In current early childhood literature, it appears that anything called 'a caring community of learners' is considered excellent practice. In this article, however, we look critically at the idea of community. We examine the shifts in the field that led to community's transformation from an implicit assumption to a recognized and explicit requirement in high-quality early childhood educational environments, identify some of the more troubling and problematic aspects of community that are currently missing from the scholarly literature, and make suggestions about ways to continue this important conversation. Our goal is not to discount the value of community in early childhood educational practices, but to enrich and complicate our understandings of this important aspect of our work with young children.