In the final thesis I focused on similarities and differences in the daily routines of kindergar-tens in two European countries, Slovenia and Belgium (in the NATO Headquarters of Allied Command Operations – SHAPE). The daily routine ensures a solid setting in which children can give the initiative for active learning, think about it, modify it, repeat it and expand it. The corners of interest create the physical setting for active learning, while the daily routine creates the operative setting. The opinion, that children learn the most by realizing their interests and construct their knowledge based on personal experience, and the commitment to the compo-nents of active learning (materials, disposal and handling, selection, child’s speech, adult support), shape the process of every part of the daily routine (Hohmann and Weikart, 2005).
In the theoretical part I presented the daily routine of both kindergartens and describes its elements (arriving and leaving the kindergarten, crossing between activities, care for oneself, eating, rest and sleep, and tidying and cleaning of the room), hidden curriculum, curriculum for kindergartens and the role of the adult in the daily routine. Adult roles are those that have the most impact in enabling and encouraging the possibility of choices and differences. They are children’s role models with their behavior; they send messages and make unite decisions.
The empirical part consists of research questionnaire and answers of the kindergarten teachers on elements of daily routines of both kindergartens, which I compare between each other and further describe the work in SHAPE in detail. The conclusion consists of objective observati-ons and personal rationale of own beliefs on example of good practice.
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