Early childhood teachers face a daunting task when trying to incorporate so many important ideas into curriculum planning. Fortunately, standards are not prescriptive in how they are to be implemented. Teachers who are well versed in standards and developmentally appropriate practices "can" provide meaningful experiences for children. How can…

This article describes the process of implementing a museum experience into the course content of a literacy methods course. A museum workshop was designed to help graduate students better understand the concept of literacy as a language-based learning process that builds on and extends each child's understanding of the world. Framed by relevant…

This article describes the independent study project of a student who was a graduate assistant in a child development laboratory preschool when Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf Coast area. Through her experiences with "Project Katrina" she deepens her understanding of developmentally appropriate practices as she learns firsthand about…

This paper presents the results of a 3-year study that examined the efficacy of using the National Association for the Education of Young Children's (NAEYC) "Developmentally Appropriate Practices" (DAP) guidebook for assessment purposes. It surveyed 49 kindergarten and primary grade teachers and 123 graduate education students enrolled in early…

The recent focus on the effects of early childhood education on future academic success has caused many early childhood teacher educators to examine the relevance of the instruction they give to early childhood professionals for meeting the educational goals for the 21 st century. This study examined the effects of a set of core courses in an…