The director measure is intended for use with program directors in center-based, family child care, and Head Start/Early Head Start settings for children from birth through five years old. This measure asks respondents general questions about the early childhood education environment, the children enrolled in the program, and how the program…

School communities in both urban and rural settings need trauma-informed (TI) supports; however, the adversities experienced and access to student supports may be unique to rural school communities. In addition, the contextual challenges experienced by rural schools and communities, as well as the strengths that can be drawn from them, will…

Preschool classrooms were investigated to determine the extent to which quality is related to children's literacy development. The study included 24 classrooms of 428 prekindergarten children in a large, urban Midwestern school district. Results suggest that global classroom quality and literacy environment quality are strongly related. Literacy…

Written expressly for preschool teachers, this engaging book explains the "whats," "whys," and "how-tos" of implementing best practices for instruction in the preschool classroom. The authors show how to target key areas of language and literacy development across the entire school day, including whole-group and small-group activities, center…

Available resources and indicators of high quality inclusive practices are presented in this compilation. Assembling many different resources in one place allows for easy comparison of potential indicators of quality. Excerpts and adaptations of the resources are intended to provide some familiarity with the content of each resource and encourage…

Intended to support and guide teachers and administrators in providing appropriate experiences for 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children in significant areas of living and learning, this curriculum guide reflects the early childhood education (ECE) philosophy of the South Carolina State Department of Education. The guide first provides an overview of…

A firm that has designed many preschool and elementary school projects identifies three factors that are vital to successful design for young children: protection, interaction, and scale. Accompanying drawings of three projects illustrate these design principles. (MLF)

This issue brief, based on a meeting of a group of distinguished researchers, educators, and policymakers convened by the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) explores lessons from research and practice about the role of an intentional curriculum and professional development and supports for teachers in closing the achievement gap for…

A well-ordered classroom promotes learning, helps build a classroom community, and frees teachers to observe and interact with children in positive ways. This videotape shows how classroom and outdoor environments can convey six positive messages for preschool children: (1) this is a good place to be; (2) you belong here as a valued member of the…

The Creative Curriculum for preschool education is a teaching framework that addresses children's emotional, cognitive, and physical development. This checklist is designed for use in assessing how well the curriculum is being implemented as intended and includes a classroom profile form and a progress and planning form. The implementation…

This guide offers Head Start staff training in how to prevent, or identify and respond to family crises in ways that can build resiliency in families. Following an introductory section, the guide presents four training modules. Each module details expected outcomes, key concepts, background information, learning activities, and next steps.…

Certain literacy knowledge acquired prior to the initiation of beginning reading instruction is necessary for early reading success. Unfortunately, children from low- income families and who are likely to attend schools with low reading performance are less likely to have acquired such knowledge. Taking professionals and students step-by-step…

Noting that developing a Head Start family partnership is an ongoing process that begins at enrollment and continues through transition out of the program, this guide for directors and staff looks at the process of developing such partnerships and provides the skills and information needed to form meaningful partnerships. Following an introductory…

In 1997, Head Start launched the Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES), a study of a national random sample of Head Start programs, designed to describe characteristics, experiences, and outcomes for children and families served by Head Start. In 2000, FACES began data collection on a new national cohort of 2,800 children and their families…

This document presents the Massachusetts Early Childhood Program Standards and Learning Guidelines for Three- and Four-Year-Olds, required for programs receiving funding through Community Partnerships for Children (CPC). The standards were developed in accord with the accreditation process of the National Association for the Education of Young…