This study investigated the feasibility of a vocabulary-based teacher intervention to increase preschool teachers' production of complement clauses (e.g. "I wonder if we can put the monkey in the tree") in teacher-children play interactions. Using a multiple baseline across participants design we measured the impact of an intervention…

With intentional adult guidance, all children have opportunities to learn new skills across developmental domains during motor play. We collected and analyzed 501 written responses from 16 preschool teachers regarding their perceptions of intervention outcomes across domains, based on their observations during the CHildren in Action: Motor Program…

Early childhood educators in the United States and worldwide face the growing challenge of "schoolification,"--the imposition of conventional academic content from later grade levels into their classrooms (e.g., Ring & O'Sullivan, 2018). The science of learning offers a different approach with evidence to support more active,…

This study examined preschool teachers' fidelity in implementing a vocabulary intervention. The purpose of the study is to inform the scaling up of vocabulary interventions, identifying strategies that are both feasible for teachers and effective for vocabulary learning. We analyzed data from a vocabulary intervention in which teachers (n = 10)…

Research has suggested that system-wide professional development needs to embrace ongoing and sustainable processes such as critical reflection, being within a community of practice and the co-creation of new practices within and across early childhood systems. However, there is little research on how professional development can be designed in a…

Stay-play-talk (SPT) is a peer-mediated intervention that involves training peer implementers to stay in proximity to, play with, and talk to a focal child who has disabilities or lower social competence. This systematic review and meta-analysis investigated the contexts in which SPT interventions have been conducted, the methodological adequacy…

Risky play promotes learning for children but can be challenging for adults who may then avoid providing these opportunities for children. Research about educators' intentional teaching for risky play is limited. The focus of this paper is a project where educators sought to change practice by embedding intentional teaching within children's risky…

Supporting language skills for children who evidence delays in preschool is an important area of focus for school-age reading outcomes. Two preschool teachers were trained to implement a play-based language intervention, Enhanced Milieu Teaching (EMT), with children from low-income households with delayed language skills. A multiple-baseline…

Using a multiple probe design across peer buddy-target child dyads, we evaluated the effects of an intervention package (i.e., brief training, system of least prompts, visual supports) on peer buddies' use of stay-play-talk (SPT) with their classmates who were socially isolated (target children). All six peer buddies increased their use of SPT…

This study tested the Wellness Enhancing Physical Activity in Young Children (WE PLAY) program, a 4-week online preschool teacher training, on children's moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). In this cluster RCT, six Head Start preschools were randomized to an intervention and comparison group. Children's MVPA was measured using…

The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of gender-based bullying in a kindergarten. Such places are often depicted as innocent spaces, and hence, teachers often overlook the fact that bullying could also take place. This paper is based on an ethnographic study, conducted in a kindergarten in Indonesia. Twenty-eight children and four…

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child was the first international treaty to emphasize the importance of listening to children's views and including them in decision-making processes. In that line, the primary aim of this study was to show how the quality of preschool outdoor environments can be improved through a participatory…

Young children aged 4-5 years are online in rapidly increasing numbers. This is due to the accessibility of the internet afforded young children via touchscreen technologies. In Australian, the United Kingdom and United States of America, calls have been made for cyber-safety education to be provided for young children in their early childhood…

Teachers can play important roles in supporting children's development through play, but require training to better understand this role. Practice-based coaching shows promise in its ability to train teachers in use of evidence-based practice, but has not been used for play support practices. The present study sought to explore using…

Children with autism spectrum disorder experience delays in the development of nonverbal social communication gestures to request and to share (joint attention) as well as play skills such that intervention is required. Although such tools exist in research settings, community stakeholders also require access to brief, simple, and reliable tools…