"The ideas of our policy makers have changed, but children haven't," was the opening for Rae Pica's keynote at our "Best Practices for Teaching Pre-K & K" full- day conference last Tuesday. "Worksheets are proliferating in the belief that what's needed is more instructional time," she said, "and parents are terrified their child is falling behind. When did education become a race?"

In her address on "What If Everybody Understood Child Development," Pica practiced what she preached, stressing the importance of movement in early childhood learning while getting hundreds of teachers off their feet multiple times to dance, shimmy or touch their toes (see photos at right). "Learning isn't all in your head," she explained. "The best way to prepare a child to hold a pencil is to send them outside to play on the monkey bars or let them climb a tree."

Other highlights included an overflow yoga workshop with Bari Koral, building with old cardboard boxes and other recycled materials in Patti Jo Wilson's STEAM workshop, and Steve Erwin's session on dealing with challenging behavior in the classroom.

Besides the long lines for the restrooms, the one complaint we heard during the day came from Roosevelt lead teacher Unique Wilson ( left): "I love this conference!" he said. "But I'm wondering why there aren't more male teachers here. We need to do more to recruit and hire men in early education."

Some speaker handouts are available on our website. If you don't see anything from the session you're interested, please check again in a few days.

It may not seem obvious to non-educators, but art, music and drama promote learning in "academic" subjects. So says a round-up of studies concentrating on the arts and early childhood  education published by the news website Education Dive. For example, Pennsylvania researchers found that students in an "art-themed" Head Start program were more ready for school than those in a similar high-quality programs without this emphasis. Plus, the more art classes, the lower the children's cortisol levels, indicating stress relief--a big plus for students in low-income neighborhoods with risk factors such as violence and high mobility.

Another study--this one in Arkansas--showed that even field trips to museums can give children a boost. Why this is important: research indicates that students with positive attitudes about the arts and interest in participating in arts programs tend to do better academically later on.

Finally, a Minnesota expert in child development found a strong correlation between theater arts skills and school readiness skills. For example, "emotional expression and understanding" used in drama are aligned with social-emotional skills, and "physical awareness" matches up with motor development.   Read more.

The debate over homework for young children is not over. On Monday, Education Week published a thoughtful essay on the topic, exploring practices ranging from an hour every night to encouraging nightly reading.

"He doesn't like it," reports a father in Virginia whose son comes home from kindergarten with 45 minutes to an hour of homework every night. Yet the NEA and National PTA guidelines for homework don't even include 5-year-olds. (They start with a maximum of 10 minutes a night in first grade.)

An elementary principal defends her school's practice of giving homework in  kindergarten as a family engagement strategy: "We feel this is a connection we want with the parents. We want them to know what their children are learning at school, we want them to know how they're doing in school, if the work is too hard, if it's too easy, we want them to be able to support what the kids are learning at school at home as well."

Experts such as an education professor are "no fan of busywork at any grade level." Cathy Vatterrot from the University of Missouri says: "There's enough adjustment for young children in kindergarten without throwing in homework."

For more opinions from parents and experts, 

read more.

No, says an article from Today's Parent, There can be lots of payoffs for preschoolers with an intense interest. For one thing, "being an expert just feels good," building confidence for a 3- to 5-year-old (the ages when these interests are most prevalent). For another, having an endless fascination with, say, medical instruments or cars, can help children develop a longer attention span and persistence.  Plus, they have "a greater tendency to ask questions, and [have] deeper comprehension and processing skills. In other words, obsessed kids can become better-than-average learners."

The only caveat: an obsession that results in too much screen time, such as an interest in particular video games.

Read more.

Infant/Toddler Teachers (Team Teaching)

Stony Brook Child Care Services, SUNY Stony Brook

Apply online www.stonybrook.edu/jobs  ( Req#1802812)

Infant/Toddler Temporary Teacher Replacement

Stony Brook Child Care Services, SUNY Stony Brook

Call Josefina at 631-632-6930

• Your name
• Your position
• Your e-mail and phone number

• The name of your school and the town it's located in. You can include your web address, if you have one.
• A very brief description of the position or positions you want to fill. (For example: "Part-time Teacher Assistant" or "Full-time Pre-K Teacher."
• Information about how potential applicants should contact your for details or to apply. (For example: "Call Jane Smith at 631-xxx-xxxx" or "Send e-mail to jane.smith@schoolname.org")