Author sees a bleak future for the under-fives in the wake of cuts in the nursery programme. (Editor/RK)

This book focuses on the need to equip practitioners to meet the play needs of children in today's early years settings. With babies and very young children increasingly being cared for in out-of-home care settings, it is essential for early years practitioners to be responsive and reflective to ensure that these young children's needs are met in…

Based on the view that parents are their children's first teachers, this trainer's guide presents a series of 10 workshops or "literacy learning parties" designed to assist parents and other family caregivers in helping their preschool children develop the skills needed to learn to read and write. The workshops are small, structured,…

In this book, the author tells the recent history of the natural and creative growth of a vital community of learners, of an experiment in collaborative education and social celebration of diverse experiences and skills that works to benefit young children, parents and practitioners in education and social services. After a background section,…

Recent research and legislative initiatives have put pressure on preschool teachers and administrators to increase children's literacy development. This concise, practical resource helps readers respond to this challenge with the content and best practices needed to provide preschoolers with balanced, effective literacy instruction. The book…

This volume presents a collection of practical strategies for enhancing communication between couples and families. Experts in the field outline proven techniques from cognitive and constructivist/constructionist frameworks, structural and strategic orientations, and couple/family play therapy. Chapters are: (1) "Letter for a Change: Using Letter…

Significant recent discoveries within a number of scientific disciplines, collectively referred to as the science of complexity, are creating a major shift in how human beings understand the complex, adaptive systems that make up the world. A complex adaptive system consists of networks of large numbers of agents that interact with each other and…

Filial therapy is a psychoeducational skills training approach in which parents are taught how to conduct child-centered play sessions with their own children. A summary of this technique is offered in this paper. Filial therapy, based on child-centered play therapy developed by Carl Rogers and Virginia Axline, allows children to express…

Based on the idea that although children of every nation speak different languages the language of play is international, this collection of 32 street rhymes from 17 nations and republics offers each rhyme in its native language (Portuguese, Tamil, Hebrew, Japanese, Russian, Chinese, Spanish, Greek, German, Bantu (Mambwe), Danish, Cheyenne,…

This series of 10 booklets provides information to new parents on their infants' behavior and development. The topics covered in the four-page booklets are: (1) "Welcome to the World of Babies," including information on infants' communication, baby books, and developmental milestones from birth to 9 months; (2) "Language: All about Communication,"…

The Mourning Child Preschool grief support curriculum is intended for use with preschool children who have experienced the death of someone special to them. It is designed for use by professionals who work in schools, hospitals, hospices, mental health agencies, or any setting that serves bereaved children. The curriculum contains lesson plans for…

This guide to using computers with infants and toddlers was developed by the "Let's Play! Project," a 3-year federally supported project that worked to promote play in infants and toddlers with disabilities through the use of assistive technology. Following an introductory section on getting ready to use the computer with a young child, the first…

Play is essential to children's healthy development and learning, and toys are the tools of children's play. Noting that parents are constantly faced with decisions about what toys to buy and what toys to avoid, this guide is intended to help parents promote their children's creative and constructive play by making informed choices about toys, and…

This study examined characteristic attributes of non-formal education and the non-formal pedagogy directing its teaching and learning processes. Data were collected on organizational and pedagogical characteristics in several out-of-school organizations (youth movements, youth organizations, community centers, bypass educational systems, local…

Compared to the rest of the school day, recess is a time when children have more freedom to choose what they want to do and with whom. In light of the current climate of school accountability, this digest discusses research on recess and its relationship to learning, social development, and child health, as well as research on related topics that…