Despite increased interest in children's risk-taking in play, little is known of this aspect considering children under three years. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the concept of scaffolding to potentially describe patterns in staff-child interaction in 1-3-year-olds' risky play. Empirical data were taken from an exploratory study,…

In the context of the importance of nature experiences in supporting development during early childhood and toward encouraging the use of natural outdoor settings with young children, research was undertaken to explore potential relationships among parents' and young children's preferences regarding outdoor play settings and young children's…

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…

In an effort to facilitate an environment that values learner-centered artmaking with student-driven outcomes, the author decided to implement a unit that she researched using qualitative methods. In the unit, "Painting Without Paintbrushes," 1st-graders crafted and used nontraditional tools as paint applicators. During the unit,…

The aim of this study was to examine the influences of physical education and play practices on the school social behavior of mild-level intellectually disabled children. The quantitative research methods used were based on the pre-test, post-test, post-test-retention control group model and the general screening model. A simple random sampling…

Namasia District, located in Kaohsiung City in southern Taiwan, is home to many of the island's indigenous Bunun people. This place was one of the most damaged areas from typhoon Morakot in 2009. In the aftermath of the Morakot disaster, many of the children were traumatized physically and psychologically. I set out to design dance classes for…

Early childhood professionals have an important role in supporting young children's interest and engagement in STEM education. This study explores conceptualisations of STEM and beliefs about its importance in early childhood held by early childhood professionals. The "Early Childhood STEM Habits of Mind Framework," described in this…

Play-based learning is of growing interest in many English-medium primary schools throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. I share my insights from researching play as learning, and supporting teachers with curriculum design and pedagogy in play-based contexts. Although play is a slippery concept and its value often underestimated, the evidence of the…

Community members and staff at the University of British Columbia (UBC) Learning Exchange collectively created a theatre piece, based on stories from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES), entitled "Voices UP!" This article examines the impact this project had on four DTES community members who took part in the collective creation…

Research that focuses on the lived meaning of specific phenomena with pedagogical significance in physical education is very limited. Moreover, the relevant literature concerns studies that explore the lived meaning of specific physical education phenomena, instead of approaching the physical education lesson as a totality that comes into…

The advancing social-communication and play (ASAP) intervention was designed as a classroom-based intervention, in which the educational teams serving preschool-aged children with autism spectrum disorder are trained to implement the intervention in order to improve these children's social-communication and play skills. In this 4-year, multi-site…

Recent medical advancements have resulted in improved survival rates for "preterm" children, born before 37 weeks gestation. However, this population remains vulnerable to adverse physiological, neurological and emotional outcomes. Research suggests that the professionals involved with them as they enter and progress through school, such…

"StoryMaking" is a first-to-market book celebrating the multimodal literacies and learning that are demonstrated by young children as they imagine, play, make, and share their stories. It encourages inquiry-based play to develop literacy, and combines: (1) Story-retelling and story creation; (2) the Maker Movement--a creative and…

Cognitive development and sociocultural theories support the role of play and peer cooperative problem solving (CPS) in children's learning and development; nevertheless, we still lack cross-cultural studies that investigate children's CPS during play in natural classroom contexts in early childhood. A nine-month field work including ethnographic…

The scholarly chapters in this edited collection come from authors undertaking social justice research within the teacher education discipline. Authors examine, explore and critique those educational practices and structures that disadvantage minority groups. With a focus on social justice and inclusion, the book concentrates on themes of equity,…