Play has long been understood as an important pedagogical practice, particularly in early childhood education and care settings. Playing with food, however, has typically been overlooked, and very little is known about food play during mealtimes. The apparent dichotomy between rule-following and playfulness at mealtimes has led to a paucity of…

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,…

During imaginative play, children may learn foundational skills important for academic success. Indeed, imaginative children, high in fantasy orientation (FO), may have advantages in skills that support positive classroom and social behavior. Yet findings are mixed regarding the classroom behavior of children high in fantasy orientation. The…

A growing number of toddlers are attending childcare institutions as part of China's establishment of its infant-toddler childcare service system. However, there is limited empirical evidence available regarding the quality of these childcare services. The purpose of this study is to investigate the quality of teacher - child interactions in…

Play and peer interactions are crucial for children's socioemotional development and growth. However, children with special needs, disabilities, and developmental delays may not participate in play with peers as much as typically developing children. Reliable and valid assessment information of children's social behavior is necessary to design…

Currently, kindergarten education is shaped by two priorities: (1) the recognition that early learning must maintain a developmental orientation and support socio-personal growth; and (2) a growing emphasis on standards-based curriculum and the use of assessment to support children's learning. While some researchers have argued these two…

Research Findings: Preschool is a critical period during which children's development and learning exert a long-lasting impact on their school adjustment and academic outcomes. Although research on monolingual English-speaking children has identified elements of high-quality preschool experiences that can serve as the foundation for teaching all…

This article focused on the pedagogy that enhances peer interaction in integrated special groups. In Finland, most children identified as having special educational needs (SEN) attend day-care in mainstream kindergarten groups; the rest are in integrated or segregated early childhood special education (ECSE) groups in public day-care centres…

Limited data are available regarding how response prompting procedures should be used in early childhood settings. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficiency of progressive time delay instruction presented via two trial arrangements: massed and embedded. During massed trial sessions, a short instructional session was conducted,…

The aim of this study was to explore Norwegian early childhood education and care (ECEC) practitioners' perceptions and practices regarding children's indoor and outdoor rough-and-tumble play (R&T) from a gender perspective. A questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were used together in a mixed method design to provide quantitative data…

The current study aimed to examine the associations between teacher presence and social scaffolding and preschool children's peer interactions. Using a time sampling method, peer interactions of 22 four- and five-year-old preschoolers (12 girls; M[subscript age] = 52.95 months) and teacher behavior were observed on two different days during…

Time spent in the outdoors has been proven to benefit individuals of all ages mentally and physically. For example, exposure to nature reduces stress levels, induces relaxation, and provides Vitamin D. Prior research has linked free play outdoors to helping elementary children focus better in the classroom, reducing symptoms of attention deficit…

Research Findings: This study explored the quality of teacher-child interactions within the context of a newly developed standardized task, Teacher-Child Structured Play Task (TC-SPT). A sample of 146 teachers and 345 children participated. Children who displayed the highest disruptive behaviors within each classroom were selected to participate.…

This paper explores teacher-reported prevalence of rough-and-tumble play (R&T) in preschool and investigates how their restriction to such play varies in different play environments (indoor and outdoor). An electronic questionnaire exploring preschool teachers' beliefs and practices regarding children's dramatic play themes was conducted by…

The effects of class-wide self-monitoring on the on-task behaviors of preschoolers with developmental disabilities were determined. Also examined were whether the on-task behaviors of preschoolers with developmental disabilities had approximated the level of typically developing peers at the end of intervention, and classroom teachers and…