For Your Binder

Despite evidence that play and social interactions are crucial to cognitive development, schools continue to take recess away. #recess #teaching #learning #outside #movement #DAP #pushdown

The findings consistently show that the foundation is what supports the house!  Want a huge academic mansion? Then make the foundation rock solid!  This is the handout that goes with the workshop that goes with the book of the same title! #play #DAP #pushdown #teaching #handouts

Missed the workshop? Want to watch it again? Got a DVD player? Lisa has DVDs of all her workshops! #oldschool  

See you at the steps!  #DAP #teaching #learning 

Another opportunity to (re)consider what we mean by readiness.  #DAP #pushdown #play #teaching #learning

What children do physically in the first few years of life plays a major part in how well they will develop all other abilities, including reading, writing, mathematics and creativity. #movement #DAP #parenting #teaching #learning 

This was the intro piece to a special edition of the Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 34:1, 2-5. Questions to ask regarding our own practice: Is it culturally appropriate? Is it contextually appropriate? And, is it child appropriate? This special edition invites educators to consider local cultures and contexts while designing experiences for young children.  What might work in classroom B might NOT work in classroom E! More rationale as to why we must continually reflect on our practice!!!  #teaching #DAP #diversity #learning #equity

Mixed-age groupings create a frame for deepening relationships for staff with children and their families.  #mixedages #DAP #teaching #learning

An excerpt from Peaceful Babies - Contented Mothers (1940) taken from the Sensory Awareness Foundation Winter Bulletin, Number 14, 1994. This link will bring you to the article, where you can also access the rest of the content on the Pikler (USA) website. #movement #learning #teaching #parenting #theorists #DAP

While I would (re)(para)phrase the findings of this report to say: when children have the time to make choices as to how they spend their time, there is evidence of higher levels of executive function skills, I was not on the research team. But that's my non-scientific take-away all the same!  #teaching #learning #DAP #play

In this blog post Jarrod answers a question about mixed age groupings. #DAP #learning #teaching #mixedages

Developmental readiness for writing starts with large motor movement and play!  Not worksh*ts and pencils!  You can supplement your gross motor play with the following appropriate fine motor ones! #play #DAP #teaching #learning #movement #writing 

This was the first American Academy of Pediatrics article (well, that caught everyone's attention anyway) that mentioned the importance of play. 11 years later they released another statement but ramped up the language saying that play was crucial to a child's healthy development.  I often wonder if they sat around saying to each other, really? we gotta say this again?   #DAP #play #parenting #teaching #learning