The theory includes three programs, teaching principles and discipline principles.

I. Three major programmes

1, teleology of life education, that is, "be a person, be a China person, be a modern China person". Teleology not only embodies Chen Heqin's patriotism, but also reflects his mentality of seeing the world.

2. Curriculum theory of life education, that is, "nature and society are living teaching materials".

3. Methodology of education, that is, "learning by doing, learning by doing and making progress by doing". Life education attaches importance to direct experience, emphasizes doing as the center, and advocates that all activities that children can do by themselves in school should be done by themselves.

Second, the teaching principles

According to the guiding ideology of "concretization of psychology and popularization of teaching methods", Chen Heqin put forward the teaching principle of 17 life education:

1. Children should be allowed to do what they can.

2. Any child who can think independently should be allowed to think independently;

3. What do you want your child to do? You should teach children how to study.

4. Encourage children to discover her own world;

5. Positive encouragement is better than negative sanctions;

6. Nature and society are our living teaching materials;

7. Comparative teaching method;

8. Using the method of competition ranking to improve learning efficiency;

9. Positive hints are better than negative commands;

10, alternative teaching method;

1 1. Pay attention to the environment and make use of it;

12, group learning, joint research;

13, teaching gamification;

14, teaching story;

15, teachers teach teachers;

16, children teach children;

17, accurate observation.

Third, the principle of discipline Chen Heqin believes that discipline is the heaviest and most important in the whole education work. He put forward the discipline principle of 13:

1, from small to large

2, from the rule of man to the rule of law

3. From Rule of Law to Psychology

4. From opposition to unity

5. From the unconscious to the conscious

6, from passive to automatic

7. From self-help to mutual assistance

8. From knowledge to action

9. From form to spirit

10 from separation to unification

1 1, from alienation to contact

12, from negative to positive

13, from "empty talk" to "lead by example".

Five-finger activity:

Chen Heqin advocates five-finger activities in kindergarten, that is, health activities, social activities, scientific activities, artistic activities and Chinese activities. Chen Heqin incorporated all kindergarten courses into five-finger activities and adopted the unit system. All activities were carried out around the unit. He believes that the five-finger stone is alive, flexible and interrelated. Five-finger activities form an educational network in children's lives, which is woven in children's lives in an organized, systematic and reasonable way. This course is complete and coherent. Overall teaching method: Chen Heqin does not advocate subject teaching. He believes that subject-based teaching is fragmented and chaotic, which goes against children's life and psychology. He advocated that "holistic teaching method is to teach children what they should learn completely and systematically".