Children and adults are frequently engaging in shared reading activities and storytelling within early childhood settings. This includes children with varying abilities and intersecting identities learning in inclusive or special education settings. Researchers recognize the importance of representation in children's stories, and stories that…

Teachers are uniquely positioned to mitigate ableism and address disability in the classroom; however, many hesitate to do so. This silence perpetuates bias and may teach children that difference is negative. Situated within the field of Disability Studies in Education, this investigation of PK-12 teachers (n = 256) aims to broadly characterise…

Handicapped, special, or diverse? Segregated, mainstreamed, or included? The field of disability and difference within education, is vast and wide-ranging. This review of the literature highlights how, although we have come far in the last 40 years, there is still much to learn about effective inclusion of disabled children in early childhood…

This article describes the results of a disabled children's childhood studies analysis of Section 1414 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (2004), which outlines definitions and procedures related to evaluations, eligibility determinations, individualized education programs (IEP), and educational placements for disabled children in…

In justice movements, solidarity means showing up for the humanity of others. This paper explores DisCrit mothering as a form of solidarity with children and families dehumanized by ableism and racism. As three motherscholars, who occupy varying spaces of privilege/marginalization in the academy, we reflect on our attempts to support our…

The Division for Early Childhood (DEC) collaborates with the Early Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education (EI/ECSE) community and allied partners to create resources (such as publications like Young Exceptional Children [YEC] and The Journal of Early Intervention [JEI] and products like The DEC Recommended Practices and Learning Decks)…

Parenting a child with a disability can be stressful, and research has shown that burdens related to that care may overload parents and have negative effects on their quality of life. Thus, it is important to support families beginning early in their parenting experience and provide them with a strong foundation of tools and information. This…

During the advancement of COVID-19, many safety protocols, including facial masks, were incorporated into public settings. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2021), due to safety regulations, recommended wearing face masks when in close contact with other people in public environments, such as in a classroom, where social…

Young learners often are enchanted with the world, fascinated by the ordinary, and absorbed in the present moment. We explore interconnected ideas about how young children's natural proclivity toward being curious and noticing differences among people should be harnessed toward socially just ends. We consider ways in which joyfulness in learning…

The International Playwork Census (IPC) was undertaken to compare demographic data from both playworkers and non-playworkers who use a playwork approach in their work. Data were collected from 273 responses in nineteen different countries reflecting the growth of playwork from its United Kingdom beginnings. Results showed the combined playwork…

Background: In U.S. contexts, the language of "quality" early childhood education is widely invoked to evaluate the "goodness" of teaching and learning and is often leveraged in attempts to ameliorate inequities. Likewise, efforts to define and achieve generalizable conceptualizations of early childhood quality often guide what…

Narratives skills are associated with long-term academic and social benefits. While students with disabilities often struggle to produce complete and complex narratives, it remains unclear which aspects of narrative language are most indicative of disability. In this study, we examined the association between a variety of narrative contents and…

Population-based research can identify eligibility patterns across e disabilities and cultures, and the Head Start ECLKC gathers relatively controlled data of students in the United States (U.S.) and Puerto Rico, providing an opportunity to directly compare cultures. We compared preschool diagnostic eligibility categories in the U.S. and Puerto…

Multiple scholars have argued that early childhood inclusive education research and practice has often retained racialized, ableist notions of normal development, which can undermine efforts to advance justice and contribute to biased educational processes and practices. Racism and ableism intersect through the positioning of young children of…

This article is part of a case study of federal leadership in special education from the perspective of those who served in the roles of assistant secretaries of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSERS) and directors of the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), or their equivalents in the former U.S. Office of…