The four components of the language arts are listening, speaking, reading, and writing. I’ve long contended that the first two don’t get the respect and attention they deserve because our education system focuses so heavily on the latter two — but especially on reading. That’s why I was thrilled to come across a post in…
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A funny thing happened on my way to stronger knees. I had just barely begun physical therapy to work the muscles around them when I realized that I’d been coddling myself for years. Because my aching joints and muscles had caused so much discomfort, I had, with just a few exceptions, become too sedentary. It…
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At this time of year, our thoughts turn to wish lists and goals. So, with that in mind, I thought I’d let Santa know what I want for children in the new year. Here’s my list, in no particular order: Free play! That means child-initiated and child-directed. As much of it as possible, please. The…
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Albert Einstein wrote, “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” Unfortunately, our system of education values and validates only the most narrow of abilities and talents, in essence judging every student by its “ability to climb a tree.” If a child happens…
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Recently I had a short debate on Twitter with Dr. Jennifer Ashton, known to many as the chief medical correspondent for Good Morning America. Typically, I don’t engage in debates because I’m not quick-witted enough to respond with snappy comebacks! But what she did on GMA that morning upset me, and I couldn’t let it…
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When you write about controversial topics – as I often do and as I did last week, when I addressed crisscross-applesauce – you have to expect to get some pushback. And I did get some. On my Facebook page, one teacher commented that teaching children to sit in a certain way isn’t bad. He wanted…
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How long could you sit crisscross-applesauce before you need to move? For me, the answer is: about 20 seconds max! Unless I’m deeply, deeply engaged in something, I will change positions multiple times or start to fidget. Even while watching something absolutely fascinating on TV, I may start by sitting with my legs folded underneath…
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This week’s post is written by Arthur Grant, a child play researcher, writer, and father of three. As the founder of Muddy Smiles, he advocates for (loads) more play both in schools and at home. —– As schools around the country push hard to reduce and eliminate recess time, child development and behavioral experts are pushing…
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Last week I thanked an early childhood professional for her flexibility in rescheduling a call with me. She replied by saying that, when you’re a teacher, you have to be flexible. I completely agree. Years ago, I wrote that flexibility is one of the keys to making experiences with children successful. Specifically, I mean that…
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This post was originally published at https://nancyebailey.com and is reprinted here with the permission of the wise and thoughtful Nancy Bailey. _____ Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood. ~Fred Rogers One education topic that every…
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When I was a child, helicopter parenting would have been looked on with both suspicion and derision. My mother and father’s parenting style (if such a thing existed at the time) is often referred to as “benign neglect.” It sounds horrible and…well, neglectful. But it’s just the way it was back then, and it worked…
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I’ve written before about the need for early childhood professionals to advocate for the right of children to be children (see here and here). And, as you would imagine, I’m not alone in this battle. For one, research professor and play advocate Dr. Peter Gray is a fierce defender of childhood; and that puts me…
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Here are some of the tasks teachers have told me today’s children are unable to do: Poke straws into juice boxes Zip up backpacks Put a foot in a shoe Open water bottles Pull up their pants or skirts Put on their own jackets Granted, some of the difficulties with these tasks arise from the…
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The other day I read an article that literally made me cry. I thought I’d heard it all when it came to the lack of movement in children’s lives, but this piece alerted me to something I hadn’t come across before: children are falling out of their chairs because they’re not moving enough. Is this…
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Buzzwords and goals come and go in every field. In the early childhood field, self-regulation has been both a buzzword and a very big goal for children for a couple of years now. I suspect that’s because, as I’ve written previously, challenging behaviors are on the rise in early childhood settings. If only every child…
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