Marilou Hyson

This accessible and engaging work introduces current and future teachers, child care providers, and others interested in early childhood education to the importance of the early years in children’s well-being and success. It summarizes the research on the value of high-quality services for young children, families, and society, showing why early education matters both today and into the future. Emphasizing the need to understand and respect young children’s strengths and unique characteristics, the authors offer inspiration for working in the field, as well as addressing the realistic challenges of implementing developmentally appropriate care and education. Each chapter begins with an introductory vignette focused on one child whose experiences are typical of other children in the same age group or life circumstances, using that child’s experiences to draw out what the best research tells us about why early care and education matters for that group of children. The book also features first-person narratives by early childhood professionals working in a range of positions who offer insight into the complexity and joys of working with or on behalf of young children. Suggestions for further reading and concluding questions for reflection, dialogue, and action make The Early Years Matter a perfect resource for courses and professional development.

Indonesia has begun to emerge into middle-income status, yet persistent poverty and stark inequalities continue to affect young children's development. This book tells the story of Indonesia's efforts to change the trajectory of development for poor children. Many countries have similar aims, but several aspects of what is reported here are especially valuable and perhaps unique: The study offers data on all aspects of health and development in a sample of rural young children, collected with internationally-validated measures, as well as household information, information about parenting practices including feeding patterns, parent questionnaires, and data on the prevalence and distribution of ECED services. The data reported in this book is based on a sample of more than 6,000 Indonesian children living in 310 poor villages, including two age cohorts (aged 1 and 4 years old when data were first collected on their development in 2009). From the start, the project aimed not only to support service provision but also to support the development of national standards, build national and district capacity, and encourage the establishment of a system of ECED quality assurance, efforts that are still in process. Few such analyses have been done with such a large sample and with multiple measures. These design features allow a high level of confidence in the results that are reported. The lessons from this book will help to inform not only this project's further implementation but ECED initiatives in Indonesia and around the world. Thus, the results presented in this book are of significance for researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners within and beyond Indonesia. The experiences and research results discussed here are especially relevant for:Researchers in early childhood development and programme evaluation;Policymakers within and beyond Indonesia; Providers of early childhood services; Professional development providers; Advocates for quality early childhood services.

Of all the school readiness domains, approaches to learning is perhaps the least understood but the most important. Research shows that positive approaches to learning improve both social - emotional and academic outcomes. This new resource will help early childhood professionals implement strategies to support young children's positive approaches to learning - their enthusiasm (interest, joy, and motivation to learn) and their engagement (attention, persistence, flexibility, self-regulation, and other essential learning behaviors). Along with extensive research, the text includes images of practice in early education programs in culturally, economically, and linguistically diverse settings. This book will help teachers, future teachers, and other early childhood stakeholders to understand how children acquire positive approaches to learning, know what research says about why approaches to learning are so important, recognize what supports and what undermines children's enthusiasm and engagement in learning, identify and plan specific strategies for the classroom, use culturally sensitive assessments to plan interventions, select and modify curriculum and teaching practices, access resources to help every child enter school with positive approaches to learning, and influence educational policies and decision making.

The last 20 years have witnessed a remarkable revival of interest in the study of emotions and of early emotional development, subjects that had been virtually ignored in previous decades. Bringing this popular resource completely up to date, Marilou Hyson offers a solid foundation for building an emotion-centered early childhood curriculum, linking emotional competence to school readiness and to a broad range of important child outcomes. She also provides educators with real-life examples and evidence-based teaching strategies to advance children’s understanding and appropriate expression of their emotions. New for the Second Edition! Resource Notes in each chapter of Part I provide examples of recent developments in emotion-related standards, policies and programs, self-assessment questions for practitioners, and other practical tools. Part II, Going Deeper: Exploring Emotions and Their Development, features brief vignettes with a series of discussion questions, summaries of key information about the topic, and an annotated list for further reading. New Appendices provide information about the history of emotions in early childhood education and guides to selected assessment tools and to classroom-based interventions. Critical Acclaim for the First Edition! “Insightful and research-based information will serve as important reading for early childhood teachers.”—Think“Hyson’s blending of theoretical and research underpinnings with practical experience should be read by all professionals in early childhood education.”—Readings"This important resource brings together current theory and research into children's early emotional development, and applies this knowledge to practice." —School Supervisor