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This SFUSD Pre-K instructional guidance is organized into four sections: Culture of Learning, Academic Ownership, Essential Content, and Demonstration of Learning. We recommend you explore the four sections so you have a sense of what is available here and then focus on the Culture of Learning section for the start of the year. There you will find guidance on the development of 3, 4, and 5-year-olds, setting up your classroom, building family partnerships, and launching the school year. For content-specific guidance go to Essential Content.
Our intention here is to provide an overview of pre-k instruction and make the information easily accessible. It is not a scripted manual -- Pre-K instruction is more complex and nuanced than these pages alone can illustrate. Still, there is a lot of information here that we believe will be supportive. Please do not feel compelled to dive into this website all at once. Please use it as a resource throughout the year as needed. This guide is one piece of the puzzle; your partnerships with children, fellow educators, coaches, families, administrators, sites, and departments are all essential to supporting you in creating a learning environment where every day we provide each and every student with the high-quality instruction and equitable support required to thrive.
In partnership,
The Instructional Guidance Team
Student Centered Pre-K
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Preschoolers, as 3 and 4 year olds, come to us ready for everything. They are explorers and adventurers who are socking up the world of knowledge with incredible speed. They throw themselves into nearly every activity with enthusiasm and a sense of purpose.
Three-year-olds learn best through exploring, using all of their senses to understand their world. They are endlessly curious, and you may start to hear that classic question, “Why?” Their vocabulary is rapidly expanding, and they love to hear stories and use their imagination. While playing, they are better able to focus on what interests them.
Four-year-olds are flexible, exciting, and creative humans who love to exaggerate and engage in imaginative play. A four-year-old's story about an adventure she had with an imaginary friend may puzzle adults but delight the four-year-old. This play is critical for the development of fours' understanding of right and wrong, early application of social rules, and manners. They sometimes can seem "bossy" (particularly with their real and imaginary friends), but this assertiveness is positive rehearsal for learning acceptable limits and how to be a real friend and helper.
Fours learn best through their own play-by acting out stories and fairy tales, expressing themselves with visual art materials and manipulating clay, building blocks and math materials. This is an age when much learning is transmitted through the large muscles, when learning goes from the hand to the head, not the other way around. The implications for the classroom teacher are to minimize paper-and-pencil tasks and provide opportunities for imaginative play and movement throughout the classroom and outside.
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This page was last updated on May 2, 2025