Quality Play And Media

In the early years, children learn mostly through play. Their receptive young minds are formed and their physical skills are developed as they begin to explore the world around them. They learn how to get along with others as they develop social skills and learn how to handle their emotions. What impact is using digital technology having on how children are developing? Is it harming them or is it helping them? What role do parents and caregivers have in all this? These are some of the questions this e-book sets out to answer. Some of our best minds contribute important ideas on what parents, educators and caregivers need to know about the impact of electronic media on our children’s development. More importantly they offer us guidance on what we can do to avoid the pitfalls and make use of the ways it can enhance children’s learning.

"The Early Learning Program Guide has been organized around foundational elements of a high quality early learning program. The focus is on learning from contemporary literature and practices. Part I describes the vision and principles around which the Guide has been developed. Part II, Children as Competent Learners, explores how beliefs about children and their capabilities impact program design, interactions and, ultimately, children's learning. Part III, Changing Role for Educators, reviews how seeing children as competent learners has caused educators to examine their practices and expand their roles. Part IV, How Young Children Learn, revisits active, experiential learning and why it is vital to child development. The role of exploration in children's learning is examined, as is the importance of holistic learning. Part V, Observation and Reflection--Critical Skills, describes how these powerful practices are foundational to the design of high quality programming. Part VI, High Quality Programming--What Does it Look Like?, highlights three key components of program design--the environment, relationships and planning--and how these are impacted by the foundational elements described in Parts I to V. The remaining portions of the document, Resource Sheets, Appendices and References, provide additional information. Readers will also notice Reflection and Decision Making pages. These are provided to assist educators in reflecting and discussing the foundational elements and planning for implementation."--Document.

"This book explores the use of hand-held mobile devices in primary and secondary classrooms to assist in learning, sharing, and communication among students and teachers"--Provided by publisher.

Children are already learning at birth, and they develop and learn at a rapid pace in their early years. This provides a critical foundation for lifelong progress, and the adults who provide for the care and the education of young children bear a great responsibility for their health, development, and learning. Despite the fact that they share the same objective - to nurture young children and secure their future success - the various practitioners who contribute to the care and the education of children from birth through age 8 are not acknowledged as a workforce unified by the common knowledge and competencies needed to do their jobs well. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 explores the science of child development, particularly looking at implications for the professionals who work with children. This report examines the current capacities and practices of the workforce, the settings in which they work, the policies and infrastructure that set qualifications and provide professional learning, and the government agencies and other funders who support and oversee these systems. This book then makes recommendations to improve the quality of professional practice and the practice environment for care and education professionals. These detailed recommendations create a blueprint for action that builds on a unifying foundation of child development and early learning, shared knowledge and competencies for care and education professionals, and principles for effective professional learning. Young children thrive and learn best when they have secure, positive relationships with adults who are knowledgeable about how to support their development and learning and are responsive to their individual progress. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 offers guidance on system changes to improve the quality of professional practice, specific actions to improve professional learning systems and workforce development, and research to continue to build the knowledge base in ways that will directly advance and inform future actions. The recommendations of this book provide an opportunity to improve the quality of the care and the education that children receive, and ultimately improve outcomes for children.

Decades of research have demonstrated that the parent-child dyad and the environment of the familyâ€"which includes all primary caregiversâ€"are at the foundation of children's well- being and healthy development. From birth, children are learning and rely on parents and the other caregivers in their lives to protect and care for them. The impact of parents may never be greater than during the earliest years of life, when a child's brain is rapidly developing and when nearly all of her or his experiences are created and shaped by parents and the family environment. Parents help children build and refine their knowledge and skills, charting a trajectory for their health and well-being during childhood and beyond. The experience of parenting also impacts parents themselves. For instance, parenting can enrich and give focus to parents' lives; generate stress or calm; and create any number of emotions, including feelings of happiness, sadness, fulfillment, and anger. Parenting of young children today takes place in the context of significant ongoing developments. These include: a rapidly growing body of science on early childhood, increases in funding for programs and services for families, changing demographics of the U.S. population, and greater diversity of family structure. Additionally, parenting is increasingly being shaped by technology and increased access to information about parenting. Parenting Matters identifies parenting knowledge, attitudes, and practices associated with positive developmental outcomes in children ages 0-8; universal/preventive and targeted strategies used in a variety of settings that have been effective with parents of young children and that support the identified knowledge, attitudes, and practices; and barriers to and facilitators for parents' use of practices that lead to healthy child outcomes as well as their participation in effective programs and services. This report makes recommendations directed at an array of stakeholders, for promoting the wide-scale adoption of effective programs and services for parents and on areas that warrant further research to inform policy and practice. It is meant to serve as a roadmap for the future of parenting policy, research, and practice in the United States.

For all those working in Early Years, improving quality experiences for all young children is a priority. By examining issues surrounding quality improvement, the importance of reflective practice and the attributes required in the workplace to effect change and leadership, this book provides a contemporary view of practice. Chapters focus on how settings can improve quality experiences for young children and how to implement strategies that lead to quality improvement. Issues covered include: - multi-disciplinary working - evaluating impact through reflective practice - creativity, digital technologies and play - safeguarding young children - leading practice and leading change - working with parents - improving the quality of student experience This text allows students and practitioners to examine and reflect on practises that lead to creative Quality Improvement Strategies (QIS) in Early Years settings. Michael Reed is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Worcester, Institute of Education: Centre for Early Childhood Natalie Canning is a Lecturer in Early Years at The Open University.

Media and the Well-Being of Children and Adolescents brings together many of the field's most important scholars and media professionals to present cutting-edge theory and empirical research on both the benefits and risks to youth development. It examines the role that media play in the every-day lives of young people and their families, and considers both traditional media such as television and movies as well as "new" digital media, such as video games, cell phones, and the Internet. The volume is divided into four parts. Part One provides up-to-date trends on children and adolescents' access to media in the home, as well as the time they spend with television, computers, and the Internet. Part Two presents research that highlights the potentially negative impact of age-inappropriate or excess media use on children's physical, cognitive, social, and emotional well-being. Part Three offers examples of how media enhance children's education, health, and social connections. Part Four explores implications for the creation of high-quality, enriching content that speaks to the needs and interests of young people today. The volume's interdisciplinary perspective acknowledges the many controversies surrounding the effects of media on youth, and offers a balanced view of the challenges and opportunities that media represent for healthy development. The book is intended to be a resource for students and scholars working within education, developmental psychology, public health, and communication. Additionally, it speaks to media professionals who seek to create content that enriches the lives of children and adolescents.

We live in a world of changing hearts and changing communities. Spiralling family violence and child abuse and neglect, often related to intergenerational trauma, are severely impacting many communities. On an international level threats from nuclear war, climate change, and artificial general intelligence in the hands of autocratic dictators, present disturbing challenges to our future. If we want to see change in families, communities, and nations it needs to begin in the motivational centre of our being. The scourge of insatiable approval-seeking, alienation from the Creator, intergenerational trauma, and the debilitating effects of a broken heart and spirit, simmers within us. How can we experience change? We need to identify what needs to change in what is motivating us and discover how we can be empowered to change deeply entrenched habits. As well as a change in the thought patterns of our minds, we need to experience a pervasive pivot in our attitudes. This publication draws from arguably the most significant change movement in history, exploring how we can discover the power to change and contribute toward transforming broken communities in an uncertain world of accelerating change.