Early Childhood Education Commons^™

Overview Of Trauma And Trauma-Informed Practices, Chelsea Larson

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This literature review explores trauma and trauma-informed practices. This literature review uses scholarly articles and journals explains an overview of trauma, toxic stress on brain development, assumptions of trauma-informed approaches, trauma screening and assessment, and an examination of teacher’s personal anxiety. The research will show how prevalent trauma is and negative impacts trauma has on students and adults. Trauma can cause a lot of difficulties on academic achievement for students. This literature review also includes information of protective factors such as resiliency, attachment, relaxation techniques, collaboration among professionals, instruction on expressing feelings, play in the classroom, and classroom environment suggestions. …

Flexible Seating In The Classroom, Sara N. Wright

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This literature review discusses flexible seating in the classroom. It explains specific types of flexible seating that was found in recent relevant research most often. These seating types are therapy balls, inflatable cushions, standing desks, and foot fidgets. Next, the importance of the physical layout and environment of the classroom is examined. This literature review goes on to explore the benefits and challenges of flexible seating. Some benefits are engagement, positive behavior, movement, social impacts, and student choice. Some challenges are expense, storage and space, discomfort and balance, and incorrect use. There are multiple considerations educators need to take when …

Using Rubrics And Self-Monitoring With Young Children, Jackie White

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This action research project studied the effects of using rubrics with preschool children. Research has shown the benefits of using rubrics with older students. This research project studied the effects of the Teaching Strategies Gold name-writing rubric with preschool-aged children. The literature review shows that young children are capable of metacognitive awareness to determine what needs to be learned. Rubrics can be implemented to aid students in evaluating their progress toward a learning goal. One group of preschool-aged children, three- to five-years of age, used the name-writing rubric to monitor their progress toward independently writing their name and was compared …

The Level Of Engagement Of Typically Developing Students Versus Students Enrolled In Special Education And Their Response To Teacher-Led Music Instruction Versus Technology-Led Music, Candice Haugen

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

Technology comes in many forms and is more accessible than ever before. There are many notable benefits of using technology. However, there are also negative effects when used incorrectly or not in moderation. There are various views on when technology should be incorporated into a classroom, the types of classrooms and how early within the educational setting it should be used. Based on research gathered, technology should be used within the classroom to enhance learning, not replace face-to-face interactions or experiences. Music within the early childhood classroom is beneficial to all learners within the environment. There are various ways to …

Executive Function And Self Regulation In Early Childhood, Jill Casey

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

There has been a shift in the kindergarten classroom from one filled with play and exploration to one filled with academic rigor. In response to this, the focus of many preschool classrooms have also shifted to focus more on academic development rather than social emotional development. Executive function skills, which include inhibitory control, working memory and cognitive flexibility have been found to predict academic success and school readiness more than IQ. Self-regulation which refers to controlling behavior in response to a stimulus is interrelated with executive function and also is a predictor of success. Caregivers and early childhood classrooms must …

Promoting Play-Based Learning At Home, Canada C. Vandervelde

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This literature review discusses how teachers can help parents implement play-based-learning in their own home. The review first looks at what play-based-learning is, why it is developmentally appropriate in the early years, and how it has evolved and been used throughout the years. The review will discuss legislation that has made it difficult to practice play-based-learning in the classroom and how promoting parental involvement is one way that we can combat this. Home-visits, take-home-kits, and technology are then reviewed as viable ways to introduce parents to play-based-learning and help them implement it in their own homes.

Social Emotional Learning And Its Effects On Behaviors In The Kindergarten Classroom, Nicole Bruce

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

The purpose of this action research project is to determine the impact of explicit social emotional instruction in the kindergarten classroom. Quantitative data was collected through behavior reports to determine the effects that this instruction had on students' behavior. The kindergarten class consisted of 20 students, including eleven females and nine males. The research was done during winter of 2019-2020. Social emotional lessons were implemented over a four-week period to the kindergarten class. Data were collected to determine if negative behaviors decreased after implementing these lessons. It was concluded that implementing social emotional instruction for the four-week period did have …

Guided Math: Best Practice For The General Education Classrooms, Kaylee Cloyed

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

Flexible small grouping and Guided Math is becoming widely used in elementary mathematics instruction around the world. However, there are some different viewpoints on whether or not this is the most effective math instruction for students and teachers. Research proves that being successful in math is important in order for students to be successful later in life at their careers. Since mathematics is so important for a successful life, many teachers and researchers are studying new intervention strategies to help students be successful in math. This literature review will contain peer reviewed, scholarly journals researching the history of education, math …

Using Kinesthetic Motions And Visuals To Help Promote Sight Word Recognition Through Snap Words, Lisa Charbonneaux

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This action research project studied the impact kinesthetic motions and visuals had on sight word recognition in kindergarten students. Over the course of seven weeks, 28 students from two kindergarten classrooms were given sight word instruction. The experimental group included kinesthetic motions and visuals through the use of Snap Word cards with their sight word instruction. The control group received sight word instruction by presenting the sight word without added kinesthetic motions or visuals. The experimental group included 15 students and the control group consisted of 13 students. Students from both the control and experimental groups were given identical pre …

Handwriting Without Tears And Its Affect On Lowercase Writing, Cynthia Ungs

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

The researcher hypothesizes that students with no prior Handwriting Without Tears instruction can transition to lowercase name writing easier than students that have had that instruction. The researcher has studied the handwriting samples based on common handwriting assessment qualities. Writing samples were taken monthly, one from each student. There were 9 students that the researcher received handwriting samples, all of white race. There were 7 boys and 2 girls in the test set. The students that received Handwriting Without Tears used this mixed upper and lowercase writing for some time and had a harder time transitioning to first uppercase and …

How Do Augmentative And Alternative Communication (Aac) Systems Impact Students, Melinda Rice

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This paper will focus on communication and why it is so important during literacy routines in the classroom. The research will serve as a gateway into understanding the world of how communication and literacy tie together and what the impact of using Augmentative and Alternative Communication devices could do for a student. The research will focus on emergent literacy routines for students with significant cognitive disabilities and complex communication needs and to what degree the communication systems help the students communicate and com-prehend the questions being asked of them.

How Does Trauma Affect Preschoolers?, Lisa Wolterman

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This literature review discusses the need for teachers to be aware of trauma-affected students that may be in their classrooms. History shows us that trauma is not a new topic. In the last few years more research is being completed to help us understand what these students are thinking and feeling. Teachers are a key piece to helping trauma-affected students. This review provides some strategies for working with trauma-affected students. What is known is that with help, trauma-affected students can learn and grow when given the chance.

Analyses Of Parental Interaction Behaviors And Young Children's Language Skills, Brenna Schulte, Rachel Beeney, Sydney Harrington, Ana Perez-Senic, Alondra Magallanes, Evelyn Estrada, Christine Marvin, Lisa Knoche, Courtney Boise

UCARE: Research Products

The Preschool Language Scale-5 (PLS) and samples of spontaneous speech from 20-30-minute play interactions between toddlers and parents, were used to examine children’s emerging language abilities. The speech samples were used to compute children’s rate of words, utterances and different words per minute, and mean length of utterances for a full transcript or simply the three longest utterances. Parents’ comments and directives were noted in five-minutes of toy play with their children. The proportion of parental comments to directives was found to be significantly related to all spontaneous speech measures, but not PLS scores. Spanish-speaking parents were found to have …

Early Explorations Of The Reggio Emilia Approach In The United States: An Interview With Karen Haigh, Karen Haigh, Juana Reyes, Gigi Yu

Education Department Faculty Articles

In 1991, after attending a study week visiting the schools of Reggio Emilia, Italy, the child development director of Chicago Commons, Karen Haigh, shared information about her trip with program staff. After learning about the schools in Reggio Emilia through Karen, and after some teachers participated in a regional seminar about the Reggio approach, staff were inspired enough to ask if it was possible to explore this philosophy within the Commons programs. And so, it began, with just a handful of classrooms in a multisite agency. Karen created a structure of professional development for teachers to begin to explore this …

An Exploration Of Preschool Choice With Low-Income Families: The Critical Role Of Positive Attitudes, Behavioral Norms And Control Beliefs, Laurel E. Schmitt

Dissertations

Since the 1960s preschool has been seen as a potential equalizer for children of poverty as they enter kindergarten and long term studies of state and federal preschools have documented positive impacts, especially for low-income students. What has yet to be deeply explored is guardians’ decision-making processes to explain the lack of enrollment even when the stated barriers are eliminated (Obi, 2011; Payne, 1994; Swartz, 1996).

The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe and interpret, through a phenomenological lens, how low income parents and guardians made decisions to enroll their child or dependent in a preschool program. I …

Fostering Creative Thinking Skills In Young Children Using Design Thinking Challenges, Tom R. Gannon

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

For this master’s project I developed a set of resources (guidebook, videos, and presentation deck) which provide child development professionals with a framework and set of skills to facilitate design thinking challenges (open-ended problem-solving activities based on design thinking’s phases of: creating empathy, problem identification, ideation, prototyping, and idea testing) with preschool age children. The centerpiece of the project is the guide book titled Save the Gingerbread Man: Understanding & Supporting Creative Thinking Skills in Preschoolers. The videos are interviews with preschool age children in a series called From the Experts. The presentation deck incorporates can include the …

Parent And Guardian Perspectives Regarding Attendance: Evidence From A Governmental Early Childhood Education And Care Program, Rita L. Cruz Santelises

Dissertations

In 2013, the Dominican government began the implementation of a national plan called Quisqueya Empieza Contigo (QEC) (Exec. Order No. 102, 2013), aimed to fulfill the needs of children zero to five years old holistically. The National Institute of Comprehensive Care (INAIPI, acronym in Spanish) carries two of the most ambitious programs embedded in this national plan. Early Childhood is the governmental institution authorized to carry out this recent intervention. The intervention has increased coverage of early childhood services through two programs: Programmed Comprehensive Family Care centered on the community (Centro de Atención Familiar e Infancia, [CAFI]) and the Comprehensive …

Movement Matters: The Importance Of Incorporating Movement In The Classroom, Dana Kleinjan

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This literature review looks at what movement is and how it can improve student learning. Journal articles written in the last ten years were evaluated to find common themes that support incorporating movement throughout the school day including at recess, during physical education, and in the classroom. Brain research shows that moving while learning is beneficial. Movement ignites areas of the brain as well as improves neuron connections, helps to develop different areas of the brain, and offers a variety of mental health benefits such as lowered anxiety and depression. In addition, movement helps to prevent long term diseases such …

Peer Modeling Vs. Teacher Modeling For The Inclusive Preschool Classroom, Joshalyn Loutsch

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

The purpose of this research was to examine the effects of peer modeling versus teacher modeling for students with special needs within the inclusive preschool setting. Data was collected for three different developmental areas for students with special needs: social emotional, language, and cognitive abilities. The data gathered determined that both peer modeling and teacher modeling are effective teaching strategies for students with special needs, but it is unclear whether one strategy is more efficient than the other is. Preschool is the foundation for a child's education and teachers need research-based strategies to implement quality instruction for students with special …

Preparing Incoming Kindergarteners And Parents For The Transition Into Kindergarten, Jessica Kempema

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

The move into kindergarten is a critical transition for kindergarten students and their parents as the transition can impact the child’s academics journey through school. It is essential that preschool and elementary schools prepare families for the transition. This action research project studies the question: how can schools make the transition into kindergarten smoother for both incoming kindergarteners and their parents? The researcher reviewed data from the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment of 26 kindergarten students and also conducted a parent survey to determine how schools can better prepare students and parents during the move into kindergarten. The study found the transition …

Directed, Structured Fine Motor Activities And Handwriting Development, Maggie Rozenboom

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

The purpose of this actions research project was to determine if the Transitional Kindergarten students who participated in directed, structured fine motor development increased their handwriting skills compared to those who did not receive directed, structured fine motor skill assistance. The study consisted of assessing students handwriting skills using the Handwriting Without Tears - Beginning Print at the beginning of the year, mid-year, and the end of the year. The quantitative data revealed that students who participated in daily fine motor activities that are directed for specific fine motor needs, including: pincher grasp, pincer grasp, whole-hand, and letter/number formation saw …

The Impact Of Coaching To Support Professional Development In A Preschool Classroom, Katie Olson

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

The purpose of this action research study was to determine the effect that the combination of coaching and professional development have on teachers’ confidence levels and number of classroom practices carried out compared with teachers who only attend professional development. The participants included six female caucasian teachers who all teach preschool in public elementary schools in southern Iowa. Data was collected through the use of a rating scale and checklist of practices that were completed by the participants prior to and following the intervention. The results of the study indicated that there was not a large enough difference in the …

A Case Study Exploring The Nature Of How Prekindergarten Teachers’ Mathematics Instruction Decisions Relate To Their Mathematics Pedagogical Content Knowledge, Raleta Summers Dawkins

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

The mathematics knowledge students develop in prekindergarten is key to their ability to make sense of more complex mathematics in the future (C. T. Cross, Woods, & Schweingruber, 2009; Ginsburg, Lee, & Boyd, 2008). Research continues to present evidence that there is a mathematics achievement gap between minoritized students living in lower socioeconomic communities compared to their peers before entering kindergarten (Arnold, Fisher, Doctroff, & Dobbs, 2002; Duncan et al., 2007; Sonnenschein & Galindo, 2015; Wang, 2010). The joint position statement issued by the National Association for the Education of Young Children and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics …

Using The Question-Answer Relationship Strategy To Improve Listening Comprehension In Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Lisa A. Phalen

Communication Disorders & Special Education Theses & Dissertations

A well-established research base indicates that many children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience deficits in reading comprehension skills. There is currently limited research which examines the relation between the communication and language impairments in ASD and emergent literacy skills in early childhood. Listening comprehension has been identified as one emergent literacy skill closely linked to reading comprehension development. The purpose of the study is to examine the effects of the question-answer relationship strategy (QAR) and QAR cue cards as a shared book reading intervention package on the listening comprehension skills of children with ASD. A single-subject concurrent multiple-baseline …

Service Learning And The Experiential Learning Cycle In Elementary School, Brittney D. Rose

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

There has been an increase in interest in service learning in the past decade (Kuh et al., 2017). However, there has been less attention given to service learning in elementary school, particularly to service learning that does not focus on academic outcomes for the students (Scott & Graham, 2015). This qualitative instrumental case study utilized focus groups with fifth grade students, interviews with educators, education specialists and a nonprofit representative, and observational notes to explore students’ and educators’ experiences as they participated in a service learning project in conjunction with a nonprofit organization. Findings indicate that specific collaborative practices, such …

Comparing Public Preprimary Systems In South Carolina & Estonia: Closing Gaps In Educational Opportunities, Emily C. Herd

Senior Theses

The following research aims to explore and compare the assets and drawbacks of the public preprimary education systems in Estonia and South Carolina for the purpose of developing policy recommendations for altering funding systems to expand access. First, preprimary education is defined along with its importance, effectiveness, and affordability. Next, funding continuity and public funding are discussed with relation to public preprimary programs. Then a basis is established for comparing Estonia and South Carolina. The methods and limitations are described. A deep dive of data organizes the programmatic and funding data of Estonia and South Carolina, highlighting enrollment, providers, curriculum, …

Statewide Early Childhood Needs Assessment: Unduplicated Counts Project Report 2020, Education Systems Center

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

No abstract provided.

The Connect Project: Branchess: Building Relationships And Nurturing Connectedness Harnessing Every Student's Success, Martina R. Skidmore

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A capstone submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the College of Education at Morehead State University by Martina R. Skidmore on March 30, 2020.

Encapsulating Educational Design For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Lauren Praeuner

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This paper is a thesis/creative project hybrid split into two parts. First, it examines different aspects of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), the symptoms experienced by those on the spectrum, and the guidelines that parents, medical professionals, and educators should follow to ensure a holistic approach to the care and education of children with autism. The text also notes some of the considerations that designers should review when designing educational facilities for these individuals, as well as few precedents that successfully do so. The second part of the paper presents my team’s architectural studio project, contributed to by UNL students Lindsay …

Empowering Teacher Teams To Expand Student Ownership, Paul Martuccio, Paul J. Bloomberg Dr.

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

The notion of empowerment is at the core of The Public School 13 learning culture. Empowerment is about creating conditions for strengthening efficacy school wide – for students, for teachers, for teams – for the COLLECTIVE! Learn how The Public School 13 cultivates teacher leadership through collaborative inquiry with a laser-like focus on expanding student ownership and agency.