries, so why not make them
affordable all the time. It was also very smart of McDonald’s to
accommodate the healthier eaters, who can no order a salad
from the drive-thru. McDonald’s plays well in the market and
continues to thrive.
MONOPOLY
Industry: Apple Brand

Apple has only been around since 1976. We all know that they
design and sell consumer electronics, and computer software. I
view them as a Monopoly market structure because they are a
single seller, and sell unique products in the market that are in
which only tailored to other apple products. They have the
Iphone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch, Apple TV, iOS, macOs etc.
All of these products are unique to the Apple company. Despite
other techy brands out there, Apple really has no competition
(even though PC’s were running neck and neck in the market),
especially when their products are not universal or generic.
They even went as far to make the headphones a specific design
so that consumers can only use Apple headphones in an Apple
phone. A very smart and expensive idea (it is also quite
inconvenient when it comes to consumers who don’t want to
spend $50.00 on a new pair of headphones every time they need
new ones).
Regarding barriers to entry, I would say that one thing Apple
has significant product differentiation. They have a unique
identifier and no other brand out there can be misconstrued as
being an Apple product.
Regarding the attributes of Apple, I think they are successful
because for one thing, they provide great customer service in
the Apple Store, along with other perks such as being able to
test out the new gadgets they have on display. They also have
user friendly products and yet still manage to keep up with the
trends.
Apple and PC/Microsoft have been going at it for a while but
Apple has done an amazing job at setting itself apart from other
tech brands.
Sources
http://techland.time.com/2012/05/07/six-reasons-why-apple-is-
successful/
https://www.google.com/search?q=mcdonalds+perfect+competit
ion&oq=Mcdonalds+perfe&gs_l=psy-
ab.1.0.0j0i22i30k1l4j0i22i10i30k1j0i22i30k1l4.3150.4000.0.59
35.6.6.0.0.0.0.158.616.4j2.6.0....0...1.1.64.psy-

ab..0.6.613...0i131k1j0i10k1j0i131i67k1j0i67k1.0.MjZM7hPEF
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· View profile card for Shamiso Ngongoni
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Shamiso Ngongoni
Oct 8, 2017 10:24 PM
I definitely had not thought of the food business as an example
of perfect competition. But I do agree that anyone can sell food
so there is an easy entry and exit into the business. Depending
on the scale it may not be very expensive to enter into the
business. Most times the food itself very similar especially
when you compare fast food menus. Other options are food
truck business and catering.
Tech industry is definitely the most common and new source of
monopolies, It is not easy to find perfect monopolies.
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XXXXXXXXX
EEC 610: CURRICULUM THEORY PAPER
Curriculum is a hot topic across schools in our nation.

What is the right kind and how should it be used and set up in
the classroom? Throughout my educational background, I have
learned about many different theorist, approaches, and focuses
that have helped to mold me into the educator I am today. My
belief is that curriculum is the knowledge and experiences
gained by students; this includes age appropriate subject
content, social development, achievement goals, and
independent life skills. Curriculum is so much more than just
want is taught through a state standard. I believe curriculum
should be taught by both educators and the students so that it
shows how we are all learners and can always learn something
new. How much a student learns and how it is used by the
student depends on many different factors including the school
and home environments. The purpose of my own curriculum
based on my beliefs would be to educate and develop the whole
student with the goal of understanding the world around them,
how to think and build understanding of subject content areas,
and how to interact with other in their environment. When
curriculum is referred to in this paper, I am describing how
curriculum should cover the entire scope of learning in the
classroom. It can be applied to each content area and across
elementary grade levels.
My curriculum approach would include a school
environment where students are the focus. Teachers would be
expected to closely assess the needs of all students in subject
content areas, social and behavioral developments. I want the
teachers in this environment to be able to help students to have
authentic experiences to construct knowledge, build peer
relationships, and reflect on behavior with a focus of making
positive choices. Most of all, I want the students to come to
school and feel safe and secure and that they can trust that the
teachers are there to help them to grow. In the classroom, the
students should feel safe to ask questions, to practice what they
are learning, and to share with the teachers and their peers in
the classroom. To create this environment, the teachers will
focus on planning activities that allow for peer discussion

groups, for students to explore different learning topics, and
make mistakes and learn from the mistakes made. Lessons will
include hands-on discovery by students, student success
mapping so the students will be involved in setting and
achieving goals, lessons planned to build upon student
strengths, and clear expectations of what is expected in
academic and behavior inside and outside the school. All of
these things together will help the students to recognize each of
their purpose in the class, the school, and the community. The
classroom will be organized and set up so that the students will
have access to all materials needed. All materials will be set up
in a way that students can locate materials and use them as part
of their learning process.
The instructional techniques that I will use in my
classroom would include many parts. First I will share the
expectations of the lessons we will be working on so the
students can better understand the goal and purpose of what is
being learned. I will have the students to map their own
understanding using organizers and charts when necessary.
Second, I will use informal assessments to guide the lessons so
that I am able to teach the students where they are at in their
understanding. I will have students to use graphic organizers,
use manipulatives, and use technology to extend parts of the
lessons. Students will use binders and notebooks to keep up
with practice, questions, and answers to help them to self
monitor throughout learning process. Textbooks will be used in
a way to help guide discussions and as a resource but not the
only way for students to gain knowledge because it is not best
for all students (based on reading levels). The lessons will be
taught using music, art, projects, research, and discovery work.
The teacher will introduce lesson goals and purpose and help to
relate prior knowledge into what is being learned, but the
students will lead discussions and to give them an opportunity
to explain their own thinking and reasoning. This will help the
students to hear peer thinking and either defend or add to their
own thinking. I want to include activities that involve

community and family members to build relationships and
understandings of the different people make up our community
and their cultures and experiences.
The lesson plans for my curriculum would follow state
standards (as mandated by my district) but not for the purpose
of standardized tests. I want my students to be able to
understand and apply knowledge for the purpose of gaining
knowledge, not for just a test score. The curriculum would
follow state standards but not district guidelines of when to
teach or for how long. I want the students understanding and
mastery to be what guides the time line of how long content will
be taught. There will be areas of content that will need to be
taught longer or shorter based on the needs of the students.
The learning process for my curriculum approach will
include students learning and giving feedback, experiencing and
applying content, and discussion and reflection. I want the
students to have authentic experiences that give them the chance
to build on their knowledge, apply the knowledge they have
obtained, and discuss and reflect. The lessons planned should
include opportunities for students to participate in these
activities and used to guide instructional time. Each of these
processes will allow the teacher to perform an informal
assessment on student thinking and understanding and can help
in planning the next step in the lesson. Students will also have
other activities to be assessed for learning content such as
interactive notebooks, exit slips, organizers, and more. The
students will be assessed at the end of a unit to determine
mastery. The end of unit assessment should be catered to the
activities that were practiced and assessed through the informal
observations to show if the understanding improved. Lessons in
math, social studies, and reading will be taught using mostly
inquiry, where students will have the opportunity to build upon
prior knowledge and have activities to help them to construct
new knowledge. Science lessons will be taught using both
inquiry and transformation to build knowledge. Lessons in
grammar and spelling often include rules of application and will

be taught using transaction to give the students the rules and
help them to practice using the rules correctly. The
transmission lessons will be much shorter than the inquiry and
transformative lessons since it is mostly teacher led and I want
the lessons to be student led as much as possible.
In the classroom, there will be many important roles. The
teacher will help to lead instructional time by giving the
purpose and goal for learning, he/she will observe, perform
informal assessments and prepare instructional time based on
assessments, and plan for lessons and activities that are age and
developmentally appropriate and moderate discussions within
the students. The students will lead the discovery, hands-on,
and most of the discussions between the students as well as self
assess/map their success. Parents and families will be
encouraged to participate in activities occurring in the
classroom to bring different cultural experiences to the students
and build relationships with the teacher and students. Parents
and teacher will communicate with each other about success and
improvements needed so that all have a goal of helping the
student to be successful. To help facilitate the home-school
connection, I will make sure to communicate with families
about all experiences, giving praise for successes and sharing
plans for improvement when a student needs more support. I
want parents to be part of the learning process and extend
content to the home environment. I will send out weekly
newsletters so parents can stay informed. These newsletters
will include information on what types of activities we will be
working on, examples of strategies being used, and resources on
who to extend study to home. I want my parents to feel that they
have a way to stay in touch and help their student to be
successful.
I have built my understanding of a curriculum approach
based on many different experiences in my educational
background. My belief about the curriculum that should be
used in the classroom is derived from many, one of which is
Piaget. Piaget believed that children needed many different

opportunities to learn because “children learn best when they
are actually doing the work themselves and creating their own
understanding of what’s going on instead of being given
explanations by adults” (Mooney, 2013, p. 79). Also,
Vygotsky’s theory about how children interact helped me to see
the importance of social interactions between students. Part of
this theory “shows that social and cognitive development work
together and build on each other” and “the world children
inhabit is shaped by their families, communities, socioeconomic
status, education, and culture” (Mooney, 2013, p. 100). This
helps to remind me that I have a large part in building the
values and beliefs that will impact the development of the
students as well as their families and the community around
them and that is why it is important to me to build a strong
home-school connection with the families of my students.
Below is my curriculum theory representation organizer:
Works Cited
Mooney, C. G. (2013). An introduction to Dewey, Montessori,
Erikson, Piaget, & Vygotsky. St. Paul: Redleaf Press.
School & community Values Respected
Clear student expectations

Student Success Mapping
Students Strengths Built Upon
Summative Assessment Instruction
Enriching instructions & use of strategies
Hands-on, real world, student led discovery

7
RUNNING HEAD: Handwriting Curriculum 1
Handwriting Curriculum 2
A Handwriting Curriculum for Kindergarten
XXXXXXXXXXX
University of Alabama at Birmingham
School of Education

One skill that is vital for all students is the ability to write.
Handwriting is a skill that is required for children to be
successful in all subjects in every grade level. Students use
handwriting to complete tests, projects, homework, and take
notes in class. Writing is used throughout the curriculum. With
handwriting being a major part of education, the art of
handwriting should be part of the curriculum and teachers must
use an established handwriting curriculum to instruct students
to become not only better writers, but readers as well.
A well-established curriculum is a necessity in primary
classrooms in order to achieve learning objectives. According
to Oliva (2004), in fact “…every school in which teachers are
instructing a curriculum exists” (p. 2). The curriculum can also
be defined as a “…course of study,” or “…a set of materials”
(Oliva, 2004, p. 3). In the article Partners in Learning: 0-5
Curriculum Guidelines, Strathclyde Regional Council (1994)
goes on to explain that a curriculum includes children using
logic to learn about their world by using their senses to learn
and explore, using schema to discover new information, and
share their discoveries with the ones around them. Adults
further a child’s curriculum development by celebrating the
child’s achievements and sharing in their interests, encouraging
each child, interacting with the child, and developing lessons to
further a child’s learning or interests (Strathclyde Regional
Council, 1994). These ideas of curriculum all work together to
make a valuable learning experience for each child.
Dewey, Vygotsky, Montessori, and Piaget all believed
curriculum and “…education should be child centered;
education must be both active and interactive; and education
must involve the social word of the child and the community”
(Mooney, 2013, p. 16). In a perfect classroom that was free of
state mandated materials and learning objectives, my
kindergarten classroom curriculum would be focused on student
exploration, inquiry, and play. We would focus on child
socialization through dramatic play and exploring our
environment in order to maintain student engagement. Learning

objectives would be based on student readiness and reading and
math instruction would not be forced on any students who are
not developmentally ready for it. In a perfect kindergarten
classroom, students would practice cutting skills, writing their
name, learning their alphabet, and singing songs. Student
creativity would be encouraged as work would be placed around
the classroom to encourage a love of school and learning. All
these things would be present in my perfect kindergarten
classroom; however, we do not live in a perfect world and state
mandates, test scores, and learning objectives fill our
classrooms and are evident in the schools. In my personal
classroom my curriculum consists of collaboration and dialogue
among students, both guided and independent practice, as well
as some manipulative activities embedded in our school
system’s mandated reading, math, and handwriting programs of
study.
Within the current curriculum at my school there are math
and reading programs that teachers must follow in order for
students to master each grade level’s skills. Pell City Schools
has already adopted both reading and math programs, but this
next year our principal is allowing each elementary grade level
to choose a different handwriting program and curriculum to
meet the needs of our students. Nonetheless, many teachers feel
that since handwriting is not tested or a part of the Common
Core Standards that educators should not be held accountable to
instruct students in the correct way to produce written language
such as letters, words, and sentences (Berninger, 2012).
Common Core writing standards addresses student writing
pieces, not the actual composition of letters and how to form
words from the letters (National Governors Association Center
for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers,
2010). According to Vander Hart, Fitzpatrick, and Cortesa
(2009), “There is a growing body of literature that indicated
that handwriting instruction is important not only for learning
letter formation, but that it also impacts other aspects of
academic performance, especially for young learners” (p. 674).

Research conducted by Berninger (2012) explains that
handwriting encourages improvement in a person’s working
memory, letter naming, letter formation, “…visual and touch
sensory information,” and the integration of letters and words
with finger movements of writing (p. 28). Thoroughly
explained by researchers Snow, Burns, and Griffin (1998), by
the end of kindergarten students should be able to successfully
complete the following: independently write many uppercase
and lowercase letters, write their own name (first and last),
write most letters and some words when dictated, and use
phonemic awareness and letter knowledge to spell
independently (invented or creative spelling) (p. 80). The
importance of a grade level handwriting curriculum cannot be
stressed enough and is something that all grade levels should be
required to teach.
Other learning outcomes have been documented as a result
of daily handwriting instruction. In a study conducted in
Wales, 422 students ages 8 to 9 years old participated in a
handwriting study to see the correlation between practiced, neat
handwriting or poor, sloppy handwriting and the student’s IQ,
working memory, and spelling and reading abilities. During the
trial, participants were asked to give a writing sample that
included writing their name, writing the alphabet, writing
numerals 0-10 three times, and copying a short paragraph with
38 words on it. Data was then analyzed and compared to
student test scores and results showed that students with “poor
or very poor” handwriting had considerably “…lower verbal IQ
scores than the children with good or very good handwriting”
(McCarney, Peters, Jackson, Thomas, & Kirby, 2013, p. 116).
This sample was able to explain the importance of handwriting
instruction and the effect it can have on primary students.
Researchers McCarney et al. (2013) report “Without sufficient
additional practice to build up their handwriting skills and
attain automaticity, these children may struggle to demonstrate
their potential in other areas” (p.117).
There are many handwriting programs that are available to

teachers and school systems to purchase. Each have their own
positive components, as well as negative ones. For our
kindergarten classes at Walter M. Kennedy Elementary, our
handwriting curriculum approach will allow students to develop
their handwriting to improve writing and reading skills. Our
school system has used Handwriting Without Tears for the past
three years and sadly have not seen the large amount of
improvement that we had hoped for. For this reason, our
kindergarten grade level is going to pilot Frog Street Press to
develop our kindergarten handwriting curriculum.
The Frog Street program provides primary age students and
teachers many great resources to implement a successful
handwriting curriculum. After much research, the Frog Street
website (2014) lists varying programs that can be purchased for
primary classrooms. Frog Street (2014) offers materials that
encourage reading, math, and learning skills for infants,
toddlers, preschool students, kindergarten students, and first
grade students. The program even addresses bilingual
differences in children and ways teachers address needs for
these students. For the kindergarten curriculum at Walter M.
Kennedy Elementary, we are going to only be implementing the
writing program. There are many materials available to order
online. Some of these include: teacher instruction guide, Frog
Street LIVE DVD, Mr. Pencil Big Book, Frog Street writing
paper, classroom package of writing journals, Reagan’s journal,
Frog Street A to Z iPad app, and the family involvement kit.
We chose to use this particular handwriting program because, as
teachers, we appreciate the many resources available to
introduce, instruct, and reinforce the skills that the program
addresses.
Handwriting curriculums employ many teaching strategies
that are used in order to be effective for all students. Along
with using the Frog Street program, the kindergarten
handwriting curriculum will have direct instruction and
modeling, guided practice, individual practice, and phonics
progression. All of these teaching strategies are related and

work together to benefit the learners. Direct instruction
includes the introduction of the letters and words used in
writing and how they are formed. Teachers use modeling to
show correct penmanship. Teachers also can include guided
practice into their daily teaching to instruct their students on
correct letter formation and word writing (Graham, Harris,
Mason, Fink-Chorzempa, Moran, & Saddler, 2007). A
successful handwriting curriculum also applies individual
practice, which allows the student time to perfect their writing
ability. Especially in primary grades, phonics instruction is
applied throughout the handwriting lesson when the individual
letter is discussed, the letter sound is reviewed, and when
sounding out words that will be taught during writing. The
Frog Street program will aid in addressing the phonics portion
with songs about each letter and letter sounds, as well as words
that begin with the letter that is taught. This handwriting model
must be comprised of direct instruction and modeling, guided
practice, individual practice, and phonics instruction to be
successful in kindergarten classrooms at my school and I have
included a graphic representation of the handwriting curriculum
model at the end of this paper.
Assessment proves to be a central component in any
curriculum model. In a study conducted by Graham et al.
(2007), three out of every five teachers assessed students’
handwriting abilities. Many of the teachers used informal
observations to assess each child’s penmanship abilities. Of the
teachers involved in the study, 44% assessed a child’s
penmanship based on readability and spacing, while 38% used
checklists to assess. Graham (2010) also explains that students
should strive for neatness in their handwriting on tests,
homework, letters, or papers. Legibility is key for assessing a
child’s handwriting ability. In kindergarten, we do not give
grades when assessing students. We use formative assessment
to monitor student learning and see possible ways to improve
their handwriting. I also use rubrics to score student writing
samples. A major part of the writing sample is neat

handwriting. Therefore, even though we do not give grades
based on a child’s handwriting, assessment is still used to
determine areas of improvement and this proves to be a key
component to a handwriting curriculum.
After teachers develop their handwriting curriculum and
choose a program, they must also create an exciting
environment for handwriting to be taught in. According to
Graham (2010), there are many best practices that teachers must
follow in order to foster a love of writing in all students. In the
article “Want to Improve Children's Writing?” the author
explains that educators must reinforce “…successful efforts and
providing corrective feedback as needed” as well as monitoring
student progress (Graham, 2010, p. 55). He (2010) also states
that instructors must remain encouraging in order for students to
be successful in their writing. Snow et al. (1998) explains that
teachers and the environment must be motivating for the
students. The authors (1998) also add that most student enter
the primary grades with positive attitudes and motivation;
however, if teachers do not continue this motivation, the child
usually becomes discouraged. For this reason, teachers must
continually motivate their children on a daily basis. One way
that teachers can create this type of environment is by using
positive feedback, positive reinforcement, and praise for
students’ penmanship progress. Another way for educators to
encourage their students is to post student work samples around
the room or school to be viewed by their peers. While doing
this, students can feel proud of their work and continue to work
to improve their personal handwriting abilities. By fostering an
environment that is encouraging, reinforcing, and one that
monitors success, students are able to fully develop their
handwriting skills and maintain a positive experience for each
child.
Teachers play a key role in curriculum planning and
implementation in the classroom. Time spent planning is
crucial for teachers that are developing a new handwriting
curriculum. One thing that educators must take into account is

the amount of time spent on handwriting each day. Research
indicates handwriting should be taught every day for short
periods of time. According to Graham and Miller (1980),
handwriting should be taught consistently for 50 to 100 minutes
a week. Ediger (1979) says that when teaching handwriting,
young primary students’ attention spans are generally not as
long as students who are older and have higher stamina for
longer lessons. Young students also become tired more easily
“…because the finer muscles, involving the use of the arm,
hand, and fingers, are being developed gradually” (p. 3).
Graham (2010) also supports this knowledge by stating that
teachers should not have students practice the same letter
repeatedly in a single lesson. Instead, after presenting the
letter, students can spend a small amount of time writing it
under a teacher’s supervision. After this, the teacher can
evaluate the student’s work and practice in later sessions if
needed.
Teachers strive for each lesson to be engaging for every
student. Learning letters, letter sounds, and how to write letters
can be uninteresting for many students; however, teachers can
use a variety of tools to make what could be a lackluster lesson
into an engaging one for all students. Ediger (1979) explains
that educators must using “varying approaches” to teach
students so they can “…assist learners to maintain a longer
attention span pertaining to teaching-learning situations
involving handwriting experiences” (p. 4). Later in the same
article, the author (1979) adds that students should enjoy
handwriting lessons. One way educators can modify lessons is
to use Frog Street’s Live DVD which offers “…visual formation
of letters along with auditory prompts for student practice”
(Schiller et al., 2014). This interactive DVD allows for teachers
to vary lessons and encourage other ways of learning for their
students.
While teachers remain a vital component to the curriculum,
students also play a significant role in the teaching and learning
process. According to Ediger (1979), “pupils should exhibit

continuous progress in handwriting” (p. 6). In order for this to
occur, students must always work to achieve goals that teachers
have set for them in handwriting, while listening and following
directions as to how to correctly practice their handwriting
skills. Students must understand how to form letters and words
correctly, making sure they are aligned, spaced and neat.
Students also need a desire to achieve a feeling of improvement
in handwriting (Ediger, 1979). Understanding the importance of
handwriting is also a necessity. Writing skills are used to
demonstrate a student’s understanding on tests and homework
(Vander Hart et al., 2010). Students must understand the
importance of handwriting and its place in society. In a study
conducted by Puranik and AlOtaiba (2012), results show that
students who do not practice handwriting skills including letter
writing and spelling at a young age can cause problems for
writing abilities later in life. Furthermore, the study indicates
that students who do not practice penmanship have difficulties
in spelling words and even becoming fluent readers.
Parents can play an important role in many primary
student’s schooling and learning experience. The home-school
relationship has proven to be pivotal in the learning process for
many students. Research has confirmed that handwriting must
be repeatedly practiced in order to become automatic for
students (Snow et al., 1998; McCarney et al., 2013). This extra
practice can be done at home to reinforce the skills being taught
at school. The Frog Street program (2014) offers a Family
Involvement Kit that students are able to take home with them
and have parents become involved in their child’s writing. This
kit establishes writing guidelines for parents to follow, as well
as potential writing prompts that can reinforce what is being
taught daily in the classroom (Schiller, 2014). Families can see
the development of their child’s writing and celebrate their
child’s personal achievements in handwriting.
Handwriting is an essential skill needed for students to
succeed in school. Research has proven numerous times over
the many impacts that handwriting can have when taught every

day in primary grades. Handwriting has also shown to improve
a child’s reading ability when used in conjunction with phonics
instruction. For this reason, a developed handwriting
curriculum should be present in all classrooms in our county.
Handwriting
Handwriting Curriculum
Handwriting
Individual Practice
Phonics Instruction

Direct Instruction and Modeling
Guided Practice
References
Berninger, V. W. (2012). Strengthening the mind's eye.
Principal, 91(5), 28-31.
Ediger, M. (1979). Handwriting and the Pupil. Retrieved from
ERIC (EBSCO host).
Graham, S. (2010). Want to improve children's writing?.
Education Digest, 76(1), 49.
Graham, S., Harris, K. R., Mason, L., Fink-Chorzempa, B.,
Moran, S., & Saddler, B. (2007). How do primary grade
teachers teach handwriting? A national survey. Reading and
Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 21(1-2), 49-69.
Graham, S., & Miller, L. (1980). Handwriting research and
practice: A unified approach. Focus on Exceptional Children,
13, 1–16.
McCarney, D., Peters, L., Jackson, S., Thomas, M., & Kirby, A.
(2013). Does poor handwriting conceal literacy potential in
primary school children?. International Journal of Disability,
Development and Education, 60(2), 105-118.

Mooney, C. (2013). Theories of childhood: An introduction to
Dewey, Montessori, Erikson, Piaget, & Vygotsky (2nd ed.).
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, &
Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010). Common Core
State Standards. Retrieved from http://www.corestandards.org
Oliva, P. F. (2004). Curriculum and Instruction Defined. In
Developing the Curriculum (Chapter 1, pp. 1-20). Allyn and
Bacon.
Puranik, C. S., & AlOtaiba, S. (2012). Examining the
contribution of handwriting and spelling to written expression
in kindergarten children. Reading & Writing, 25(7), 1523-1546.
Schiller, P., Flor Ada, A., Campoy, F.I., & Mowry, B. (2014).
Frog Street Press. Retrieved from www.frogstreet.com
Snow, C.E., Burns, S., & Griffin, P. (Eds.). (1998). Preventing
reading difficulties in young children. Washington, DC:
National Academy Press.
Strathclyde Regional Council, G. (. (Scotland). (1994). Partners
in Learning: 0-5 Curriculum Guidelines.
Vander Hart, N., Fitzpatrick, P., & Cortesa, C. (2010). In-depth
analysis of handwriting curriculum and instruction in four
kindergarten classrooms. Reading and Writing: An
Interdisciplinary Journal, 23(6), 673-699.
Child
DAP

Family
Parental involvement
School
Teachers as Facilitators
Social Development
Emotional Development
Cultural Differences
Creativity
Learning Styles
Physical Development

Cognitive Development
Literate Environment
Positive Role Models
Collaboration Between School and Home
Integration of Technology
Hands-on Learning
Library Card
Home-School Activities

Inquiry Learning
Safe and Secure Environment
Small Group Instruction
Large Group instruction
Value Education
PTA/PTO

School Volunteer
This assignment about (Curriculum Theory Paper)
Each student will write a paper detailing his or her personal
beliefs about curriculum. (Your paper will be approximately 8-
10 pages in length including references)
Guiding Questions for Curriculum Theory Paper:
· ✓ If you could design your own curriculum based on
your core beliefs, free from outside mandates, what would it
look like?
· ✓ Are you designing a curriculum model, curriculum
approach, or curriculum framework? What ages/grades does
your curriculum cover?
· ✓ Are you developing your paper to cover the entire
scope of the curriculum or are you addressing a more specific
area such as language arts, science, or mathematics?
· ✓ What are the sources (theoretical, scientific, or
philosophical) of your beliefs about curriculum and learning?
· ✓ How do you define curriculum?
· ✓ What are the sources for your curriculum
(children, you, theory, standards, district guidelines, teaching
team, parents, text book publishers)?

· ✓ What materials will you use to carry out your
curriculum?
· ✓ What kind of environment is needed to support the
curriculum? Specifically, what will you do to create such an
environment?
· ✓ What instructional techniques and teaching
strategies will you use in implementing your curriculum?
· ✓ Does your curriculum focus on learning content?
If so, which content areas?
· ✓ Does your curriculum focus on learning processes?
If so, which ones?
· ✓ How will you assess content and processes in your
curriculum?
· ✓ What are the roles of parents and community in
supporting or implementing the curriculum? What will you do
as a teacher to facilitate the home-school-community
partnership?
· ✓ How is your curriculum related to transmission,
transaction, inquiry, and/or transformation?
· ✓ What sources (primary, research-based, and
secondary) support your practices and beliefs? Use quotes and
examples to support your statements.
· ✓ What is your role as a teacher in planning and
implementing the curriculum?
· ✓ What is the role of the student in the teaching and
learning process?
· ✓ Graphic representation of your personal
curriculum framework included in your theory paper.
Christy Jill West Representation of Educational &
Developmental Theories Spring 2015 EEC610 Dr. Grace

School & community Values Respected
Clear student expectations
Student Success Mapping
Students Strengths Built Upon
Summative Assessment Instruction
Enriching instructions & use of strategies
Hands-on, real world, student led discovery

Child
DAP
Family
Parental involvement
School
Teachers as Facilitators
Social Development
Emotional Development

Cultural Differences
Creativity
Learning Styles
Physical Development
Cognitive Development
Literate Environment
Positive Role Models

Collaboration Between School and Home
Integration of Technology
Hands-on Learning
Library Card
Home-School Activities
Inquiry Learning
Safe and Secure Environment

Small Group Instruction
Large Group instruction
Value Education
PTA/PTO
School Volunteer
Running Head: CURRICULUM THEORY
10

Curriculum Theory Paper
XXXXXX
XXXXXXX
Curriculum Design
When I think about having the opportunity to design my own
curriculum based on my own core beliefs, I immediately picture
a classroom buzzing with activity where students are given the
opportunity to build on their own interests independently and
with peers. Some might say that I am a constructivist, however,
I do not believe I practice one teaching philosophy. I try to add
a mixture of philosophies and beliefs into my practice to help

meet the various needs of my students. Philosophers John
Dewey, Maria Montessori, Jean Piaget, and Lev Vygotsky share
the belief that “education should be child-centered; education
must be both active and interactive; and education must involve
the social world of the child and the community” (Mooney,
2000, p. 4).
Throughout this paper, I will be discussing and explaining my
very own curriculum approach. The goal of the school, faculty,
and staff is to meet the individual needs (academic, social,
emotional, behavioral, and physical) of all learners represented
in the school. Students will be encouraged to explore and
construct knowledge regarding their own interests, build
meaningful and trusting relationships with teachers and peers,
reflect and discuss positive and desirable behavior.
The curriculum will address all content areas. The lessons and
strategies incorporated throughout the curriculum will involve
preparation such as class grouping, goals and objectives, team
planning, and a timeline. Topics selected will be student-
centered encompassing content that sparks students’ interests.
The topics will be chosen by students based on dialogue with
peers and teacher. The resources will be gathered from a variety
of sources such as the internet, and print materials (books,
magazines, etc.) from the classroom library or school library.
Students will be encouraged to visit and collect additional
resources from their local public library as well.
Many of my ideas and beliefs have been acquired from the
textbook, The research ready classroom: Differentiating
instruction across content areas (Anderson & Dousis, 2006),
which includes many strategies and activities that are scientific
and research-based. I have also attained a variety of teaching
strategies and educational philosophy from Theories of
childhood: An introduction to Dewey, Montessori, Erikson,
Piaget, & Vygotsky (Mooney, 2000). Lastly, my own experience
as an educator has a significant impact on my beliefs about
curriculum and learning in the classroom.
Defining Curriculum

I believe curriculum is content that allows students to learn
information, build on skills and make connections with prior
knowledge. The curriculum is student-centered and research-
based allowing students to identify their own beliefs. The
instructional strategies integrated into curriculum supports
students questioning note taking skills, while meeting common
core standards, and instilling intrinsic motivation. Lastly, the
curriculum is the “what”, “how”, and “why” of teaching.
The sources for my curriculum includes myself, standards,
teaching team, parents, and text book publishers. I believe in
having multiple resources. This provides students with balance,
diversity, and multiple perspectives. My teaching strategies will
be student-centered and standards-based. The standards provide
a checklist for educators to follow as they teach. I do not think
teachers should feel restricted by the standards. Teachers should
take advantage of spontaneous teaching moments because it
creates valuable discussions and unforgettable learning
opportunities for students.
Curriculum Environment
The environment needed to support the curriculum will be
inviting, positive, stimulating, and encouraging. The teachers
will know their students well. Teachers will make personal
connections with their students through discussions, which will
help them identify their students’ talents, interests, and personal
backgrounds. Students will have the opportunity to interact and
engage with all faculty and staff through morning meetings,
school activities, and specials. Students will be encouraged to
discover their hopes and dreams with their peers and teachers.
Teachers will practice a school-wide discipline policy where all
students, teachers, and parents are aware of the rules and
consequences. All faculty and staff will be expected to model
and practice desired behaviors just like students. Everyone in
the school will be paired with an older accountability partner
who encourages them to stay on track and exhibit positive

behavior. Students will have the opportunity to interact with
one another through a variety of games, activities, and class
meetings where students are placed in mixed-gender and mixed-
friend groups.
Instructional Techniques and Teaching Strategies
The instructional techniques practiced in the classrooms will
revolve around a purpose. The teachers will identify and define
goals, objectives, and meaning of the content being learned.
Broad and narrow questions will be encouraged throughout
whole group and small group discussions and higher order
thinking will be practiced during hands on activities, projects,
and presentations. Students will utilize graphic representations,
reading, math, and science journals, technology, print materials,
and manipulatives to build on and monitor their own
understanding and learning. Teachers will assess students’
knowledge by using authentic informative and summative
assessments.
Curriculum Focus
The curriculum will be focused on all content areas (math,
science, art, language arts, music, social studies, and
movement). Lessons and activities will be standards-based.
Students will participate in math and reading centers where
writing, manipulatives, music, art and hands on activities are
integrated. For science and social studies, students will be a
part of experiments, research projects, and individual and
grouped authentic presentations.
The learning process for my curriculum will be centered on
dialogue among whole group and small group discussions,
teacher-student conferences, and application of content.
Students will be given numerous opportunities to build, share,
and reflect on their own learning through discussions and
learning activities.
Curriculum Assessments
I will assess students on their knowledge and understanding by

having conferences with them weekly to discuss their learning
and progress. I will also use formative assessments such as
discussions involving questioning and higher order thinking,
check lists, rubrics, and journals. I will use progress checks
every six weeks in reading and math to measure students’
knowledge of content. Lastly, I will administer a standards
based assessment every 9 weeks assessing students in reading,
science, social studies, and math.
Parent and Community Involvement
Parents and community will be highly encouraged to be a part
of their child’s educational experience. The school will have
seasonal events (fall festival, 5K, etc.) to bring families and
community together. The parents will be invited to
reading/math/science night where students will have the
opportunity to share what they have learned thus far in their
class with their classmates. Teachers will encourage parents to
volunteer in a number of ways. Parents can attend field trips
and help decorate the classroom/hallways for different events.
Parents can also sign up to be the “mystery” reader for the week
or share their career or cultural background with students. The
community helpers (fire fighters, police men, mail men, nurses,
etc.) will be invited to come to the school on career day to share
their role in the community.
Curriculum and Transmission, Transaction, Inquiry, and/or
Transformation
The curriculum will be a combination of transmission,
transaction, inquiry, and transformation. The teacher will share
content information as well as personal knowledge and
experiences with students. The students will be given the
chance to share their personal connections with content through
whole group and small group discussions and conferences.
Students will explore their own interests throughout their
learning and build on it through hands-on activities involving
problem solving skills, making connections, and higher order
thinking skills. Additionally, the class will be given the
opportunity to serve in the community around them (i.e. writing

letters to elders, visiting the sick, recycling, etc.).
Supportive Sources for my Practices and Beliefs
The sources I found that support my practices and beliefs in
education include the following:
· “Raising healthy children is a labor-intensive operation.
Contrary to the news form the broader culture, most of what
children need, money cannot buy. Children need time and space,
attention, affection, guidance, and conversation. They need
sheltered places where they can be safe as they learn what they
need to know to survive.” Mary Pipher
· As an educator in a Title I school, I have received addition
funds to help support the instructional needs and materials for
my classroom. Although these tools have been supplemental in
my students learning progress, I firmly believe that attention,
engagement, and conversation is much more valuable and
meaningful to a child’s overall development.
· “As we speak today of dispositions for learning purposeful
curricula, shaping experiences through well-planned
environments, and many other theoretical and practical
conditions of teaching, we are discussing the issues that
interested Dewey and that he wrote and talked about” (Mooney,
2000, p. 3).
· Students need to be placed in an environment that is rich,
stimulating, and purposeful. Students and teachers need to set
personal goals for themselves for every lesson and activity. In
doing this, students and teaching are giving learning value and
meaning.
· “There is in every child at every stage a new miracle of
vigorous unfolding, which constitutes a new hope and a new
responsibility for all.” Erik Erikson
· Every individual is continuously entering new stages of life
with new challenges and experiences. As we enter these
different phases, we need to be open to new opportunities and
willing to take on new responsibilities.
· “Open-ended activities and questions support children’s
cognitive development because they ask children to think.

Instead of putting children in the position of being right or
wrong, they put them in the position of inquiry, of finding out
what the possibilities are, or how fast the bean sprout grows”
(Mooney, 2000, p. 75).
· Students thinking should never stop; just like our learning.
Educators should continuously be questioning their students to
promote higher-order thinking skills. In doing this, students are
encouraged to use their own imagination, which creates new
ideas to discuss and share.
· “Vygotsky believed that a child on the edge of learning a new
concept can benefit from interaction with a teacher or a
classmate” (Mooney, 2000, p. 85).
· Dialogue and discussions are a key element for everyone;
including students and adults. Social skills should be learned
and developed at a young age. Teachers can help students
practice social skills by integrating small group activities,
centers, whole group discussions, and teacher-student
conference. Students can also be compelled to practice dialogue
by sitting in table groups rather than in an individual desk.
Role of the Teacher and Students
My role as a teacher in planning and implementing the
curriculum is to primarily be behind the scenes while students
learn. I am facilitating groups, modeling and coaching for
improvement, managing time and behavior, observing,
assessing, reflecting, encouraging, and transitioning. The role
of the students in the classroom is to identify interests, respect
others, set academic and behavior goals, display responsibility
and respect, construct knowledge, practice learning, self-
evaluate, reflect, explore, play, and converse with others.

Graphic representation
Resources:
Anderson, M. & Dousis, A. (2006). The research ready
classroom: Differentiating instruction across content areas.
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Atherton J S (2013) Learning and teaching; curriculum [On-
line: UK] retrieved 10 July 2015
from
http://www.learningandteaching.info/teaching/curriculum.htm
Mooney, C. (2000). Theories of childhood: An introduction to
Dewey, Montessori, Erikson, Piaget, & Vygotsky. Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Pearson.
McGonigal, K. (2005). Teaching for transformation: From
learning theory to teaching strategies. Speaking of
Teaching,14(2).

Parent and community involvement
Differentiated teaching strategies and activities
Constructive , interactive, and reflective learning
Student-centered environments
Authentic summative and formative assessments
Consistent rules and expectations
Purposeful and meaningful curriculum
Exploration, experimentation, and imagination practiced

Taylor Harrison
Curriculum Theory Model
Handwriting

Individual Practice
Phonics Instruction
Direct Instruction and Modeling
Guided Practice
My handwriting curriculum model consists of many things that
allow for teachers to adequately teach handwriting and for
students to benefit from the curriculum. All of these things are
overlapping because you must have each of these to correctly
implement handwriting. Direct instruction and modeling is the
“I DO” portion of the lesson, while guided practice is the “WE
DO” portion of the lesson. The individual practice is the “YOU
DO” portion of the lesson and phonics instruction is applied
throughout the lesson when we discuss each individual letter,
the letter sound, and sounding out words that we learn to write.
The program that I will be implementing in my classroom is
Frog Street Press and comes with letter songs that we will also

sing to reinforce the letter, the letter sound, and words that
begin with the letter we are learning about/ writing about.
These songs keep students engaged throughout the handwriting
lesson. My handwriting curriculum must have all of these
components in order to be successful and meaningful for
everyone.
CLASSMATE POST Your reply to one other student should
be a minimum of 100 words.
Alexander Shellhaas posted Feb 26, 2018 9:51 PM
Subscribe
Perfect competition is a type of market that features a
large number of sellers, an identical product and extremely easy
access to and from a market. One of the economic aspects of
this is that it has a perfectly elastic demand curve. The supply
and demand of that particular market forces each dealer to
accept the equilibrium price. If the price is raised above that,
the dealer could end up selling absolutely nothing. If the price
is lowered, then the revenue would be lowered unnecessarily
when the product could be sold at a higher price (Tucker,
2017).
One of the closest examples of a market in perfect
competition would be a farmer’s market. All the vendors would
be selling the same items like produce and eggs. There would be
no shortage of people who are willing to deal these products.
Finally, there would be very few, if any, roadblocks to get into
or to leave the market. All that is needed for produce is a small
plot of land in a backyard. In order to vacate the market, the
seller would just simply not arrive the following week but could
come back at any time. No real-world market actually fits the
term of perfect competition literally (Tucker, 2017).
The monopoly is a market structure that is the absolute
opposite of perfect competition. The monopoly features a single
seller who has a resource that no one else possesses and where

the entry into the market is totally impenetrable. The reasons
why it is so difficult to get into a market include a business
would need ownership of an essential product, the government
only licensing that firm to supply the product to its inhabitants
and the fact they can produce the resource more cheaply in the
long run compared to having multiple firms produce it. This is
called economies of scale (Tucker, 2017).
A good example of a monopoly would be public
utilities. Water, electric and gas are given a unique franchise by
governments to operate in their jurisdiction and it enables those
people to be able to utilize the services at a very efficient rate.
The government then makes sure that price oppression does not
occur by supervising these utilities. This is very important
because monopolies have perfectly inelastic demand curves
which means that the demand remains the same regardless of the
price charged. The monopoly is able to set its own price for its
service due to the lack of any competition(Tucker, 2017).

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