Early Childhood Education Commons^™

The Importance Of Teaching Social-Emotional Skills To Young Children, Stephanie Valdez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

My capstone project enhances the social-emotional skills of preschool children, which are fundamental for relationships, emotional management, and empathy. Children lacking these skills may struggle in learning, behavior, and socializing when they progress to elementary school. Studies have shown that social-emotional competence and cognitive competence are critical predictors of academic accomplishment (Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) and Student Benefits: Implications for the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Core Elements, n.d.). Children in preschool who lack these skills may experience difficulties in learning, behavior, and socializing as they progress to elementary school (Amy Morin, 2019). A significant issue arises when children encounter obstacles …

Universal Design For Learning (Udl) In Inclusive Preschool Science Classrooms, Marla J. Lohmann, Katrina A. Hovey, Ariane N. Gauvreau

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Science instruction is a critical aspect of early learning. Teachers can support young children’s learning about scientific concepts through the use of the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework, which is a proactive approach to instructional planning that helps ensure success for all learners. This teaching techniques article offers preschool teachers practical solutions for implementing in the UDL framework for science instruction in their classrooms.

The Effectiveness Of Roleplaying In Teaching Preschoolers Social Skills, Qi Pan

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

The study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of role-play as a means of enhancing the social skills of preschool students in a Montessori setting. A total of 37 children between the ages of two and a half to six years who participated in a five week study. The interventions were conducted once a week for four weeks, during which children took turns participating in simulated scenarios that mirrored their everyday experiences. After the role-play presentation, assessments and group discussions were conducted to evaluate the children's comprehension. The research data was gathered before, during and after the interventions. The researcher …

The Mind Matters: Yoga And Mindfulness In Preschool And K-12 Schools, Anna E. Hall

Honors Theses

This study uses a systematic literature review to examine the efficacy of preschool and K-12 school based yoga and mindfulness programs. A collection of 47 sources were examined to compare and contrast results and determine best practices. The results of the literature review are divided into three primary categories: implementation methods, student outcomes, and teacher and student opinion. The results suggest that individual and whole school implementation methods are the most effective. The results also suggest that there are positive student outcomes in regards to classroom behavior, child executive functioning, and anxiety. Teacher and student opinion on these programs are …

The Reggio Emilia And The Mosaic Approach: Opponents Or Allies In Multimodal Teaching And Learning? A Discussion Of Their Contribution To Multimodal Learning In Early Years Education, Neuza Brandao, Evgenia Theodotou

Journal of Global Education and Research

Multimodality is an important element of teaching and learning in early years settings. It provides opportunities for young children to communicate using different resources they feel comfortable with. This paper focuses on multimodality and multimodal learning in early years education and the different approaches, which can be used to create a multimodal learning environment. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how two powerful approaches, such as the Reggio Emilia and the Mosaic allow multimodal learning, which is crucial for children’s holistic development. The Reggio Emilia approach and the Mosaic approach are discussed, focusing on the strategies used to …

Growth Mindset And Agency In The Preschool Classroom, Isaac Rowan Coppock

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Mindsets, or how we as individuals characterize intelligence and our ability to attain it, are deeply connected to motivation. Those who employ a fixed mindset view intelligence as set and effort as fruitless. Conversely, those who utilize a growth mindset have healthy attitudes about challenges and view effort as a necessary part of learning. For educators working with children, finding ways to encourage growth over fixed mindsets is incredibly indicative of the future academic success individual children might experience. This study explores the foundations of mindset attainment through a teacher’s ability to affect individual preschool-aged (three to five years) children’s …

Who Counts As A Writer? Examining Child, Teacher, And Parent Perceptions Of Writing, Anna H. Hall, Kelley M. White, Ying Guo, Andrea Emerson

Publications

The current study used a mixed method design with 245 preschool children, 255 teachers, and 156 parents. Researchers interviewed children and surveyed teachers and parents about their perceptions of preschool children’s writing abilities and developmental writing stages. The results of the study showed that each group defined writing differently and parents were less likely to have positive perceptions about preschool children’s writing abilities than children and teachers. Correlation analysis demonstrated that teacher and parent perceptions of children’s writing abilities were not related to children’s own perceptions of their writing abilities in this study. This study illuminates that alignment of home …

The Effects Of Songs On Hmong Vocabulary Acquisition, Julie Thao

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This action research assessed the effects of singing a song to learn language in a bilingual classroom. The research took place at a bilingual Hmong-English Montessori preschool program. 28 preschool-aged children participated in the research which was conducted over five weeks. Data sources included a parent questionnaire, vocabulary pre-test, vocabulary post-test with a follow-up conversation, daily observation logs, and tally sheet. The children were taught 16 Hmong vocabulary words with half the words sung to the tune of a common children’s song and the other half by simple reciting. The results from the vocabulary post-test showed that there was an …

New York City Pre-K Leadership Study, Veronica Benavides, Faith Lamb-Parker, Sheila Smith

All Faculty and Staff Papers and Presentations

Presents key findings from a study of New York City pre-K leaders that evaluated how leaders support teachers and what factors help or hinder leaders’ efforts to positively impact learning for all children.

A Phenomenological Study Of The Implementation Of Developmentally Appropriate Practices Of Highly-Skilled Teachers In School-Based, Early Education Settings, Julie R. Ritter

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

High-quality instruction, especially for at-risk children, is what matters in early education (Brown, 2010; Chien et al., 2010; Goldstein et al, 2013; Howes et al., 2008; Reynolds et al., 2014). Developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) is identified in research as a feature of high-quality instruction and best practice in early education (Squires, Pribble, Chen, & Pomés, 2013). Using transcendental phenomenology, this study identified the beliefs and practices of early education teachers in Minnesota school-based PreK-4 programs and their alignment to DAP principles, guidelines, and teaching strategies as defined by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (2009). By investigating …

Teaching Academic Concepts In A Play-Based Preschool Environment: A Case Study Of Guided Play Across Three Classrooms, Lisa M. Hansen

Doctoral Dissertations

This qualitative study examined interactions between preschool children and teachers during guided-play activities. These interactions were studied through observations and interviews in a case-study format. Classrooms were observed for 1 hour per week over the course of 4 weeks. Teachers were interviewed following each observation. All three preschool classrooms were located in northern California and belonged to the same chain of schools. A total of six teachers and 75 students participated in the study.

Three main research questions drove the course of the study. The first research question examined the types of interactions between experienced preschool teachers and students during …

The Children Keep Reminding Us: One School's Experience After 9/11, Kate Delacorte

Occasional Paper Series

This essay reflects on the experience of a new preschool that was located a few blocks away from the World Trade Center and had not yet opened at the time of September 11. After the event, the school held meetings with teachers, parents, and their children. The conversations highlighted the overwhelming difference between the needs of the parents and the needs of the children. Through sharing of fears, experiences, and emotions, the new community grew closer.

The Power Of More Than One, Jane King

Occasional Paper Series

Jane King reflects on her experiences as a preschool teacher eager to use methods outside of the norm. She resists activities that encourage homogeneity and strives to promote autonomy and free thinking in her students. After transitioning from teacher to parent, she still uses this philosophy to make small changes in her daughter's classroom and encourage her children to engage in acts of resistance and critical thinking both in and out of school.

The Pleasure Of Resistance: Jouissance And Reconceiving "Misbehavior", Peter Taubman

Occasional Paper Series

Taubman offers an alternative to resistance theory through Lacanian psychoanalysis and Lacan's concept of jouissance - a term associated with intense pleasure. Through this perspective, it is important to understand why children resist on an individual level. An appreciation of the jouissance in schools would work against the impulse to domesticate, to control or to appropriate the subjectivities of students and children.

Everyday Tactics And The Carnavalesque: New Lenses For Viewing Resistance In Preschool, Joseph Tobin

Occasional Paper Series

Tobin builds upon Steve Schultz's argument that young children’s resisting authority in preschool is a rehearsal or training ground for resisting authority later in life. Using this perspective, this article turns to theories of power and resistance to help us understand everyday events in preschools, and to suggest implications for the choices we make as adults who work with young children.

Building Higher Than We Are Tall: The Power Of Narrative Inquiry In The Life Of A Teacher, Stephanie Bevacqua

Occasional Paper Series

Bevacqua offers two anecdotes from her teaching career that illustrate young children testing the limits of classroom rules and exploring their autonomy and agency. She reflects on her career as a progressive teacher who works to redefine traditional power relations in the classroom by supporting the children’s investigation of community rules and codes of appropriate behavior.

Finding Meaning In The Resistance Of Preschool Children: Critical Theory Takes An Interpretive Look, Steven Schultz

Occasional Paper Series

Offers an analysis to resistant behavior of preschool children that goes beyond lack of socialization. This interpretation focuses upon the social and cultural meanings of individual and group behaviors. The article is concerned with the acts of the children that run contrary to, or simply outside of, the sanctioned school activities. This is an important vantage from which to analyze preschool resistance because some important behaviors can be identified at the point when they are first likely to occur; when young children, as members of a peer group, first meet figures of authority.

The Effects Of Music And Visual Cues On Transition Time In A Multi-Aged 3-5 Year Old Montessori Classroom, Jessica S. Brock

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

The purpose of this action research project was to investigate the effects of music and visual cues on transition times. This research took place in a Primary Montessori classroom with children ranging from 3-5 years of age in a public, partial magnet, urban K3-8^th school. Data was collected for four weeks using a transition time log, behavior tally sheets, teacher journal, and student attitude scales. The results of the study showed a slight decrease in transition times, and a larger decrease in disruptive behaviors using both music and visual cues. Although the transition time decreases were less than expected, …

Training Early Childhood Educators To Identify Behavior Function And Select Function-Matched Interventions, Laura V. Cox

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Problem behavior in the classroom can have a negative impact not only on the student’s learning but on his or her social interactions and the child may risk rejection by teachers and peers. This study evaluated the effects of a training package delivered to preschool teachers on their ability to identify what may be causing the problem behavior and identify strategies that may reduce problem behavior.

Previous research has demonstrated the effectiveness of this training package in older age groups or grade levels as well as to other professionals who work with children with problem behavior. Results from this study …