Focus Wall in Preschool and Pre-K: Top 5 Myths Dispelled + BEST Alternatives!

Elevating Early Childhood

English - July 12, 2021 09:00 - 14 minutes - 13.6 MB - ★★★★★ - 232 ratings
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Previous Episode: My Favorite Alphabet Activities: How to Teach Letters to Kids Using Printable Alphabet Games

Next Episode: My Top 3 Tips for the Perfect Calm Down Cozy Corner

Are focus walls REALLY an effective teaching tool for preschool and pre-k? Find out on our first ever “Calm Down Corner” episode of our podcast!

As early childhood professionals, we’re frequently exposed to misinformation about educating young children. Inappropriate, unfounded practices are being shared on the internet left and right.

Shiny, buzzwordy—and completely opposite to how kids learn!

Not only are they ineffective, but they’re also a massive source of stress and anxiety for teachers because they make us feel like we’re not doing enough.

So to fight back, I’ll be getting on my soapbox from time to time and creating special episodes to dispel these harmful myths about early childhood education.

To get things started, I will bust the five biggest myths surrounding focus walls and their effectiveness. And to end the show on a constructive note, I’m going to share some of the best practices you can apply alternatively!

If you ever have any questions about other dubious early childhood education tips, feel free to reach out, and I might use it in one of my future “Calm Down Corner” specials. We can fight misinformation together!

And now, let’s dive into the show!

Key Takeaways:

- The two key things that help professional educators make instructional decisions (00:00)

- My first “Calm Down Corner” episode: dispelling top myths about focus walls (00:39)

- What is a focus wall and how does it supposedly “help” children learn? (02:28)

- Myth #1: Focus walls are research-based (03:35)

- Myth #2: Kids love focus walls, so it can’t hurt (04:25)

- Myth #3: Learning is linear (05:21)

- Myth #4: Focus walls help visual learners (06:07)

- Myth #5: They help children focus their attention (07:46)

- Best practices to use as alternatives for focus walls in your classroom (09:25)

- How to inspire young children to think critically and problem-solve (12:36)

Additional Resources:

- Visit our website to find tons of pre-K teaching resources here.

- Get my book “Teach Smarter: Literacy Strategies for Early Childhood Teachers”.

- Learn more about my membership program “Teaching Trailblazers”.

Elevating Early Childhood is an early education podcast dedicated to helping Pre-K, Preschool, and Kindergarten teachers teach better, save time, and live more.

If you enjoy the podcast, please follow, rate, and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform.

Onward & Upward!