Resource Books

Nature-based early childhood education is a rapidly growing trend! Although many schools and programs have incorporated nature-based learning, educators can feel at a loss when trying to evaluate quality in this learning approach. But don't worry - Evaluating Natureness: Measuring the Quality of Nature-Based Classrooms in Pre-K through 3rd Grade is here to help! Designed with early education practitioners, researchers, and policy makers in mind, the NAture-Based Education Rating Scales (NABERS) for Pre-K and K-3 let professionals easily collect standardized information to measure the quality of education settings in the areas of: Program goals and curriculum practices, Staffing, Environment, Community partnerships, and Family engagement. Whether you want to evaluate an existing nature-based program or discover how to shift your program toward a nature focus, this book is for you!

Contains over 600 activities written by teachers illustrating new ways to use everyday items to create fresh exciting projects. Also includes management techniques and helpful tips for working with 4 year olds. 624 pages

Communities of practice are an age-old phenomenon representing teamwork. Whether its researchers developing treatments for a disease or educators sharing best practices to enhance early childhood learning, communities of practice are about connection and shared purpose. "Growing Together" will help you define, create, and promote a community of practice to foster collaborative problem solving and enhance professional learning experiences. You will learn key strategies and techniques to help you: develop a shared vision and structure, leverage tools to invite members and build a community, build member engagement and investment, and master facilitation and evaluation strategies for ongoing professional learning. Paperback. 136 pages.

Ideal for sharing with pre-K educators new to the CLASS®! Provides an overview of the teacher-child interactions that form the popular classroom observation tool. Describes each of the 10 teacher-child interactions (or "dimensions") that make up the CLASS® assessment, explaining it's importance for children's social-emotional and academic growth. Provides practical strategies and tips to help teachers improve the effectiveness of their teaching across each of the CLASS® dimensions. Available in English or Spanish.

This best selling book comes with 2 CD's featuring 50 songs. Children will build a strong foundation in skills such as listening, imagination, coordination, and spatial and body awareness. Accompanying songs are sure to get children up and moving! 500 pages.

Looking through an aesthetic lens of nature, color, furnishings, textures, displays, lighting, and focal points, educators will learn to determine a classroom's level of aesthetic beauty. ROSIE then provides images and examples to assist in turning learning spaces into inspirational environments in which children can grow and learn.

This book includes over 600 math activities organized by curriculum area or time of the day. Each activity is complete with math concepts, materials needed, and step-by-step instructions. It is easy for the teacher and children to have fun learning new concepts. 528 pages.

"Promoting Resilience For Now and Forever: This resource gives family-friendly information on promoting a child's social and emotional health at home. A Family Guide for Supporting the Social and Emotional Development of Infants and Toddlers", Second Edition supports families in understanding what social and emotional health of infants and toddlers is, how to recognize key behaviors, and how to support children's social/emotional health in the home setting in simple ways every day. Set of 20. Available in English and Spanish.

This new book features 100 activities all about shapes! Contributed by teachers, these activities are organized by curriculum area and offer fresh ideas that provide hours of engaging activities. Complete with learning objectives, related children's books, and an assessment component, teachers will find everything they need to teach children ages 3-6 all about shapes. 128 pages.

All infants and toddlers need experiences that nurture, support, and teach their home language and culture. Language is a vital component of early experiences well before a child can say his first word. Infants and toddlers whose families come from diverse backgrounds and speak different languages are appearing in all kinds of early care and learning settings in growing numbers. Even the most experienced caregiver can feel a bit unsure about meeting the unique needs of infants and toddlers from different language backgrounds.Many Languages, Building Connections outlines adaptable strategies that caregivers of children younger than the age of three need to feel confident that they know how language develops, how cultural differences can come into play, and how to assess an individual child's situation to provide appropriate support.

Author, Rebecca Green, takes readers on an inspiring journey using beautiful color photos that she took of her children doing activities she describes in the book. This book takes a lighthearted approach to the serious business of parenting, and helps parents find activities that they enjoy, while their children learn and have fun. Green suggests ways for parents to maintain their own identities and pursue their own interests while raising children who are creative, confident, and independent thinkers. The book emphasizes adapting activities to suit the particular interests of each child, while also taking into account the personality of the parent. Paperback. 120 pages.

Moving children are developing children. With "Move to Learn," it is easy to turn your classroom into an environment that encourages movement experiences rich in sensory, perceptual, and visual-motor experiences. Through simple strategies and activities, "Move to Learn" seamlessly integrates fine and gross motor-skill development across the early childhood curriculum: Language and Literacy, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Creative Representation, and Social Skills. With most activities listed in order of difficulty, choosing the right one for your class is easy! Regardless of the number of children, the physical size of your classroom, or the quality or quantity of equipment available to you, the ideas in this book are flexible enough to get every classroom moving. Paperback. 136 pages.

Through the activities in this book, teachers and caregivers are shown how easy it is to foster children's sense of curiosity through group explorations that promote social connection and positive development. With step-by-step instructions, "Getting to the Heart of Learning' weaves social-emotional learning into activities that support math, science, literacy, and motor skills. Rather than adding in activities throughout the day, these explorations integrate social-emotional learning across the curriculum through group involvement and building community. Learn how to strengthen home-to-school connections, too, with easy strategies that help families develop a shared vision for student's social-emotional and academic success. Paperback. 180 pages.

Recent research has drawn the link between children's brain development and time spent in the natural environment. Every child deserves a safe play to play, supportive adults to watch him grow, and an environment that offers them endless possibilities. In "Seasons of Play," Rusty Keeler takes readers on a photographic journey through real child care centers that have embraced his philosophy that natural play environments create new opportunities for children to explore and grow. This book illustrates how to design natural play environments that encourage exploration and creativity in all seasons of the year. Keeler's own drawings complement the photos with renderings of how the play spaces were designed. Interviews with center directors add a personal touch to how the spaces improve learning at the centers. Paperback. 216 pages.

Imagine a learning space infused with life, where curiosity thrives and imaginations bloom. Loose Parts Alive invites you to unlock the extraordinary potential of living loose parts: plants, animals, and even your bodies! Beyond blocks and buttons, discover how the movements of a fish can spark STEM explorations, sun-soaked leaves can inspire vibrant artwork and investigation of light and shadow, and a caterpillar's metamorphosis can nurture wonder and language. Filled with field-tested activities and inspiring examples, practical tips, and stunning photography showcasing real-life implementation, Loose Parts Alive is an invitation to step outside the ordinary, embrace the boundless wonder of nature, and witness the magic of learning.

Now more than ever, adults must help children develop the skills necessary to navigate through life successfully. By focusing on building social and emotional strength, we increase children's resilience and prepare them to handle the challenges in life. The strategies and activities in "Socially Strong, Emotionally Secure" help children become socially and emotionally healthy for life. Organized into five chapters, the activities support and build resilience in children ages 3 to 8. 160 pages. Paperback.

Enrich classroom learning centers with lively, fun activities designed to stimulate exciting learning for young children. This critical resource includes over 200 activities for the following centers: Manipulatives, Construction, Woodworking, Blocks, Music, Gross Motor, Library, Science, Dramatic Play, Art, and Sand and Water. Over 200 easy-to-plan learning center activities for language and literacy, science, manipulatives, art and more. 272 pages by Sharon MacDonald.

Over 40 activities that focus on controlling teasing and bullying with friendship, community, and expressing feelings. Use these activities, the classroom environment, and family involvement to create a climate of mutual respect in the classroom. 128 pages.

Most early childhood teachers are using learning centers in the classroom, but do not approach them in ways that fully support a variety of learning opportunities. This book approaches learning centers through the STEM lens, and shares how themes can be integrated into centers to promote creativity and higher-level thinking. "STEM Play" provides varied activities for the most common centers: art, blocks, dramatic play, literacy, math, science, music and movement. Full of beautiful, full-color photos that show the activities in real early childhood classrooms, teachers can easily use the book's ideas immediately in their curriculum. Also includes a "How To" section for teachers who wish to expand on the STEM focus and use themed activities in their learning centers. Paperback. 174 pages.

PreK - Grade 1. Recycle, reuse, and create with this innovative activity book! Use bags to make masks, kites, buildings, art projects, and more. Meet state standards while helping children learn about the environment. 100 pages.

The ultimate resource book! Over 600 activities, stories, games, recipes, props, and dances to enhance any preschool curriculum. Plus a materials index, theme connection index, and thematic chart. Paperback. 512 pages.

Professional development is important, but early childhood professionals get just as bored, worn out, and disengaged from learning as their younger counterparts do. But while pre-K and K-12 classroom learning continues to evolve and improve, adult learners are often left by the wayside! There must be a better way. "Lose the Lecture" brings administrators, coaches, and facilitators a new approach to professional development and adult learning that focuses on the learners-how they think, what they need, and what motivates them to grow. Paperback. 224 pages.

"Lead the Way" provides short, self-guided overviews that both aspiring and practicing after school professionals need to thrive in their roles. The 24 fundamental insights and strategies can be used as professional development topics with after school program staff, laying the foundation for the program to recruit, retain, and grown effective leaders. Paperback. 120 pages.

Mary Jalongo, PhD, offers 65 strategies to support literacy learning with children from preschool through the third grade. With specific suggestions for ELL students, Jalongo includes recommendations for hundreds of great children's books, websites, and apps to make teaching easier. Each strategy is designed to be simple to use with all of the children in your classroom-from the not-yet-readers to the fluent readers-and each strategy is tied to the Common Core State Standards for kindergarten through third grade. Paperback. 272 pages.