Dear colleagues,

This new year, I am grateful for NAEYC members and other readers of Teaching Young Children who value quality early learning for each and every child. As we continue experiencing the effects of COVID-19, we have each reflected on how we used technology to stay connected and which lessons we brought back into our in-person classrooms.

NAEYC remains steadfast in the position that devices, apps, and other programs are not replacements for effective educators and high-quality early learning programs. They are tools or supplements to be integrated with intentionality into the learning environment, curriculum, and interactions with children and families. This issue of Teaching Young Children offers an array of examples and strategies to consider as you plan, teach, and assess toward developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) with technology and media.

To learn even more about DAP, I encourage you to read the fourth edition of NAEYC’s seminal text, Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth Through Age 8, which has just been published. You will find an excerpt from the book on the next page, and you can engage with the book’s concepts and the wider community by visiting NAEYC.org/dap. Connect with DAP and celebrate all that early childhood educators do to put it into action.

Onward!

Rhian Evans Allvin
Chief Executive Officer