Knowledge Development in Early Childhood Sources of Learning and Classroom Implications

Synthesizing cutting-edge research from multiple disciplines, this book explores how young children acquire knowledge in the "real world" and describes practical applications for early childhood classrooms. The breadth and depth of a child's knowledge base are important predictors of later literacy development and academic achievement. Leading scholars describe the processes by which preschoolers and primary-grade students acquire knowledge through firsthand experiences, play, interactions with parents and teachers, storybooks, and a range of media. Chapters on exemplary instructional strategies vividly show what teachers can do to build children's content knowledge while also promoting core literacy skills.

Ashley M. Pinkham, PhD, is a Research Fellow at the University of Michigan and holds a doctorate in cognitive-developmental psychology. Dr. Pinkham's research focuses on sources of children\u2019s knowledge acquisition and conceptual development, including observational learning, adult–child conversations, and book-reading experiences. Tanya Kaefer, PhD, is a Research Fellow at the University of Michigan and holds a doctorate in developmental psychology. Dr. Kaefer studies reading development and the influence of content knowledge on early literacy skills. Susan B. Neuman, EdD, is Professor in Educational Studies at the University of Michigan and a former U.S. Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education. Her research and teaching interests include early literacy development, early childhood policy, curriculum, and early reading instruction. Dr. Neuman has published over 100 articles and 12 books.

I. Sources of Children\u2019s Knowledge 1. What You See Is What You Get: Learning from the Ambient Environment, Tanya Kaefer 2. Learning through Play: Procedural versus Declarative Knowledge, Jennifer Van Reet 3. How Children Understand and Use Other People as Sources of Knowledge: Children\u2019s Selective Use of Testimony, Sherryse L. Corrow, Jason Cowell, Sabine Doebel, and Melissa A. Koenig 4. Beyond Pedagogy: How Children\u2019s Knowledge Develops in the Context of Everyday Parent–Child Conversations, Maureen Callanan, Jennifer Rigney, Charlotte Nolan-Reyes, and Graciela Solis 5. Drawing on the Arts: Less-Traveled Paths toward a Science of Learning, Jessa Reed, Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, and Roberta Michnick Golinkoff 6. Learning by the Book: The Importance of Picture Books for Young Children\u2019s Knowledge Acquisition, Ashley M. Pinkham 7. Television and Children\u2019s Knowledge, Heather J. Lavigne and Daniel R. Anderson II. Promoting Knowledge Development in the Classroom 8. Four Play Pedagogies and a Promise for Children\u2019s Learning, Kathleen Roskos and James Christie 9. The Research–Reality Divide in Early Vocabulary Instruction, Tanya S. Wright 10. The Contributions of Curriculum to Shifting Teachers\u2019 Practices, David K. Dickinson, Erica M. Barnes, and Jin-Sil Mock 11. Scaffolding Preschoolers\u2019 Vocabulary Development through Purposeful Conversations: Unpacking the ExCELL Model of Language and Literacy Professional Development, Barbara A. Wasik and Annemarie H. Hindman 12. Building Knowledge through Informational Text, Nell K. Duke, Anne-Lise Halvorsen, and Jennifer A. Knight 13. Knowledge Acquisition in the Classroom: Literacy and Content-Area Knowledge, Carol McDonald Connor and Frederick J. Morrison 14. Building Literacy Skills through Multimedia, Rebecca Silverman and Sara Hines