The expectations and the frames

The overall expectations (OEs) in the Kindergarten program are listed in the following chart, and the frame or frames with which each one is associated are indicated in the four right-hand columns. (See “The Four Frames of the Kindergarten Program”, in Chapter 1.1.) In some cases, an overall expectation is connected with more than one frame.

The expectations are numbered from one to thirty-one (OE1 to OE31) to allow for quick reference in professional learning conversations. The numbering does not suggest an order of learning or development, or a hierarchy of importance or priority. It is important to bear in mind that the various aspects and areas of learning are interconnected. The approach taken in the organization of overall and specific expectations in this document reflects the integrated way in which learning occurs in children’s play and inquiry in Kindergarten.

After the list of overall expectations there are four chapters (4.3 to 4.6) – one dedicated to each of the four frames – that illustrate pedagogy in connection with the overall expectations and specific expectations (SEs) that relate to the frame.footnote 1 Each chapter begins with a list of the OEs associated with the frame, followed by a chart for each OE and the conceptual understandings that are associated with it. Each chart provides examples illustrating how children and educators, as observers and inquirers, “make thinking and learning visible” in the context of the frame. (The examples are intended only as illustrations and as a guide for educators; they are not descriptions of required interactions.)

When an overall expectation relates to more than one frame – for example, OE1: communicate with others in a variety of ways, for a variety of purposes, and in a variety of contextsit appears in each of the relevant frames, along with the specific expectations that relate to that frame. So, when OE1 is discussed in Chapter 4.4, “Self-Regulation and Well-Being”, the relevant specific expectations are included and the examples and discussion reflect communication as it relates to self-regulation and well-being; when it appears in Chapter 4.5, “Demonstrating Literacy and Mathematics Behaviours”, the specific expectations and examples included reflect communication as it relates to literacy and mathematics behaviours.

In the following chart, the four frames are represented by the four columns on the right, as follows:

BC
Belonging and Contributing
SRWB
Self-Regulation and Well-Being
DLMB
Demonstrating Literacy and Mathematics Behaviours
PSI
Problem Solving and Innovating

An x in a column indicates that the expectation is associated with that frame. An expectation may be associated with one or more frames. Clicking on an x takes the reader directly to the overall expectation (and its expectation chart) in the chapter for that frame (Chapter 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, or 4.6).

The overall expectations in the Kindergarten program, by frame

As children progress through the Kindergarten program they:

BC

SRWB

DLMB

PSI

1.  communicate with others in a variety of ways, for a variety of purposes, and in a variety of contexts

xxxx

2.  demonstrate independence, self-regulation, and a willingness to take responsibility in learning and other endeavours

 

x

 

 

3.  identify and use social skills in play and other contexts

xx

 

 

4.  demonstrate an ability to use problem-solving skills in a variety of contexts, including social contexts

xx

 

x

5.  demonstrate an understanding of the diversity among individuals and families and within schools and the wider community

x

 

 

 

6.  demonstrate an awareness of their own health and well-being

 

x

 

x

7.  participate actively and regularly in a variety of activities that require the application of movement concepts

 

x

 

 

8.  develop movement skills and concepts as they use their growing bodies to move in a variety of ways and in a variety of contexts

 

x

 

 

9.  demonstrate literacy behaviours that enable beginning readers to make sense of a variety of texts

 

 

xx

10.  demonstrate literacy behaviours that enable beginning writers to communicate with others

 

 

xx

11.  demonstrate an understanding and critical awareness of a variety of written materials that are read by and with their educators

 

 

x

 

12.  demonstrate understanding and critical awareness of media texts

 

 

x

 

13.  use the processes and skills of an inquiry stance (i.e., questioning, planning, predicting, observing, and communicating)

 

 

 

x

14.  demonstrate an awareness of the natural and built environment through hands-on investigations, observations, questions, and representations of their findings

 

 

xx

15.  demonstrate an understanding of numbers, using concrete materials to explore and investigate counting, quantity, and number relationships

 

 

x

 

16.  measure, using non-standard units of the same size, and compare objects, materials, and spaces in terms of their length, mass, capacity, area, and temperature, and explore ways of measuring the passage of time, through inquiry and play-based learning

 

 

x

 

17.  describe, sort, classify, build, and compare two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional figures, and describe the location and movement of objects, through investigation

 

 

x

 

18.  recognize, explore, describe, and compare patterns, and extend, translate, and create them, using the core of a pattern and predicting what comes next

 

 

x

 

19.  collect, organize, display, and interpret data to solve problems and to communicate information, and explore the concept of probability in everyday contexts

 

 

x

 

20.  apply the mathematical processes to support the development of mathematical thinking, to demonstrate understanding, and to communicate thinking and learning in mathematics, while engaged in play-based learning and in other contexts

 

 

xx

21.  express their responses to a variety of forms of drama, dance, music, and visual arts from various cultures and communities

 

 

x

 

22.  communicate their thoughts and feelings, and their theories and ideas, through various art forms

xxxx

23.  use problem-solving strategies, on their own and with others, when experimenting with the skills, materials, processes, and techniques used in drama, dance, music, and visual arts

 

 

 

x

24.  use technological problem-solving skills, on their own and with others, in the process of creating and designing (i.e., questioning, planning, constructing, analysing, redesigning, and communicating)

 

 

 

x

25.  demonstrate a sense of identity and a positive self-image 

x

 

 

 

26.  develop an appreciation of the multiple perspectives encountered within groups, and of ways in which they themselves can contribute to groups and to group well-being

x

 

 

 

27.  recognize bias in ideas and develop the self-confidence to stand up for themselves and others against prejudice and discrimination

x

 

 

 

28.  demonstrate an awareness of their surroundings

x

 

 

 

29.  demonstrate an understanding of the natural world and the need to care for and respect the environment

x

 

 

 

30.  demonstrate an awareness of themselves as dramatists, actors, dancers, artists, and musicians through engagement in the arts

x

 

 

 

31.  demonstrate knowledge and skills gained through exposure to and engagement in drama, dance, music, and visual arts

x

 

 

 


Footnotes

  • footnote[1] Back to paragraph See the appendix for a complete list of the SEs that are related to each OE. The appendix provides an expanded chart, modelled on the chart in this chapter that lists only the OEs. Educators may find the appendix chart useful for quick reference, as it shows at a glance the frame or frames with which each of the SEs related to an OE is most closely associated.