Best Practices Archives - Early Learning Nation

Kids with dirt smudges on their faces, laughing and eating outdoors

The Mind-Building Magic of a Muddy Childhood

K.C. Compton·Aug 30, 2019·7 min read

Throughout most of human history and in most of the world, that paradigm of children playing outdoors as a part of childhood has been so integral as to be transparent. Not so in the U.S., where, according to the Child Mind Institute, the average American child spends four to seven minutes a day in unstructured play outdoors and more than seven hours a day in front of a screen. Washington State is changing that.

Brain Matters Documentary Attracts Global Interest

Behind the Scenes with Director Carlota Nelson

Mark Swartz·Feb 25, 2020·3 min read

Prioritizing early childhood development, says documentary filmmaker Carlota Nelson, “Is a no-brainer,” before adding, “No pun intended.” Born in Tokyo...

Playful Learning Landscapes

Meeting Children Where They Are with What They Need

K.C. Compton·Dec 10, 2019·6 min read

Plaza. Piazza. Town square. The names may differ region to region, but they describe similar spaces: a place where residents...

“Baby’s First Years” Offers First U.S. Study to Assess Impact of Poverty Reduction on Infant and Toddler Development

Tom Kertscher·May 8, 2019·5 min read

“What this study is asking is whether or not, as a matter of public policy, is it a straightforward way to achieve the important goal of early childhood development.” -- Matt Klein, executive director, New York City Mayor's Office for Economic Opportunity

Roberta Michnick Golinkoff & Kathy Hirsh-Pasek (Part 2): Say What? Helping Teachers Measure Children’s Language Skills

The Editors·Apr 24, 2019·4 min read

According to Roberta Michnick Golinkoff & Kathy Hirsh-Pasek – researchers and co-authors of “Becoming Brilliant, What Science Tells Us About Raising Successful Children” – language is the single best predictor of how young children will do in school. That’s why they’ve created an innovative, easy way for practitioners to measure students’ verbal progress. Filmed for Early Learning Nation’s Mobile Studio at the Society for Research in Child Development’s biennial meeting in Baltimore, MD, on March 22, 2019. #SRCD19

A New Coalition Promotes Children’s Self-Esteem (and Expanded Worldviews) through Diverse Books

Mark Swartz·Dec 8, 2022·6 min read

First Book, a nonprofit social enterprise focused on furthering educational equity for children ages 0-18 who are growing up in...

Baby pulling stethoscope. Photo courtesy Mount Sinai Parenting Center

A Work in Progress: How Mount Sinai Parenting Center Is Bringing the Science of Child Development into Pediatric Education

Mark Swartz·Mar 27, 2019·4 min read

New York City’s Mount Sinai Hospital is one of the nation’s oldest and largest teaching hospitals. They're upping their early childhoold development game with an online curriculum that demonstrates how pediatric residents can promote brain development and help strengthen parent-child relationships within the confines of routine well-child visits

Kenneth A. Dodge: Understanding & Preventing Violent Behaviors in Children

The Editors·Apr 17, 2019·6 min read

How and why do children become aggressive – or even violent? How can we understand the true causes – and recognize the signs – before they take hold? Kenneth A. Dodge, Pritzker Professor of Public Policy at Duke University explains the important research that can help children and families. Filmed for Early Learning Nation’s Mobile Studio at the Society for Research in Child Development’s biennial meeting in Baltimore, MD, on March 22, 2019. #SRCD19

5 Ways Colleges Can Assist Students Who Are Parents of Young Children

Mikah Jorgensen·Oct 6, 2022·5 min read

Across the U.S., colleges and universities have pledged to enhance diversity and to prioritize inclusiveness. In the wake of the...

A New Start for New Mexico’s Native Families

Mark Swartz·Dec 7, 2021·3 min read

“What some may see as a gap,” says Jovanna Archuleta, “that’s not necessarily a gap. We can learn a lot...

Early Childhood Alliance Onondaga: A Master Class in Cross-Sector Coalition Building

K.C. Compton·Nov 5, 2019·8 min read

When the Onondaga Citizens League saw that only 9% of the students in the Syracuse City School District were reading...

Phil Fisher: The Realities of Stress on Children

The Editors·Apr 22, 2019·5 min read

When University of Maryland Associate Professor Geetha Ramani and her colleagues visit early learning classrooms, they’re known as the “game people.” Ramani’s research shows not only the importance of teaching math skills, but also the effectiveness of what might seem like an obvious tactic: Make it fun.

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