Children around the world are being exposed to traumatic events at a troubling rate. In large, nationally representative studies of children in the United States, researchers have reported that 71% of children have been exposed to at least one potentially traumatic event in the past year, and almost 70% of children have experienced multiple…

As a private child care center owner, administrator, and teacher, the author has come across many issues that seem impossible to resolve or manage in positive ways. These issues have included adapting curricula, scheduling, budgeting, dealing with many different agencies, educating families, educating staff, and, among other countless issues,…

Describes the life and education of Patty Smith Hill and points out her innovative contributions to the theory and practice of early childhood education. (RH)

Eating disorders (EDs) are chronic clinical mental disorders that are disruptive to the psychological and social development of children and adolescents. They can be difficult to prevent and treat and are considered among the most chronic and medically lethal of mental disorders. Research suggests that the incidence and prevalence of eating…

Making the transition from preschool to kindergarten is a milestone in a young child's life, and it does not always go smoothly. Consequently, the authors developed Shared Summer School, a unique approach to kindergarten transition, in which preschool and kindergarten teachers jointly taught children prior to their kindergarten entry. Shared…

Presents a short biography of Mary Esther Leeper (1887-1965), teacher of children and adults and the first Executive Secretary of the Association for Childhood Education International. (AS)

A progress report on the Child Development Associate (CDA) project which is a program for developing a new professional category to assure qualitative staffing of child care programs. Main emphasis of report is placed on development of an assessment instrument for credentialing, based on a set of eleven constructs which are delineated. (ED)

"Don't tell me no; I tell you no!" is a classic example of a frustrated mother reprimanding her toddler. Certainly, other parents and even teachers of young children experience and/or understand this sentiment as they pursue the slow process of teaching infants and toddlers self-control and self-regulation. This article illuminates how teachers…

A collation of teacher interviews on the joy and stress of teaching offers advice to beginners. (SB)

Sharing classroom practices across international borders can add new dimensions to teaching methods, no matter where one calls home. With this idea in mind, the authors (two U.S. early childhood teacher educators and a Kenyan-born U.S. early childhood teacher) have corresponded for several years through e-mail with a small group of early childhood…

Current theory on mentoring describes the process as a mutual learning relationship in which both the mentor and the mentee gain knowledge. Many research studies have supported the benefits of mentoring programs for at-risk elementary school children. One particularly interesting mentoring project with preschool children is Jumpstart, a national…

Provides a brief overview of the Child Development Associate (CDA) program on the occasion of the award of the ten-thousandth CDA credential. (RH)

Describes a model of professional development designed for early childhood educators. Details central features of the model and its implementation. Written feedback from project participants and their administrators illustrates the project components. (RJC)

Recounts the thoughts and experiences of one university professor returning to teach a class of 3-year-olds. Notes the differences between middle-aged and younger teachers, the importance of college-level educators revisiting "real" classrooms to connect theory with practice, the difficulty of balancing college and preschool teaching,…