Object exploration is considered a driver of motor, cognitive, and social development. However, little is known about how early childhood education and care settings facilitate object exploration. This study examined if children's exploration of objects during free play was facilitated by the use of particular spatial components (floor, tables,…

The childcare environment impacts physical activity participation, but little descriptive information is available in different types of programs. Most studies focus on the schoolyard despite children spending more time indoors. This study identified which learning centers were available, used by children, and promoted physical activity, both…

The aim of the research is to determine pre-service preschool teachers' views on creating learning environments in preschool classrooms. Qualitative research methods were used in the research. The study group was composed of 35 pre-service preschool teachers. In this study, a semi-structured interview form was chosen as data collection tool. The…

This study investigated the effect of the use of content-specific material-based activities on children's mathematical skills, and changes in emotions for both sides with the help of math workstations to serve as responsive partners in delivering quality mathematics education to children and teachers. A total of 20 female kindergarten teachers and…

The two studies examined in this paper compare the different mathematical opportunities provided in preschool classrooms in China, Japan, and the United States, with an emphasis on mathematical-themed books in classroom libraries. Study one presents the results of an online survey to examining the content of preschool classroom libraries in China…

The purpose of the study was to investigate children's epistemological beliefs in terms of their free play preferences in relation to learning centres. The study was conducted with 115 children coming from families with high socio-economic status (54 girls and 61 boys, 57 five years old and 58 six years old) during the 2015/2016 spring semester.…

This article explores the correspondence between the vision of play articulated in Singapore's national kindergarten curriculum framework and the play-related pedagogies enacted by teachers on the ground, particularly during Learning Centre Time (LCT). Influenced by neo-liberal ways of thinking, the curriculum states that "purposeful…

Environmental modifications to the block area are important to promote children's early spatial learning experiences. It is not enough just to include block materials in the classroom. Sarama and Clements (2009) have proposed that children's free play with novel math-related activities rarely facilitates the intended educational concepts without…

A mixed-methods research design was employed to investigate the impact of use of learning centers to support language and academic skills of children aged 61-72 months. The sample of quantitative data of the study consisted of 70 children (35 in the experimental group and 35 in the control group). In the quantitative dimension of the study, data…

Background: The template for the current study was the project conducted by Rosenthal [1973. "An Ecological Study of Free Play in the Nursery School." Doctoral diss., Wayne State University] where she investigated the attraction and holding power of various learning centres during free play in a naturalistic preschool setting.…

Preschool teachers from a high-poverty, urban school district were trained to implement Story Talk, a book reading intervention designed to increase children's vocabulary and language development using supportive materials and strategic individualized coaching. Thirty-five teachers were randomly assigned by site to the intervention (20) or the…

This study investigated the participation of children at the writing center in their classroom during free choice time. For this study, four and five year-old children in the classroom were observed during 20 free choice times, each one of which was one hour. I developed a coding system related to the activities that were intended to develop the…

Active engagement has become the focus of many early childhood science education curricula and standards. However, active engagement usually emphasizes getting children engaged with science solely through hands-on activities. Active engagement by way of hands, heads, and hearts are kept separate and rarely discussed in terms of getting all to work…

The VPK Learning Center Activities included with this guide are aligned with the Language, Communication and Emergent Literacy Domain within the Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards for Four-Year-Olds (2011). Although the goal was not to create an activity to represent each and every standard and benchmark, most standards are…

The most pressing challenge in early childhood education today is to find a way to meet the standards within a developmentally appropriate approach. In this book, two active early childhood educators provide teachers with resources to bring content alive and document it in every-day, action-based pre-K and Kindergarten classrooms. The book…