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As a teacher and as a parent, I have discovered this magic:  When the kids are sad or too loud or when fights break out, taking the kids outside seems to fix everything, especially if running water, sand or soil is involved.  At our school when the children spill out into the yard and garden, a sudden calm descends.  At home, in the evening “arsenic hour,” playing on the grass erases our daughter’s distress.  Though parking kids in front of…

The best part about the concept of loose parts play is that it is so simple. It doesn’t take much to invite and sustain creative, focused play—sometimes just offering a different combination of everyday materials will open up unexpected levels of exploration and fun.Read more: Community Play Things

Young children are naturally curious about the world around them. Through play, preschoolers can explore the mysteries of their surroundings while learning key language, social, math, science and thinking skills. As their teacher, it’s important you foster an environment where preschoolers can develop and learn as they participate in activities around the classroom. Here are tips for supporting your student’s learning through play: 1. Encourage Pretend Play One of the ways a child learns is by imagining and doing.  When…

Children go through phases of reading development from preschool through third grade — from exploration of books to independent reading. In preschool, children explore their environment and build the foundations for learning to read and write. Find out what parents and teachers can do to support preschool literacy skills.Read more: Reading Rockets

Guiding children’s behavior is something done throughout the day, not just when a child acts in a way that is unsafe or unacceptable. You guide behavior by establishing predictable routines, setting clear rules with children, and modeling kindness and respect. You are also attentive and aware of what is going on. Together, these actions help children feel noticed, confident, and secure. Children experience your attention and guidance as a caring embrace holding everything together. They know you’re on their team.Read more: NAEYC 

Jessica, age four, enters her new preschool classroom for the very first time. She looks around and tries to determine what happens in this space? Does she belong here? Will it be an interesting place to spend her days? Will she be supported as she grows and develops?Jessica will discover the answers through her interactions with the physical environment of her classroom. If she spends her day in an effectively designed environment, Jessica will be physically, emotionally, aesthetically, and intellectually…

One of the best parts of teaching pre-K is that we’re not always bound by the rigid assessment requirements that teachers in the older grades must adhere to. We’re free to assess our kids when and how we like. Still, when kids are this young and have such tiny attention spans, getting a good read on what they know can be tough. Here are six easy ways to assess pre-reading skills in an early childhood classroom. Read more: We Are…

Early childhood providers are called upon to do many difficult tasks. One of the most difficult of these is providing our children with diverse, multicultural experiences. Since the beginning of time, young children have been raised by their families, extended families, clans, and communities. Even today, most family child care homes and many early childhood programs tend to be fairly homogeneous and quite similar to the child’s home background. High on the list of criteria parents use to choose child…

Effective preschool teachers engage with and extend children’s learning throughout the entire day. Like other routines, mealtimes provide opportunities to focus on each individual child and use teachable moments to support learning.   Read More: NAEYC 

Much like the activities in an early childhood classroom, what happens during a job interview can be hard to predict. The types of questions asked and the way the administrator shapes the interview varies based on the position you are interviewing for and the school district. As a young teacher, I spent last summer researching interview questions and rehearsing responses in front of the mirror. I reorganized my portfolio at least a dozen times! So many questions raced through my…