In this piece, the authors unpack a heuristic developed by the Great First Eight curriculum for helping young children to recognize and act on injustice. First, they explain the rationale behind the heuristic, known as ReAD, and the inspiration behind its creation. They then detail a series of seven practical principles that can help to…

A $2.37 billion increase in the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) provides an opportunity to address the mental health needs of young children in child care. While the CCDBG increase is the largest ever, states must navigate many legitimate and competing claims for these funds, particularly those set aside to improve quality. One…

Crises of all types are often the inspiration for innovation, as communities seek solutions to the immediate problems they face. Sometimes a crisis is localized, as in the case of the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, USA, and the local community is therefore the most highly motivated to innovate on behalf of their children's future.

Hearts and Minds on Babies (HMB) is an innovative, attachment-based training for Early Head Start (EHS) staff and parents, developed through a collaboration between university-based researchers and clinicians and community-based EHS educators. This article describes HMB, our collaboration, and lessons learned when infusing infant and early…

Infants, toddlers, and young children have unique needs when separated from their primary caregivers because of child abuse and neglect. Parents of these children often have their own histories of abuse and neglect and can benefit from assessments and interventions that bear in mind the effect caregiving histories have on present parenting. This…

Early Childhood Mental Health Endorsement® (ECMH-E®) offers a credential for those whose work with or on behalf of children 3-6 years old and their families is informed by infant and early childhood mental health principles. Those who have earned ECMH-E demonstrate completion of specialized education, work, in-service training, and reflective…

This resource was prepared in response to a request for information from a Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) State about which RTT-ELC States are using the Pyramid Model for Supporting Social Emotional Competence in Infants and Young Children. The State also requested information about other projects States have designed to…

Children who enter kindergarten with a small vocabulary don't get taught enough words--particularly, sophisticated academic words--to close the gap, according to the latest in a series of studies by Michigan early-learning experts. The findings suggest many districts could be at a disadvantage in meeting the increased requirements for vocabulary…

Abundant evidence has shown that quality early childhood programs generate enormous long-term benefits for young people as they grow to become productive adults, for our economy, and for society. But we don't have to wait 10 or 20 years to see strong returns on our investments in young children. Some programs create real savings in a year or less.…

The Early Learning Challenge (ELC) program awarded more than $1 billion in four-year grants to 20 States to implement comprehensive and cohesive high-quality early learning systems that support young children with high needs and their families. A key lever in making these improvements was the enhancement of States' Quality Rating and Improvement…

Nature education is an important part of early childhood education. As young children develop, the natural world offers concrete and authentic learning experiences. Activities focused on nature support learning in all developmental domains. Children develop physically through hiking in natural terrain, climbing hills and trees, balancing on logs,…

Governors recognize that promoting school readiness is a key strategy for preventing school failure and subsequent costs to society in the form of remedial education services, health and social services, criminal justice services, and lost tax revenue. Supporting the readiness of young children at risk for school failure is critical to the…

Leading economists conclude that investments in young children may be the best way to stimulate economic growth, and investments in young children's social and emotional development may be the most productive of these investments. The science base for these conclusions comes from two independent streams of research: neuroscience and developmental…

This paper explores the range of ways in which school districts are using Title I funds for early education through kindergarten and examines how the implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has impacted those investments. It also makes recommendations for local education agencies (LEAs) interested in creating Title I-funded early education…

The Saginaw Prekindergarten Program is designed to provide four-year-olds with an environment that will enable them to develop skills needed for future success in school, and to prepare inner city children for entry into kindergarten. The objectives of the program include specific achievements in 16 cognitive skills, psychomotor skills, and…