Use this inspirational resource to engage in Pro-Black teaching with young children as an antidote to endemic anti-Black racism in schools and society. Drawing from a critical case study of K–3 teachers who use Pro-Black teaching in their daily instruction, this important book puts forth positive perspectives regarding Blackness and Black people that are not evident in most educational settings. An easy-to-understand text provides evidence-based curriculum examples, pedagogies, and resources; demonstrates how teachers can achieve Pro-Black teaching while also addressing curricular standards and other demands on their time; and explains the benefit of Pro-Black teaching for all children. The authors draw from decades of practice and research by Black scholars (e.g., Asa Hilliard, Janice Hale, Amos Wilson) to position racial identities as a key part of Black children’s development. They center African Diaspora literacy as a Pro-Black pedagogy to ensure that Black children are competent in their own culture as well as in global cultures. Pro-Blackness in Early Childhood Education celebrates the agency, resistance, everyday lives, and joy of Black people. Book Features: Demonstrates how Pro-Blackness can be used to interrupt ethnocide practices that threaten Black children’s culture and spirits. Provides guidance for implementing and sustaining Pro-Black instruction, with accessible examples of curriculum and instruction. Focuses on Pro-Blackness rather than anti-Blackness. Includes examples of K–3 lessons from Drs. Diaspora curriculum that have been used in majority Black, majority White, and racially mixed classrooms.

Provides the first practical, hands-on resource to help early childhood educators create learning environments in which black children thrive.

For today’s early childhood educator, change is a non-negotiable reality. While the size, force, and direction of change can often seem overwhelming, this book shows the way toward overcoming these gigantic odds or “Goliaths.” The New Early Childhood Professional recounts some of the heroic stories and strategic approaches used by early childhood educators who participated in the CAYL Institute Fellowship programs. The authors share a specific framework with concrete steps to help educators become positive change makers in the field of early care and education. Complete with resources, tools, and questions for reflection, this handbook takes readers through four progressive paths toward becoming an architect of change: Analysis—When confronting seemingly insurmountable situations, instead of being overwhelmed, think and reflect about the situation and discover hidden insights. Advance—Better understand the nature of problems while also strengthening your vision and identity through planning and preparation. Act—Begin with everyday challenges and use what you know from every situation, in every interaction with a child, parent, peer, or administrator. Accelerate—Focus on what you want to change, gather allies, document, and communicate. “A talented leader is required to pull all the building blocks of quality together into a harmonious community. For this reason, The New Early Childhood Professional is a vital resource for both new and experienced early childhood leaders. . . . Readers, be prepared to be jolted out of your comfort zone. This book will challenge, inform, provoke, and inspire you.” —From the Foreword by Roger and Bonnie Neugebauer, publishers of Exchange Magazine “In this book, Washington, Gadson, and Amel lay out a proven, intentional, strategic, and clear approach to effect change collectively and individually. A definite must-read.” —Marta T. Rosa, Senior Executive Director, Department of Government and External Affairs, and Community Impact/Chief Diversity Officer “At a pivotal moment in early childhood education, the authors give us the tools to become agents of change on behalf of young children. This highly readable discussion leaves us with no more excuses.” —Jacqueline Jones, executive director of the Foundation for Child Development in New York

Anti-bias education begins with you! Become a skilled anti-bias teacher with this practical guidance to confronting and eliminating barriers.

FirstSchool is a groundbreaking framework for teaching minority and low-income children. Changing the conversation from improving test scores to improving school experiences, the text features lessons learned from eight elementary schools whose leadership and staff implemented sustainable changes. The authors detail how to use education research and data to provide a rationale for change; how to promote professional learning that is genuinely collaborative and respectful; and how to employ developmentally appropriate teaching strategies that focus on the needs of minority and low-income children.

Featuring both research findings and practical recommendations, this book presents an innovative framework for nurturing leadership in the care and education of young children. Early educators are often seen as the objects of change, rather than the architects and co-creators of change. Douglass calls for a paradigm shift in thinking that challenges many long-held stereotypes about the early care and education workforce’s capacity to lead change. Case studies show how educators use their expertise every day to make a difference in the lives of children and families. These accounts demonstrate concrete strategies for expanding current thinking about who can be leaders for change and for developing more inclusive pathways for leadership. This book has the potential to revolutionize the field with a new model for developing and nurturing innovative, entrepreneurial, and skilled early educator leaders capable of driving transformative change—from classrooms and home-based programs to communities and beyond. “Douglass boldly calls for a re-envisioning of access to leadership in early care and education.” —From the Foreword by Lea J. E. Austin, co-director, Center for the Study of Child Care Employment “Provides a new and motivating lens for improving early childhood education ‘on the ground.’ This is a welcome and significant contribution to the field.” —Stacie G. Goffin, principal, Goffin Strategy Group “Offers a new framework for thinking about leadership development, including research findings and practical recommendations to create clear pathways and a supportive ecosystem.” —Marilou Hyson, consultant, Early Childhood Development and Education

"This book explores how the current process of schooling that frames public education through economic rather than democratic terms is fundamentally flawed, why it must change, and how all members and participants within the early childhood and elementary school communities must be a part of the reform process. The work is based on the author's recent studies of stakeholders' in the changed kindergarten as well as earlier studies examining the impact of reforms on classrooms, pre and in-service teachers, students, families, administrators, teacher educators, and other education stakeholders. By examining these issues empirically, practically, and theoretically, the author illuminates the complexity of what is currently occurring in kindergarten and other early childhood classrooms across the U.S. Then, Brown skillfully puts forward ideas for change that are practical and achievable in developing systems of schooling that can educate, foster, and sustain a democratic society"--