Young children are often ignored or marginalised in the drive to address children's participation and their wider set of rights. This is the case generally in social research, as well as within the field of Arts-Based Education Research. This article contributes to the growing literature on young children's involvement in arts-based research, by…

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…

Purpose: This study examined the extent to which fundamental motor skill competence (FMSC; locomotor and object control skill competence) and perceived physical competence (PPC) predicted physical activity levels and sedentary behaviors during free-play time at preschool. Method: A total of 72 children (girls n = 33, boys n = 39; M[subscript age]…

This report builds upon the original principles and philosophy of "Pre-Birth to 3" and "Building the Ambition." The new guidance retains the relevant content from the previous guidance which it replaces, extending and strengthening it in line with current research and evidence about how children develop and learn. This…

Increasingly, children who start school have already acquired basic reading and writing skills provided by their parents or preschool teachers. However, even if we choose to accept the fact that by teaching preschool children how to read and write parents wish to help them integrate successfully into the school environment and methods of work, we…

In this research, it was aimed to reveal the knowledge and opinions about play in pre-school teachers' mathematics educational process. The research was designed as a mixed method. The qualitative dimension of the study included the analysis and interpretation of the data obtained through a semi-structured interview form. The quantitative…

In this article, the authors problematize the dichotomization of play and learning that often shapes the agenda of early childhood education research and practice. This dichotomization is driven in part by the tendency to define learning in terms of formal learning (i.e. learning as an outcome of direct instruction and school-based approaches that…

In early childhood education, a long-standing debate exists around issues related to school readiness and the transition to school. This paper describes an action research project implemented by teachers in an urban Australian preschool which gathered multiple stakeholder perspectives about school transition. The project was initiated to support…

Objectives: This study aimed to explore the impact of early health risks on young Aboriginal children's attendance in playgroups and their early learning outcomes. Design: The study used a cross-sectional design to identify associations between children's early health characteristics, their attendance at a Families as First Teachers (FaFT)…

This interim report presents the ongoing progress of a collaborative project between the Centre for Teacher and Early Years Education (CTEY), UCL Institute of Education and the Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University (BNU), which aims to (re)construct school readiness from Chinese children's perspectives. In this report, we first set out…

There has been considerable distress in early childhood classrooms due to a cultural bias of Cartesian dualism, which has led to the bullying and disappearance of Body in education. Efforts of bringing about shifts in pedagogical practices toward holistic, bodily views of the self must be supported and developed. However, with classrooms that are…

The study aimed at assessing Problems of Social Skills in Early Childhood Education Program in Ethiopia. Descriptive survey research design was employed through using stratified random sampling procedure to collect the survey data from 280 teachers recruited from early childhood education programs across three cities: Dire Dewa (130 teachers; 10…

Pretend play may be beneficial for young children's social development. However, empirical results to date are inconsistent and limited, which is partly due to a lack of psychometrically sound measures for children's social pretend play competence. The current study aimed to compare and validate different assessment methods for children's social…

Research Findings: A substantial body of research has demonstrated social and academic benefits of sociodramatic play (SDP) for young children. However, substantially less research has explored the factors related to increased amounts of SDP occurring during free play, an activity time that comprises the greatest portion of the daily schedule in…

This book reviews literature and research linked to early childhood education and care (ECEC). This educational level is fundamental for acquiring key competencies for school entry and establishing the physical, cognitive, and emotional bases for lifelong learning. Preschool education should promote student autonomy as the ability of a child to…