Argues that professional development for early childhood educators should address the challenge of diversity in order to produce an optimal child and truly realize a participatory democracy. Outlines four professional development opportunities that will help acknowledge diversity and create a realistic context from which teachers can teach. (SD)

Studied child care quality indicators via a comparison of state child care licensing requirements in three areas: child staff ratio, group size, and caregiver educational requirements. Compared these data to 1981 data to assess changes in licensing regulations. Found both positive and negative changes and that regulations vary greatly state by…

Argues that a family-centered approach is as important and applicable to early care and education programs as it is to family-friendly work environments. Encourages child care settings to incorporate ideas and participation by families, providers, public sector, and private sector in order to provide high-quality services. (SD)

Movement of all types can become a healthy part of classroom activity. Movement can be an activity in and of itself, or it can become part of existing activities, for example, having children act out a concept being studied or the actions of people or objects in stories being told. (JW)

Environmental education is best pursued through concrete interaction with nature rather than by importing classroom materials to the outdoors. Plants and animals provide living illustrations of fundamental concepts, and items found in nature can be used to demonstrate learning in ingenious ways. (JW)

Ensuring healthy and happy classrooms requires being committed to students and acting in ways worthy of their respect; helping children improve their self-esteem; employing consistency, structure, and routine where appropriate; being clear and honest about expectations; offering students choices; allowing opportunities for all types of questions;…

Notes that throughout our educational and teaching experiences, we develop our own scripts, or the body of knowledge we call our own. Traces the script development of one educator, and concludes that becoming a teacher is a lifelong process. (JW)

Discusses elements of high-quality play related to time, space, experiences, and materials. Also discusses effective methods of adult-child interaction in the play setting and the importance of adults being very conscious of their role in the endeavor. (JW)

Notes that Grandparent's Day is becoming a nationally recognized holiday celebrated by more and more schools, but that such celebrations can alienate students whose grandparents have died or whose families do not have good relations with the grandparents. Presents an activity to engage students who may be in these situations. (JW)

Summarizes findings of the Television Violence Study indicating that the context of much television violence is dangerous to viewers, perpetrators go unpunished in the majority of programs, negative consequences of violence are often ignored, guns feature prominently, and presentation of violence differs greatly across networks and across…

Highlights Paley's contributions, particularly her work in developing the vision of the narrative classroom. This vision includes using a combination of acting, writing, and directing to get children to work together and develop ideas in small settings. Paley's methods and insights illustrate these concepts and classroom life in an important way…

Discusses ways that arts and crafts can be integrated into content learning activities. Describes activities in a unit on animals in winter, noting that arts and crafts present an opportunity for children to demonstrate learning in new ways. (JW)

Appreciating children's art involves considering all work as an expressive form which conveys its own meaning. Characteristics that can be examined include the medium and materials used; the size, shape, colors, and angles present; the subject, scene, idea, or emotion represented; and the nature and origin of the idea for the work. (JW)

Describes development of NAEYC accreditation and offers a description of the process. Highlights the effects of accreditation and discusses its future. Notes that accreditation provides opportunities and motivation for valuable professional development, and that quality control is the greatest challenge faced by accreditation efforts. Notes…

Child caregivers are in a particularly strong position to be child advocates, as they have the most current and effective information about child development. Advocacy is a fundamental responsibility of NAEYC, which is exploring ways to increase its advocacy activities. Effective advocacy requires a variety of individuals with an extensive range…