In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a mandatory shift from in-person instruction to online learning for many young children. Teachers needed to adjust to virtual teaching, children were isolated from their peers, and parents played a bigger role in learning during the pandemic. In 2021, the shift back to in-person learning occurred. Research has…

In 2015 an urban school district reported that 84.6% of third graders did not demonstrate proficiency on the Math Standardized Test, which challenges students to solve problems and justify solutions. Since 2006 there has been a negative trend of proficiency levels on the New York State (NYS) Math Exam in third grade. I propose that students may be…

This ethnographic study presents findings of the literacy practices of Burmese refugee families and their interaction with a book distribution program paired with an intergenerational family literacy program. The project was organized at the level of Bronfenbrenner's exosystem (in "Ecology of human development". Cambridge, Harvard…

This paper examines the impact of programming robots on sequencing ability during a 1-week intensive robotics workshop at an early childhood STEM magnet school in the Harlem area of New York City. Children participated in computer programming activities using a developmentally appropriate tangible programming language CHERP, specifically designed…

The current context of increased accountability and the proliferation of skills-based literacy mandates at the early childhood level pose particular tensions for multilingual children and educators. In this article, we draw on data from two ethnographic studies to examine how educators and children negotiate the constraints of early childhood…

This guest editorial describes ways teachers can use guessing games about an unknown item in a "mystery box" to help children improve their abilities to listen to others, recall information, ask purposeful questions, classify items by class, make inferences, synthesize information, and draw conclusions. The author presents information…