Through the doors of the wardrobe: A qualitative case study of a short-term study abroad program inspired by the C.S. Lewis Trail in Ireland

This qualitative case study explores experiences of U.S. American undergraduate students who participated in a short-term study abroad program to the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The program focused on psychological perspectives of childhood and play including restorative benefits of spending time in nature. Additional features of the program included using a children’s novel to connect class content and travels as well as prioritizing outdoor experiences. Students shared reflections on their experiences through digital storytelling projects and interviews. Analysis of data resulted in identification of five themes and researcher assertions. The study is framed in relation to literature contrasting short-term and long-term study abroad and the use of reflective practices including digital storytelling in study abroad

Books, stories, and the imagination at Filastrocca: Case study of a preschool learning environment in Pistoia, Italy.

The progressive educational systems of some regions of Italyare becoming increasingly recognized by educators and researchers, including those from North America, seeking insight into diverse educational approaches from the international community. This paper represents a case study of Filastrocca (“Nursery Rhyme”), a preschool in the Tuscan city of Pistoia. Filastrocca proclaims a special mission related to books, storytelling, and the imagination, and appears to offer a unique environment that supports children’s active and enthusiastic engagement in complex literacy discussions and activities. The purpose of this paper is to provide a detailed description of the learning environment for language and literacy at the preschool. There is an emphasis on exploring what kinds of opportunities related to books, storytelling, and the imagination are providing to support and encourage young children and their families, and in examining how the learning environment reflects the mission of the school in fostering early childhood language and literacy

The Instructional and Emotional Quality of Parent-Child Book Reading and Early Head Start Children’s Learning Outcomes

The primary objective of this study was to understand how two dimensions of parent-child book-reading quality – instructional and emotional –interact and relate to learning in a sample of linguistically and culturally diverse, low-income children. Participants included 81 parents and their children who took part in home-based Early Head Start programs in rural counties in the Midwest. Correlation and multiple regression analyses were used to test two hypotheses: (1) the instructional and emotional qualities of parent behavior during shared book reading interact and relate to infants’ and toddlers’ cognitive scores (as measured by the Bayley Scales of Infant Development Second Edition Mental Scale; BSDI-II; Bayley, 1993) and language scores (as measured by the Preschool Language Scale - IV and Preschool Language Scale - IV Spanish; PLS-IV and PLS-IV Spanish; Zimmerman, Steiner, & Pond, 2002; Zimmerman, Steiner, & Pond, 2002) at baseline; and (2) changes in instructional quality and baseline emotional quality of parent behavior during shared book reading interact and relate to changes in children’s cognitive scores over time. Exploratory analyses examined if patterns of relationships varied for families who had different home languages (i.e., English, Spanish). Results demonstrated that instructional and emotional qualities of book reading and home language interacted to predict child cognitive and language scores, both concurrently and over eight months participation in EHS

The instructional and emotional quality of parent-child book reading and Early Head Start children\u27s learning outcomes

The primary objective of this study was to understand how two dimensions of parent-child book-reading quality—instructional and emotional—interact and relate to learning in a sample of linguistically and culturally diverse, low-income children. Participants included 81 parents and their children who took part in home-based Early Head Start programs in rural counties in the Midwest. Correlation and multiple regression analyses were used to test two hypotheses: (1) the instructional and emotional qualities of parent behavior during shared book reading interact and relate to infants\u27 and toddlers\u27 cognitive scores (as measured by the Bayley Scales of Infant Development Second Edition Mental Scale; BSDI-II; Bayley, 1993) and language scores (as measured by the Preschool Language Scale-IV and Preschool Language Scale-IV Spanish; PLS-IV and PLS-IV Spanish; Zimmerman, Steiner, & Pond, 2002a; Zimmerman, Steiner, & Pond, 2002b) at baseline; and (2) changes in instructional quality and baseline emotional quality of parent behavior during shared book reading interact and relate to changes in children\u27s cognitive scores over time. Exploratory analyses examined if patterns of relationships varied for families who had different home languages (i.e., English, Spanish). Results demonstrated that instructional and emotional qualities of book reading and home language interacted to predict child cognitive and language scores, both concurrently and over eight months participation in EHS

A Day at Filastrocca Preschool, Pistoia, Italy: Meaning Making Through Literacy and Creative Experience

In this article,1 we explore how the library teacher of an Italian preschool with a special mission focused on books, stories, and the imagination uses group literacy activities as a context for encouraging shared meaning making through creative experiences. We take readers inside one day at the Italian Preschool, Filastrocca, providing detailed descriptions and analysis of interactions and activities. We suggest that elaborate extended dialogue among children and the teacher, promotion of empathy through opportunities to take others’ perspectives (including book characters’), and group engagement in shared and multi-faceted creativity are important characteristics related to meaning making in the context of relationships. Encouraging creative exploration and play across all domains of intelligence allows the children to develop their individual strengths into a product uniquely theirs

Getting Ready: Results of a Randomized Trial of a Relationship-Focused Intervention on the Parent-Infant Relationship in Rural Early Head Start

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of a relational intervention (the Getting Ready intervention) on parenting behaviors supporting the parent-infant relationship for families enrolled in Early Head Start home-based programming. Two-hundred thirty-four parents and their children participated in the randomized study, with 42% of parents reporting education of less than a high-school diploma. Brief, semistructured parent-child interaction tasks were videotaped every 4 months over a16-month intervention period. Observational codes of parent-infant relationship behaviors included quality of three parental behaviors: warmth and sensitivity, support for learning, and encouragement of autonomy; two appropriateness indicators: support for learning and guidance/directives; and one amount indicator: constructive behaviors. Parents who participated in the Getting Ready intervention demonstrated higher quality interactions with their children that included enhanced quality of warmth and sensitivity, and support for their children\u27s autonomy than did parents in the control group. They also were more likely to use appropriate directives with their children and more likely to demonstrate appropriate supports for their young children\u27s learning. Results indicate an added value of the Getting Ready intervention for Early Head Start home-based programming for families of infants and toddlers