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Focus on Developmentally Appropriate Practice: Equitable and Joyful Learning in Kindergarten

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Eva C. Phillips, Amy Scrinzi, Susan Friedman

About the Book 

If you’ve ever wondered how effective teachers actually do DAP in kindergarten, this is the book for you. You will see how kindergarten educators provide integrated learning opportunities that you can adapt to create a robust learning environment that is play oriented and supportive of required mandates and expectations. 
 
You’ll read about educators making intentional decisions in key areas of practice, which form the six guidelines for DAP in action: 
 
  1. Building a strengths-based community where everyone is welcomed and supported to grow and learn 
  2. Facilitating reciprocal partnerships with families 
  3. Observing, assessing, and documenting children’s learning and development  
  4. Using teaching strategies that enhance learning for each child 
  5. Implementing curriculum tied to meaningful learning goals 
  6. Demonstrating professionalism 
 
This book will inspire you to apply these guidelines to establish goals and create learning experiences that fit who and where your students are and advocate for practices and environments that facilitate equitable, joyful learning for all kindergartners. 

Table of Contents

  • About the Editors
  • Focus on Developmentally Appropriate Practice: Equitable and Joyful Learning Book Series
  • Developmentally Appropriate Practice: An Introduction
  • Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Kindergarten
  • Part 1: Creating a Caring, Equitable Community of Learners
    • Chapter 1: Successful Transitions to and out of Kindergarten: Supporting Children and Families | Eva Phillips and Amy Scrinzi
    • Chapter 2: Routines, Rituals, and Mantras for Building a Joyful Classroom in Kindergarten: Reflections from Our Small Mountain Community Classrooms | Lee Messer and Marylee Sease
    • Chapter 3: Supporting Self‑Regulation and Autonomy in Kindergarten: One Teacher’s Journey | Amy D. Blessing
    • Chapter 4: How Do I See Myself? How Do Others See Me? Exploring Identity in Kindergarten | Doriet Berkowitz
    • Chapter 5: Becoming Upended: Teaching and Learning About Race and Racism with Young Children and Their Families | Kirsten Cole and Diandra Verwayne
  • Part 2: Engaging in Reciprocal Partnerships with Families and Fostering Community Connections
  • Part 3: Observing, Documenting, and Assessing Children’s Development and Learning
    • Chapter 10: Authentic Assessment and Playful Learning: Purposeful Assessment of Children’s Understanding | Kimberly T. Nesbitt, Elias Blinkoff, and Kathy Hirsh‑Pasek
    • Chapter 11: Observing, Planning, Guiding: How an Intentional Teacher Meets Standards Through Play | Patricia McDonald
    • Chapter 12: Assessment in Kindergarten: Meeting Children Where They Are | Amy D. Blessing
    • Chapter 13: Assessing Young Children in the Inclusive Classroom: Using Data to Create Equitable and Joyful Learning Experiences for All | Christan Coogle and Heather Walter
    • Chapter 14: Adding Play and Hands‑On Learning into the Kindergarten Classroom: Balancing Mandated Curricula and Assessments with Developmentally Appropriate Practice | Kacey Edgington and Amy Prosser
  • Part 4: Teaching to Enhance Each Child’s Development and Learning
  • Part 5: Planning and Implementing an Engaging Curriculum to Achieve Meaningful Goals
    • Chapter 21: Engaging and Enriching: The Key to Developmentally Appropriate Academic Rigor | Shannon Riley‑Ayers and Alexandra Figueras‑Daniel
    • Chapter 22: Incorporating Play‑Based Learning into the Kindergarten Classroom | Margi Bhansali, Alli Bizon, and Erean Mei
    • Chapter 23: Finding Joy in Kindergarten Mathematics | Lauren Solarski
    • Chapter 24: Joyful and Equity in Literacy: The Intersection of Access and Opportunity | Ryan Lee‑James and Stacey Wallen
    • Chapter 25: Adapting the Curriculum to Incorporate Student Inquiry Through Teachable Moments | Sabrina Burroughs
  • Part 6: Demonstrating Professionalism as an Early Childhood Educator
    • Chapter 26: Portraits of Teacher Leadership | Jessica Jackson, Samantha Mehrlich, Yolanda A. Sawyer, and Susan Choplin
    • Chapter 27: Agency and Power in Young Children’s Lives: Five Ways to Advocate for Social Justice as an Early Childhood Educator | Jennifer Keys Adair and Shubhi Sachdeva
  • Index

References

Chapter references (online only)

Study Guide

Chapter-by-chapter study guide

Book Details

Product Code: 1173
ISBN: 978-1-952331-34-3
Publish Date: 2024
Citation (in Chicago 17th ed. style): 
Phillips, E.C., & A. Scrinzi, eds. 2024. Focus on Developmentally Appropriate Practice: Equitable and Joyful Learning in Kindergarten. Washington, DC: NAEYC.

Related Resources

To read the position statement, access related resources, and stay up-to-the-minute on all things DAP, visit NAEYC.org/resources/developmentally-appropriate-practice.

Audience: Student (higher education), Teacher
Age: Kindergarten
Topics: Child Development, Other Topics, Developmentally Appropriate Practice
Eva C. Phillips

Eva C. Phillips, EdD, is dedicated to teaching and advocating for young children and early childhood educators. Throughout her almost 40 years of service to North Carolina, she served as a kindergarten teacher, a state‑level Title I preschool and kindergarten consultant, an assistant professor and Birth‑Kindergarten Education Program Coordinator, and a district‑level program manager for early learning. She has collaborated on numerous projects supporting developmentally appropriate practices and was cocreator and cofacilitator of North Carolina’s
Power of K Teacher Leader Initiative while at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Dr. Phillips also served as president of the North Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children from 2009 to 2013. After retiring from the state in 2017, she began a consulting business to support early learning educators through professional development, consulting, and coaching. She is coauthor of the book Basics of Developmentally Appropriate Practice: An Introduction for Teachers of Kindergartners and the white paper Children Come First: Ensuring School Policies, Practices, and Strategies Lead to Positive 3rd Grade Outcomes. She is dedicated to working with educators in their pursuits to provide the most authentic, appropriate, engaging, and challenging experiences for all young children.

Eva C. Phillips
Amy Scrinzi

Amy Scrinzi, EdD, is an accomplished educator with extensive experience in the field of education spanning more than 30 years. She holds the position of assistant professor of child development at Meredith College in North Carolina. In addition, she serves as the coordinator of the birth‑to‑kindergarten licensure program, overseeing and guiding aspiring educators in
their journey to become licensed educators. Dr. Scrinzi is a former classroom teacher of pre‑K through third grade, having taught in several public school districts in North Carolina. She later worked at the state’s Department of Public Instruction as a state‑level early childhood education consultant, developing and facilitating projects that included coleading the state’s Power of K three‑year kindergarten teacher leadership initiative. She also served as a state‑level K–2 math consultant, state lead for the North Carolina Kindergarten Entry Assessment (KEA), and state‑level mentor for nonpublic pre‑K teachers seeking a birth‑to‑kindergarten teaching license. She is coauthor of the book Basics of Developmentally Appropriate Practice: An Introduction for Teachers of Kindergartners. Her experience as a classroom teacher, consultant, mentor, and author has equipped her with a comprehensive understanding of early childhood education, and she remains dedicated to supporting teachers’ use of effective practices that align with the developmental needs of young learners.

a portrait of author amy scrinzi
Susan Friedman

Susan Friedman is senior director of publishing and content development at NAEYC. In this role, she leads the content development work of NAEYC’s books and periodicals teams. Ms. Friedman is coeditor of Each and Every Child: Teaching Preschool with an Equity Lens. She has extensive prior experience creating content on play, developmentally appropriate uses of media, and other topics for educators and families. She has presented at numerous educational conferences, including NAEYC’s Professional Learning Institute and Annual Conference, the South by Southwest Education (SXSW EDU) Conference & Festival, and the School Superintendents Association’s Early Learning Cohort. She began her career as a preschool teacher at City and Country School in New York City. She holds degrees from Vassar College and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Reviews

As an early childhood educator of 30 years, I found this book to provide great examples of how a developmentally appropriate kindergarten classroom functions. It covers current topics, provides personal examples from educators, and offers research-based insights and ideas for immediate implementation. It supports laughter and play as important aspects of learning. This user-friendly book will serve as a valuable resource for teachers at all experience levels.  
—Connie L. Hall, Kindergarten Teacher, 2023 Nevada Teacher of the Year  
   
Kindergarten can be a challenging new environment for both children and adults. Focus on Developmentally Appropriate Practice: Equitable and Joyful Learning in Kindergarten gives practical guidelines for teachers and administrators to ensure that kindergarten is just that—joyful, engaging, and most important, high-quality for all children. As a former kindergarten teacher and now primary school principal, I can attest that this book will be invaluable for both new and veteran educators striving to provide developmentally appropriate practices in kindergarten.  
–Jason Sims, Principal, Laurel Hill Primary School  
  
Building on the collective wisdom of veteran kindergarten teachers, this book articulates a wealth of practices, mindsets, and reflections that will help readers understand and thoughtfully apply DAP in their classrooms. Anchored in both research and lived experiences, this book offers teachers compelling approaches they can try out immediately, while simultaneously prompting much-needed reflection about their specific context, past practices, and professional identities. The vignettes of real-world teacher-student interactions are vivid, relatable, and inspiring–bringing each chapter's key principles to life. This resource is exactly what it needs to be for teachers who wish to enact DAP in their kindergarten classrooms.  
—Maleka Donaldson, Associate Professor, Department of Education and Child Study, Smith College  
  
As kindergarten has shifted over the past 30 years, this book emerges as a critical resource for teachers, empowering them to navigate academic and assessment pressures while ensuring joyful, developmentally appropriate experiences that support the whole child’s success . . . for every child.  
—Karyn Allee, Assistant Professor of Education, Mercer University  
  
The information in this resource—which is both practical and theoretical—clearly describes academic and social-emotional skills that children will need for their ongoing success in school, as well as the specific ways that children learn best at kindergarten age. The format of collected pieces makes this a resource teachers will use often. This work is outstanding!  
—Monica O’Gara, Founding Faculty, City Neighbors Charter School  
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