PreK-3rd
Editor’s Note
A growing body of research demonstrates the critical role high-quality early childhood education plays in students’ success, not only in the elementary grades but throughout their lives. The decisions we make now about the ways in which today’s preschool and early elementary students are taught will affect our society for many years to come.
Developmentally Appropriate Practice in the Age of Testing
New reports outline key principles for preK–3rd grade
As the push to teach literacy and math skills reaches farther into preschool and kindergarten, educators are warning that teachers need to address young students’ social, emotional, and physical needs as well as their cognitive development. Continue
Kids Haven’t Changed; Kindergarten Has
New data support a return to “balance” in kindergarten
In the ongoing battle over kindergarten—has exploratory play been shunted aside for first-grade-style pencil-and-paper work?—one of the nation’s oldest voices in child development is weighing in with historic data. Continue
When Worlds Collide
Universal preK brings new challenges for public elementary schools
In 2005, when Boston mayor Thomas Menino announced his plan to make prekindergarten available to all four-year-olds in the city, parents and early childhood advocates applauded this initiative to add a 14th year to the city’s public school system. Continue
