Many early childhood educators use cameras to share the charming things that children do and the artwork they make. Programs often bind these photographs into portfolios and give them to children and their families as mementos at the end of the year. In the author's classrooms, they use photography on a daily basis to document children's…

Inspired by a variety of early childhood educators' observations and writings, the authors reflected on what a joyful classroom looks like, sounds like, and feels like. Although "joy is a developmental need and a vital necessity", the current emphasis in early childhood and elementary programs on assessment, accountability, and increased academic…

Interactions are the daily exchanges in words and gestures one has with others. As a teacher, the interactions he/she has with young children can make a positive difference in their lives. A teacher's powerful interactions with children play an important role in their emotional well-being and learning. Powerful interactions are not the same as…

"Inclusion" has long been a term used to describe the practice of including a child with special needs in age-appropriate general education classes in their home schools. Increasingly, the term is being used to describe the process of including very young children--infants and toddlers--with special needs in a setting comprised mostly of children…

Research shows that when children do not transition successfully to kindergarten, their academic and social-emotional progress can be hindered, whereas children who transition successfully actively engage in learning and adapt to the new setting (Harbin et al. 2007). It is important for early childhood educators to consider the stress for children…

Regardless of the grade they teach, teachers are professional decision-makers committed to supporting children's learning. Making decisions about what to teach and how to teach it best is simply a nonnegotiable feature of their job: only teachers have the specialized knowledge and professional training required to design meaningful learning…

In a "Young Children" article worth revisiting, Wien (2004) makes the case that rules tend not to be helpful in early childhood communities. Rules are usually stated as negatives. When an adult enforces rules with children, the children know they have done something wrong. However, the negative experience in rule enforcement does not teach them…

Shades of Pink study describes how six preschoolers and their teacher engaged in a collaborative learning project through which they learned about the shades of a color--in this case, pink. As the children learned through experimenting and discussing their theories, they represented ideas using art as a tool for discovery and learning. The study…

Young children develop the skills necessary for communication in infancy. Interactions with family members and other caregivers nurture and support those skills. Spoken (expressive) language progresses rapidly after a child's first word. A typical 2-year-old has an expressive vocabulary of approximately 150-300 words. Around this time, as they…

During the first week of a Head Start program in September, Jamal, almost 5 years old, punched another child in the stomach. An assistant looked after the hurt child. Charlane, the teacher, approached Jamal, saying, "There is no hurting children in this class." She marched him to a time-out chair where Jamal sat with his head down. The following…

Physics is the study of forces and motion--the science of matter and energy and the interaction between the two. The big idea the children explore, as well as the question they ask as they engage in physical knowledge activities related to physics, is "How does it move?" Many teachers translate naturally as they come to know the children they…

It can be difficult for any teacher to support a child whose behavior is disruptive, but a language barrier can certainly complicate the situation. Children who are new to English may not be able to tell teachers what's going on. This makes it even more important for teachers to learn specific strategies to interpret the child's actions and plan…

Coaching occurs when one professional works closely with another professional to increase productivity or to meet a common outcome. For a coach or mentor to be successful, the teacher must believe in the expertise the coach espouses, and the coach must believe in the teacher's abilities. Through "reflective coaching," teachers and coaches…

An effective piece of documentation, such as evidence or an artifact, tells the story and the purpose of an event, experience, or development. In this comprehensive discussion of documentation, the author describes effective formats, discusses audience and purposes, and choosing a focus. She walks readers through the how and why, and in sidebars…

The authors offer concrete ideas for supporting dual language learners in early childhood classrooms and strategies for enhancing children's comprehension of the new language. Each author presents practical ideas based on personal experiences as educators of children whose home language is not English. To provide quality education for all…