This dissertation describes a project to develop an art-based curriculum to teach young elementary school-age children social and emotional skills in the classroom based on the experiences of experts in the field of elementary education. Social-emotional learning (SEL) focuses on several key concepts including skills in interpersonal…

There is anecdotal evidence that many elementary teachers integrate mathematics lessons and art activities by having students first make colorful, rich material that is subsequently used in an instructional activity. However, it is unclear whether such activities effectively promote learning and transfer of mathematical concepts. The goal of the…

Physical activity plays an important role in childhood development and is associated with positive health, social, emotional, and academic benefits. Despite this, children are often sedentary for most of their school day and fail to meet daily activity recommendations. Incorporating physical activity breaks into the classroom can achieve many…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how kindergarten through third--grade public school educators in diverse classrooms described the influence and challenges of multicultural teaching strategies, with a focus on content integration and knowledge construction, on learners' English language acquisition in Arizona. Two…

The potential for integrated science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) learning really is all around us. The moments of intense drama children experience when they test out a new design are the engines that drive STEM practices; it's what keeps scientists, programmers, engineers, and mathematicians up at night, wanting to try "just…

This paper presents findings from a two-year qualitative study examining integration of computer science (CS) and computational thinking (CT) into elementary mathematics instruction. Integrated units were developed by elementary teachers and CS/CT coaches with support from university faculty with expertise in CS/CT and elementary mathematics.…

In Study 1, the treatment group (N = 33 first graders, M = 6 years 10 months, 16 girls) received Slingerland multi-modal (auditory, visual, tactile, motor through hand, and motor through mouth) manuscript (unjoined) handwriting instruction embedded in systematic spelling, reading, and composing lessons; and the control group (N = 16 first graders,…

NGSS Early Implementers is a four-year initiative created to help eight California school districts and two charter management organizations, supported by WestEd's K-12 Alliance, implement Next Generation Science Standards. The Initiative focuses on NGSS implementation in grades K-8 and incorporates the integrated course model (preferred by the…

This paper will explain what a reading teacher learned from working with a group of first-grade struggling readers in a series of shared-book experience classes. The shared-book experience approach used a variety of science-themed books that were aligned with the first-grade curriculum and appropriate for beginning readers. Considering the…

Based on teacher questionnaires and close ethnographic observation of 40 first-grade students, this article explores the learning possibilities the arts present for teaching young children and fostering developmentally appropriate practice. Its aim is to reinforce the value of the arts already being used in early childhood classrooms and to…

In this article, the authors' kindergarteners and a fellow first-grade class turned their hallway into a forest! Not just any mural, this culmination of a month-long project was based on observing, questioning, taking field trips, conducting library research (including the internet) and asking experts. The students developed skills in forming…

In this article, the authors describe how they capitalized on their first-grade students' love of dinosaurs by hosting a fun-filled Dinosaur Day in their classroom. On Dinosaur Day, students rotated through four dinosaur-related learning stations that integrated science content with art, language arts, math, and history in a fun and time-efficient…