Looking to the mouth of a talker early in life predicts expressive communication. We hypothesized that looking at a talker's mouth may signal that infants are ready for increased supported joint engagement and that it subsequently facilitates prelinguistic vocal development and translates to broader gains in expressive communication. We tested…

The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, 2nd-edition (ADOS-2) Toddler Module is the current gold-standard measure of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental condition more frequently diagnosed in toddler boys than girls. Some evidence suggests that behaviors assessed by the Toddler Module may capture an ASD phenotype that is more…

Shared book reading is a well-established vehicle for promoting child language and early development. Yet, existing shared reading interventions have primarily included only children age 3 years and older and high quality dialogic strategies have been less systematically applied for infants and toddlers. To address this gap, we have developed a…

Worldwide, a large number of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers are enroled in formal non-parental early childhood education or care (ECEC). Theoretically, lower adult/child ratios (fewer children per adult) and smaller group sizes are hypothesised to be associated with positive child outcomes in ECEC. A lower adult/child ratio and a smaller…

Sustained shared thinking dialogues which focus on teacher talk with preschool learners have long been considered an important route to learning progression. Toddlers, however, seldom engage in dialogues through talk alone, and their encounters are often fleeting. As a consequence, they are often positioned on the periphery of learning dialogues…

Purpose: Speech sound production intervention in early childhood is relatively rare despite empirical and theoretical support for providing this type of targeted therapy for toddlers. Challenges perpetuate the present clinical condition including those related to treatment decision making (e.g., intervention approach). Method: Although there are…

Background: Spontaneous upper extremity movements in infancy provide insight on neuromotor development. Spatiotemporal kinematics have been used to evaluate typical development of reaching, a foundational motor skill in infancy. This study evaluates the relationship between spontaneous upper extremity movements, not elicited by a toy, and motor…

This paper offers guidance for remote communication with young children based on an interpretive study of participants engaged in an online Theatre for Early Years (TEY) event, "Up and Down." Drawing on practices used for in-person performance, the theatre-makers engaged interactively with children aged 1 and 2 and their accompanying…

This study examined the empirical base for early childhood (birth to 8) coaching via a systematic mapping review of the relevant literature, including diverse research designs to represent the full breadth of published studies related to early childhood coaching. The systematic review yielded 374 unique studies published between 1987 and 2019 that…

According to the Ecological Model, positive parenting depends on three factors: psychosocial context, the children's needs and parental competences. This cross-sectional study analyzes parental competences, perception of efficacy and parenting satisfaction, among Spanish fathers and mothers with young children aged 0-3 years, and examines their…

This study reports on a medium-scale Jamaican study, The Early Interactions Project, which measured environmental quality in 42 childcare facilities in Jamaica using Infant and Toddler Environment Rating Scale (ITERS-3). One of the overarching goals of the project was to quantitatively measure programme quality with the goal of providing…

This National Early Head Start Services Snapshot summarizes key data on demographics and services for infants, toddlers, and pregnant women served by Early Head Start programs. The data in this Snapshot is a subset of the annual Program Information Report (PIR) submission to the Office of Head Start. Data categories include: (1) Funded Enrollment;…

Advocates for Children of New Jersey's latest report, "Still No Room for Babies: Child Care Staffing Crisis Impacts Supply of Infant-Toddler Child Care," reveals a widespread shortage of infant and toddler child care. A statewide survey of child care centers serving infants and toddlers found that licensed centers have the capacity to…

Thirty-three children treated for congenital hyperinsulinism (CHI) (13 boys; 13 with focal forms of CHI, median age 10 months) entered the study. The mothers were requested to fill-in the Ages and Stages Questionnaire to estimate communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem solving and personal-social skills. Children with focal forms had…

This article discusses infant-toddler educators' perspectives of using the Observe, Reflect, Improve Children's Learning tool (ORICL) in practice. ORICL is a new tool informed by implementation science and co-designed with Australian early childhood education and care policy-makers, practitioners, and service providers. It aims to support…