Based on recent research and in collaboration with expert panelists, the What Works Clearinghouse™ (WWC) has provided practical recommendations for preschool educators to use to help prepare young children benefit from learning opportunities they will encounter in school. The "Preparing Young Children for School Practice Guide" details…

Twice-exceptional (2E) students are those who demonstrate a gift or talent in one or more areas and have a disability in another area. One identifying characteristic of 2E children is asynchronous development, or the display of unusual talent or maturity in one or more areas alongside a struggle to develop in other areas. Asynchronous development…

This practical resource explains brain development from prenatal to age 8 with suggestions for activities educators and caregivers can use to foster children's cognitive growth. The authors begin with the basics of brain development, and the issues that affect it, and then provide information specific to infant, toddler, preschool, and…

This booklet is in response to commonly asked questions from parents about preparing for, and entering kindergarten. Some questions parents ask are about district policy. Nebraska has over 200 individual school districts, each having their own board, superintendent, and policies. The Nebraska Department of Education provides guidance and…

In recent decades, research and practice have shown that investing in a positive school-wide social culture is a key component of effective education. Evidence demonstrates that educators and students succeed when students are present, engaged, socially secure, and academically successful. Developed by 2M Research in conjunction with an expert…

Many parents find it hard to make decisions about screen time for their kids because advice comes from different directions and often conflicts. In the field of child development, there are decades of theory and research that can be very helpful as a guide for screen and digital device use with young kids. These ideas can be a resource for parents…

Ross Thompson, PhD, responds to questions about the capacity of infants and toddlers to experience complex emotions and about how parents and caregivers can support early social and emotional development. He underscores the importance of allowing children to experience a wide range of emotions--including frustration and anger--as vital to their…

This guide is a list of tools that can be used in continued implementation of strong programming powered by Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) competencies. This curated resource pulls from across the landscape of policy, research and practice, with a description of each tool gathered directly from its website.

Empathy is the ability to understand and feel for the situation of another human being and is shaped by seeing others react when distressed; by imitating what they see, children develop a repertoire of empathic responses. When children see other people in pain, their brains become active in the same regions that process the experience of pain…

A recent issue of "Educational Leadership" highlighted the lack of current focus in schools on humanities education (Ferrero, 2011). As the young lives of gifted children become ever busier with extracurricular options, parents are left with the question of how to best complement their child's academic life with his or her social and emotional…

Daniel B. Kessler, MD, a developmental and behavioral pediatrician, provides guidance on establishing healthy eating patterns in the early years. He emphasizes the importance of the feeding relationship as an important part of a child's social and emotional development. How parents approach feeding and mealtime is about so much more than physical…

Children experience chronic stress in ways that can impair their brain functioning and overall development. This article articulates the unique needs of children experiencing chronic stress and discusses strategies that families and schools can use to support and strengthen children's development across the social, emotional, and cognitive domains.

Children, particularly young children, demonstrate characteristics of giftedness in many different ways. These characteristics manifest themselves based on gender, experiences, cultural identity, personal passions and interests, and family or community. Gifted children develop asynchronously. Morelock (2000) stated that "asynchrony in the gifted…

One of the findings from the ZERO TO THREE "Parenting Infants and Toddlers Today" (Hart Research Associates, 2009) parent survey was that while the majority of parents understood ways of promoting their child's development, their understanding of the milestones related to social and emotional development was less consistent. This is an important…

This Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) guidance report is designed to support senior leaders in primary and secondary schools to make better-informed decisions about their behaviour strategies. It includes a number of practical examples of programmes and approaches that should be helpful in schools and classrooms where behaviour is generally…