This book provides a handy compendium to support you as you train to become an Early Years Teacher. The eight Teachers' Standards (Early Years) underpin the core structure of the book, and there is strong linking throughout to the statutory and non-statutory framework and guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage. Offering comprehensive coverage of theories of early learning and child development, this book: Brings together relevant knowledge and skills in a way that challenges you to think critically about key theories of early learning and development in your role as an Early Years Teacher Reflects on the nature of professionalism and offers activities to help you identify your own learning journey and develop your own professional identity Underpins practice with a focus and recognition of the need to identify and develop key communication skills that build positive professional relationships in the best interests of babies and children Includes practical examples and case studies to support reflection and inspire you to creative positive learning opportunities for babies and young children Importantly, the book concludes with valuable guidance on gathering assessment evidence of your personal practice, as well as demonstrating the ability to lead and support early years provision from birth to five years. This is an essential book to support all trainees in developing their role and skills as an Early Years Teacher. Contributors: Kelly Cooper, Fiona Dearman, Jo Elsey, Jessica Johnson, Daryl Maisey, Angela Maxey, Joanne McKibbin, Yasmin Mukadam, Vicky Mummery, Gemma Pawson, Denise Salter, Laltiha Sivalingam, Helen Sutherland. "Authoritative, scholarly and grounded in practice, this is surely destined to become the must-have practical handbook for all those seeking Early Years Teacher status." Geoff Taggart, Lecturer in Early Years, University of Reading, UK "Becoming an Early Years Teacher will prove valuable to all those working in the early years sector, and is an accessible and user friendly resource that promotes increased professional responsibility. Theoretical underpinning and the use of case studies, activities and links to observed practice, provide thought provoking material which recognises the importance of partnership working with families and wider community organisations. Emphasis is placed on the importance of reflection to question values and beliefs and to continually evaluate and challenge practice. This book aims to support inspirational practice that will enhance positive learning opportunities for all early years' children." Soraya Goni, HE Award Leader Childhood Studies, Kirklees College, UK "I am delighted to recommend this comprehensive, challenging and accessible power-pack of a book, which deserves to become essential reading for all Early Years Teachers in training and equally for those engaged in studying on Early Childhood Studies degrees. The team of contributors bring a wealth of both professional and academic knowledge and experience to their chapters and overall the book promotes critical thinking and reflexive practice. Whilst explicitly addressing the standards for Early Years Teacher Status the book avoids taking an instrumentalist approach and explores a range of perspectives and tensions related to professionalism within the early childhood world." Penny Holland, Early Childhood Consultant "This book provides essential, well-articulated, thought-provoking guidance for students working towards Early Years Teacher Status. Throughout the chapters, for each of the eight standards there are strong themes encouraging reflection, reflective practice, leadership and a commitment that in-depth knowledge of theory is closely linked to practice. Scenarios are presented to encourage extension of thought and knowledge whilst ensuring adherence to the statutory and non-statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. This approach helps to ensure that the students work towards leading continuous improvement in practice so that the babies and young children experience their learning and development through play and individual care needs. This is a very good book that I would recommend to all Early Years Teacher Status students." Tricia Johnson, Retired Lecturer in Early Years, UK

If you are an Early Years Teacher Trainee, this book is written for you. It will help you to successfully achieve your Early Years Teacher Status and practice with confidence. This book guides you through what you need to know about Early Years Teacher Status step-by-step. It explains how you can work to meet each of the Standards and assessment requirements. The author addresses trainees’ common concerns about early years practice, study skills and meeting EYTS requirements, as well as giving many examples of the strategies that trainees found most helpful. The chapters explore each aspect of every Standard and indicator, with notes on theory, practical tips, case studies, activities and suggestions for further reading. This book helps you to: • understand all aspects of each Standard and indicator; • link your practice to the Standards; • understand the assessment requirements and how to strengthen your evidence; • plan and track your evidence; • complete your written assignments and create your portfolio with confidence; • develop the skills needed to take on a leadership role. This book also provides support for the mentor-mentee relationship and includes guidance for mentors, teaching activities for tutors and support for assessors. This book is a valuable resource for all those involved in EYTS and will be useful for: - EYTS trainees - their mentors - their placement tutors - course lecturers - EYTS assessors

The long-awaited new edition of NAEYC's book Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs is here, fully revised and updated! Since the first edition in 1987, it has been an essential resource for the early childhood education field. Early childhood educators have a professional responsibility to plan and implement intentional, developmentally appropriate learning experiences that promote the social and emotional development, physical development and health, cognitive development, and general learning competencies of each child served. But what is developmentally appropriate practice (DAP)? DAP is a framework designed to promote young children's optimal learning and development through a strengths-based approach to joyful, engaged learning. As educators make decisions to support each child's learning and development, they consider what they know about (1) commonality in children's development and learning, (2) each child as an individual (within the context of their family and community), and (3) everything discernible about the social and cultural contexts for each child, each educator, and the program as a whole. This latest edition of the book is fully revised to underscore the critical role social and cultural contexts play in child development and learning, including new research about implicit bias and teachers' own context and consideration of advances in neuroscience. Educators implement developmentally appropriate practice by recognizing the many assets all young children bring to the early learning program as individuals and as members of families and communities. They also develop an awareness of their own context. Building on each child's strengths, educators design and implement learning settings to help each child achieve their full potential across all domains of development and across all content areas.

Children are already learning at birth, and they develop and learn at a rapid pace in their early years. This provides a critical foundation for lifelong progress, and the adults who provide for the care and the education of young children bear a great responsibility for their health, development, and learning. Despite the fact that they share the same objective - to nurture young children and secure their future success - the various practitioners who contribute to the care and the education of children from birth through age 8 are not acknowledged as a workforce unified by the common knowledge and competencies needed to do their jobs well. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 explores the science of child development, particularly looking at implications for the professionals who work with children. This report examines the current capacities and practices of the workforce, the settings in which they work, the policies and infrastructure that set qualifications and provide professional learning, and the government agencies and other funders who support and oversee these systems. This book then makes recommendations to improve the quality of professional practice and the practice environment for care and education professionals. These detailed recommendations create a blueprint for action that builds on a unifying foundation of child development and early learning, shared knowledge and competencies for care and education professionals, and principles for effective professional learning. Young children thrive and learn best when they have secure, positive relationships with adults who are knowledgeable about how to support their development and learning and are responsive to their individual progress. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 offers guidance on system changes to improve the quality of professional practice, specific actions to improve professional learning systems and workforce development, and research to continue to build the knowledge base in ways that will directly advance and inform future actions. The recommendations of this book provide an opportunity to improve the quality of the care and the education that children receive, and ultimately improve outcomes for children.

Make learning visible in the early years Early childhood is a uniquely sensitive time, when young learners are rapidly developing across multiple domains, including language and literacy, mathematics, and motor skills. Knowing which teaching strategies work best and when can have a significant impact on a child’s development and future success. Visible Learning in Early Childhood investigates the critical years between ages 3 and 6 and, backed by evidence from the Visible Learning® research, explores seven core strategies for learning success: working together as evaluators, setting high expectations, measuring learning with explicit success criteria, establishing developmentally appropriate levels of learning, viewing mistakes as opportunities, continually seeking feedback, and balancing surface, deep, and transfer learning. The authors unpack the symbiotic relationship between these seven tenets through Authentic examples of diverse learners and settings Voices of master teachers from the US, UK, and Australia Multiple assessment and differentiation strategies Multidisciplinary approaches depicting mathematics, literacy, art and music, social-emotional learning, and more Using the Visible Learning research, teachers partner with children to encourage high expectations, developmentally appropriate practices, the right level of challenge, and a focus on explicit success criteria. Get started today and watch your young learners thrive!

Clearly babies come into the world remarkably receptive to its wonders. Their alertness to sights, sounds, and even abstract concepts makes them inquisitive explorersâ€"and learnersâ€"every waking minute. Well before formal schooling begins, children's early experiences lay the foundations for their later social behavior, emotional regulation, and literacy. Yet, for a variety of reasons, far too little attention is given to the quality of these crucial years. Outmoded theories, outdated facts, and undersized budgets all play a part in the uneven quality of early childhood programs throughout our country. What will it take to provide better early education and care for our children between the ages of two and five? Eager to Learn explores this crucial question, synthesizing the newest research findings on how young children learn and the impact of early learning. Key discoveries in how young children learn are reviewed in language accessible to parents as well as educators: findings about the interplay of biology and environment, variations in learning among individuals and children from different social and economic groups, and the importance of health, safety, nutrition and interpersonal warmth to early learning. Perhaps most significant, the book documents how very early in life learning really begins. Valuable conclusions and recommendations are presented in the areas of the teacher-child relationship, the organization and content of curriculum, meeting the needs of those children most at risk of school failure, teacher preparation, assessment of teaching and learning, and more. The book discusses: Evidence for competing theories, models, and approaches in the field and a hard look at some day-to-day practices and activities generally used in preschool. The role of the teacher, the importance of peer interactions, and other relationships in the child's life. Learning needs of minority children, children with disabilities, and other special groups. Approaches to assessing young children's learning for the purposes of policy decisions, diagnosis of educational difficulties, and instructional planning. Preparation and continuing development of teachers. Eager to Learn presents a comprehensive, coherent picture of early childhood learning, along with a clear path toward improving this important stage of life for all children.

A fully revised edition of the author's best selling book, this resource now includes an extended section on leadership, and managing the foundation stage.

Providing an accessible introduction to attachment thinking, this practical book offers early years practitioners’ advice on translating attachment principles into practice in their settings. It clearly explains how knowledge about attachment theory underpins everyday practice and highlights the crucial role of secure attachments in young children’s learning and development. Developing Attachments in Early Years Settings examines the importance of emotional‚ ‘holding’ and the nurturing of individual relationships within group childcare. The book aims to help you make a real difference to young children’s sense of self and emotional security by being ‘tuned in’, available, responsive and consistent. With a strong focus on facilitating secure attachments from the beginning and guidance on how to observe young children effectively, this new edition has been thoroughly updated and revised to include: How to make a positive contribution to good practice for Government funded 2 year olds A new chapter on the Emotional Environment and the Developing Brain Expansion of material on the importance of the outdoors, as well as Nurture group practice Additional material about working in partnership with parents and developing positive relationships Each chapter includes a personal reflection exercise and a positive contribution to good practice section. With its accessible approach, this book is essential reading for both practitioners and students looking for guidance on how to nurture secondary attachment relationships in group care settings.

Early childhood care and education (ECCE) settings offer an opportunity to provide children with a solid beginning in all areas of their development. The quality and efficacy of these settings depend largely on the individuals within the ECCE workforce. Policy makers need a complete picture of ECCE teachers and caregivers in order to tackle the persistent challenges facing this workforce. The IOM and the National Research Council hosted a workshop to describe the ECCE workforce and outline its parameters. Speakers explored issues in defining and describing the workforce, the marketplace of ECCE, the effects of the workforce on children, the contextual factors that shape the workforce, and opportunities for strengthening ECCE as a profession.

In recent years there have been significant changes in education across the globe, largely as a result of changing demographics, technological developments, and increased globalization. Relatedly, the changing needs of societies and families, along with new research findings, provide new directions in early childhood education. Consequently, early childhood teachers today are faced with higher and more complex expectations to help ensure that their students achieve their full potential. Such expectations suggest that early childhood teachers should be professionals who are able to draw on a robust knowledge base in making educational decisions. It follows that teacher education programs should develop and implement innovative programs that can potentially enhance the quality of our future teachers. An awareness of pressing issues in the field of early childhood teacher education led the editors to develop this volume. The chapters in these two volumes bring together scholars from across the US and the globe who are interested in improving the quality of early childhood teacher education. The chapters present their experiences, perspectives, and lessons learned as they addressed some of the challenging issues concerning the education and preparation of future early childhood teachers. The various issues and perspectives from different states in the US or countries across the globe provide insights into current issues and dilemmas facing the field. The contributions of these scholars should inform the discourse on early childhood teacher education and help those who work with preservice teachers improve the quality of their work.