Teachers are using technological innovations--including interactive whiteboards--in pre-K-grade 3 classrooms across the country. An IWB is a wall-mounted, touch-sensitive flat screen. When connected to a computer (or another electronic device) and a projector, it displays enlarged instructional content (such as a math word problem, pictures or…

Number sense development in young children has been linked to future math achievement in a manner similar to the way phonological awareness (i.e., children's awareness and use of sounds within a language to make meaning) has been linked to reading achievement (e.g., Kosanovich, Weinstein, & Goldman 2009). That is, they may be indicators of future…

In this article the author describes SQUiNK, a useful tool in interacting with text for all children and at varying levels and abilities. Initially the author sought to address the needs of readers with strong skills by more fully engaging them with expository text. But through the introduction to a strategy for addressing the needs of "all"…

FirstSchool is a school reform approach to early schooling for children 3 to 8 years old. It was developed over the past five years through a collaborative partnership among families, schools, communities, and institutions of higher education. The approach responds to the needs of all young children--especially in African American or Latino…

The habit of looking for patterns, the skills to find them, and the expectation that patterns have explanations is an essential mathematical habit of mind for young children (Goldenberg, Shteingold, & Feurzeig 2003, 23). Work with patterns leads to the ability to form generalizations, the bedrock of algebraic thinking, and teachers must nurture…

Creating meaningful math experiences that reach children with diverse abilities, home languages, learning styles, and backgrounds is a daunting challenge for all teachers. Primary teachers often receive little professional support for achieving this complicated task in mathematics (NCTM 2000). This article explores how five different math…

Early childhood teachers around the country and the world guide children's mathematical learning through the use of manipulatives--pattern blocks, base blocks, geoboards, Unifx cubes, Cuisenaire rods, coins, clocks, and so on. Manipulatives allow concrete, hands-on exploration and representation of mathematical concepts. In the past few years,…

The key to engaging children in doing real science is to understand the difference between a "science demonstration" and a "hands-on science experiment." Demonstrations performed by the teacher typically illustrate a science concept. But science experiments give children the opportunity to pose their own "What if . . . ?" questions, which…

Stonier, a second grade inclusion teacher, wanted to instill a love of writing in all 25 of the children in his class while offering a challenging curriculum for everyone. He made the children's writing meaningful by setting up a writing exchange with high school students. The project, beginning with the second-graders offering critiques of the…

How can teachers balance early curricular demands and expectations while addressing the social and emotional needs of young children during times of crisis and stress? The author suggests that teachers need to redirect and engage children in learning activities that give them a feeling of control, competence, and empowerment in their own lives and…

The authors describe a five-day, literature-based thematic unit for second-graders on positive character traits, such as friendship, respect, perseverance, honesty, and cooperation, and how four books by Janell Cannon are integral to children's learning. (The authors offer suggestions throughout for adapting the unit for younger children.) They…

Today's teachers are increasingly aware that opportunities for student self-assessment can lead to children's feelings of ownership of their learning and a greater responsibility for it. As a former classroom teacher and now a teacher educator, the author sees that the lessons she learned in a yearlong teacher inquiry with her second grade…

The authors advocate that every primary grade program needs a carefully planned social-emotional component. All children--those who enter first or second grade with an ability to control their emotions and make friends and those for whom these skills are more difficult--benefit from intentional teaching in this area. Some school systems adopt a…

The idea of problem posing is not new, but it has received increased attention in light of new approaches to mathematics education. Mathematical problem posing builds on young children's natural curiosity. It promotes children's "engagement in authentic mathematical activity"; enables children to "encounter many problems, methods, and solutions…

West outlines the scientific method as a proven problem-solving method for young children across the curriculum and in all areas of life and learning. She emphasizes that doing, thinking, and talking with peers when problem solving are as important as writing conclusions. The article walks readers through a second grade class's experiment in…