Teacher Appreciation Week is a good start, but why do teachers get a week while entertainers get our praise, tweets, fan mail and attention 24/7/365? Why do entertainers get red carpets, limousines, Emmys, Oscars, and Grammys, while teachers get apples, cards, plaques, and mugs? Why do we value our celebrities...

When writing my Huffington Post piece on children and gun play, I found myself wondering what would happen if everyone understood child development. What changes would come about in education? How much healthier would children's lives be if this unique period of their lives was fully understood?

In the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting and other incidents, school safety understandably is on everyone's minds. At a Department of Education open house earlier this month, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said that the Biden/Obama proposal on gun control had created one of his proudest moments while serving...

Who could have imagined that the issue of teacher attire would be such a hot-button topic? But, then, who could have imagined that the day would come when teachers sported too-tight clothes and showed too much skin? And, no, I'm not talking about just the female teachers. This is not...

Studies suggest that it's important to career success to be able to speak glowingly about one's work skills and accomplishments. In fact, a recent report indicates humility in the workplace may be a liability.

Educators, of course, are known for their humility. Theirs is a broadly accepted practice...

In the past, early childhood professionals didn't have to worry about legislation and policy. They quietly and diligently went about their work, preparing young children to read and write, to "use their words," and to take turns. They knew their work mattered; they saw it on the attentive faces, and...

In an earlier piece for Huff -- and an earlier segment of Body, Mind and Child -- I asked whether or not we should continue to teach handwriting in the digital age. I found the feedback surprising, as more individuals than expected unequivocally proclaimed that handwriting...

Should the physical fitness of young children be the concern of early childhood professionals? Or is it a matter for the family, and the family alone, to worry about?

Michelle Obama believes it's the former. And, given the alarming facts surrounding the childhood obesity crisis, I have to agree with...

Teaching has become the Rodney Dangerfield of professions in this country. In fact, a recent ranking of the top 200 jobs in the U.S., based on such criteria as income, physical demands, and stress, put public school teaching at a sad 100. Teaching actually ranked nine spots lower...

Bullying is one of the biggest issues in education today. There are articles in professional journals and parenting magazines about it. There are news stories, it seems almost weekly, about it. There are websites and organizations dedicated to fighting it. There is plenty of advice about preventing it. There's even...

There was a time when the conventional wisdom was that we needed four hugs a day to survive, eight hugs a day to maintain, and 12 to grow. Later, as media reports of sexual assault cases spread like viruses, along with fear of lawsuits, educators and children were schooled in...

"Study after study shows that girls believe how they look is the key to their popularity -- their self-esteem. They think how they look is who they are."

These are the words of Peggy Orenstein, author of Cinderella Ate My Daughter, in a discussion for Body,...

I hated "gym" when I was a kid. I didn't want to climb the rope, especially with 30 other children and the teacher watching, when I was terrified of heights -- and rope burns. I couldn't jump the horse and didn't understand why I had to. The sight of a...

Earlier this month, the Indiana Department of Education joined the ranks of school systems that will no longer require the teaching of cursive writing. In a memo sent to school leaders, the Department stated that, in accordance with the Common Core standards, students will be "expected...

Last week it was announced that, as part of the Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC), states wanting a shot at a grant will need to have standards and assessments in place to gauge children's kindergarten readiness. The possibility of Pre-K testing and accountability already has...

In the past, based on what they knew about and observed in young children, early childhood teachers designed their programs to meet their students' developmental needs. Play and active learning were considered key tools to accommodate those needs and facilitate the children's education. Typical activities included:

• Sorting and stacking blocks...

According to the American Association for the Child's Right to Play (and, yes, it seems we do need such an organization), approximately 40 percent of the elementary schools in the U.S. have eliminated recess from the children's day. The primary reason, of course, is the need to focus...