In this concise and accessible guide, the authors are sympathetic to the particular demands of teaching three to eight year olds and offer practical solutions to the complex issues that are currently faced by early years educators. In recognizing the demands on practitioners, they provide new and challenging frameworks for an understanding of the practice of teaching young children and draw upon international research to offer a sound model of early years subject-structured teaching which has the quality of children's learning at its centre. Their aim is to support teacher expertise through stimulating teachers' thinking about children's development, motivation, ways of learning and the subjects they teach. These topics are clearly set in the complex institutional settings in which practitioners work and ways of taking and evaluating action are offered.

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!

This best-selling text book provides a broad-ranging and up-to-date review of thinking and best practice within nursery and infant education. Written around the basic truth that an effective early years curriculum must start with the children, their needs and their potential, the contributors to this classic text acknowledge that learning must have a strong element of fun, wonder and excitement. Fully revised and updated in light of recent changes to the Early Years curriculum, with brand new chapters on assessment, communication, writing, creativity and diversity, the contributors address a range of fundamental issues and principles, including: an analysis of research into how children learn; discussions of issues such as classroom organisation, curriculum management, and assessment; a detailed section on play and language; chapters covering individual curriculum areas, including new chapters on music and PSHE. Each chapter combines a review of important principles with practical and inspiring classroom examples throughout. It is essential reading for all Foundations Stage and KS1 trainee teachers, their tutors and mentors, and serving teachers working in the 3-7 age range who wish to reflect upon and develop their practice.

The editors, particularly Iram Siraj-Blatchford, Kathy Sylva and Ted Melhuish, are extremely well respected authorities in their field The results of this genuinely ground-breaking study are eagerly awaited by many researchers in this area Includes clear implications of the study for practice and ensuring educational effectiveness Education for All (Richard Pring) is based on the Primary version of this study, so the two books can be promoted together

This book focuses on improving well-being among young children. It provides a theoretical base explaining why physical activity is important, and offers practical strategies for increasing health and well-being in early childhood settings. It takes ancient wisdom on the mind and body connection, applies it to the youngest children, and supports it with current empirical and international evidence—all with an eye toward improving wellness across the lifespan. The many topics discussed in the book include children’s motor skills, movement, interaction, physical literacy, the use of video games, dog ownership, developmental delays, as well as strategies to improve physical activities in the classroom and broader contexts. In recent years, children’s health has become a priority worldwide. Topics such as “screen time” “sedentary behavior” and “childhood obesity” have become important issues everywhere- in the news, in schools, in community and commercials settings, and among health care providers. Limiting sedentary behavior, increasing physical activity, and maintaining a nutritious diet are three fundamental needs during early childhood. Preschool years are a time when children begin to explore the world around them, and develop more vivid understandings of their surroundings. As this book shows, the early years may be the best time to teach wellness concepts and assist young children in establishing healthy lifestyle habits.

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.

Representing the state of the art in multimedia applications and their promise for enhancing early literacy development, this volume broadens the field of reading research by looking beyond print-only experiences to young readers’ encounters with multimedia stories on the Internet and DVD. Multimedia storybooks include, in addition to static pictures and written text, features such as oral text, animations, sounds, zooms, and scaffolds designed to help convey meaning. These features are changing how young children read text, and also provide technology-based scaffolds for helping struggling readers. Multimedia and Literacy Development reports experimental research and practices with multimedia stories indicating that new dimensions of media contribute to young children’s ability to understand stories and to read texts independently. This is the first synthesis of evidence-based research in this field. Four key themes are highlighted: Understanding the multimedia environment for learning Designing multimedia applications for learning New approaches to storybook reading Multimedia applications in classroom instruction. Written in jargon-free language for an international audience of students in university courses on literacy and information technology, researchers, policymakers, program developers, and media specialists, this volume is essential reading for all professionals interested in early literacy and early interventions.

What children learn is important but how children learn is even more important if they are to become learners for life in today's society. In this book, Nancy Stewart brings her wealth of experience to help policy makers and practitioners articulate the importance of early childhood as a valuable stage in its own right as well as a preparation for the future.This best seller explores effective early childhood learning through exploring the characteristics of effective learning, as identified in revised Early Years Foundation Stage in England. Its content is however, applicable across the range of curricula and frameworks that govern early childhood education across the four UK nations, as well as internationally.

The key argument of The Characteristics of Effective Early Learning is that how children learn is as important as what they learn. This book helps you understand how to support the learning and development of young children through promoting the characteristics of effective early learning: play and exploring, active learning, and creating and thinking critically. The book: Investigates how children engage in learning through playing and exploring, and are motivated through active learning Explores how children become creative and critical thinkers able to review their own learning and thinking, imaginatively solving problems and excited by their own Examines appropriate approaches to observation, assessment and planning Supports practitioners in reporting on how children demonstrate these characteristics for the revised EYFS profile Rich in practical examples and case studies, this is an essential read for early years students and practitioners who want to find out more about how to promote the characteristics of effective early learning in their practice. Contributors: Di Chilvers, Clare Crowther, Kim Porter, Sue Rogers, Judith Stevens, Nancy Stewart, David Whitebread "This is such a useful addition to other publications which clarify, enrich and expand on messages in the revised Early Years Foundation stage. A range of early years experts offer valuable insights on important topics linked to young children learning. The contributors write authoritatively drawing on historical studies as well as more current research. Authentic case studies vividly illustrate theoretical points. Helen sets the stage beautifully, providing a rationale, structure and sequence to a book which truly and lovingly celebrates the processes of children's unfolding development." Marion Dowling, Early Years Specialist and Vice President of Early Education "An insightful and engaging read for students and professionals within the Early Years sector that brings alive the concepts of effective learning that underpin the Early Years Foundation Stage. The book provides an excellent synthesis of developmental and pedagogic research enabling readers to make connections between theory and practice. One of the great strengths of the book is the way in which young children are celebrated as active and powerful agents in their own learning. The book allows readers to reflect on how adults can build on this to ensure that the potential for learning within each child is fully supported through effective pedagogies as well as in more formal planning and assessment. The contributing authors bring a variety of perspectives and knowledge that combine to illuminate the principles behind effective early years practice and explore how these can be translated into meaningful and supportive experiences for children." Dr Mary Wild, Principal Lecturer, School of Education, Oxford Brookes University, UK "What a wonderful sub-title 'Helping young children to become learners for life'. It is so refreshing to find, (among the plethora of new publications on child development) a book that really sees all children as 'rich children' and describes them as capable and confident learners. All the authors share their knowledge in a highly accessible manner which means I can recommend this book to both our practitioners and students undertaking first degrees and post qualifying courses. The authors clearly identify the qualities and attributes of highly effective learners. They share the view that young children come into Early Childhood Education settings hungry to make sense of relationships and the world they are growing up in. They powerfully describe the kind of skilled educators that children deserve; educators who can harness children's energy, engage with their interests and extend their critical thinking." Dr Margy Whalley, Director of the Pen Green Centre for Children and Families and the Pen Green Research Base

A Co-Publication of Routledge and NAEYC Technology and Digital Media in the Early Years offers early childhood teacher educators, professional development providers, and early childhood educators in pre-service, in-service, and continuing education settings a thought-provoking guide to effective, appropriate, and intentional use of technology with young children. This book provides strategies, theoretical frameworks, links to research evidence, descriptions of best practice, and resources to develop essential digital literacy knowledge, skills and experiences for early childhood educators in the digital age. Technology and Digital Media in the Early Years puts educators right at the intersections of child development, early learning, developmentally appropriate practice, early childhood teaching practices, children’s media research, teacher education, and professional development practices. The book is based on current research, promising programs and practices, and a set of best practices for teaching with technology in early childhood education that are based on the NAEYC/FRC Position Statement on Technology and Interactive Media and the Fred Rogers Center Framework for Quality in Children’s Digital Media. Pedagogical principles, classroom practices, and teaching strategies are presented in a practical, straightforward way informed by child development theory, developmentally appropriate practice, and research on effective, appropriate, and intentional use of technology in early childhood settings. A companion website (http://teccenter.erikson.edu/tech-in-the-early-years/) provides additional resources and links to further illustrate principles and best practices for teaching and learning in the digital age.