Five essential ideas or understandings that should underlie early childhood teacher education programs are discussed conceptually. Inquiry and reflection into practice are critical for continued teacher learning and development; learning and development are cultural and constructivist processes; the teacher's image of the child should be as a strong and capable participant in the culture; the education of young children is a community privilege and responsibility; and while the child's future is of concern in education, it is just as vital to think of the child in the here and now. These ideas are essential for incorporating a social justice orientation in teacher education. An exemplary early childhood teacher education program is described as a model of the way in which these underlying ideas might be incorporated in preparing early childhood teachers in the pursuit of social justice aims for all of their students and families.