Although state pre-K initiatives vary from state to state, they all share common characteristics in pursuing their goal of educating young children. Private providers have played a vital role of expanding access in states that have established rapid timelines for pre-K implementation or expansion, such as New Jersey (to comply with a court order)…

How to be in a relationship may be the most important "skill" children ever learn. While many teachers acknowledge their importance in helping children learn early academic and social skills, they sometimes underestimate the value of their personal relationships with children as supports for children's healthy development and learning. This…

Teacher talk is a powerful classroom tool. Studies document the importance of teacher language in children's development, in early literacy development, in children's perceptions of self and others, and in facilitating play. This article examines "teacher talk" and its elements--kinds of language, functions of language, promoting children's…

It is important for children to develop knowledge of words' meanings from a young age because vocabulary development has an impact on their reading comprehension and academic success as they get older. Some children come to school knowing far fewer words than others. Hart and Risley studied young children's vocabulary development and found that…

In this article, the author reviews the research on young children's emerging writing and presents a comprehensive synthesis of this research on emergent writing. She discusses children's early writing knowledge; writing skills development; the social process of learning to write; teacher support; and a supportive environment. She also lists six…

Working with families is one of the most important aspects of being an early childhood professional, yet it is an area in which many educators have received little preparation (Nieto 2004). Teachers spend hours learning about child development, developmentally appropriate practices, health and safety, playgrounds, and play. At times it seems that…

Describes how one day care program for children and infants from low-income families developed, implemented, and evaluated a curriculum approach to facilitate children's social development and to deal with the problem of aggressive peer interactions. (RH)

Critiques a continuum of seven writing tasks to determine what type of task enables primary school children to best demonstrate their creativity and level of language learning. Suggests ways to provide opportunities for authentic writing. (RJC)

Describes the impact of the Parent Education Model upon school, community, and parents as indicated by ten communities in nine different states. (MP)

Examined the impact of a two-year leadership training program that used a problem-centered and site-specific curriculum for program directors to improve the quality of 14 early childhood programs in the Chicago area and to increase the number of programs receiving accreditation from NAEYC. Found that administrators expanded their repertoire of…

Today we often hear that early care and education is becoming or should become a profession. In this article, the authors discuss what it means to be a profession, and a professional and consider how these characteristics apply to the field of early care and education now and in the future. Professionals possess specialized knowledge and…

Examines a group of accredited early childhood programs at the time of reaccreditation. Considers the percentage of programs that achieved reaccreditation; changes that took place over a three-year period; the simplification of the reaccreditation process for program staff; and the appropriate length of time for accreditation to be valid. (BB)

Compared children in a home-based Head Start Family Child Care Program with those in regular Head Start classrooms over a three-year period. The home-based group received the same comprehensive Head Start services as the classroom group, with a curriculum built around the children, family life, and the culture and geography of Minnesota. Found no…

The child development knowledge teachers use every day to inform their actions has the potential to both enable and constrain children's learning because it permits teachers to view children from only one vantage point. In this article, the authors argue that in addition to teachers updating their developmental knowledge base, it is important for…

Teachers' beliefs about science reform have an important effect on how science is taught. This article examines a kindergarten teacher's science curriculum as she seeks to implement five of Washington State's Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALRs) for core concepts and principles of science. The authors examine factors that affect…