A 'Dialogical Approach to Observation' proposes refreshed and enhanced interpretation of dialogue. It attends to potential dialogical relation depending on "how" the protagonists regard others. Rather than assuming any exchange whatsoever is dialogue, the nature of the observed interaction indicates it is dialogical. Buber's…

This paper explores how the neoliberal policy directives relating to the teaching of phonics in schools in England, influences the pedagogy of early years educators (EYEs) working with under-threes. The research highlights that these EYEs are confounded by early reading (ER), given that there is no clear definition or provision separating ER from…

Parents play a vital role in identifying children's needs for support and Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) features that support children's well-being. This study examined parental perspectives on features of ECEC that foster young children's well-being under and above the age of 3 years by interviewing 359 parents across nine European…

Early intervention (EI) provision is critical for families who have children with developmental disabilities (DD), but existing evidence suggests accessing EI is not always straightforward. The purpose of this study was to provide a comprehensive description of access to various EI supports (e.g., professionals, services, interventions) for…

Using a post-structuralist framework, this article seeks to analyse the ways in which English early years curriculum policy has led to different constructions of young children. Although policy is often presented as being logical and factual, policy making can also be seen as a value-laden process in which meanings are socially constructed and…

In this article, I argue for the value of participatory methodologies, in research with children, which aims to privilege their epistemologies and living experiences in relation to the nature of self. Researching self with children raises questions about the mainstream materialist paradigm which holds hegemony over most academic disciplines --…

Contextual approaches to high quality Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) seek to capture the complexity of children's lives, developing pedagogical approaches that are responsive to children's needs and interests. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic provided a complex layer to the question of what constitutes quality ECEC. A mixed methods…

This article reports on a study of practitioners' use of In-the-Picture -- a reflective, observational approach -- when delivering early intervention programmes to young disabled children. To date, In-the-Picture has been used mainly by researchers to study interactions and learning between young children, practitioners and the children's parents…

Children raised in neighborhoods with low socioeconomic status (SES) are at risk for low academic achievement. Identifying factors that help children from disadvantaged neighborhoods thrive is critical for reducing inequalities. We investigated whether children's prosocial behavior buffers concurrent and subsequent academic risk in disadvantaged…

Children raised in neighborhoods with low socioeconomic status (SES) are at risk for low academic achievement. Identifying factors that help children from disadvantaged neighborhoods thrive is critical for reducing inequalities. We investigated whether children's prosocial behavior buffers concurrent and subsequent academic risk in disadvantaged…

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an acutely challenging time for families and parents of young children. Periods of lockdown, and the economic and social dislocation associated with the pandemic, will have far-reaching consequences for children's education, life chances and social relationships. This article extends our understanding of these issues…

Friendship is of paramount importance to children's holistic well-being and development. Friendship often runs smoothly, but when it runs into difficulties this can be unsettling and time consuming, particularly after the lunchtime break. This article makes an original contribution by placing the lunchtime period under scrutiny and specifically…

Drawing on a mixed-methods cross-cultural study undertaken in five locations in Argentina, Denmark, Hong Kong, England and the United States in 2018, this paper explores how children (aged five and seven) conceive of playfulness. Following a card-sorting task, 387 children selected familiar activities that they felt were most representative of…

Most children growing up in contemporary homes in post-industrial countries use digital media as part of everyday literacy activities, such as to connect with distant family and friends, watch their favourite programmes, play games and find information. However, conceptualizations of the Home Literacy Environment (HLE) have not yet adapted to the…

The importance of children's perspectives is now well-established and there has been much attention afforded to appropriate methods for listening to children within the research. Whilst language-based research methods, such as interview, remain commonplace, children's representations are increasingly included as data in educational research.…