Unlike adults, young children think that many weird and unlikely events are impossible. Existing theories have argued that this developmental shift is driven primarily by age-related changes in knowledge as well as an increasing ability to reflect on one's modal intuitions. However, this intuition + reflection model fails to explain…

Friedrich Froebel is often positioned in contemporary landscapes of early childhood education as a 'pioneer', strongly associated with an emphasis on self-directed activity and learning through nature. While Froebel's philosophy has clearly had an impact on how we think about young children today, in this article we argue that we need to…

This book offers a foundational guide for pre- and in-service teachers, examining the evolving, multifaceted role of educators in today's classrooms. Organized into three parts--Children, Teachers, and Parents--it explores child development, the emotional and social complexity of learners, and the vital influence of family dynamics on school…

What do cows drink? The correct answer is water, but many are tempted to say milk. The disposition to override an intuitive response (milk) with a more analytic response (water) is known as "cognitive reflection." Tests of cognitive reflection predict a wide range of skills and abilities in adults. In this article, we discuss the…

Child observation is a critical component of quality pedagogy in early childhood education and care (ECEC). The ORICL (Observe, Reflect, Improve Children's Learning) tool was co-designed by ECEC researchers, policymakers, leaders, and practitioners to support this work. Educators rate the experiences of individual children, and responses of…

Purpose: Being "literate" is well established as key to active civic participation, right from the earliest years of life. Young children's natural curiosity and motivation to understand the world and their places within it through playful explorations offers rich opportunities for learning. Reported here are findings from a STEAM…

The aim of this research is to highlight didactical voices on inclusive ideals and special educational tools noted in the written reflections of 178 preschool teachers in 10 Swedish municipalities. The research questions are as follows: How do preschool teachers signify inclusive ideals in written reflections of teaching in language and…

This article is based on a fieldwork study that explored a 1-year-long process of integrating children's human rights-respecting practice in a preschool through a project with a popular culture theme. Drawing on John Dewey's educational theory, educative participatory experience is suggested as a useful concept to further understand and develop…

This article explores video-stimulated recall as a novel approach to understanding children's decisions to engage in relational and physical aggression. Past studies have relied on caregiver and observer reports to investigate children's social behaviors, omitting children's experience and interpretation of their own behavior. Within this…

Reflective practice helps clinicians manage the complexity and uncertainty inherent in day-to-day practice. This is important given the high rates of burnout, turnover, and trauma-related stress among social workers and other clinicians. Using focus groups with 55 social work and child development graduate students and alumni, this study explored…

During the 2020-21 school year, remote instruction due to COVID-19 significantly limited children's access to school-based social interactions. As schools return to in-person instruction, we ask: Can poetry and metaphor be used to develop theory of mind (ToM)/reflective functioning and emotional literacy in the early elementary setting? This…

The COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to be effective today, disrupted our daily lives in many areas and caused some changes. Along with the pandemic process, social life, daily activities and working life, as well as education and training life, were also affected and many countries have switched from face to face education to distance…

Early intervention (EI) providers--who deliver Part C services under the purview of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) for children birth-3 years old with/at risk of disabilities--play an important role in promoting the development of young children and their caregivers. Enhancing caregiver capacity to meet the developmental…