This paper outlines 22 principles of practice that serve as criteria by which to judge the developmental appropriateness of an early childhood curriculum. The principles lead to the assertion that young children as learners are greatly supported when a "project approach" is used--e.g., when their early childhood education experience…

This handbook was developed to assist educators and parents in fostering children's self-concept through developmentally appropriate kindergarten experiences. Guidelines for parental involvement, classroom volunteers, and families under stress are included. The handbook describes basic characteristics of children from ages 3-8 in terms of…

There is a growing consensus among educators that a major reason why traditional curriculum approaches have failed is that they are not based on knowledge of what is age-appropriate or individually appropriate for young children. This book provides practitioners with a practical framework for making curriculum effective and responsive for children…

This book proposes a new view of middle school curriculum and the specifics of how to create such a curriculum. It introduces the notion that the approach to developing a curriculum appropriate for adolescents should be based on similarities of human learning at different ages, as well as the uniqueness of the adolescent. Chapter 1 highlights six…

Developmental continuity refers to designing early childhood instruction that provides learning experiences based on children's prior knowledge, follows a natural progression across preschool and the early grades, and allows progress at each child's rate and style of learning. There are many ways of providing developmental continuity, but common…