Abstract
This study examines the classroom experiences of 192 children followed longitudinally from kindergarten to 1st grade. Time-sampled observations of children were conducted to compare learning formats, teaching activities, and children's engagement in activities between kindergarten and 1st grade. Classroom observations also were conducted to examine differences in classroom quality; specifically, teacher sensitivity and instructional and emotional support for learning. Results from paired t-tests show that instructional activities become more teacher-directed and structured in 1st grade, children in 1st grade are exposed to less academic instruction than children in kindergarten, but children in 1st grade are more actively engaged in activities than children in kindergarten. With respect to classroom quality, kindergarten and 1st-grade classrooms were similar in terms of teacher sensitivity and emotional support for learning. Instructional support for learning, including instructional conversations, evaluative feedback, and child responsibility, decreased from kindergarten to 1st grade. These findings point to both stability and change in children's classroom experiences across kindergarten and 1st grade and are discussed in terms of the ways in which instructional activities in the classroom and children's achievement can be enhanced in early childhood classrooms.
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