Code of Ethical Conductand Statement of CommitmentA posi

Code of Ethical Conduct
and Statement of Commitment
A position statement of the National Association for the
Education of Young Children
Preamble
NAEYC recognizes that those who work with young
children face many daily decisions that have moral and
ethical implications. The NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct
offers guidelines for responsible behavior and sets forth a
common basis for resolving the principal ethical dilemmas
encountered in early childhood care and education. The
Statement of Commitment is not part of the Code but is a
personal acknowledgement of an individual’s willingness to
embrace the distinctive values and moral obligations of the
field of early childhood care and education.
The primary focus of the Code is on daily practice with
children and their families in programs for children from birth
through 8 years of age, such as infant/toddler programs,
preschool and prekindergarten programs, child care centers,
hospital and child life settings, family child care homes,
kindergartens, and primary classrooms. When the issues
involve young children, then these provisions also apply to
specialists who do not work directly with children, including
program administrators, parent educators, early childhood
adult educators, and officials with responsibility for program
monitoring and licensing. (Note: See also the “Code of Ethi -
cal Conduct: Supplement for Early Childhood Adult Educa-
tors,” online at www.naeyc.org/about/positions/pdf/ethics04.
pdf. and the “Code of Ethical Conduct: Supplement for Early
Childhood Program Administrators,” online at http://www.

naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05_supp.pdf)
Core values
Standards of ethical behavior in early childhood care
and education are based on commitment to the follow -
ing core values that are deeply rooted in the history of
the field of early childhood care and education. We have
made a commitment to
• Appreciate childhood as a unique and valuable stage of
the human life cycle
• Base our work on knowledge of how children develop
and learn
• Appreciate and support the bond between the child
and family
• Recognize that children are best understood and sup-
ported in the context of family, culture,* community, and
society
• Respect the dignity, worth, and uniqueness of each
individual (child, family member, and colleague)
• Respect diversity in children, families, and colleagues
• Recognize that children and adults achieve their full
potential in the context of relationships that are based
on trust and respect
* The term culture includes ethnicity, racial identity, economic
level, family structure, language, and religious and political
beliefs,
which profoundly influence each child’s development and
relation-
ship to the world.
Copyright © 2011 by the National Association for the Education
of Young Children
POSITION STATEMENT

Revised April 2005,
Reaffirmed and Updated May 2011
Endorsed by the Association for Childhood Education
International and
Southern Early Childhood Association
Adopted by the National Association for Family Child Care
2NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct Revised May 2011
Conceptual framework
The Code sets forth a framework of professional respon-
sibilities in four sections. Each section addresses an area
of professional relationships: (1) with children, (2) with
families, (3) among colleagues, and (4) with the commu-
nity and society. Each section includes an introduction
to the primary responsibilities of the early childhood
practitioner in that context. The introduction is followed
by a set of ideals (I) that reflect exemplary professional
practice and by a set of principles (P) describing prac-
tices that are required, prohibited, or permitted.
The ideals reflect the aspirations of practitioners.
The principles guide conduct and assist practitioners in
resolving ethical dilemmas.* Both ideals and principles
are intended to direct practitioners to those questions
which, when responsibly answered, can provide the
basis for conscientious decision making. While the Code
provides specific direction for addressing some ethical
dilemmas, many others will require the practitioner to
combine the guidance of the Code with professional

judgment.
The ideals and principles in this Code present a
shared framework of professional responsibility that
affirms our commitment to the core values of our field.
The Code publicly acknowledges the responsibilities
that we in the field have assumed, and in so doing sup-
ports ethical behavior in our work. Practitioners who
face situations with ethical dimensions are urged to seek
guidance in the applicable parts of this Code and in the
spirit that informs the whole.
Often “the right answer”—the best ethical course of
action to take—is not obvious. There may be no readily
apparent, positive way to handle a situation. When one
important value contradicts another, we face an ethical
dilemma. When we face a dilemma, it is our professional
responsibility to consult the Code and all relevant par-
ties to find the most ethical resolution.
Section I
Ethical Responsibilities to Children
Childhood is a unique and valuable stage in the human
life cycle. Our paramount responsibility is to provide
care and education in settings that are safe, healthy,
nurturing, and responsive for each child. We are commit-
ted to supporting children’s development and learning;
respecting individual differences; and helping children
learn to live, play, and work cooperatively. We are also
committed to promoting children’s self-awareness, com-
petence, self-worth, resiliency, and physical well-being.
Ideals
I-1.1—To be familiar with the knowledge base of early

childhood care and education and to stay informed
through continuing education and training.
I-1.2—To base program practices upon current knowl-
edge and research in the field of early childhood educa-
tion, child development, and related disciplines, as well
as on particular knowledge of each child.
I-1.3—To recognize and respect the unique qualities,
abilities, and potential of each child.
I-1.4—To appreciate the vulnerability of children and
their dependence on adults.
I-1.5—To create and maintain safe and healthy settings
that foster children’s social, emotional, cognitive, and
physical development and that respect their dignity
and their contributions.
I-1.6—To use assessment instruments and strategies
that are appropriate for the children to be assessed,
that are used only for the purposes for which they
were designed, and that have the potential to benefit
children.
I-1.7—To use assessment information to understand
and support children’s development and learning, to
support instruction, and to identify children who may
need additional services.
I-1.8—To support the right of each child to play and
learn in an inclusive environment that meets the needs
of children with and without disabilities.
I-1.9—To advocate for and ensure that all children,
including those with special needs, have access to the

support services needed to be successful.
I-1.10—To ensure that each child’s culture, language,
ethnicity, and family structure are recognized and val -
ued in the program.
I-1.11—To provide all children with experiences in a
language that they know, as well as support children
in maintaining the use of their home language and in
learning English.
I-1.12—To work with families to provide a safe and
smooth transition as children and families move from
one program to the next.
* There is not necessarily a corresponding principle for each
ideal.
of Young Children
Principles
P-1.1—Above all, we shall not harm children. We shall
not participate in practices that are emotionally dam-
aging, physically harmful, disrespectful, degrading,
dangerous, exploitative, or intimidating to children.
This principle has precedence over all others in
this Code.
P-1.2—We shall care for and educate children in positive
emotional and social environments that are cognitively

stimulating and that support each child’s culture, lan-
guage, ethnicity, and family structure.
P-1.3—We shall not participate in practices that discrimi-
nate against children by denying benefits, giving special
advantages, or excluding them from programs or
activities on the basis of their sex, race, national origin,
immigration status, preferred home language, religious
beliefs, medical condition, disability, or the marital
status/family structure, sexual orientation, or religious
beliefs or other affiliations of their families. (Aspects of
this principle do not apply in programs that have a law -
ful mandate to provide services to a particular popula-
tion of children.)
P-1.4—We shall use two-way communications to involve
all those with relevant knowledge (including families
and staff) in decisions concerning a child, as appropri -
ate, ensuring confidentiality of sensitive information.
(See also P-2.4.)
P-1.5—We shall use appropriate assessment systems,
which include multiple sources of information, to
provide information on children’s learning and devel-
opment.
P-1.6—We shall strive to ensure that decisions such as
those related to enrollment, retention, or assignment
to special education services, will be based on mul-
tiple sources of information and will never be based
on a single assessment, such as a test score or a single
observation.
P-1.7—We shall strive to build individual relationships
with each child; make individualized adaptations in
teaching strategies, learning environments, and cur-

ricula; and consult with the family so that each child
benefits from the program. If after such efforts have
been exhausted, the current placement does not meet
a child’s needs, or the child is seriously jeopardizing
the ability of other children to benefit from the pro-
gram, we shall collaborate with the child’s family and
appropriate specialists to determine the additional
services needed and/or the placement option(s) most
likely to ensure the child’s success. (Aspects of this
principle may not apply in programs that have a lawful
mandate to provide services to a particular population
of children.)
P-1.8—We shall be familiar with the risk factors for and
symptoms of child abuse and neglect, including physi-
cal, sexual, verbal, and emotional abuse and physical,
emotional, educational, and medical neglect. We shall
know and follow state laws and community procedures
that protect children against abuse and neglect.
P-1.9—When we have reasonable cause to suspect child
abuse or neglect, we shall report it to the appropri-
ate community agency and follow up to ensure that
appropriate action has been taken. When appropriate,
parents or guardians will be informed that the referral
will be or has been made.
P-1.10—When another person tells us of his or her
suspicion that a child is being abused or neglected, we
shall assist that person in taking appropriate action in
order to protect the child.
P-1.11—When we become aware of a practice or situa-
tion that endangers the health, safety, or well-being of
children, we have an ethical responsibility to protect

children or inform parents and/or others who can.
Section II
Ethical Responsibilities to Families
Families* are of primary importance in children’s de-
velopment. Because the family and the early childhood
practitioner have a common interest in the child’s well -
being, we acknowledge a primary responsibility to bring
about communication, cooperation, and collaboration
between the home and early childhood program in ways
that enhance the child’s development.
Ideals
I-2.1—To be familiar with the knowledge base related to
working effectively with families and to stay informed
through continuing education and training.
I-2.2—To develop relationships of mutual trust and cre-
ate partnerships with the families we serve.
I-2.3—To welcome all family members and encourage
them to participate in the program, including involve-
ment in shared decision making.
* The term family may include those adults, besides parents,
with
the responsibility of being involved in educating, nurturing, and
advocating for the child.
of Young Children

I-2.4—To listen to families, acknowledge and build upon
their strengths and competencies, and learn from
families as we support them in their task of nurturing
children.
I-2.5—To respect the dignity and preferences of each
family and to make an effort to learn about its struc-
ture, culture, language, customs, and beliefs to ensure
a culturally consistent environment for all children and
families.
I-2.6—To acknowledge families’ childrearing values and
their right to make decisions for their children.
I-2.7—To share information about each child’s educa-
tion and development with families and to help them
understand and appreciate the current knowledge base
of the early childhood profession.
I-2.8—To help family members enhance their under-
standing of their children, as staff are enhancing their
understanding of each child through communications
with families, and support family members in the con-
tinuing development of their skills as parents.
I-2.9—To foster families’ efforts to build support net-
works and, when needed, participate in building
networks for families by providing them with oppor-
tunities to interact with program staff, other families,
community resources, and professional services.
Principles

P-2.1—We shall not deny family members access to their
child’s classroom or program setting unless access is
denied by court order or other legal restriction.
P-2.2—We shall inform families of program philosophy,
policies, curriculum, assessment system, cultural prac-
tices, and personnel qualifications, and explain why we
teach as we do—which should be in accordance with
our ethical responsibilities to children (see Section I).
P-2.3—We shall inform families of and, when appropri-
ate, involve them in policy decisions. (See also I-2.3.)
P-2.4—We shall ensure that the family is involved in sig-
nificant decisions affecting their child. (See also P-1.4.)
P-2.5—We shall make every effort to communicate effec-
tively with all families in a language that they under-
stand. We shall use community resources for transla-
tion and interpretation when we do not have sufficient
resources in our own programs.
P-2.6—As families share information with us about their
children and families, we shall ensure that families’ input
is an important contribution to the planning and imple-
mentation of the program.
P-2-7—We shall inform families about the nature and
purpose of the program’s child assessments and how
data about their child will be used.
P-2.8—We shall treat child assessment information con-
fidentially and share this information only when there
is a legitimate need for it.
P-2.9—We shall inform the family of injuries and inci-

dents involving their child, of risks such as exposures
to communicable diseases that might result in infec-
tion, and of occurrences that might result in emotional
stress.
P-2.10—Families shall be fully informed of any proposed
research projects involving their children and shall
have the opportunity to give or withhold consent
without penalty. We shall not permit or participate in
research that could in any way hinder the education,
development, or well-being of children.
P-2.11—We shall not engage in or support exploitation
of families. We shall not use our relationship with a
family for private advantage or personal gain, or enter
into relationships with family members that might im-
pair our effectiveness working with their children.
P-2.12—We shall develop written policies for the protec-
tion of confidentiality and the disclosure of children’s
records. These policy documents shall be made avail-
able to all program personnel and families. Disclosure
of children’s records beyond family members, program
personnel, and consultants having an obligation of
confidentiality shall require familial consent (except in
cases of abuse or neglect).
P-2.13—We shall maintain confidentiality and shall re-
spect the family’s right to privacy, refraining from dis-
closure of confidential information and intrusion into
family life. However, when we have reason to believe
that a child’s welfare is at risk, it is permissible to share
confidential information with agencies, as well as with
individuals who have legal responsibility for interven-
ing in the child’s interest.

P-2.14—In cases where family members are in conflict
with one another, we shall work openly, sharing our
observations of the child, to help all parties involved
make informed decisions. We shall refrain from becom-
ing an advocate for one party.
P-2.15—We shall be familiar with and appropriately refer
families to community resources and professional sup-
port services. After a referral has been made, we shall
follow up to ensure that services have been appropri -
ately provided.
of Young Children
P-3A.3—We shall exercise care in expressing views
regarding the personal attributes or professional
conduct of co-workers. Statements should be based on
firsthand knowledge, not hearsay, and relevant to the
interests of children and programs.
P-3A.4—We shall not participate in practices that dis-
criminate against a co-worker because of sex, race, na-
tional origin, religious beliefs or other affiliations, age,
marital status/family structure, disability, or sexual
orientation.
B—Responsibilities to employers
Ideals
I-3B.1—To assist the program in providing the highest

quality of service.
I-3B.2—To do nothing that diminishes the reputation
of the program in which we work unless it is violating
laws and regulations designed to protect children or is
violating the provisions of this Code.
Principles
P-3B.1—We shall follow all program policies. When we
do not agree with program policies, we shall attempt
to effect change through constructive action within the
organization.
P-3B.2—We shall speak or act on behalf of an organiza-
tion only when authorized. We shall take care to ac-
knowledge when we are speaking for the organization
and when we are expressing a personal judgment.
P-3B.3—We shall not violate laws or regulations de-
signed to protect children and shall take appropriate
action consistent with this Code when aware of such
violations.
P-3B.4—If we have concerns about a colleague’s be-
havior, and children’s well-being is not at risk, we may
address the concern with that individual. If children
are at risk or the situation does not improve after it has
been brought to the colleague’s attention, we shall re-
port the colleague’s unethical or incompetent behavior
to an appropriate authority.
P-3B.5—When we have a concern about circumstances
or conditions that impact the quality of care and
education within the program, we shall inform the
program’s administration or, when necessary, other

appropriate authorities.
Section III
Ethical Responsibilities to Colleagues
In a caring, cooperative workplace, human dignity is re-
spected, professional satisfaction is promoted, and posi -
tive relationships are developed and sustained. Based
upon our core values, our primary responsibility to
colleagues is to establish and maintain settings and rela-
tionships that support productive work and meet profes-
sional needs. The same ideals that apply to children also
apply as we interact with adults in the workplace. (Note:
Section III includes responsibilities to co-workers and to
employers. See the “Code of Ethical Conduct: Supple-
ment for Early Childhood Program Administrators” for
responsibilities to personnel (employees in the original
2005 Code revision), online at http://www.naeyc.org/
files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05_supp.pdf.)
A—Responsibilities to co-workers
Ideals
I-3A.1—To establish and maintain relationships of re-
spect, trust, confidentiality, collaboration, and coop-
eration with co-workers.
I-3A.2—To share resources with co-workers, collaborat-
ing to ensure that the best possible early childhood
care and education program is provided.
I-3A.3—To support co-workers in meeting their profes-
sional needs and in their professional development.
I-3A.4—To accord co-workers due recognition of profes-

sional achievement.
Principles
P-3A.1—We shall recognize the contributions of col-
leagues to our program and not participate in practices
that diminish their reputations or impair their effec-
tiveness in working with children and families.
P-3A.2—When we have concerns about the professional
behavior of a co-worker, we shall first let that person
know of our concern in a way that shows respect for
personal dignity and for the diversity to be found
among staff members, and then attempt to resolve the
matter collegially and in a confidential manner.
of Young Children
Section IV
Ethical Responsibilities to Community
and Society
Early childhood programs operate within the context
of their immediate community made up of families and
other institutions concerned with children’s welfare.
Our responsibilities to the community are to provide
programs that meet the diverse needs of families, to
cooperate with agencies and professions that share the
responsibility for children, to assist families in gaining
access to those agencies and allied professionals, and to

assist in the development of community programs that
are needed but not currently available.
As individuals, we acknowledge our responsibility to
provide the best possible programs of care and educa-
tion for children and to conduct ourselves with honesty
and integrity. Because of our specialized expertise
in early childhood development and education and
because the larger society shares responsibility for the
welfare and protection of young children, we acknowl-
edge a collective obligation to advocate for the best
interests of children within early childhood programs
and in the larger community and to serve as a voice for
young children everywhere.
The ideals and principles in this section are presented
to distinguish between those that pertain to the work of
the individual early childhood educator and those that
more typically are engaged in collectively on behalf of
the best interests of children—with the understanding
that individual early childhood educators have a shared
responsibility for addressing the ideals and principles
that are identified as “collective.”
Ideal (Individual)
1-4.1—To provide the community with high-quality early
childhood care and education programs and services.
Ideals (Collective)
I-4.2—To promote cooperation among professionals and
agencies and interdisciplinary collaboration among
professions concerned with addressing issues in the
health, education, and well-being of young children,
their families, and their early childhood educators.
I-4.3—To work through education, research, and advo-

cacy toward an environmentally safe world in which
all children receive health care, food, and shelter; are
nurtured; and live free from violence in their home and
their communities.
I-4.4—To work through education, research, and ad-
vocacy toward a society in which all young children
have access to high-quality early care and education
programs.
I-4.5—To work to ensure that appropriate assessment
systems, which include multiple sources of informa-
tion, are used for purposes that benefit children.
I-4.6—To promote knowledge and understanding of
young children and their needs. To work toward
greater societal acknowledgment of children’s rights
and greater social acceptance of responsibility for the
well-being of all children.
I-4.7—To support policies and laws that promote the
well-being of children and families, and to work to
change those that impair their well-being. To partici-
pate in developing policies and laws that are needed,
and to cooperate with families and other individuals
and groups in these efforts.
I-4.8—To further the professional development of the
field of early childhood care and education and to
strengthen its commitment to realizing its core values
as reflected in this Code.
Principles (Individual)
P-4.1—We shall communicate openly and truthfully
about the nature and extent of services that we pro-

vide.
P-4.2—We shall apply for, accept, and work in positions
for which we are personally well-suited and profession-
ally qualified. We shall not offer services that we do not
have the competence, qualifications, or resources to
provide.
P-4.3—We shall carefully check references and shall not
hire or recommend for employment any person whose
competence, qualifications, or character makes him or
her unsuited for the position.
P-4.4—We shall be objective and accurate in report-
ing the knowledge upon which we base our program
practices.
P-4.5—We shall be knowledgeable about the appropri-
ate use of assessment strategies and instruments and
interpret results accurately to families.
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P-4.6—We shall be familiar with laws and regulations
that serve to protect the children in our programs and
be vigilant in ensuring that these laws and regulations
are followed.
P-4.7—When we become aware of a practice or situa-
tion that endangers the health, safety, or well-being of
children, we have an ethical responsibility to protect

children or inform parents and/or others who can.
P-4.8—We shall not participate in practices that are in
violation of laws and regulations that protect the chil -
dren in our programs.
P-4.9—When we have evidence that an early childhood
program is violating laws or regulations protecting
children, we shall report the violation to appropriate au-
thorities who can be expected to remedy the situation.
P-4.10—When a program violates or requires its em-
ployees to violate this Code, it is permissible, after fair
assessment of the evidence, to disclose the identity of
that program.
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Principles (Collective)
P-4.11—When policies are enacted for purposes that do
not benefit children, we have a collective responsibility
to work to change these policies.
P-4-12—When we have evidence that an agency that
provides services intended to ensure children’s well-
being is failing to meet its obligations, we acknowledge
a collective ethical responsibility to report the problem
to appropriate authorities or to the public. We shall be
vigilant in our follow-up until the situation is resolved.
P-4.13—When a child protection agency fails to provide
adequate protection for abused or neglected children,
we acknowledge a collective ethical responsibility to
work toward the improvement of these services.

Code of Ethics . Defines the core values of the field and
provides guidance for what professionals should
do when they encounter conflicting obligations or
responsibilities in their work.
Values . Qualities or principles that individuals believe
to be desirable or worthwhile and that they prize for
themselves, for others, and for the world in which
they live.
Core Values . Commitments held by a profession that
are consciously and knowingly embraced by its
practitioners because they make a contribution to
society. There is a difference between personal val -
ues and the core values of a profession.
Morality . Peoples’ views of what is good, right, and
proper; their beliefs about their obligations; and
their ideas about how they should behave.
Ethics . The study of right and wrong, or duty and
obligation, that involves critical reflection on moral -
ity and the ability to make choices between values
and the examination of the moral dimensions of
relationships.
Professional Ethics . The moral commitments of a
profession that involve moral reflection that extends
and enhances the personal morality practitioners
bring to their work, that concern actions of right and

wrong in the workplace, and that help individuals re-
solve moral dilemmas they encounter in their work.
Ethical Responsibilities . Behaviors that one must
or must not engage in. Ethical responsibilities are
clear-cut and are spelled out in the Code of Ethical
Conduct (for example, early childhood educators
should never share confidential information about a
child or family with a person who has no legitimate
need for knowing).
Ethical Dilemma . A moral conflict that involves
determining appropriate conduct when an indi-
vidual faces conflicting professional values and
responsibilities.
Sources for glossary terms and definitions
Feeney, S., & N. Freeman. 2005. Ethics and the early childhood
educator: Using the NAEYC code. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
Kidder, R.M. 1995. How good people make tough choices:
Resolv-
ing the dilemmas of ethical living. New York: Fireside.
Kipnis, K. 1987. How to discuss professional ethics. Young
Chil-
dren 42 (4): 26–30.
Glossary of Terms Related to Ethics
of Young Children
The National Association for the Education of Young Chil -
dren (NAEYC) is a nonprofit corporation, tax exempt under

Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, dedicated to
acting on behalf of the needs and interests of young children.
The NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct (Code) has been de-
veloped in furtherance of NAEYC’s nonprofit and tax exempt
purposes. The information contained in the Code is intended
to provide early childhood educators with guidelines for work-
ing with children from birth through age 8.
An individual’s or program’s use, reference to, or review
of the Code does not guarantee compliance with NAEYC
Early Childhood Program Standards and Accreditation Per-
formance Criteria and program accreditation procedures. It is
recommended that the Code be used as guidance in connec-
tion with implementation of the NAEYC Program Standards,
but such use is not a substitute for diligent review and appli -
cation of the NAEYC Program Standards.
NAEYC has taken reasonable measures to develop the
Code in a fair, reasonable, open, unbiased, and objective
manner, based on currently available data. However, further
Mary Ambery , Ruth Ann Ball, James Clay, Julie Olsen
Edwards, Harriet Egertson, Anthony Fair, Stephanie
Feeney, Jana Fleming, Nancy Freeman, Marla Israel,
Allison McKinnon, Evelyn Wright Moore, Eva Moravcik,
Christina Lopez Morgan, Sarah Mulligan, Nila Rinehart,
Betty Holston Smith, and Peter Pizzolongo, NAEYC Staff
NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct
2005 Revisions Workgroup
research or developments may change the current state
of knowledge. Neither NAEYC nor its officers, directors,
members, employees, or agents will be liable for any loss,
damage, or claim with respect to any liabilities, including
direct, special, indirect, or consequential damages incurred
in connection with the Code or reliance on the information
presented.

* This Statement of Commitment is not part of the Code but is a
personal acknowledgment of
the individual’s willingness to embrace the distinctive values
and moral obligations of the field
of early childhood care and education. It is recognition of the
moral obligations that lead to an
individual becoming part of the profession.
As an individual who works with young children, I commit
myself to furthering the
values of early childhood education as they are reflected in the
ideals and prin-
ciples of the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct. To the best of
my ability I will
• Never harm children.
• Ensure that programs for young children are based on current
knowledge and
research of child development and early childhood education.
• Respect and support families in their task of nurturing
children.
• Respect colleagues in early childhood care and education and
support them in
maintaining the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct.
• Serve as an advocate for children, their families, and their
teachers in community
and society.

• Stay informed of and maintain high standards of professional
conduct.
• Engage in an ongoing process of self-reflection, realizing that
personal characteris-
tics, biases, and beliefs have an impact on children and families.
• Be open to new ideas and be willing to learn from the
suggestions of others.
• Continue to learn, grow, and contribute as a professional.
• Honor the ideals and principles of the NAEYC Code of Ethical
Conduct.
Statement of Commitment*
of Young Children
Developmentally Appropriate Practice
National Association for the Education of Young Children
Position Statement
Adopted by the NAEYC National
Governing Board April 2020
Each and every child, birth through age 8, has the right to
equitable learning

opportunities—in centers, family child care homes, or schools—
that fully
support their optimal development and learning across all
domains and
content areas. Children are born eager to learn; they take delight
exploring
their world and making connections. The degree to which early
learning
programs support children’s delight and wonder in learning
reflects
the quality of that setting. Educators who engage in
developmentally
appropriate practice foster young children’s joyful learning and
maximize
the opportunities for each and every child to achieve their full
potential.
Disponible en Español: NAEYC.org/dap
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NAEYC Position Statement
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Developmentally Appropriate Practice: A Position Statement
of the National Association for the Education of Young
Children.
of Young Children. All rights reserved.
NAEYC.org
3 Introduction
3 Purpose
5 Statement of the Position
5 Defining Developmentally Appropriate Practice
6 Core Considerations to Inform Decision Making
8 Principles of Child Development and Learning
and Implications That Inform Practice
14 Guidelines for Developmentally Appropriate Practice in
Action:
Using Knowledge of Child Development and Learning in
Context
15 1. Creating a Caring, Equitable Community of Learners
18 2. Engaging in Reciprocal Partnerships with Families and
Fostering Community Connections
19 3. Observing, Documenting, and Assessing Children’s
Development and Learning
21 4. Teaching to Enhance Each Child’s Development and
Learning

25 5. Planning and Implementing an Engaging Curriculum to
Achieve Meaningful Goals
28 6. Demonstrating Professionalism as an Early Childhood
Educator
29 Recommendations for Implementing Developmentally
Appropriate Practice
30 1. Recommendations for Schools, Family Child Care Homes,
and Other Program Settings
31 2. Recommendations for Higher Education and Adult
Development
31 3. Recommendations for Policymakers
32 4. Recommendations for Research
32 Conclusion
33 Appendix A: History and Context
35 Appendix B: Glossary
38 Appendix C: Acknowledgements
39 Endnotes
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A POSITION STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL
ASSOCIATION FOR THE EDUCATION OF YOUNG
CHILDREN | 3
Introduction
Purpose
Chief among the professional responsibilities of early childhood

educators is the responsibility to
plan and implement intentional, developmentally appropriate
learning experiences that promote the
social and emotional development, physical development and
health, cognitive development, and
general learning competencies of each child served.1 But what
does it mean to be “developmentally
appropriate”? This position statement, one of five foundational
documents developed by NAEYC
in collaboration with the early childhood profession to advance
high-quality early learning for
all young children, defines the term. The definition emerges
from a set of evidence-based core
considerations and principles of child development and
learning, all of which are explained in the
principles section of this statement. To support educators’ use
of developmentally appropriate
practice, this statement also identifies guidelines for decision
making in six key areas of responsibility
that correspond to the Professional Standards and Competencies
for Early Childhood Educators.2
Developmentally
Appropriate
Practice (DAP)

Professional
Standards and
Competencies for
Early Childhood
Educators
Code of
Ethical Conduct
Advancing
Equity in Early
Childhood
Education
NAEYC
Early
Childhood
Program
Standards
NAEYC’s Foundational Documents
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statements/professional-standards-competencies
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professional-preparation

4 | DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE PRACTICE
This statement’s primary focus is on the decisions early
childhood
educators make that result in developmentally appropriate
practice. It is important to note, however, that educators
make these decisions within settings that include their specific
programs as well as broader systems, states, and societal
contexts. Decision making that advances developmentally
appropriate practice is facilitated when these systems also
reflect the tenets described within this statement. Therefore, in
addition to identifying guidelines for early childhood educators,
the statement makes specific recommendations for policies and
actions needed to support educators as they strive to implement
developmentally appropriate practice—in their work settings,
through professional preparation and development, in public
policy, and through continuing research.
This is the fourth edition of NAEYC’s position statement on
developmentally appropriate practice. (For a brief history and
summary of changes from previous editions, see Appendix A.)
More extensively than in previous editions, the definition, core
considerations, principles, guidelines, and recommendations
all underscore the importance of social, cultural, and historical
contexts. This broader view emphasizes the implications of
contexts not only for each child, but also for all the adults
(educators, administrators, and others) involved in any aspect
of early childhood education.
We begin this statement noting multiple tensions:
1. This position statement is based on a synthesis of current
research and evidence across multiple disciplines. Although
research finds that culture and context matter, relatively
little research has been conducted with children from non-

White and non-middle-class backgrounds. There is also a
need for additional research led by those who reflect the
diversity of children and families and their lived experiences.
2. This position statement requires well-prepared and qualified
early childhood educators to engage in effective decision
making. Yet insufficient funding and other policy decisions
(for example, budget-driven decisions related to group
size and ratios or mandated curricula and assessments
that do not reflect the principles of development and
learning identified here) have resulted in suboptimal
environments, challenging working conditions, and
inadequate compensation that make it difficult for early
childhood educators to implement these guidelines.
3. This position statement elevates the crucial support
educators require from higher education and other
professional development systems. Yet even as they
grapple with their own institutional biases and inequities,
professional preparation programs and ongoing professional
development systems must orient themselves towards
consistently and effectively preparing and supporting
educators to reflect on and address their own inherent
biases and to help them provide developmentally, culturally,
and linguistically responsive learning experiences to
an increasingly diverse population of children.
4. This position statement highlights the importance of
learning experiences that are meaningful to each child
and that provide active engagement through play,
exploration, and inquiry in ways that support the whole
child—socially, emotionally, physically, and cognitively. Yet
such opportunities are too often denied to young children
when educational practices are not responsive to their
developmental, cultural, and linguistic characteristics.

5. This position statement is based on NAEYC’s core values
and beliefs, which underscore the fundamental right of each
and every child to live in a society dedicated to helping them
achieve their full potential. Yet the historical and current
inequitable distribution of societal power and privilege on
the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, language, disability, and
other social identities results in limited opportunities and
harms children—as well as early childhood professionals.3
Each of these tensions must be addressed for each child to
achieve their full potential. We offer this statement as a call to
action, committing to work collectively to address the ways in
which current realities constrain the full potential of all young
children as we continue to reflect and learn from multiple,
diverse perspectives.
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direction
direction
CHILDREN | 5
Statement of the Position
Each and every child, birth through age 8, has the right to
equitable learning opportunities —in
centers, family child care homes, or schools—that fully support
their optimal development and
learning across all domains and content areas. Children are born
eager to learn; they take delight

exploring their world and making connections. The degree to
which early learning programs
support children’s delight and wonder in learning reflects the
quality of that setting. Educators
who engage in developmentally appropriate practice foster
young children’s joyful learning
and maximize the opportunities for each and every child to
achieve their full potential.
Defining Developmentally Appropriate Practice
NAEYC defines “developmentally appropriate practice” as
methods that promote each child’s optimal development and
learning through a strengths-based, play-based approach to
joyful, engaged learning. Educators implement developmentally
appropriate practice by recognizing the multiple assets all
young
children bring to the early learning program as unique
individuals
and as members of families and communities. Building on
each child’s strengths—and taking care to not harm any aspect
of each child’s physical, cognitive, social, or emotional well -
being—educators design and implement learning environments
to help all children achieve their full potential across all
domains
of development and across all content areas. Developmentally
appropriate practice recognizes and supports each individual
as a valued member of the learning community. As a result,
to be developmentally appropriate, practices must also be
culturally, linguistically, and ability appropriate for each child.
The Developmentally Appropriate Practice Position Statement

is a framework of principles and guidelines to support a
teacher’s
intentional decision making for practice. The principles serve
as the evidence base for the guidelines for practice, and both
are situated within three core considerations—commonality,
individuality, and context.
Core Considerations
to Inform Decision Making
Developmentally appropriate practice requires early childhood
educators to seek out and gain
knowledge and understanding using three core considerations:
commonality in children’s development
and learning, individuality reflecting each child’s unique
characteristics and experiences, and the
context in which development and learning occur. These core
considerations apply to all aspects of
educators’ decision-making in their work to foster each child’s
optimal development and learning.
1 Commonality—current research and understandings
of processes of child development and learning that
apply to all children, including the understanding that
all development and learning occur within specific
social, cultural, linguistic, and historical contexts
An ever-increasing body of research documents the tremendous
amount of development and learning that occur from birth

through age 8 across all domains and content areas and how
foundational this development and learning is for later life.4
This extensive knowledge base, including both what is known
about general processes of children’s development and learning
and the educational practices educators need to fully support
development and learning in all areas, is summarized in the
principles section of this statement.
When considering commonalities in development and learning,
it is important to acknowledge that much of the research
and the principal theories that have historically guided early
childhood professional preparation and practice have primarily
reflected norms based on a Western scientific-cultural model.5,
6 Little research has considered a normative perspective based
on other groups. As a result, differences from this Western
(typically White, middle-class, monolingual English-speaking)
norm have been viewed as deficits, helping to perpetuate
systems of power and privilege and to maintain structural
inequities.7, 8 Increasingly, theories once assumed to be
universal
in developmental sciences, such as attachment, are now
recognized to vary by culture and experience.9
The current body of evidence indicates that all child
development
and learning—actually, all human development and learning—
are always embedded within and affected by social and cultural
contexts.10 As social and cultural contexts vary, so too do
processes of development and learning. Social and cultural
aspects are not simply ingredients of development and learning;
these aspects provide the framework for all development and
learning. For example, play is a universal phenomenon across
all cultures (it also extends to other primates). Play, however,
can vary significantly by social and cultural contexts as children
use play as a means of interpreting and making sense of their

experiences.11 Early childhood educators need to understand
the
commonalities of children’s development and learning and how
those commonalities take unique forms as they reflect the social
and cultural frameworks in which they occur.
CHILDREN | 7
2 Individuality—the characteristics and experiences
unique to each child, within the context of their
family and community, that have implications for
how best to support their development and learning
Early childhood educators have the responsibility of getting to
know each child well, understanding each child as an individual
and as a family and community member. Educators use a variety
of methods—including reflecting on their knowledge of the
community; seeking information from the family; observing the
child; examining the child’s work; and using authentic, valid,
and reliable individual child assessments. Educators understand
that each child reflects a complex mosaic of knowledge and
experiences that contributes to the considerable diversity
among any group of young children. These differences include
the children’s various social identities, interests, strengths, and
preferences; their personalities, motivations, and approaches to
learning; and their knowledge, skills, and abilities related to
their
cultural experiences, including family languages, dialects, and
vernaculars. Children may have disabilities or other individual
learning needs, including needs for accelerated learning.
Sometimes these individual learning needs have been diagnosed,

and sometimes they have not.
Early childhood educators recognize this diversity and the
opportunities it offers to support all children’s learning by
recognizing each child as a unique individual with assets
and strengths to contribute to the early childhood education
learning environment.
3 Context—everything discernible about the
social and cultural contexts for each child, each
educator, and the program as a whole
One of the key updates in this revision is the expansion of the
core consideration regarding the social and cultural contexts of
development and learning. As noted in the first core
consideration
on commonality, the fact that development and learning are
embedded in social and cultural contexts is true of all
individuals.
Context includes both one’s personal cultural context (that is,
the
complex set of ways of knowing the world that reflect one’s
family
and other primary caregivers and their traditions and values)
and the broader multifaceted and intersecting (for example,
social, racial, economic, historical, and political) cultural
contexts
in which each of us live. In both the individual- and societal-
definitions, these are dynamic rather than static contexts that
shape and are shaped by individual members as well as other
factors.
Early childhood educators must also be aware that they
themselves—and their programs as a whole—bring their own
experiences and contexts, in both the narrower and broader
definitions, to their decision-making. This is particularly

important to consider when educators do not share the cultural
contexts of the children they serve. Yet even when educators
appear to share the cultural contexts of children, they can
sometimes experience a disconnection between their
professional
and cultural knowledge.12
To fully support each child’s optimal development and learning
in an increasingly diverse society, early childhood educators
need
to understand the implications of these contexts. By recognizing
that children’s experiences may vary by their social identities
(for
example, by race or ethnicity, language, gender, class, ability,
family
composition, and economic status, among others), with different
and intersecting impacts on their development and learning,
educators can make adaptations to affirm and support positive
development of each child’s multiple social identities.
Additionally,
educators must be aware of, and counter, their own and larger
societal biases that may undermine a child’s positive
development
and well-being. Early childhood educators have a professional
responsibility to be life-long learners who are able to foster
life-long
learning in children; in this, they must keep abreast of research
developments, while also learning continuously from families
and
communities they serve.
Principles of Child Development and Learning

and Implications That Inform Practice
NAEYC’s guidelines and recommendations for developmentally
appropriate practice are based on
the following nine principles and their implications for early
childhood education professional practice.
These principles reflect an extensive research base that is only
partially referenced here.13 Because
these principles are interrelated, this linear list does not fully
represent their overall complexity.
1 Development and learning are dynamic processes
that reflect the complex interplay between a child’s
biological characteristics and the environment, each
shaping the other as well as future patterns of growth.
Advances in neuroscience over the last two decades have
provided
new insights regarding the processes of early brain development
and their long-term implications for development and learning.
The findings provide robust evidence supporting the importance
of high-quality early learning experiences for young children
for
promoting children’s lifelong success.
Neural connections in the brain—which are the basis for all
thought, communication, and learning—are established most
rapidly in early childhood.14 The processes of forming new
neural connections and pruning the neural connections that
are not used continue throughout a person’s lifespan but are
most consequential in the first three years.15 When adults are
sensitive and respond to an infant’s babble, cry, or gesture, they
directly support the development of neural connections that lay
the foundation for children’s communication and social skills ,

including self-regulation. These “serve and return” interactions
shape the brain’s architecture.16 They also help educators and
others “tune in” to the infant and better respond to the infant’s
wants and needs.
The interplay of biology and environment, present at birth,
continues through the preschool years and primary grades
(kindergarten through grade 3). This has particular implications
for children who experience adversity. In infancy, for example,
a persistent lack of responsive care results in the infant
experiencing chronic stress that may negatively impact brain
development and may delay or impair the development of
essential systems and abilities, including thinking, learning,
and memory, as well as the immune system and the ability to
cope with stress.17 Living in persistent poverty can also
generate
chronic stress that negatively affects the development of brain
areas associated with cognitive and self-regulatory functions.18
No group is monolithic, and data specific to communi ties
provides a deeper understanding of children’s experiences and
outcomes. It is important to recognize that although children of
all races and ethnicities experience poverty and other adverse
childhood experiences (ACEs), Black and Latino/a children, as
well as children in refugee and immigrant families, children in
some Asian-American families, and children in Native
American
families, have been found to be more likely to experience ACEs
than White non-Latino/a and other Asian-American populations
of children,19 reflecting a history of systemic inequities.20
Moreover, racism itself must be recognized not only for its
immediate and obvious impacts on children, but also for its
long-term negative impacts, in which the repetitive trauma
created by racism can predispose individuals to chronic
disease.21
It should be noted that these stressors and trauma affect adults

as
well as children, including family members and early childhood
educators themselves, who, despite their skills and importance ,
often earn wages that place them into poverty.
Some children appear to be more susceptible than others to
the effects of environmental influence—both positive and
negative—reflecting individual differences at play. For children
facing adverse circumstances, including trauma, the buffering
effects of caring, consistent relationships—with family and
other
community members but also in high-quality early childhood
programs—are also important to note.22 This emerging science
emphasizes the critical importance of early childhood educators
in providing consistent, responsive, sensitive care and education
to promote children’s development and learning across the full
birth-through-8 age span. The negative impacts of chronic stress
and other adverse experiences can be overcome. High-quality
early childhood education contributes substantially to children’s
resilience and healthy development.
CHILDREN | 9
2 All domains of child development—physical
development, cognitive development, social and
emotional development, and linguistic development
(including bilingual or multilingual development), as
well as approaches to learning—are important; each
domain both supports and is supported by the others.
Early childhood educators are responsible for fostering

children’s
development and learning in all these domains as well as in
general
learning competencies and executive functioning, which include
attention, working memory, self-regulation, reasoning, problem
solving, and approaches to learning. There is considerable
overlap
and interaction across these domains and competencies. For
example, sound nutrition, physical activity, and sufficient sleep
all promote children’s abilities to engage in social interactions
that, in turn, stimulate cognitive growth. Children who
experience
predictable, responsive relationships and responsive interactions
with adults also tend to demonstrate improved general learning
competencies and executive functioning.23
Changes in one domain often impact other areas and highlight
each area’s importance. For example, as children begin to crawl
or walk, they gain new possibilities for exploring the world.
This
mobility in turn affects both their cognitive development and
their
ability to satisfy their curiosity, underscoring the importance of
adaptations for children with disabilities that limit their
mobility.
Likewise, language development influences a child’s abil ity to
participate in social interaction with adults and other children;
such interactions, in turn, support further language development
as well as further social, emotional, and cognitive development.
Science is clear that children can learn multiple languages as
easily as one, given adequate exposure and practice, and this
process brings cognitive advantages.24 In groups in which
children
speak different home languages, educators may not be able to
speak each language, but they can value and support
maintaining

all languages.25
A growing body of work demonstrates relationships between
social,
emotional, executive function, and cognitive competencies26 as
well
as the importance of movement and physical activity.27 These
areas
of learning are mutually reinforcing and all are critical in
educating
young children across birth through age 8. Intentional teaching
strategies, including, and particularly, play (both self-directed
and
guided), address each domain. Kindergartens and grades 1-3
tend
to be considered elementary or primary education, and, as such,
may have increasingly prioritized cognitive learning at the
expense
of physical, social, emotional, and linguistic development. But
integrating cognitive, emotional, social, interpersonal skills and
self-regulatory competencies better prepares children for more
challenging academic content and learning experiences.28 In
brief,
the knowledge base documents the importance of a
comprehensive
curriculum and the interrelatedness of the developmental
domains
for all young children’s well-being and success.
3 Play promotes joyful learning that fosters self-
regulation, language, cognitive and social competencies
as well as content knowledge across disciplines. Play
is essential for all children, birth through age 8.
Play (e.g., self-directed, guided, solitary, parallel, social,
cooperative, onlooker, object, fantasy, physical, constructive,

and
games with rules) is the central teaching practice that facilitates
young children’s development and learning. Play develops
young
children’s symbolic and imaginative thinking, peer
relationships,
language (English and/or additional languages), physical
development, and problem-solving skills. All young children
need
daily, sustained opportunities for play, both indoors and
outdoors.
Play helps children develop large-motor and fine-motor physical
competence, explore and make sense of their world, interact
with
others, express and control their emotions, develop symbolic
and problem-solving abilities, and practice emerging skills.
Consistently, studies find clear links between play and
foundational
capacities such as working memory, self-regulation, oral
language
abilities, social skills, and success in school.29
Indeed, play embodies the characteristics of effective
development
and learning described in principles 4 and 5—active,
meaningful
engagement driven by children’s choices. Researchers studying
the
pedagogy of play have identified three key components: choice
(the children’s decisions to engage in play, as well as decisions
about its direction and its continuation), wonder (children’s
continued engagement as they explore, gather information, test
hypotheses, and make meaning), and delight (the joy and
laughter
associated with the pleasure of the activity, making discoveries,
and achieving new things).30 Play also typically involves social

interaction with peers and/or adults.
Although adults can be play partners (for example, playing
peekaboo with an infant) or play facilitators (by making a
suggestion to extend the activity in a certain way), the more
that the adult directs an activity or interaction, the less likely it
will be perceived as play by the child. When planning learning
environments and activities, educators may find it helpful to
consider a continuum ranging from children’s self-directed play
to direct instruction.31 Neither end of the continuum is
effective
by itself in creating a high-quality early childhood program.
Effective, developmentally-appropriate practice does not mean
simply letting children play in the absence of a planned learning
environment, nor does it mean predominantly offering direct
instruction. In the middle of the continuum is guided play.
Educators create learning environments that reflect children’s
interests; they provide sustained time and opportunities for
children to engage in self-directed play (individually and in
small groups). Educators also strategically make comments and
suggestions and ask questions to help move children toward a
learning goal, even as children continue to lead the activity.32
Guided play gives educators opportunities to use children’s
interests and creations to introduce new vocabulary and
concepts, model complex language, and provide children with
multiple opportunities to use words in context in children’s
home
languages as well as in English. These meaningful and engaging
experiences help children—including those in kindergarten and
the primary grades—build knowledge and vocabulary across
subject areas and in purposeful contexts (which is more

effective
than memorization of word lists).33
Despite evidence that supports the value of play, not all
children are afforded the opportunity to play, a reality which
disproportionately affects Black and Latino/a children.34 Play
is often viewed as being at odds with the demands of formal
schooling, especially for children growing up in under-
resourced
communities.35 In fact, the highly didactic, highly controlling
curriculum found in many kindergarten and primary grades,
with
its narrow focus on test-focused skill development, is unlikely
to be engaging or meaningful for children; it is also unlikely to
build the broad knowledge and vocabulary needed for reading
comprehension in later grades. Instead, the lesson children are
likely to learn is that they are not valued thinkers or successful
learners in school. For example, studies suggest that students
who are taught math primarily through memorization and rote
learning are more than a year behind those who have been
taught by relating math concepts to their existing knowledge
and
reflecting on their own understanding.36
Even if not called play, cross-curricular and collaborative
approaches such as project-based learning, inquiry learning, or
making and tinkering share characteristics of playful
learning.37
Giving children autonomy and agency in how they approach
problems, make hypotheses, and explore potential solutions
with others promotes deeper learning and improves executive
functioning.38 In sum, self-directed play, guided play, and
playful
learning, skillfully supported by early childhood educators,
build
academic language, deepen conceptual development, and

support
reflective and intentional approaches to learning—all of which
add
up to effective strategies for long-term success.
4 Although general progressions of development
and learning can be identified, variations due to
cultural contexts, experiences, and individual
differences must also be considered.
A pervasive characteristic of development is that children’s
functioning, including their play, becomes increasingly
complex—
in language, cognition, social interaction, physical movement,
problem solving, and virtually every other aspect. Increased
organization and memory capacity of the developing brain make
it possible for children to combine simple routines into more
complex strategies with age.39 Despite these predictable
changes
in all domains, the ways that these changes are demonstrated
and the meanings attached to them will vary in different cultural
and linguistic contexts. For example, in some cultures, children
may be encouraged to satisfy their growing curiosity by moving
independently to explore the environment; in other cultures,
children may be socialized to seek answers to queries within
structured activities created for them by adults.40 In addition,
all children learn language through their social interactions, but
there are important distinctions in the process for monolingual,
bilingual, and multilingual children.41 Rather than assuming
that
the process typical of monolingual children is the norm against
which others ought to be judged, it is important for educators to
recognize the differences as variations in strengths (rather than
deficits) and to support them appropriately.42
Development and learning also occur at varying rates from

child to child and at uneven rates across different areas for
each child. Children’s demonstrated abilities and skills are
often fluid and may vary from day to day based on individual
or contextual factors. For example, because children are still
developing the ability to direct their attention, a distraction in
the environment may result in a child successfully completing
a puzzle one day but not the next. In addition, some regression
in observed skills is common before new developments are
fully achieved.43 For all of these reasons, the notion of “stages”
of development has limited utility; a more helpful concept may
be to think of waves of development that allow for considerable
overlap without rigid boundaries.44
CHILDREN | 11
5 Children are active learners from birth, constantly
taking in and organizing information to create meaning
through their relationships, their interactions with
their environment, and their overall experiences.
Even as infants, children are capable of highly complex
thinking.45
Using information they gather through their interactions with
people and things as well as their observations of the world
around them, they quickly create sophisticated theories to build
their conceptual understanding. They recognize patterns and
make predictions that they then apply to new situations. Infants
appear particularly attuned to adults as sources of information,
underscoring the importance of consistent, responsive
caregiving
to support the formation of relationships.46 Cultural variations

can be seen in these interactions, with implications for later
development and learning. For example, in some cultures,
children are socialized to quietly observe members of the adult
community and to learn by pitching in (often through mimicking
the adults’ behaviors).47 In other cultures, adults make a point
of
getting a child’s attention to encourage one-on-one interactions.
Children socialized to learn through observing may quietly
watch
others without asking for help, while those socialized to expect
direct interaction may find it difficult to maintain focus without
frequent adult engagement.
Throughout the early childhood years, young children continue
to
construct knowledge and make meaning through their
interactions
with adults and peers, through active exploration and play, and
through their observations of people and things in the world
around them. Educators recognize the importance of their role
in
creating a rich, play-based learning environment that
encourages
the development of knowledge (including vocabulary) and skills
across all domains. Educators understand that children’s current
abilities are largely the result of the experiences—the
opportunities
to learn—that children have had. As such, children with
disabilities
(or with the potential for a disability) have capacity to learn;
they
need educators who do not label them or isolate them from their
peers and who are prepared to work with them and their families
to
develop that potential.

In addition to learning language and concepts about the
physical phenomena in the world around them, children learn
powerful lessons about social dynamics as they observe the
interactions that educators have with them and other children
as well as peer interactions. Well before age 5, most young
children have rudimentary definitions of their own and others’
social identities that can include awareness of and biases
regarding gender and race.48
Early childhood educators need to understand the importance
of creating a learning environment that helps children develop
social identities which do not privilege one group over another.
They must also be aware of the potential for implicit bias that
may prejudice their interactions with children of various social
identities.49 Educators must also recognize that their nonverbal
signals may influence children’s attitudes toward their peers.
For
example, one recent study found that children will think a child
who receives more positive nonverbal signals from a teacher
is perceived as a “better” or “smarter” reader than a child who
receives more negative nonverbal signals, regardless of that
child’s
actual reading performance.50
6 Children’s motivation to learn is increased when
their learning environment fosters their sense of
belonging, purpose, and agency. Curricula and
teaching methods build on each child’s assets by
connecting their experiences in the school or learning
environment to their home and community settings.
This principle is drawn from the influential report How People
Learn II and is supported by a growing body of research
that affirms principles espoused more than 100 years ago by
John Dewey.51 The sense of belonging requires both physical

and psychological safety. Seeing connections with home and
community can be a powerful signal for children’s establishing
psychological safety; conversely, when there are few signs of
connection for children, their psychological safety is
jeopardized.
It is important for children to see people who look like them
across levels of authority, to hear and see their home language
in
the learning environment, and to have learning experiences that
are both culturally and linguistically affirming and
responsive.52
Equally important is encouraging each child’s sense of agency.
Opportunities for agency—that is, the ability to make and act
upon choices about what activities one will engage in and how
those activities will proceed—must be widely available for all
children, not limited as a reward after completing other tasks or
only offered to high-achieving students. Ultimately, motivation
is a personal decision based on the learner’s determination of
meaningfulness, interest, and engagement.53 Educators can
promote children’s agency and help them feel motivated by
engaging them in challenging yet achievable tasks that build
on their interests and that they recognize as meaningful and
purposeful to their lives. Studies have found that some children
are denied opportunities to exercise agency because they are
mistakenly deemed unable to do so.54 For educators, supporting
a child’s agency can be especially challenging when they do
not speak the same language as the child or are not able to
understand a child’s attempts to express solutions or
preferences.
In these cases, nonverbal cues and/or technology-assistive
tools may be helpful as the educator also works to address the
communication barrier.
As noted earlier regarding brain development, children’s
feelings

of safety and security are essential for the development of
higher-order thinking skills, so fostering that sense of belonging
is essentially a brain-building activity. Beginning in infancy,
educators who follow children’s lead in noticing their interests
and responding with an appropriate action and conversation
(including noting when interest wanes) are helping children
develop self-confidence and an understanding that their actions
make a difference. Educators can involve children in choosing
or creating learning experiences that are meaningful to them,
helping them establish and achieve challenging goals, and
reflecting on their experiences and their learning. Educators can
also intentionally build bridges between children’s interests and
the subject matter knowledge that will serve as the foundation
for
learning in later grades.
7 Children learn in an integrated fashion that cuts across
academic disciplines or subject areas. Because the
foundations of subject area knowledge are established in
early childhood, educators need subject-area knowledge,
an understanding of the learning progressions within
each subject area, and pedagogical knowledge about
teaching each subject area’s content effectively.
Based on their knowledge of what is meaningful and engaging
to each child, educators design the learning environment and its
activities to promote subject area knowledge across all content
areas as well as across all domains of development. Educators
use
their knowledge of learning progressions for different subjects,
their understanding of common conceptions and misconceptions

at different points on the progressions, and their pedagogical
knowledge about each subject area to develop learning activities
that offer challenging but achievable goals for children that are
also meaningful and engaging. These activities will look very
different for infants and toddlers than for second- and third-
graders and from one community of learners to another, given
variations in culture and context. Across all levels and settings,
educators can help children observe and, over time, reflect
about
phenomena in the world around them, gain vocabulary, and
build
their conceptual understanding of the content of subjects across
all disciplines.
Recognizing the value of the academic disciplines, an
interdisciplinary approach that considers multiple areas together
is typically more meaningful than teaching content areas
separately. This requires going beyond superficial connections.
It means “making rich connections among domain and subject
areas, but allowing each to retain its core conceptual,
procedural,
and epistemological structures.”55 It is, therefore, important
that educators have a good understanding of the core structures
(concepts and language) for all the academic subject areas so
that
they can communicate them in appropriate ways to children.
Educators shape children’s conceptual development through
their use of language. For example, labeling objects helps young
children form conceptual categories; statements conveyed as
generic descriptions about a category are especially salient to
young children and, once learned, can be resistant to change.56
It is also important for educators to monitor their language for
potential bias. For example, educators who frequently refer to
“boys” and “girls” rather than “children” emphasize binary

gender
distinctions that exclude some children. Educators can also
encourage children’s continued exploration and discovery
through
the words they use. For example, when given an object, children
are more likely to engage in creative explorations of that object
when they are provided with more open-ended guidance versus
when they are given specific information about what the object
was designed to do.
From infancy through age 8, proactively building children’s
conceptual and factual knowledge, including academic
vocabulary, is essential because knowledge is the primary driver
of
comprehension. The more children (and adults) know, the better
their listening comprehension and, later, reading
comprehension.
By building knowledge of the world in early childhood,
educators
are laying the foundation that is critical for all future
learning.57
All subject matter can be taught in ways that are meaningful and
engaging for each child.58 The notion that young children are
not ready for academic subject matter is a misunderstanding of
developmentally appropriate practice.
8 Development and learning advance when children
are challenged to achieve at a level just beyond their
current mastery and when they have many opportunities
to reflect on and practice newly acquired skills.
Human beings, especially young children, are motivated to
understand or do what is just beyond their current understanding
or mastery. Drawing upon the strengths and resources each child
and family brings, early childhood educators create a rich
learning

environment that stimulates that motivation and helps to extend
each child’s current skills, abilities, and interests. They make
use
of strategies to promote children’s undertaking and mastering
of new and progressively more advanced challenges. They
also recognize the potential for implicit bias to lead to lowered
expectations, especially for children of color,59 and actively
work
to avoid such bias.
Educators contribute significantly to the child’s development
by providing the support or assistance that allows the child to
succeed at a task that is just beyond their current level of skill
or understanding. This includes emotional support as well
as strategies such as pointing out salient details or providing
other cues that can help children make connections to previous
knowledge and experiences.60 As children make this stretch to
a
new level in a supportive context, they can go on to use the skill
independently and in a variety of contexts, laying the
foundation
for the next challenge. Provision of such support, or
scaffolding,
is a key feature of effective teaching. Pairing children can be an
effective way to support peer learning in which children with
different abilities can scaffold each other.61
CHILDREN | 13
Children need to feel successful in new tasks a significant
proportion of the time to promote their motivation and

persistence.62 Confronted by repeated failure, most children
will simply stop trying. Repeated opportunities to practice and
consolidate new skills and concepts are also essential for
children
to reach the threshold of mastery at which they can go on to
use this knowledge or skill, applying it in new situations. Play
(especially in intentionally designed environments with
carefully
selected materials) provides young children with opportunities
to
engage in this type of practice.
Educators foster learning for a group of children by setting
challenging, achievable goals for each child, building on the
combined funds of knowledge and cultural assets of the children
in the group. Providing the right amount and type of scaffolding
requires general knowledge of child development and learning,
including familiarity with the paths and sequences that children
are known to follow in specific skills, concepts, and abilities.
Also essential is deep knowledge of each child, based on what
the teacher has learned from close observation and from the
family about the individual child’s interests, skills, and abilities
and about practices of importance to the family. Both sets of
knowledge are critical to matching curriculum and teaching
experiences to each child’s emerging competencies in ways that
are challenging but not frustrating.
Encouraging children to reflect on their experiences and
learning
and to revisit concepts over time is also an important strategy
for
educators. The curriculum should provide both breadth and
depth
with multiple opportunities to revisit concepts and experiences,
rather than rapidly progressing through a wide but shallow set
of experiences. Picture books and other learning materials that

depict communities and situations relevant to children’s lives
can be useful starting points for such reflection. Group projects
with documentation, including photos, videos, child artwork and
representations, child dictations, and/or children’s writing, are
also important tools for encouraging reflection and for
revisiting
concepts over time.63
Tiered intervention approaches can be helpful in identifying
children who might benefit from additional instruction or
support.64 These approaches, often in collaboration with early
childhood special educators and early interventionists, are most
effective when they are implemented in a way that is
continuous,
flexible, dynamic, and focused on the range of critical skills and
proficiencies children need to develop and to enable their full
participation in the classroom/group community.
9 Used responsibly and intentionally, technology
and interactive media can be valuable tools for
supporting children’s development and learning.
Young children live in a digital era in which technology and
interactive media are pervasive. Given rapid changes in the
types and uses of new media, the knowledge base of their
effects
on children’s development and learning continues to grow
and shift. Emerging evidence suggests a number of cautions,
including concerns about negative associations between
excessive screen time and childhood obesity as well as negative
impacts on toddlers’ performance on measures of fine motor,
communication, and social skills.65 There is no evidence that
development is enhanced when children younger than age 2
independently use devices with screen media.66 Keeping these
cautions in mind, technology and interactive media can help
to support developmentally appropriate practice. For example,

technology and interactive media can facilitate communication
between families, children, and teachers. It can also support
learning, comprehension, and communication across language
differences and provide adaptations that support inclusion of
children with disabilities. The use of digital media can facilitate
reflection through documentation and formative assessment
by children, educators, and families. The use of media can also
provide isolated children (for example, children with health
problems that prevent them from participating in group settings
or those with less well-developed social skills) with
opportunities
to engage effectively with peers.67
Effective uses of technology and media by children are active,
hands-on, engaging, and empowering; give children control;
provide adaptive scaffolds to help each child progress in skills
development at their individual pace; and are used as one of
many
options to support children’s learning. Technology and
interactive
media should expand children’s access to new content and new
skills; they should not replace opportunities for real, hands -on
experiences.68 When truly integrated, uses of technology and
media become normal and transparent—the child or the educator
is focused on the activity or exploration itself, not the
technology.
Readers are encouraged to review the NAEYC/Fred Rogers
Center
position statement on the use of technology for more
information
on this topic.
https://www.naeyc.org/resources/topics/technology-and-
media/resources

Guidelines for Developmentally Appropriate
Practice in Action: Using Knowledge of Child
Development and Learning in Context
Based on the principles outlined above, the following guidelines
address decisions that early childhood
professionals make in six key and interrelated areas of practice:
(1) creating a caring community of
learners; (2) engaging in reciprocal partnerships with families
and fostering community connections;
(3) observing, documenting and assessing children’s
development and learning; (4) teaching to enhance
each child’s development and learning; (5) planning and
implementing an engaging curriculum to
achieve meaningful goals; and (6) demonstrating
professionalism as an early childhood educator.
Generally consistent with previous editions of this statement,
the six areas have been reworded and
reordered to reflect consistency with the Professional Standards
and Competencies for Early Childhood
Educators. These guidelines work hand in hand with the
standards and competencies; they are also
based on the assumption that, as part of the sixth professional
standard regarding professionalism,
educators are also advocating for policies and financing that

support the equitable implementation of
developmentally appropriate practice across all states and
settings serving children birth through age
8. Finally, some of the guidelines are similarly reflected in the
recommendations for early childhood
educators embedded in the Advancing Equity in Early
Childhood Education position statement.
https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-
shared/downloads/PDFs/resources/position-
statements/naeycadvancingequitypositionstatement.pdf
CHILDREN | 15
1. Creating a Caring, Equitable Community of Learners
Because early childhood education settings are often among
children’s first communities outside
the home, the character of these communities is very influential
in children’s development.
Through their interactions, children learn how to treat others
and how they can expect to be
treated. In developmentally appropriate practice, educators

create and foster a community of
learners. The role of the community is to provide a physical,
emotional, and cognitive environment
conducive to development and learning for each child. The
foundation for the community is
consistent, positive, caring relationships between educators and
other adults and children,
among children, among educators and colleagues, and between
educators and families. Each
member of the learning community is valued for what they bring
to the community; all members
are supported to consider and contribute to one another’s well-
being and learning.
To create a caring, equitable community of learners, educators
make sure that the following occur for children from birth
through the primary grades.
A Each member of the community is valued by the
others and is recognized for the strengths they bring.
By observing and participating in the community, children
learn about themselves, their world, and how to develop
positive, constructive relationships with other people. Each
child has unique strengths, interests, and perspectives to
contribute. Children learn to acknowledge and respect
differences of all kinds and to value each person. Children
with and without disabilities can learn from each other and
respect each other using this strengths-based approach.
Educators demonstrate their valuing and respect

for each child in different ways:
1. Educators pronounce and spell the child’s name in
accordance with the child’s and family’s preferences.
2. Educators acknowledge and accept the family
composition that each family defines.
3. Educators demonstrate ongoing interest in each child’s
unique knowledge, skills, and cultural and linguistic
experiences and recognize these as assets for learning.
B Relationships are nurtured with each child, and
educators facilitate the development of positive
relationships among children. Children construct
their understandings about the world around them through
interactions with other members of the community (both
adults and peers). Thus, early childhood educators actively
work to build their own relationships with each child as
well as foster the development of relationships among the
children. Educators regularly seek out opportunities for
extended conversations with each child, including those
with whom they do not share a language, through verbal
and nonverbal interactions. Opportunities to play together,
collaborate on investigations and projects, and talk with peers
and adults enhance children’s development and learning and
should be available to all children, with support as needed.
Interacting in small groups provides a context for children to
extend their thinking, practice emerging language skills, build
on one another’s ideas, and cooperate to solve problems.
(Also see guideline 2, “Engaging in reciprocal partnerships
with families and fostering community connections.”)

C Each member of the community respects and is
accountable to the others to behave in a way that
is conducive to the learning and well-being of all.
1. Educators help children develop responsibility and
self-regulation. Educators intentionally model and
teach children self-regulation and calming strategies.
Recognizing that behaviors reflect children’s experiences
and needs, educators seek to understand a child’s
reasons for behaving in particular ways. Knowing
that responsibility and self-regulation develop with
experience and time, educators consider how to foster
such development in their interactions with each
child and in their curriculum planning. They work to
provide predictable, consistent routines (but not rigid
schedules with unnecessary transitions) and supportive
relationships for all children, taking into consideration
the range of current self-regulation abilities among the
children. They do not blame children or families for their
behavior but call on additional resources for support
as needed. They work to eliminate suspension and
expulsions as mechanisms for addressing challenging
behaviors. Educators also take care to reflect on their
own behaviors and expectations and the ways in which
these may affect children’s behavior. For all young
children, including in K–3 classrooms, educators
recognize that children are continuing to learn and refine
behavior regulation. Educators implement systems
of support that help children practice self-regulation
and provide additional supports where needed. When
using behavioral systems to guide social and emotional
interactions in the early learning setting, educators
ensure that the systems acknowledge positive behaviors
rather than drawing attention to negative ones.

2. Educators are responsible for all children
under their supervision to ensure respectful
behaviors. They actively teach and model prosocial
behaviors. They monitor, anticipate, prevent, and
redirect behaviors not conducive to learning or
disrespectful of any member of the community.
3. Educators set clear and reasonable limits on children’s
behavior, find ways to effectively communicate those
limits to all children, and apply them consistently.
Early childhood educators help children be accountable
to themselves and to others for their behavior. In the
case of preschool and older children, educators engage
children in developing their own community rules for
behavior. Educators understand that all behaviors
serve a purpose; they seek to understand what may
be leading to that behavior and help children learn
prosocial replacement behaviors when needed.
4. Educators listen to and acknowledge children’s feelings,
including frustrations, using words as well as nonverbal
communication techniques. Knowing that children often
communicate through their behavior, especially when
they are unable to verbalize their feelings, educators
seek to understand what the child may be trying to
communicate in any language. Educators respond
with respect in ways that children can understand,
guide children to resolve conflicts, and model skills
that help children to solve their own problems.
5. Educators themselves demonstrate high levels of
responsibility and self-regulation in their interactions
with other adults (colleagues, family members) and with
children. This includes monitoring their own behaviors
for potential implicit biases or microaggressions on the
basis of race and ethnicity, gender, disability, or other

characteristics that unfairly target children or adults in
the early learning setting, undermine an individual’s
self-worth, or perpetuate negative stereotypes. They
also confront biased or stereotypical comments in
interactions among children and/or adults. When they
inadvertently engage in behavior that hurts or undermines
an individual’s self-worth, educators model how to
manage negative emotions and to repair relationships.
CHILDREN | 17
D The physical environment protects the health and safety
of the learning community members, and it specifically
supports young children’s physiological needs for play,
activity, sensory stimulation, fresh air, rest, and nourishment.
The daily schedule provides frequent opportunities
for self-directed play and active, physical movement,
regardless of the length of the program day or the ages of
the children. Children are provided opportunities for rest
as needed. Outdoor experiences, including opportunities
to interact with the natural world, are provided daily for
children of all ages. This includes daily periods of recess
for children through the primary grades. Recess is never
withheld as a punishment. Mealtimes are unhurried, and
conversation among children is encouraged during meals.
E Every effort is made to help each and every member
of the community feel psychologically safe and able
to focus on being and learning. The overall social and
emotional climate is welcoming and positive.

1. Educators monitor interactions among community
members (administrators, educators, families,
children), as well as their overall experiences,
striving to make sure that participants feel secure,
relaxed, and comfortable rather than disengaged,
frightened, worried, or unduly stressed.
2. Educators build on individual children’s funds
of knowledge,69 interests, languages, and
experiences to foster each child’s enjoyment
of and engagement in learning.
3. Educators ensure that the environment is organized
in ways that support play and learning and that
create a positive group climate. Space, time, and
stimulation are modified to take into account children’s
individual needs and feelings of psychological safety.
Educators recognize that individual children may need
or benefit from different levels of stimulation. They
avoid overly cluttered environments that may be too
stimulating. Flexibility and freedom of movement
predominate throughout the day. Although the
environment’s elements are dynamic and changing,
the overall structures and routines are predictable
and comprehensible from a child’s point of view.
4. Educators strive to make sure that each child hears
and sees their home language, culture, and family
experience reflected in the daily interactions, activities,
and materials in the early learning setting. Each child’s
various social identities are affirmed in positive ways
that do not negatively impact any others. Stereotypical
thinking and messages are countered with opportunities
to engage in more sophisticated and accurate thinking.
5. Educators are prepared to recognize signs of stress

and trauma in young children and seek access to
early childhood mental health experts, supports, and
resources to provide healing-centered approaches to
assist children. Educators recognize that children who
have experienced trauma may need frequent, explicit, and
consistent reminders that they are psychologically and
physically safe. Educators also keep children’s resilience in
mind, knowing that simple actions like being consistently
warm and caring support healthy development for all
children—including those who have experienced trauma.
2. Engaging in Reciprocal Partnerships with Families
and Fostering Community Connections
Developmentally appropriate practice requires deep knowledge
about each child,
including the context within which each child is living.
Educators acquire much of this
knowledge through respectful, reciprocal relationships with
children’s families. Across
all ages, families’ expertise about their own children is sought
out and valued.
Educators who engage in developmentally appropriate
practice take responsibility for forming and maintaining
strong relationships with families and communities.
They recognize that the traditional models of “parent
involvement” or “parent education” are one-sided
approaches that fail to give educators the knowledge or
insights they need to provide learning experiences that are

fully responsive to each child’s needs and experiences.
The following descriptions of educators’ behavior indi cate the
kinds of relationships that are developmentally appropriate
for children from birth through the primary grades, in which
family members and educators work together as members of the
learning community.
A Educators take responsibility for establishing
respectful, reciprocal relationships with and
among families. As they work to facilitate their own
relationships with families, educators also encourage and
support families to get to know each other, serve as resources
to each other, and collaborate within and outside of the
program. They strive to ensure mutual respect, cooperation,
and shared responsibility and to help negotiate conflicts as
they work toward achievement of shared goals. (Also see
guideline 1, “Creating a caring community of learners.”)
B Educators work in collaborative partnerships with
families, seeking and maintaining regular, frequent,
two-way communication with them and recognizing
that the forms of communication may differ for
each family. Early childhood educators employ a variety of
communication methods and engagement skills, including
informal conversations when parents pick up and drop
off children, more formal conversations in teacher-family
conference settings, and reciprocal technology-mediated
communications, such as phone calls, texting, or emails.
When educators do not speak a family’s home language,
they enlist the help of community resources to provide
interpreters or use volunteers identified by the family.
The use of children as translators should be avoided.
C Educators welcome family members in the setting
and create multiple opportunities for family

participation. Families are offered multiple ways of
participating, including weighing in on any program decision
about their children’s care and education. If families cannot
communicate with educators during drop-offs and pick-ups,
alternative means provide frequent, ongoing communication.
D Educators acknowledge a family’s choices and
goals for their child and respond with sensitivity
and respect to those preferences and concerns.
In the event of disagreements between the family and
the educator, educators listen carefully to the family’s
concerns and use the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct
and Statement of Commitment to guide their decision
making as they strive to find mutually agreeable solutions.
E Educators and the family share with each other their
knowledge of the particular child and understanding
of child development and learning as part of
day-to-day and other forms of communication (e.g.,
family get-togethers, meetings, support groups).
Educators support families in ways that maximally promote
family decision-making capabilities and competence.
When communicating with families about their children,
educators stress children’s strengths and abilities and use
this information to support future instructional decisions.
F Educators involve families as a source of
information about the child (before program entry
and on an ongoing basis). They engage families in
the planning for their child, including teaching practices,
curriculum planning and implementation, and assessments.
G Educators take care to learn about the community in
which they work, and they use the community as a
resource across all aspects of program delivery. The
community serves as an important resource for implementing

the curriculum as well as a resource for linking families with a
range of services based on identified priorities and concerns.
Early childhood educators also look for ways that they can
contribute to the ongoing development of the community.
https://www.naeyc.org/resources/position-statements/ethical-
conduct
conduct
CHILDREN | 19
3. Observing, Documenting, and Assessing
Children’s Development and Learning
Observing, documenting, and assessing each child’s
development and learning are essential
processes for educators and programs to plan, implement, and
evaluate the effectiveness of the
experiences they provide to children. Assessment includes both
formal and informal measures
as tools for monitoring children’s progress toward a program’s
desired goals. Educators can be
intentional about helping children to progress when they know
where each child is with respect
to learning goals. Formative assessment (measuring progress
toward goals) and summative

assessment (measuring achievement at the end of a defined
period or experience) are important.
Both need to be conducted in ways that are developmentally,
culturally, and linguistically
responsive to authentically assess children’s learning. This
means that not only must the methods
of assessment, both formal and informal, be developmentally,
culturally, and linguistically
sensitive, but also the assessor must be aware of and work
against the possibility of implicit and
explicit bias, for example through training, reflection, and
regular reviews of collected data.
Effective assessment of young children is challenging. The
complexity of children’s development and learning—including
the
uneven nature of development and the likelihood of children
fully
demonstrating their knowledge and skills in different contexts—
makes accurate and comprehensive assessment difficult. For
example, authentic assessment takes into consideration such
factors as a child’s facility in each language they speak and uses
assessors and settings that are familiar and comfortable for the
child. When standardized assessments are used for screening
or evaluative purposes, the measures should meet standards
of reliability and validity based on the characteristics of the
child being assessed. When these standards are not met, these
limitations must be carefully considered before using the
results.
Using assessments in ways that do not support enhancing the
child’s education is not developmentally appropriate practice.

Yet,
decisions regarding assessment practices are often outside of
the
control of individual educators (also see Recommendations for
research, page 31). When educators are aware of inappropriate
assessment practices, they have a professional ethical
responsibility to make their concerns known, to advocate for
more
appropriate practices, and, within their learning environment,
to minimize the adverse impact of inappropriate assessments on
young children and on instructional practices.
The following practices for observation, documentation, and
assessment are developmentally appropriate for children from
birth through the primary grades.
A Observation, documentation, and assessment
of young children’s progress and achievements
is ongoing, strategic, reflective, and purposeful.
Educators embed assessment-related activities in the
curriculum and in daily routines to facilitate authentic
assessment and to make assessment an integral part of
professional practice. They create and take advantage of
unplanned opportunities to observe young children in
play and in spontaneous conversations and interactions,
in adult-structured assessment contexts as well as when
children are participating in a group activity and doing
an individual activity. Observations, documentations,
and the results of other formal and informal assessments
are used to inform the planning and implementing
of daily curriculum and experiences, to communicate
with the child’s family, and to evaluate and improve
educators’ and the program’s effectiveness. Especially
in K–3 classrooms, care must be taken to avoid overuse
of standardized assessments, which can cause stress
for young children and interfere with time for learning.

Educators limit the use of digitally-based assessments,
especially for young children who (appropriately)
should have limited exposure to screen media.
B Assessment focuses on children’s progress
toward developmental and educational goals. Such
goals should reflect families’ input as well as children’s
background knowledge and experiences. They should be
informed by developmental milestones including use of
state early learning standards. Goals should be aspirational
and achievable and should foster a sense of pride and
accomplishment for educators, families, and children.
Children, educators, and families should have opportunities
to celebrate both small and large achievements, while
recognizing that all children need time to build mastery on
a current skill before progressing to the next challenge.
C A system is in place to collect, make sense of, and
use observations, documentation, and assessment
information to guide what goes on in the early
learning setting. Educators use this information in
planning curriculum and learning experiences and in
moment-to-moment interactions with children—that
is, educators continually engage in assessment for the
purpose of improving teaching and learning. Educators
also encourage children to use observation and, beginning
in the preschool years, documentation to reflect on
their experiences and what they have learned.
D The methods of assessment are responsive to
the current developmental accomplishments,
language(s), and experiences of young children.

They recognize individual variation in learners and
allow children to demonstrate their competencies
in different ways. Methods appropriate to educators’
assessment of young children, therefore, include results of
their observations of children, clinical interviews, collections
of children’s work samples, and children’s performance
on authentic activities. For children who speak a language
the educators do not know, native speakers of the child’s
language such as family or community members may need
to be recruited to assist with the assessment process. A
plan should be in place for employing volunteer and paid
interpreters and translators as needed and providing them
with information about appropriate interactions with young
children and ethics and confidentiality, as well as about the
features and purposes of the screening or assessment tool.
Once collected, the results are explained to families and
children (as appropriate) in order to extend the conversations
around what is collected, analyzed, and reflected upon.
E Assessments are used only for the populations and
purposes for which they have been demonstrated
to produce reliable, valid information. If required
to use an assessment tool that has not been established as
reliable or valid for the characteristics of a given child or
for the intended use, educators recognize the limitations
of the findings, strive to make sure they are not used in
high-stakes decisions, and advocate for a different measure.
F Decisions that have a major impact on children,
such as enrollment or placement, are made
in consultation with families. Such decisions
should be based on multiple sources of relevant
information, including that obtained from observations
of and interactions with children by educators,
family members, and specialists as needed.

G When a screening assessment identifies a child
who may have a disability or individualized
learning or developmental needs, there is
appropriate follow-up, evaluation, and, if needed,
referral. Screening is used to identify issues needing
more thorough examination by those qualified to do
so; it is not used to diagnose or label children. Families
are involved as essential sources of information.
CHILDREN | 21
4. Teaching to Enhance Each Child’s Development and Learning
Developmentally appropriate teaching practices encompass a
wide range of skills and strategies
that are adapted to the age, development, individual
characteristics, and the family and social
and cultural contexts of each child served. Grounded in the
caring relationships that educators
nurture with each child and family as well as among all children
and families (see guideline 1,
“Creating a caring community of learners”), these teaching
practices are designed to foster
development and learning for each child across all domains and
subject areas. Teaching practices
build on each child’s multiple assets and actively counter

various forms of bias. Through their
intentional teaching, educators blend opportunities for each
child to exercise choice and
agency within the context of a planned environment constructed
to support specific learning
experiences and meaningful goals. Educators recognize that
children are active constructors
of their own understanding of the world around them; they
understand that children benefit
from initiating and regulating their own learning activities and
from interacting with peers.
Recognizing play as critical for children to experience joy
and wonder, early childhood educators incorporate frequent
opportunities for play in their teaching strategies. They plan
learning environments that provide a mix of self-directed
play, guided play, and direct instruction. Educators maximize
opportunities for children to choose the materials, playmates,
topics, and approaches they use throughout the day for all
children, birth through age 8. Educators support and extend
children’s play experiences by providing materials and
resources
based on careful observation of children’s play choices. Adult-
guided activities provide for children’s active agency as
educators
offer specific guidance and support to scaffold and extend
children’s interest, engagement, and learning.
Direct instruction—for example, providing children with
relevant
academic vocabulary, pointing out relationships, helping

children
recognize specific phenomena, or suggesting an alternative
perspective—is an important tool for supporting children’s
learning.
Its effectiveness is determined by the degree to which it extends
children’s interests and learning in meaningful ways and
educators’
sensitivity to changes in children’s interest. Individually or in
small
or large groups, across all activities—self-directed play, guided
play, direct instruction, and routines—the teacher is responsible
for ensuring that each child’s overall experiences are
stimulating,
engaging, and developmentally, linguistically, and culturally
responsive across all domains of development and learning.
Promoting many opportunities for agency for each child is
essential
to fulfilling this responsibility.
The following descriptions of educators’ actions illustrate
teaching
practices that are developmentally appropriate for young
children
from birth through the primary grades.
A Educators demonstrate and model their
commitment to a caring learning community
through their actions, attitudes, and curiosity.
They recognize that through their actions, they
are influencing children’s lifelong dispositions,
confidence, and approaches to learning.
B Educators use their knowledge of each child
and family to make learning experiences
meaningful, accessible, and responsive to each
and every child. Building on the relationships they

nurture with each child and family and between children
(see also guideline 1, “Creating a caring community
of learners”), educators design learning activities
that reflect the lives and cultures of each child.
1. Educators incorporate and integrate a wide variety
of experiences, materials, equipment, and teaching
strategies to accommodate the range of children’s
individual differences in development, languages, skills
and abilities, prior experiences, needs, and interests.
2. Educators, with the support of families, bring each child’s
home culture(s) and language(s) into the shared culture
of the learning community. They model recognition
and valuing of the unique contributions of the home
cultures and languages so that these contributions
can be recognized and valued by the other members
of the learning community. They strategically use the
child’s home or family language and cultural ways
of learning to enhance each child’s communication,
comprehension, self-expression, and learning. Educators
continually strive to support and sustain each child’s
connection with their family, languages, and cultures.
3. Educators provide all children opportunities to participate
in all activities and encourage children to be inclusive
in their behaviors and interactions with peers.
4. Educators are prepared to individualize their teaching
strategies to meet the specific needs of individual
children, including children with disabilities and children
whose learning is advanced, by building upon their

interests, knowledge, and skills. Educators use all the
strategies identified here and consult with appropriate
specialists and the child’s family; they see that each child
gets the adaptations and specialized services needed
for full inclusion as a member of the community and
that no child is penalized for their ability status.
C Educators effectively implement a comprehensive
curriculum so that each child attains individualized
goals across all domains (physical, social,
emotional, cognitive, linguistic, and general
learning competencies) and across all subject
areas (language and literacy, including second
language acquisition, mathematics, social studies,
science, art, music, physical education, and health).
Educators follow Universal Design for Learning principles
by proactively providing multiple means of engagement,
multiple means of representation, and multiple means
of action and expression.70 Educators design experiences
that celebrate the diversity in the experiences and social
identities of each group of children and counter the biases
in society. They build upon the children’s combined
funds of knowledge to foster each child’s learning and
understanding. Educators design activities that follow the
predictable sequences in which children acquire specific
concepts, skills, and abilities and by building on prior
experiences and understandings. (Also see guideline
5, “Understanding and using content areas to plan and
implement an engaging curriculum designed to meet goals
that are important and meaningful for children, families,
and the community in the present as well as the future.”)
D Educators plan the environment, schedule,
and daily activities to promote each
child’s development and learning.

1. Educators arrange firsthand, meaningful experiences
that are cognitively and creatively stimulating,
invite exploration and investigation, and engage
children’s active, sustained involvement. They do this
by providing a rich variety of materials, challenges,
and ideas that are worthy of children’s attention and
that reflect the funds of knowledge each child brings
to the setting. Materials are periodically rotated and
revisited to provide children with opportunities to
reflect and re-engage with the learning experiences.
2. Educators consistently present children with
opportunities to make meaningful choices. Children
are encouraged to shape specific learning activities
and to identify projects that can be used to extend
their learning. Children are regularly provided with
opportunities for child-choice activity periods—
not simply as a reward for completing other work.
Educators assist and guide children who are not yet
able to enjoy and make good use of such periods.
3. Educators organize the daily and weekly schedules to
provide children with extended blocks of time in which
to engage in sustained investigation, exploration,
interaction, and play. Children are encouraged to
freely interact with peers, and collaborative learning
opportunities with peers are frequently used. Adults offer
questions to stimulate children’s thinking, introduce
related vocabulary, and provide specific suggestions
to scaffold children’s thinking. As much as possible,
educators use multiple languages to support bilingual
and multilingual children and also use nonverbal means
of communication such as images and gestures.
4. Educators routinely provide experiences, materials,
and interactions to enable children to engage in play.

Play allows children to stretch their boundaries to the
fullest in their imagination, language, interaction, and
self-regulation, as well as to practice their newly acquired
skills. Play also provides an important window for
educators to observe children’s skills and understandings.
5. Educators create language-rich environments that
focus on the diversity and complexity of language
in children’s communities. Given the importance of
vocabulary for conceptual development and as the
key building blocks for academic subject areas, this is
especially crucial. Educators affirm children’s use of home
dialects, vernaculars, and language as strengths as they
also support the development of academic English.
CHILDREN | 23
E Educators possess and build on an extensive
repertoire of skills and teaching strategies. They know
how and when to choose among them to effectively promote
each child’s development and learning at that moment. Such
skills include the ability to adapt curriculum, activities, and
materials to ensure full participation of all children. These
strategies include but are not limited to acknowledging,
encouraging, giving specific feedback, modeling,
demonstrating, adding challenge, giving cues or other
assistance, providing information, and giving directions.
1. To help children develop agency, educators
encourage them to choose and plan their own
learning activities. Self-directed learning activities

are important for all young children, including those
in K–3 classrooms. Self-directed activities can engage
children in meaningful learning that is relevant to
all curriculum and applicable learning standards.
2. To stimulate children’s thinking and extend their
learning, educators pose problems, ask questions,
and make comments and suggestions.
3. To extend the range of children’s interests and
the scope of their thoughts, educators present
novel experiences and introduce stimulating
ideas, problems, experiences, or hypotheses.
4. To adjust the complexity and challenge of
activities to suit children’s skills and knowledge,
educators increase the challenge as children
gain competence and understanding or reduce
the complexity for those who struggle.
5. To strengthen children’s sense of competence and
confidence as learners, motivation to persist, and
willingness to take risks, educators provide experiences
that build on a child’s funds of knowledge, are culturally
and linguistically responsive, and are designed for
each child to be challenged and genuinely successful.
6. To enhance children’s conceptual understanding,
early childhood educators use various strategies,
including conversation and documentation, which
encourage children to reflect on and revisit their
experiences in the moment and over time.
7. To encourage and foster children’s development and
learning, educators avoid generic praise (“Good job!”)
and instead give specific feedback (“You got the same

number when you counted the beans again!”). They use
the home or family languages, images, or other forms of
non-verbal communication to be sure the child understands
the feedback. With frequent, timely, specific feedback,
educators help children evaluate their own learning.
8. Educators focus on what children can do rather than
what they can’t or don’t do. For example, a child who
responds to a question asked in academic English by
speaking in their home dialect is recognized for their
receptive language. Similarly, invented spellings or other
“errors” in children’s thinking or language are analyzed
for what they reveal of children’s current understanding.
F Educators know how and when to scaffold
children’s learning. Based on their ongoing interactions
and knowledge of each child, educators provide just
enough assistance to enable each child to perform at a
skill level just beyond what the child can do on their own,
then gradually reduce the support as the child begins to
master the skill, setting the stage for the next challenge.
1. Educators recognize and respond to the reality that
in any group, children’s skills will vary and they will
need different levels of support. Educators also know
that any one child’s level of skill and need for support
will vary over time and in different circumstances.
2. Scaffolding can take a variety of forms, such as
giving the child a hint, providing a cue, modeling
the skill, or adapting the materials and activities.
It can be provided in a variety of contexts, not only
in planned learning experiences but also in free
play, daily routines, and outdoor activities.
3. Peers can be effective providers of scaffolding in

addition to educators. Peer learning can be an
effective mechanism to provide individual support
and assistance across all areas of development and
learning. Peer learning can be especially useful
for children who are bilingual or multilingual.
G Educators know how and when to strategically
use the various learning formats and contexts.
1. Educators understand that each major learning format or
context (for example, large group, small group, learning
center, routine) has its own characteristics, functions, and
value. They consider the characteristics of the learners in
choosing the most appropriate format, such as limiting
the use of large groups with very young children or of
groups led in a language not understood by all the children.
Educators recognize that they need to balance activities
that require attentive behavior with time for more active
movement. Circle time and large group instruction periods
are limited in length to match age-appropriate attention
span limits. Breaks for self-directed and active play are
provided throughout the day. Flexibility of participation is
provided to all children to accommodate individual needs.
2. Educators think carefully about which learning format
is best for helping children achieve a desired goal, given
the children’s ages, abilities, experiences, temperaments,
and other characteristics. Especially in the case of
large group activities, educators change formats when
attention wanes. In K–3 classrooms, educators ensure
that individual seatwork is used only when it is the
most effective format for meeting the learning objective.

They encourage collaborative learning through peer
interaction and provide frequent opportunities for
children to support each other’s learning in pairs and
small groups. Educators strive to provide opportunities
for physical activity throughout the day, including the
use of learning activities that incorporate movement.
3. Educators minimize time in transitions and waiting for
children to line up or be quiet. Educators who docume nt
how children spend their time are often surprised at how
much time is spent in transitions, often in ways that do
little to support children’s development and learning.71
Reducing the time and amount of full-group activities,
providing children with advance notice of the transition,
and incorporating songs, pretend play, and/or movement
into the transition can be useful strategies. Educators
strive to reduce the need for transitions through flexible
schedules, strategic use of staff and volunteers, and
helping children take responsibility for their own learning.
H Educators differentiate instructional approaches
to match each child’s interests, knowledge,
and skills. Children who need additional support
receive extended, enriched, and intensive learning
experiences, always building on the child’s current
interests, strengths, and cultural ways of knowing.
1. Educators take care to provide each child with
opportunities to be successful and to engage
in joyful learning. They work to avoid children
having frustrating or discouraging experiences that
lead to a negative association with schooling.
2. Regardless of their need for additional support,
all children are provided agency to the greatest
extent possible. Educators are highly intentional in

use of time, and they focus on key skills and abilities
through highly engaging, play-based experiences to
build on the assets of children and their families.
3. Recognizing the self-regulatory, linguistic,
cognitive, and social benefits that play and active
self-direction affords, educators do not reduce or
eliminate play opportunities, recess, or any other
important community and inclusive activities for
children who need additional support to meet school
readiness/grade level or behavioral expectations.
CHILDREN | 25
5. Planning and Implementing an Engaging
Curriculum to Achieve Meaningful Goals
The curriculum consists of the plans for the learning
experiences through which children acquire
knowledge, skills, abilities, and understanding. Implementing a
curriculum always yields outcomes
of some kind—but which outcomes those are and how a program
achieves them are critical. In
developmentally appropriate practice, the curriculum helps
young children achieve goals that
are meaningful because they are culturally and linguistically
responsive and developmentally

and educationally significant. The curriculum does this through
learning experiences that
reflect what is known about young children in general and about
each child in particular.
Learning through play is a central component of curriculum, and
it
incorporates strategies to extend learning through play across
the
full age and grade span of early education. Ideally, the
curriculum
is planned in a coordinated fashion across age and grade spans
so
that children’s knowledge and skills are developed in a
coherent,
aligned manner, with each age or grade span building on what
was
learned previously. A well-designed developmentally and
culturally
relevant curriculum avoids and counters cultural or individual
bias
or stereotypes and fosters a positive learning disposition in each
area of the curriculum and in each child.
The idea of mirrors and windows72 is useful for curriculum
development. The curriculum should provide mirrors so that
children see themselves, their families, and their communities
reflected in the learning environment, materials, and activities.
The curriculum should also provide windows on the world so
that children learn about peoples, places, arts, sciences, and
so on that they would otherwise not encounter. In diverse
and inclusive learning communities, one child’s mirrors are
another child’s windows, making for wonderful opportunities
for
collaborative learning.

Because children learn more in programs where there is a
knowledge-rich, well-rounded curriculum that is well planned
and implemented, it is important for every school and early
childhood program to have its curriculum in written form.
Having
a written curriculum does not preclude the use of an emergent
curriculum based on children’s interests and experiences that
is also aligned with applicable early learning standards, and it
provides an organized framework through which educators can
ensure that the children’s learning experiences are consistent
with
the program’s goals for the children. Use of a formal, validated
curriculum can be helpful, so long as educators have the
flexibility
to adapt units and activities to meet the interests and
experiences
of each group of specific children. Rigid, narrowly defined,
skills-focused, and highly teacher-scripted curricula that do not
provide flexibility for adapting to individual skills and interests
are not developmentally appropriate.
The following key factors, taken together, describe curriculum
planning that is developmentally appropriate for children from
birth through the primary grades.
A Desired goals that are important for young
children’s development and learning in
general and culturally and linguistically
responsive to children in particular have
been identified and clearly articulated.
1. Educators consider what children are expected to
know, understand, and be able to do when they
leave the setting. This includes across the domains of

physical, social, emotional, linguistic, and cognitive
development and across the subject or content areas,
including language, literacy, mathematics, social studies,
science, art, music, physical education, and health.
2. Educators are thoroughly familiar with state early
learning standards or other mandates. They add to
these other goals missing from the existing standards.
3. Educators and administrators establish and regularly
update goals with input from all stakeholders, including
families. Goals are clearly defined for, communicated to,
and understood by all stakeholders, including families.
B The program has a comprehensive, effective
curriculum that targets the identified goals across
all domains of development and subject areas.
1. Whether or not educators participated in the
development of the curriculum, they familiarize
themselves with it and consider its comprehensiveness
in addressing all important goals.
2. When the program uses published curriculum
products, the selected products are developmentally,
culturally, and linguistically responsive for the
children served and provide flexibility for educators
to make adaptations to meet the specific interests and
learning needs of the children they are teaching.
3. If educators develop the curriculum themselves, they
make certain it targets identified learning goals and

applicable early learning standards. They actively engage
families and communities to inform its development.
Educators use up-to-date resources from experts to ensure
that curriculum content is accurate and comprehensive.
C Educators use the curriculum framework in their
planning to make sure there is ample attention
to important learning goals and to enhance the
coherence of the overall experience for children.
1. Educators are familiar with the understandings and
skills in each domain (physical, social, emotional,
linguistic, and cognitive) that are key for the children in
their group. They know how development and learning
in one domain impacts the other domains and crosses
subject areas. They recognize that making sure the
curriculum is culturally and linguistically relevant for
each child is essential for supporting all development
and learning across all domains and subject areas.
2. In their planning and follow-through, educators use
the curriculum framework along with what they
know (from their observation, documentation, and
other assessment) about the children’s knowledge,
interests, progress, languages, and learning needs.
They carefully shape and adapt the experiences to
be responsive to each child and to enable each child
to reach the goals outlined in the curriculum.
3. In determining the sequence and pace of learning
experiences, educators consider the learning
progressions that children typically follow, including
the typical sequences in which skills and concepts
develop. To maximize language development, educators
recognize differences in developmental progressions
for monolingual, bilingual, and multilingual children

and support the development of multilingualism.
Educators use these progressions with an eye toward
helping each child progress in all areas, and they
make adaptations as needed for individual children.
When children’s experiences have not matched the
expectations for schooling, educators can both work
to change inappropriate expectations and adapt the
curriculum to build on children’s strengths and help
them gain skills and knowledge. Such adaptations should
maintain children’s agency; children can be partners with
educators in guiding their learning, which reinforces
high expectations and beliefs (on the part of both the
child and the educator) in that child’s potential.
CHILDREN | 27
D Educators make meaningful connections a priority
in the learning experiences they provide each
child. They understand that all learners, and certainly
young children, learn best when the concepts, language,
and skills they encounter are related to things they
know and care about, and when the new learnings are
themselves interconnected in meaningful, coherent ways.
1. Educators plan curriculum experiences that integrate
children’s learning. They integrate learning within
and across developmental domains (physical, social,
emotional, linguistic, and cognitive) and subject areas
(including language, literacy, mathematics, social studies,
science, art, music, physical education, and health).

2. Educators plan curriculum experiences to build on
the funds of knowledge of each child, family, and
community in order to offer culturally and linguistically
sustaining learning experiences. Educators build
on ideas and experiences that have meaning in the
children’s lives and are likely to interest them, in
recognition that developing and extending children’s
interests is particularly important when children’s
ability to focus their attention is in its early stages.
3. Educators plan curriculum experiences that follow
logical sequences and that allow for depth, focus,
and revisiting concepts. That is, learning sequences
allow children to spend sustained time with a more
select set of content areas rather than skimming
briefly over a wide range of topics. Educators plan to
return to experiences in ways that facilitate children’s
memory and further understanding of concepts.
E Educators collaborate with those teaching in the
preceding and subsequent age groups or grade
levels, sharing information about children and
working to increase continuity and coherence
across ages and grades. They also work to protect the
integrity and appropriateness of practices at each level.
For example, educators advocate for continuity in the
curriculum that is coherent, consistent, and based on the
principles of developmentally appropriate practice.
F Although it will vary across the age span, a planned
and written curriculum is in place for all age
groups. Even if it is not called a curriculum, infant and
toddler educators plan for the ways in which routines
and experiences promote each child’s development and
learning. With infants and toddlers, desired goals will
focus heavily on fostering secure relationships with

caregivers and family members in ways that are culturally
and linguistically responsive. Although social, emotional,
and language development—including home languages as
much as possible—take center stage, these interactions and
experiences are also laying the foundation for vocabulary
and concepts that support later academic development
across all subject areas. For preschool, kindergarten, and
primary grades, the curriculum will deepen and extend
to reflect children’s more complex knowledge and skills
across all subject areas. Continuing to provide culturally and
linguistically sustaining care and supporting all domains of
development as well as all subject areas remain essential.
6. Demonstrating Professionalism as An Early Childhood
Educator
Although this position statement may offer information and
support to many individuals engaged
in or interested in the support of early childhood development
and learning, it is focused on early
childhood educators. Developmentally appropriate practice
serves as the hallmark of the early
childhood education profession. Fully achieving these
guidelines and effectively promoting all
young children’s development and learning depends on the
establishment of a strong profession
with which all early childhood educators, working across all
settings, identify. Educators use the

guidelines of the profession, including these guidelines, as they
conduct themselves as members
of the profession and serve as informed advocates for young
children and their families as well
as the profession itself. Standard 6 of the Professional
Standards and Competencies for Early
Childhood Educators outlines specific expectations by which
early childhood educators demonstrate
their professionalism. Readers are referred to this statement for
more specific information.
CHILDREN | 29
Recommendations for Implementing
Educators make decisions that result in developmentally
appropriate practice within the context of their
specific program setting, a larger early childhood sector, and
extended systems with institutionalized
policies and practices. To what extent educators can fully

implement developmentally appropriate
practice depends, as efforts to advance equity also do, on
decisions at many levels, including
program administration, higher education, professional
development, research, and public policy.
Decisions about developmentally appropriate practice by early
childhood educators are facilitated
when all aspects of the early childhood sector and overall
system reflect the tenets described
here to support the optimal development and learning of each
and every child. The following
recommendations are offered in that spirit and connect to and
reflect many of the recommendations
highlighted in the Advancing Equity in Early Childhood
Education position statement.
https://www.naeyc.org/resources/position-statements/equity
1. Recommendations for Schools, Family Child
Care Homes, and Other Program Settings
The following recommendations focus on ways that all program
settings can support educators
in implementing developmentally appropriate practice. In large
programs, the leadership (e.g.,

directors, principals, and administrators) may be responsible for
programmatic administrative aspects
discussed here while in small programs and family child care
homes, the educator may hold these
responsibilities in addition to providing care of children and
directing education for the program.
A Support educators’ access to higher education
and professional development opportunities
that allow them to build the knowledge, skills,
and dispositions identified in the Professional
Standards and Competencies for Early
Childhood Educators, and ensure they are
prepared to carry out each of these guidelines.
This may include providing coaching, mentoring,
planning time, and release time to support educators
in their ongoing professional development journeys.
B Support and incentivize professional development
for administrators, supervisors, and those
responsible for assessment and evaluation of early
childhood educators to ensure they understand
the principles and guidelines of developmentally
appropriate practice and use them to inform
decisions regarding program implementation.
C Strive to ensure that program policies facilitate and
support strong, continuous relationships between
teaching staff and children by offering working
conditions and compensation (wages and benefits)
that attract and retain a diverse and qualified staff.
Policies should ensure continuity of care for children, with
groups and child-to-staff ratios that meet the profession’s
guidelines. Across all levels of seniority, staff should reflect

the diversity (including race and ethnicity, language,
and gender) of the community and children served.
D Seek and maintain early learning program
accreditation based on systems that are built to
support developmentally appropriate practice.
E Strive to ensure that the school or program
provides equitable learning opportunities to all
children to help them achieve their full potential
and avoids the use of suspension or expulsion.
F Ensure that the curriculum promotes all domains
of development while providing a coherent and
flexible framework that supports educators in
making adaptations to meet the unique interests
and needs of the children they are serving.
G Provide mentoring and coaching for educators
and administrators to encourage reflection
and continuous learning about the children,
families, and communities served. Educators also
require ongoing opportunities to reflect on their practice,
conduct teacher research, and extend and deepen their
repertoire of effective teaching strategies. Peer support
and coaching groups across age spans and grade levels
can be an important way to support educators’ use of
developmentally appropriate practices and support the
coherence and continuity of children’s learning experiences.
H Actively engage family members and the broader
community in all aspects of program planning
and implementation, recognizing and taking
into account the systemic inequities that can
make it difficult for members of traditionally
marginalized groups to participate.

I Cultivate relationships with community resources,
including local libraries, museums, public parks,
physical and mental health consultants, and
government services that can support the program
and families as well as strengthen civic connections.
CHILDREN | 31
2. Recommendations for Higher Education and Adult
Development
In addition to these recommendations, readers are encouraged to
also refer
to the Unifying Framework for Early Childhood Education
Profession and the
Professional Standards and Competencies for Early Childhood
Educators.
A Adopt and align coursework to the Professional
Standards and Competencies for Early Childhood
Educators, with the appropriate leveling and with
emphasis on equity and diversity, as part of the
overall implementation of the Unifying Framework

for Early Childhood Education Profession.
B Prepare current and prospective early childhood
educators to understand and implement all
components of developmentally appropriate
practice and to provide equitable learning
opportunities for all young children. Ensure
that educators understand the systemic inequities
that have limited many children’s opportunities for
learning and that they are prepared to fully support
the optimal development and learning of each and
every child. Recruit and support teacher candidates
who reflect the diversity of children and families.
C Ensure that clinical practicums, internships,
and apprenticeships for prospective educators
provide experiences working in various settings
(including schools, centers, and family child
care homes) that serve racially, linguistically,
culturally, and economically diverse groups
of children across all age groups, including
children with and without disabilities.
D Ensure that faculty in higher education programs
reflect the diversity of children and families and that
they understand and embrace the principles and
guidelines of developmentally appropriate practices.
3. Recommendations for Policymakers
In addition to these recommendations, readers are encouraged to
also refer to
the Unifying Framework for Early Childhood Education
Profession and the NAEYC
position statement Advancing Equity in Early Childhood

Education .
A Ensure that all those working directly with
children in early childhood settings, from birth
through age 8, have equitable, affordable access
to high-quality professional preparation required
to meet the standards and competencies at all
professional designations. This may include providing
comprehensive scholarships, loan forgiveness, and supports
to early childhood educators working in all settings.
B Provide adequate funding to ensure all children
have equitable access to high-quality early
childhood programs that meet these guidelines
and follow other guidelines established by the
profession, including small class/group sizes
and sufficient numbers of well-prepared and
well-compensated teaching staff to provide the
individualized attention needed to implement
these guidelines effectively (and as stipulated in
the NAEYC Early Learning Program Standards).
C Recognize the limitations of accountability
systems that narrowly focus on skill-based
assessments and revise policies accordingly.
Assessment policies should stipulate the use of authentic
assessments that are developmentally, culturally, and
linguistically appropriate for the children being assessed
and that only use valid and reliable tools designed for a
purpose consistent with the intent of the assessment.73
Assessments should be tied to children’s daily activities,
supported by professional development, and inclusive
of families; they should be purposefully used to make
sound decisions about teaching and learning, identify
significant concerns that may require focused intervention
for individual children, and help programs improve

their educational and developmental interventions.
D Provide more equitable learning opportunities
for all young children, recognizing the need for
comprehensive services for families. Address the
historical inequities in housing, employment, acquisition
of wealth, transportation, personal safety, and health care
that directly impact children’s development and learning.
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4. Recommendations for Research
Much remains to be learned about how to maximize each child’s
development
and learning. Important areas for further study including the
following.
A Identify which instructional strategies (and
other characteristics of early childhood
programs) work most effectively for which
children under which circumstances.
B Identify strategies by which educators can
recognize and effectively address their
implicit biases to provide more equitable
learning opportunities for all children.
C Develop assessment methodologies that
fully capture the complexity and diversity
of children’s development and learning in
authentic, reliable, and valid ways that consider
multiple aspects of children’s identities and
reflect various cultural ways of learning.
D Continue to explore various dimensio ns of young
children’s development and learning, teaching
quality, dimensions of effective teaching, and the
ways in which these play out in different social
and cultural contexts. Because the knowledge base is
constantly growing, further applied research is needed
to revise and refine this definition of developmentally
appropriate practice. The research community plays
an important role in leading and synthesizing research
on child development and learning across multiple
social, cultural, and linguistic contexts and across

specific educational settings that can both inform and be
informed by the practices of early childhood educators.
E Identify areas of further knowledge needed to
help monolingual and multilingual teachers
understand how and why to adapt strategies
and environments to meet the needs of children
who are learning more than one language.
Conclusion
Since the release of Minimum Essentials for Nursery Education
in 1929 (shortly after the founding of NAEYC’s predecessor
organization), this association has connected practice, policy,
and research as it has worked toward the goal of improving the
quality of early childhood education services for young
children.
While many of the recommendations have changed considerably
over the years, the primary focus remains the same: NAEYC
emphasizes the importance of the relationships between children
and well-prepared early childhood educators who understand
and can effectively support all domains of child development
and
learning as they nurture and strengthen connections with the
child’s family and community. We continue to refine the ways
in
which we describe how developmentally appropriate practices
can recognize and support the diversity and complexity of
human
development and promote more equitable learning opportunities
for each and every young child. Over time, with more research
and evidence based on practice, further refinements will be
made to this statement. What will not change is the overarching
goal of ensuring that all young children have equitable access to
developmentally appropriate, high-quality early learning.

CHILDREN | 33
Appendix A: History and Context
NAEYC released its original position statement on
developmentally appropriate practice in the mid-1980s in
response to two specific issues. First, as the number of public
prekindergarten programs began to grow rapidly, so too did
concerns about inappropriate teaching practices and
expectations
for preschool and kindergarten children. Second, NAEYC had
recently launched its national accreditation system for early
learning programs. While the accreditation criteria74 frequently
referenced the term “developmentally appropriate,” initial
program visits quickly revealed wide variation in how the term
was interpreted. The original statement on developmentally
appropriate practice focused on 4- and 5-year-olds75 but was
soon expanded to address birth through age 8.76 Both the
original
statement and the expansion helped to build consensus on the
meaning of the term within the field and provided a definition
for
educators to share with families, policymakers, and others.
NAEYC has regularly updated and reaffirmed its position
statement on developmentally appropriate practice,77 and the
term
continues to be widely used within and beyond the early
childhood
field. Each edition has reflected the context and research of its
time, striving to correct common misinterpretations and to
disseminate current understandings based on emerging science

and professional knowledge.
In many ways, the overriding issue that drove the adoption of
the original statement remains. Far too few young children,
birth through age 8, consistently participate in high-quality
early
childhood education experiences that optimally promote their
development and learning. Indeed, while the developmental
science promotes an understanding of early childhood education
as a period encompassing the years from birth through age 8,
early childhood education and primary or elementary education
are effectively separated in practice. Teaching practices and
expectations for young children too often do not reflect the
most
advanced science regarding creating an effective match between
the learning environment and the learner in early childhood
education settings.78
Although there has been considerable progress in building
public
understanding and support for the importance of the early
childhood years, a consistent professional framework—across
all roles and settings in which early childhood educators work—
remains to be implemented. The lack of a shared, consistent
professional framework has meant that many educators working
with children birth through age 8 are neither effectively
prepared
nor adequately compensated. This lack of a professional
framework
has also contributed to inappropriate instructional practices
and expectations for children, by many educators as well as by
administrators, families, and the public at large. Additionally,
since
the statement was last revised a decade ago, new information
and

understandings prompt the need to update the definition of the
term and to correct misinterpretations that have led to its
misuse.
Notably, over the past few years, the Power to the Profession
initiative (P2P) has established the Unifying Framework
for the Early Childhood Education Profession that defines a
strong, diverse, and effective early childhood professi on. As
one part of the framework, revised Professional Standards and
Competencies for Early Childhood Educators have been defined.
These standards and competencies set forth expectations for
what all early childhood educators should know and be able to
do; they also define key responsibilities across multiple levels
of
the profession. At the time of this statement’s publication, the
work is moving towards adoption, adaptation, alignment, and
implementation of recommendations in state and federal pol icy.
When NAEYC published its first position statement on
developmentally appropriate practice, there were very few
national groups focused on early childhood education. Since
then, the number of organizations and initiatives, both public
and private, in this space has grown exponentially. NAEYC is
proud to collaborate with these partners to advance our shared
goals for children, families, and the early childhood profession.
These organizations and initiatives have also contributed to
the growing knowledge base related to child development
and early education. In the past five years alone, a number of
influential national reports have focused on child development,
learning, and education, with important implications for
defining
high quality in early childhood education. Among them are
Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8:
A Unifying Foundation, published by the Institute of Medicine
and National Research Council in 2015 and three reports
published between 2016 and 2018 by the National Academies

of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine—Parenting Matters:
Supporting Parents of Children Ages 0–8, Promoting the
Educational Success of Children and Youth Learning English:
Promising Futures, and How People Learn II: Learners,
Contexts, and Cultures. In addition, the Aspen Institute National
Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development
published A Nation at Hope in 2019. Each of these reports
provides an extensive literature review that helped to inform the
updates to this statement.
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Reframing “Best” Practice
Unlike previous editions, this revision purposefully does not use
the term “best practice.” Rather, quality practices informed by
evidence, research, and professional judgement are referred to
as guidelines for early childhood educators’ professi onal
practice
and are directly aligned to the Professional Standards and
Competencies for Early Childhood Educators. This reframing
reflects the concern that, especially when applied to specific
practices, ‘best’ has often been used in the United States to
reflect

the dominant culture’s assumptions. The dominant culture
within the U.S. has historically and generally speaking been
that of white, middle-class, heterosexual, Protestant people of
northern European descent. Practices based on specific cultural
assumptions without sufficient consideration of the wide
variation
in individual, social, and cultural contexts can create inherent
bias. Educators who rely on the notion of a single “best”
practice
often make assumptions based on their own experiences, which
may not have involved extensive experiences with a variety
of populations. These assumptions can be biased if they do
not fully consider the specific abilities, interests, experiences,
and motivations of a particular child or their famil y’s culture,
preferences, values, and child-rearing practices when
determining
the most appropriate practice for that child.
This point highlights the complexity of the decision-making
process
that early childhood educators must engage in each day for each
child. Educators must be able to gather the information needed
from the child and family to determine the most appropriate
practice, articulate why it was chosen, and continue to be open
to gathering new information—from the child, family, and the
professional community—to assess its success and reflect on
what adaptations may be needed moving forward. In this sense,
“best” practice does not represent a single practice; what’s best
is a
dynamic and creative set of practices that embrace and bui ld on
the
varied assets children bring to the learning community.
The nature of children’s skills and abilities, experiences,
languages
(including dialects), and cultures is likely to vary greatly within

any single group of young children and over time. Early
childhood
educators must have an extensive repertoire of skills and a
dynamic knowledge base to make decisions, sometimes
balancing
what at first appear to be contradictory demands, in order to
address this wide range of diversity. This concept is not new to
developmentally appropriate practice (described as “both/and”
approaches to decision making in the 1996 and 2009 editions),
but we highlight it here in an effort to reduce the continued
misuse of developmentally appropriate practice, in which
dominant-culture perspectives are equated to “best” practice.
Continuity and Change in This Revision
In many ways, this revision affirms the core concepts of
developmentally appropriate practice, with relatively few
changes
since the 1996 edition. At the same time, this revised statement
marks a profound departure requiring significant changes in
current professional understanding and practice. How can both
statements be true? First, NAEYC continues to underscore three
core considerations in developmentally appropriate practice—
the knowledge that educators must rely on as they intentionally
make decisions each day to guide children’s development and
learning toward challenging yet achievable goals. These include
(1) knowledge of principles of child development and learning
that enable early childhood educators to make general
predictions
about what experiences are likely to be most enriching for
children; (2) knowledge about each child as an individual and
the
implications for how best to effectively adapt and be responsive
to individual variation; and (3) knowledge about the social and
cultural contexts in which each child lives—including family
and
community values, expectations, and linguistic conventions—

that educators must strive to understand in order to ensure that
learning experiences in the program or school are meaningful,
relevant, and respectful for each child and family.
In the past, however, differences in social and cultural contexts
were identified as deficits and gaps rather than assets or
strengths
to be built upon. Additionally, the implications of the
educator’s
personal and professional social and cultural contexts and of the
program setting have largely been ignored. This revised
statement
reflects an equity lens that underscores these two important
aspects in the revised core considerations:
› The principles of child development and learning
acknowledge the critical role of social and cultural contexts
and the fact that there is greater variation among the
“universals” of development than previously recognized.
› Understanding of the social and cultural contexts applies not
only to children but also to educators and to the program
setting. It is essential to recognize that educators and
administrators bring their own social and cultural contexts
to bear in their decision making, and they must be aware of
the implications of their contexts and associated biases—
both implicit and explicit—to avoid taking actions that harm
rather than support each child’s development and learning.
These changes are especially important given the growing
racial, ethnic, cultural, and linguistic diversity of the domestic
and global populations. They are consistent with the NAEYC
position statement on Advancing Equity in Early Childhood
Education and are reflected in the revised principles of child
development and learning and guidelines for practice within

this position statement.
CHILDREN | 35
Appendix B: Glossary
ability—The means or skills to do something. In this position
statement, we use the term “ability” more broadly than the
traditional
focus on cognition or psychometric properties to apply across
all
domains of development. We focus and build on each child’s
abilities,
strengths, and interests, acknowledging disabilities and
developmental
delays while avoiding ableism (see also disability below).
adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)—“Potentially
traumatic events that occur in childhood. Also included
are aspects of the child’s environment that can undermine
their sense of safety, stability, and bonding.”79
agency—A person’s ability to make choices and influence
events. In this
position statement, we emphasize each child’s agency,
especially a child’s

ability to make choices and influence events in the context of
learning
activities, also referred to as autonomy or child-directed
learning.80, 81
assessment—A systematic procedure for obtaining information
from observations, interviews, portfolios, projects, and other
sources, which is used to make informed judgments about
learners’ characteristics, understanding, and development to
implement improved curriculum and teaching practices.82
› authentic assessment. Age-appropriate approaches and
culturally
relevant assessment in a language the child understands —for
infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and children in early grades,
across developmental domains and curriculum areas.
› formal and informal assessment. Formal assessment is
cumulative and is used to measure what a student has learned.
It includes standardized testing, screenings, and diagnostic
evaluation. Informal assessment is ongoing and includes
children’s work samples and quizzes and teachers’ anecdotal
notes/records, observations, audio and video recordings.
› formative assessment and summative assessment. Used
to inform and modify real-time instruction to improve
student outcomes, formative assessment refers to the
teacher practice of monitoring student learning. Summative
assessment takes place at the end of the instructional period
to measure student learning or concept retention.
bias—Attitude or stereotypes that favor one group over another:
› explicit biases. Conscious beliefs and stereotypes that
affect one’s understanding, actions, and decisions.

› implicit biases. Beliefs that affect one’s understanding,
actions, and decisions but in an unconscious manner.
Implicit biases reflect an individual’s socialization and
experiences within broader systemic structures that work to
perpetuate existing systems of privilege and oppression.
› anti-bias. An approach to education that explicitly
works to end all forms of bias and discrimination.83
candidate—Refers to a student who is a candidate for
completion in an early childhood educator professional
preparation program. In some cases, these candidates are
also candidates for professional licensure or certification.
child observation—Observation of a child to gather
information on the child’s development, behavior,
levels of learning, interests, and preferences.
commonality—The current research and understandings of
processes of child development and learning that apply to all
children,
including the understanding that all development and learning
occur
within specific social, cultural, linguistic, and historical
contexts.
competencies—The knowledge, skills, and dispositions
necessary to support high-quality practice across all early
childhood education sectors, settings, and roles.84
content knowledge—The knowledge of subject areas
in the early childhood curriculum to be taught and the
ability to implement effective instructional strategies.
context—The conditions in which something exists or occurs.
This position statement recognizes the interconnectedness of

many contexts (e.g. societal, cultural, historical, family,
learning
environments) and their influences on young children.
continuity of care—A term used to describe programming
and policies that ensure that a child and his or her family are
consistently engaged in high-quality early learning experiences
through a stable relationship with a caregiver who is sensitive
and responsive to the young child’s signals and needs.85
culture—Patterns of beliefs, practices, and traditions associated
with a particular group of people. Culture is increasingly
understood as inseparable from development.86 Individuals
both learn from and contribute to the culture of the groups to
which they belong. Cultures evolve over time, reflecting the
lived
experiences of their members in particular times and places.
culturally relevant—Culturally relevant curriculum and practice
emphasize content and interactions that are meaningful to the
social
and cultural norms, traditions, values, and experiences of the
learners.
culturally responsive—“A culturally responsive teaching
approach
values all children’s cultures and experiences and uses them as
a
springboard for learning. A culturally responsive early
childhood
teacher learns about others’ values, traditions, and ways of
thinking.”87
curriculum—The knowledge, skills, abilities, and understanding
children are to acquire and the plans for the learning
experiences

through which their acquisition occurs. In developmentally
appropriate practice, the curriculum helps young children
achieve
goals that are developmentally and educationally significant.
developmentally appropriate practice (DAP)—Refers
to a framework of principles and guidelines for practice that
promotes young children’s optimal learning and development.
DAP is a way of framing a teacher’s intentional decision
making.
It begins with three Core Considerations: (1) what is known
about
general processes of child development and learning; (2) what
is known about the child as an individual who is a member of a
particular family and community; and (3) what is known about
the social and cultural contexts in which the learning occurs.
disability or developmental delay—Legally defined for young
children under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA),
disabilities include intellectual disability; hearing, speech or
language,
visual, and/or orthopedic impairment; autism; and traumatic
brain
injury. Under IDEA, states define developmental delays to
include
delays in physical, cognitive, communication, social or
emotional,
or adaptive development. These legal definitions are important
for
determining access to early intervention and early childhood
special
education services. The consequences of the definition can vary
based
on the degree to which they are seen as variations in children’s
assets

or the degree to which they are seen as deficits. (See also
ability.) 88
dispositions—Individual attitudes, beliefs, values, habits, and
tendencies toward particular actions. Professional dispositions
are
considered important for effective work in a specific profession
and
are expected of all members of that profession. Critical
dispositions
for educators have been defined in the CCSSO’s Interstate
Teacher
Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC) Standards
and in the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
(NBPTS). NBPTS dispositions for early childhood educators
include collaboration, respect, integrity, honesty, fairness, and
compassion; educators with these characteristics promote
equity,
fairness, and appreciation of diversity in their classrooms.89
diversity—Variations among individuals, as well as within and
across groups of individuals, in terms of their backgrounds and
lived experiences. These experiences are related to social
identities,
including race, ethnicity, language, sexual orientation, gender
identity
and expression, social and economic status, religion, ability
status, and
country of origin. The terms diverse and diversity are
sometimes used
as euphemisms for non-white. NAEYC specifically rejects this
usage

which implies Whiteness is the norm against which diversity is
defined.
early childhood—The first period in child development,
beginning at birth. Although developmental periods do not
rigidly
correspond to chronological age, early childhood is generally
defined as including all children from birth through age 8.90
early childhood education (ECE)—A term defined
using the developmental definition of birth through
approximately age 8, regardless of programmatic, regulatory,
funding, or delivery sectors or mechanisms.
early childhood educator—An individual who cares for and
promotes the learning, development, and well-being of children
birth through age 8 in all early childhood education settings,
while meeting the qualifications of the profession and having
mastery of its specialized knowledge, skills, and competencies.
early childhood education profession—Members of the
profession care for and promote the learning, development,
and well-being of children birth through age 8 to establish a
foundation for lifelong learning and success. Early childhood
educator professional preparation programs prepare educators
to be accountable for the following responsibilities:91
› Planning and implementing intentional, developmentally
appropriate learning experiences that promote the social and
emotional development, physical development, health, cognitive
development, and general learning competencies of each child
› Establishing and maintaining a safe, caring,
inclusive, and healthy learning environment
› Observing, documenting and assessing children’s learning and

development using guidelines established by the profession
› Developing reciprocal, culturally responsive relationships
with children’s families and communities
› Developing strong positive relationships
with the young children they serve
› Advocating for the needs of children and their families
› Advancing and advocating for an equitable, diverse,
and effective early childhood education profession
› Engaging in reflective practice and continuous learning
early learning settings—These include programs serving
children
from birth through age 8. Setting refers to the locations in
which
early childhood education takes place—child care centers, child
care
homes, elementary schools, religious-based centers and many
others.
equity—The state that would be achieved if individuals fared
the same
way in society regardless of race, gender, class, language,
disability, or
any other social or cultural characteristic. In practice, equity
means all
children and families receive necessary supports in a timely
fashion so
they can develop their full intellectual, social, and physical
potential.
Equity is not the same as equality. Equal treatment given to

individuals at unequal starting points is inequitable. Instead
of equal treatment, NAEYC aims for equal opportunity. This
requires considering individuals’ and groups’ starting points,
then distributing resources equitably (not equally) to meet
needs.
Attempting to achieve equality of opportunity without
considering
historic and present inequities is ineffective, unjust, and
unfair.92
funds of knowledge—Essential cultural practices and bodies of
knowledge embedded in the daily practices and routines of
families.93
inclusion—Embodied by the values, policies, and practices that
support the right of every infant and young child and their
family,
regardless of ability, to participate in a broad range of activities
and contexts as full members of families, communities, and
society. The desired results of inclusive experiences for
children
with and without disabilities and their families include a sense
of belonging and membership, positive social relationships and
friendships, and development and learning to help them reach
their full potential. Although the traditional focus of inclusion
has been on addressing the exclusion of children with
disabilities,
full inclusion seeks to promote justice by ensuring equitable
participation of all historically marginalized children.94
individuality—The characteristics and experiences unique to
each
child, within the context of their family and community, that
have
implications for how best to support their development and
learning.

interactive media—Digital and analog materials, including
software programs, applications (apps), broadcast and streaming
media, some children’s television programming, e-books,
the internet, and other forms of content designed to facilitate
active and creative use by young children and to encourage
social engagement with other children and adults.95
microaggressions—Everyday verbal, nonverbal, or
environmental
messages that implicitly contain a negative stereotype or are in
some way dehumanizing or othering. These hidden messages
serve to invalidate the recipients’ group identity, to question
their
experience, to threaten them, or to demean them on a personal
or group level. Microaggressions may result from implicit or
explicit biases. People who commit microaggressions may view
their remarks as casual observations or even compliments
and may not recognize the harm they can cause.96
CHILDREN | 37
norm, normative—The definition of certain actions, identities,
and outcomes as the standard (“the norm” or “normal”), with
everything else as outside the norm. For example, the terms
White
normativity or heteronormative refer to instances in which
Whiteness and heterosexuality are considered normal or
preferred.
Such norms wrongly suggest that all other races, ethnicities and
sexual orientations are outside the norm or are less preferable.

Art
activities focused on filling out a family tree, with designated
spaces
for “mommy,” “daddy,” “grandma,” and “grandpa,” for
example, may
assume a two-parent, heterosexual household as the normative
family structure. (While some research-based norms provide
guidance regarding healthy child development and appropriate
educational activities and expectations, these norms have too
often
been derived through research that has only or primarily
included
nonrepresentative samples of children or has been conducted
primarily by nonrepresentative researchers. Additional research,
by a
more representative selection of researchers and theorists, is
needed to
develop new norms that will support equitably educating all
children.)
pedagogical content knowledge—Knowledge of academic
disciplines and the ability to create meaningful learning
experiences for each child by using effective teaching
strategies.
play—A universal, innate, and essential human activity that
children engage in for pleasure, enjoyment, and recreation.
Play,
solitary or social, begins during infancy and develops in
increasing
complexity through childhood. Play integrates and supports
children’s development and learning across cognitive, physical,
social, and emotional domains, and across curriculum content
areas. Play can lead to inquiry and discovery and facilitate
future
learning. While there are multiple and evolving theories about

the types and stages of play, as well as about the teacher’s role
in
play, the professions of developmental psychology and of early
childhood education have long recognized play as essential for
young children’s development of symbolic and representational
thinking, construction and organization of mental concepts,
social
expression and communication, imagination, and problem-
solving.
position statement—Adopted by the Governing Board to state
the
NAEYC’s positions on issues related to early childhood
education
practice, policy, and/or professional development for which
there
are controversial or critical opinions. Position statements are
developed through a consensus-building approach that seeks to
convene diverse perspectives and areas of expertise related to
the
issue and provide opportunities for members and others to
provide
input and feedback. (NAEYC, About Position Statements,
NAEYC.
org/resources/position-statements/about-position-statements).
professional development—A continuum of learning and
support opportunities designed to prepare individuals with the
knowledge, skills, practices, and dispositions needed in a
specific
profession. Professional development for early childhood
educators
includes both professional preparation and ongoing professional
development; training, education, and technical assistance;
university/college credit-bearing coursework, preservice and
in-service training sessions; observation with feedback from

a colleague and peer learning communities; and mentoring,
coaching, and other forms of job-related technical assistance.
professional judgement—The application of professional
knowledge, professional experience, and ethical standards in
context
with understanding, analysis, and reflection. Early childhood
educators
exercise professional judgement to make intentional, informed
decisions about appropriate practice in specific circumstances.
professional preparation program—A program that
culminates in a degree, certificate, or credential that provides
candidates with the appropriate level of mastery of the agreed-
upon
standards and competencies. Early childhood educator
professional
preparation programs are responsible for preparing educators
serving children birth through age 8 across settings.
race—A social construct that categorizes and ranks groups of
people on the basis of skin color and other physical features.
The
scientific consensus is that using the social construct of race to
divide
people into distinct and different groups has no biological
basis.97
reciprocal relationships—In reciprocal relationships
between practitioners and families, there is a mutual
respect, cooperation, shared responsibilities, and negotiation
of conflicts to achieve shared goals for children.
standards—The national standards formally adopted by a
profession to define the essentials of high-quality practice
for all members of the profession. They may be applied in the

development of national accreditation, state program approval,
individual licensing, and other aspects of professional
development
systems. They provide the unifying framework for core as well
as specialized or advanced knowledge and competencies.
structural inequities—The systemic disadvantage of one or
more social groups compared to systemic advantage for other
groups with which they coexist. The term encompasses policy,
law,
governance, and culture and refers to race, ethnicity, gender or
gender identity, class, sexual orientation, and other domains.98
technology—Broadly defined as anything human-made that is
used to solve a problem or fulfill a desire. Technology can be an
object, a system, or a process that results in the modification of
the natural world to meet human needs and wants. Additionally,
technology includes digital tools like computers, tablets, apps,
e-readers, smartphones, TVs, DVDs and music players,
handheld
games, cameras, digital microscopes, interactive whiteboards,
electronic toys, non-screen-based tangible technology, and
simple
robots. Familiar analog tools found in early childhood
classrooms
include audio recorders, VHS and cassette players, record
players,
headphones, crayons and pencils, scissors, rulers, blocks, and
magnifying glasses. Social media, email, video conferencing,
cloud collaboration tools, e-portfolios, blogs, pod casts, and
other
methods of communication are used by young children.99
tiered intervention approaches—“also called response-to-
intervention models, have been used to stimulate the learning of
children in the areas of reading, mathematics, and

socioemotional
development. These approaches make use of ongoing formative
assessment to determine which children have mastered specific
skills or knowledge and which might benefit from additional,
more intensive instruction and learning opportunities.”100
Universal Design—A concept that can be used to support access
to environments in many different types of settings through the
removal of physical and structural barriers. Universal Design
for Learning (UDL) reflects practices that provide multiple and
varied formats for instruction and learning. UDL principles and
practices help to ensure that every young child has access to
learning environments, to typical home or educational routines
and activities, and to the general education curriculum.
young children—Refers to children in the period of early
childhood development, from birth through approximately age
8. Although developmental periods do not rigidly correspond
to chronological age, early childhood is generally defined
as including all children from birth through age 8.
https://www.naeyc.org/resources/position-statements
https://www.naeyc.org/resources/position-statements
Appendix C: Acknowledgements
Informed by and reflective of the needs and strengths expressed
by early childhood educators
themselves, the leaders listed on this page contributed
invaluable time, expertise, and skill to support
the development of the Developmentally Appropriate Practice
position statement. They were also

responsible for the development of the Advancing Equity in
Early Childhood Education position
statement that was published in September 2019. The staff and
Governing Board at NAEYC are
deeply grateful for their extraordinary contributions and
leadership. NAEYC also thanks the many
NAEYC members and others who provided input and feedback
as this statement was developed.
Iliana Alanís,* University of Texas San Antonio
Chris Amirault, Tulsa Educare, Inc. (OK)
Amy Blessing, Malpass Corner Elementary School (NC)
Garnett S. Booker III, Eagle Academy
Public Charter School (DC)
Anthony Broughton,* Claflin University (SC)
Isauro M. Escamilla Calan,* Las Americas
Early Education School (CA)
Dina C. Castro,* University of North Texas
Lillian Durán, University of Oregon
Linda M. Espinosa, University of Missouri
Kelly Hantak,* University of Missouri Kansas City
Elisa Huss-Hage,* Owens Community College (OH)

Iheoma U. Iruka, HighScope Educational
Research Foundation (MI)
Tamara Johnson,* Malaika Early Learning Center (WI)
Sarah LeMoine, ZERO TO THREE (DC)
Megan Pamela Ruth Madison,* Center for
Racial Justice in Education (NY)
Ben Mardell, Harvard University (MA)
Lauren E. Mueller, City of St. Charles School District (MO)
Krista Murphy,* Orange County Department of Education (CA)
Bridget Murray, Henderson Community College (KY)
Alissa Mwenelupembe,* Ball State University (IN)
Nichole Parks,* Leading for Children (AR)
Yohana Quiroz,* Felton Institute (CA)
Hakim Rashid, Howard University (DC)
Aisha Ray, Erikson Institute (IL)
Jeanne L. Reid, Teachers College, Columbia University (NY)
Shannon Riley-Ayers, The Nicholson Foundation (NJ)
Nicol Russell,* Teaching Strategies, LLC (AZ)
Christine M. Snyder, High Scope Educational

Research Foundation (MI)
Jan Stevenson,* Georgia Dept. of Education/
Division for Special Education
Crystal Swank, Truckee Meadows Community College (NV)
Ruby Takanishi, New America (NY)
Tarajean Yazzie-Mintz, First Light
Education Project, LLC (CO)
Marlene Zepeda, California State University – Los Angeles
* Denotes current and former members of the Early Learning
Systems Committee of the NAEYC Governing Board.
Senior Advisors to the DAP/Diversity
and Equity Workgroup:
Sue Bredekamp and Carol Copple, editors of previous
editions of Developmentally Appropriate Practice (NAEYC)
Louise Derman Sparks and Julie Olsen Edwards,
editors of Anti-Bias Education (NAEYC)
The workgroup and committee were primarily supported
by NAEYC staff members Barbara Willer, Mary Harrill,
Lauren Hogan, and Marica Cox Mitchell.
https://www.naeyc.org/resources/position-statements/dap
https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/books/developmentally-
appropriate-practice-early-childhood-programs-serving-children
https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/books/anti-bias-education

CHILDREN | 39
Endnotes
1 American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees;
American Federation of Teachers; Associate Degree Early
Childhood Teacher Educators; Child Care Aware of America;
Council for Professional Recognition; Division for Early
Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children; Early
Care and Education Consortium; National Association for
Family Child Care; National Association for the Education
of Young Children; National Association of Early Childhood
Teacher Educators; National Association of Elementary School
Principals; National Education Association; National Head
Start Association; Service Employees International Union; &
ZERO TO THREE. 2020. Unifying Framework for the Early
Childhood Education Profession. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
http://powertotheprofession.org/unifying-framework.
2 NAEYC (National Association for the Education of
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3 NAEYC. 2019. Advancing Equity in Early Childhood
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4 Cannon, J., Kilburn, M., Karoly, L., Mattox, T., Muchow, A.,
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71 Ritchie, S., & Gutmann, L. 2014. FirstSchool: Transforming
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73 American Educational Research Association. 2014.
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75 NAEYC. 1986. Developmentally Appropriate Practice for
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Developmentally Appropriate Practice for Children Birth
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Birth Through Age 8: A Unifying Foundation; NASEM. 2018.
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80 J.K. Adair. 2014. “Agency and Expanding Capabilities in
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81 Australian Government Department of Education and
Training. 2009. Belonging, Being, and Becoming: The
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docs.education.gov.au/documents/belonging-being-
becoming-early-years-learning-framework-australia.
82 Hansel, L. 2019. “Intentional and Supportive: Appropriate
Uses of Early Assessment.” Young Children 74 (3): 4-5.
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articles/41-curriculum-as-window-and-mirror
https://nationalseedproject.org/about-us/timeline/26-latest-
articles/41-curriculum-as-window-and-mirror
https://docs.education.gov.au/documents/belonging-being-
becoming-early-years-learning-framework-australia

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83 Derman-Sparks, L., Olson Edwards, J., & Goins,
C.M. 2010. Anti-Bias Education for Young Children
and Ourselves. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
84 NAEYC. 2016. Build It Better: Indicators of Progress
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85 Reidt-Parker, J., & Chainski, M.J. 2017. “The Importance of
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86 Reid, J.L., Kagan, S.L., & Scott-Little, C. 2017. “New
Understandings of Cultural Diversity and the Implications
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Rogoff, B. 2009. The Cultural Nature of Human
Development. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
87 Bohart, H., & Procopio, R., eds. 2018. Spotlight on Young
Children: Observation and Assessment. Washington, DC:
National Association for the Education of Young Children.
88 Beneke, M., Newton, J., Vinh, M., Blanchard, S.,
& Kemp, P. 2019. “Practicing Inclusion, Doing

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89 CCSSO (Council of Chief State School Officers). 2013.
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(InTASC) Model Core Teaching Standards and Learning
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Teacher Development. Washington, DC: CCSSO; NBPTS
(National Board for Professional Teaching Standards). 2012.
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https://nbpts.org/wp-content/uploads/EC-GEN.pdf.
90 NAEYC. 2016. Build It Better: Indicators of Progress
to Support Integrated Early Childhood Professional
Development Systems. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
91 American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees;
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Care and Education Consortium; National Association for
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Teacher Educators; National Association of Elementary School
Principals; National Education Association; National Head
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& Kemp, P. 2019. “Practicing Inclusion, Doing Justice:
Disability, Identity, and Belonging in Early Childhood.”
ZERO TO THREE Journal 39 (3): 26−34.
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and Interactive Media as Tools in Early Childhood
Programs Serving Children from Birth through Age 8.
Joint position statement. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
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We’ve
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Children.” Young Children 72 (4): 72–78; Early Childhood
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High-Quality STEM Experiences for All Young Learners.
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Continuity-of-Care-Nov-2015.pdf
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https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.62.4.271
http://www.iste.org
Join with NAEYC and the early
childhood education profession
to support the implementation
of developmentally appropriate
practice to foster young children’s
joyful learning and to maximize the
opportunities for each and every
child to achieve their full potential.
Find additional resources to help
bring the statement to life at
NAEYC.org/DAP

#naeycDAP
http://NAEYC.org/DAP
Advancing Equity
in Early Childhood Education
National Association for the Education of Young Children
Position Statement
Adopted by the NAEYC National
Governing Board April 2019
All children have the right to equitable learning opportunities
that
help them achieve their full potential as engaged learners and
valued members of society. Thus, all early childhood educators
have
a professional obligation to advance equity. They can do this
best
when they are effectively supported by the early learning
settings
in which they work and when they and their wider communities
embrace diversity and full inclusion as strengths, uphold
fundamental principles of fairness and justice, and work to
eliminate
structural inequities that limit equitable learning opportunities.
Disponible en Español: NAEYC.org/equidad
#EquityinECE
http://NAEYC.org/equidad

NAEYC Position Statement
Permissions
NAEYC accepts requests for limited use of our copyrighted
material.
For permission to reprint, adapt, translate, or otherwise reuse
and
repurpose content from the final published document, review
our
guidelines at NAEYC.org/resources/permissions.
Advancing Equity in Early Childhood Education: A Position
Statement
of the National Association for the Education of Young
Children.
of
Young Children. All rights reserved.NAEYC.org
Advancing Equity in Early Childhood Education
3 Purpose
5 Position
6 Recommendations for Everyone
7 Recommendations for Early Childhood Educators
Create a Caring, Equitable Community of Engaged Learners
Establish Reciprocal Relationships with Families
Observe, Document, and Assess Children’s Learning and
Development
Advocate on Behalf of Young Children, Families, and the Early
Childhood Profession

9 Recommendations for Administrators of Schools, Centers,
Family
Child Care Homes, and Other Early Childhood Education
Settings
10 Recommendations for those Facilitating Educator
Preparation and Professional Development
11 Recommendations for Public Policymakers
12 The Evidence for this Position Statement
The Social-Cultural Context of Child Development and
Learning
16 Conclusion
Acknowledgements
17 Definitions of Key Terms
19 Endnotes
http://NAEYC.org/resources/permissions
https://www.NAEYC.org
CHILDREN | 3
Purpose

This position statement is one of five foundational documents
NAEYC has developed in
collaboration with the early childhood profession. With its
specific focus on advancing
equity in early childhood education, this statement complements
and supports the
other foundational documents that (1) define developmentally
appropriate practice, (2)
set professional standards and competencies for early childhood
educators, (3) define
the profession’s code of ethics, and (4) outline standards for
early learning programs.
These foundational statements are grounded in NAEYC’s core
values that
emphasize diversity and inclusion and that respect the dignity
and worth of
each individual. The statements are built upon a growing body
of research and
professional knowledge that underscores the complex and
critical ways in which
early childhood educators promote early learning through their
relationships—
with children, families, and colleagues—that are embedded in a
broader societal
context of inequities in which implicit and explicit bias are
pervasive.
Developmentally
Appropriate
Practice (DAP)
Professional
Standards and
Competencies for

Early Childhood
Educators
Code of
Ethical Conduct
Advancing
Equity in Early
Childhood
Education
NAEYC
Early
Childhood
Program
Standards
NAEYC’s Foundational Documents
conduct
shared/downloads/PDFs/accreditation/early-
learning/overview _of_the_standards.pdf
direction

4 | ADVANCING EQUITY IN EARLY CHILDHOOD
EDUCATION
Advancing equity in early childhood education requires
understanding this broader societal context, these biases,
and the ways in which historical and current inequities have
shaped the profession, as they have shaped our nation. The
biases we refer to here are based on race, class, culture,
gender, sexual orientation, ability and disability, language,
national origin, indigenous heritage, religion, and other
identities. They are rooted in our nation’s social, political,
economic, and educational structures. Precisely because
these biases are both individual and institutional, addressing
structural inequities requires attention to both interpersonal
dynamics—the day-to-day relationships and interactions at
the core of early childhood education practice—and systemic
influences—the uneven distribution of power and privilege
inherent in public and private systems nationwide, including
in early childhood education.
No single individual, leader, or organization has all the
answers related to equity. NAEYC presents this statement after
significant reflection and with humility and awareness of our
own history and limitations, in keeping with our core belief in
continuous quality improvement. In this statement, we share
our commitment to becoming a more diverse, high-performing,
and inclusive organization serving a more diverse, high-
performing, and inclusive profession. Our goal is to nurture
a more diverse and inclusive generation of young children
who thrive through their experiences of equitable learning
opportunities in early learning programs. We commit—both
individually and collectively—to continuous learning based

on personally reflecting on how our beliefs and actions have
been shaped by our experiences of the systems of privilege
and oppression in which we operate and based on respectfully
listening to others’ perspectives. Although this statement
may be useful to an international audience, we caution that
it is based on the context of early childhood education within
the United States. In the spirit of learning we have included
a list of definitions of terms, many of which are referenced in
the document, as well as others that are often used in equity
discussions. These definitions begin on page 17.
This position statement outlines steps needed to
1. provide high-quality early learning programs that build on
each child’s unique individual and family strengths, cultural
background, language(s), abilities, and experiences and
2. eliminate differences in educational outcomes
as a result of who children are, where they live,
and what resources their families have.
The document begins with the statement of NAEYC’s position
regarding the importance of equity in early childhood
education. It then provides recommendations for advancing
equity, beginning with recommendations for self-reflection
that apply to everyone. Specific recommendations are also
provided for early childhood educators; administrators
of schools, centers, family child care homes, and other
early childhood education settings; facilitators of educator
preparation and professional development in higher
education and other spheres; and public policymakers. The
recommendations are followed by a synthesis of current early
childhood education research through the lenses of equity
and NAEYC core values; this discussion of evidence identifies
principles of child development and learning and how they are

impacted by social-cultural contexts.
Purpose continued
CHILDREN | 5
Position
All children have the right to equitable learning opportunities
that enable them to
achieve their full potential as engaged learners and valued
members of society.
Advancing the right to equitable learning opportunities
requires recognizing and dismantling the systems of bias that
accord privilege to some and are unjust to others. Advancing
the full inclusion of all individuals across all social identities
will take sustained efforts far beyond those of early childhood
educators alone. Early childhood educators, however, have
a unique opportunity and obligation to advance equity. With
the support of the early education system as a whole, they can
create early learning environments that equitably distribute
learning opportunities by helping all children experience
responsive interactions that nurture their full range of social,
emotional, cognitive, physical, and linguistic abilities; that
reflect and model fundamental principles of fairness and
justice; and that help them accomplish the goals of anti -bias
education. Each child will
› demonstrate self-awareness, confidence, family
pride, and positive social identities;

› express comfort and joy with human diversity, use
accurate language for human differences, and form deep,
caring human connections across diverse backgrounds;
› increasingly recognize and have language to describe
unfairness (injustice) and understand that unfairness hurts;
› have the will and the skills to act, with others or alone,
against prejudice and/or discriminatory actions.1
Early childhood education settings—including centers, family
child care homes, and schools—are often among children’s
first communities beyond their families. These settings offer
important contexts for children’s learning. They should be
environments in which children learn that they are valued by
others, learn how to treat others with fairness and respect, and
learn how to embrace human differences rather than ignore or
fear them.
When early childhood educators use inclusive teaching
approaches, they demonstrate that they respect diversity
and value all children’s strengths. Early childhood educators
can model humility and a willingness to learn by being
accountable for any negative impacts of their own biases on
their interactions with children and their families. They can
work to ensure that all children have equitable access to the
learning environment, the materials, and the adult–child
and child–child interactions that help children thrive. Early
childhood educators can recognize and support each child’s
unique strengths, seeking through personal and collective
reflection to avoid biases—explicit or implicit—that may affect
their decision making related to children.
To effectively advance equity and embrace diversity and full
inclusion, early childhood educators need work settings that

also embrace these goals—not only for the children and families
served but also for the educators themselves. Early childhood
educators should be well prepared in their professional
knowledge, skills, and dispositions to teach in diverse, inclusive
settings. They also need to be supported by, and to advocate
for, equity- and diversity-focused public policies. Each of these
areas is addressed more fully in the recommendations below.
Although the primary focus of this statement is on equitable
learning opportunities for young children, we stress that
such opportunities depend on equitable treatment of early
childhood educators as well. We make these recommendations
understanding the critical importance of building a recognized
early childhood profession and a system with sufficient funding
to ensure that all its members receive equitable compensation
and professional recognition that reflect the importance of
their work.
Recognizing that both institutional and interpersonal systems
must change, our recommendations begin with a focus on
individual reflection. Across all roles and settings, advancing
equity requires a dedication to self-reflection, a willingness to
respectfully listen to others’ perspectives without interruption
or defensiveness, and a commitment to continuous learning
to improve practice. Members of groups that have historically
enjoyed advantages must be willing to recognize the often-
unintended consequences of ignorance, action, and inaction
and how they may contribute to perpetuating existing systems
of privilege. It is also important to recognize the many
reactions associated with marginalization that begin in early
childhood and range from internalization to resistance.2
The following general recommendations apply to everyone
involved in any aspect of early childhood education.

EDUCATION
Recommendations for Everyone
1. Build awareness and understanding of your
culture, personal beliefs, values, and biases.
Recognize that everyone holds some types of bias
based on their personal background and experiences.
Even if you think of yourself as unbiased, reflect on
the impacts of racism, sexism, classism, ableism,
heterosexism, xenophobia, and other systems of
oppression affecting you and the people around you.
Identify where your varied social identities have
provided strengths and understandings based on
your experiences of both injustice and privilege.
2. Recognize the power and benefits of diversity
and inclusivity. Carefully observe and listen to
others (children, families, colleagues). Expand your
knowledge by considering diverse experiences and
perspectives without generalizing or stereotyping.
3. Take responsibility for biased actions, even if
unintended, and actively work to repair the
harm. When you commit a biased action, be ready
and willing to be held accountable. Resist the urge to
become defensive, especially as a member of a privileged
group. Before making judgments, take responsibility for
recognizing what you don’t know or understand and use the
opportunity to learn and reflect. Be willing to constructively
share feedback and discuss alternative approaches
when observing potentially biased actions by others.
4. Acknowledge and seek to understand structural
inequities and their impact over time. Take action

when outcomes vary significantly by social identities (e.g.,
lopsided achievement test scores, number and frequency
of suspensions or expulsions that disproportionately target
African American and Latino boys, or engagement with
certain materials and activities by gender). Look deeper
at how your expectations, practices, curriculum, and/or
policies may contribute (perhaps unwittingly) to inequitable
outcomes for children and take steps to change them.
5. View your commitment to cultural responsiveness
as an ongoing process. It is not a one-time matter of
mastering knowledge of customs and practices, but an
enduring responsibility to learn and reflect based on direct
experiences with children, their families, and others.
6. Recognize that the professional knowledge
base is changing. There is growing awareness of the
limitations of child development theories and research
based primarily on a normative perspective of White,
middle-class children without disabilities educated in
predominantly English-language schools.3, 4 Keep up to
date professionally as more strengths-based approaches
to research and practice are articulated and as narrowly
defined normative approaches to child development
and learning are questioned. Be willing to challenge the
use of outdated or narrowly defined approaches—for
example, in curriculum, assessment policies and practices,
or early learning standards. Seek information from
families and communities about their social and cultural
beliefs and practices to supplement your knowledge.

CHILDREN | 7
Recommendations for Early Childhood Educators5
Create a Caring, Equitable Community
of Engaged Learners
1. Uphold the unique value and dignity of each child
and family. Ensure that all children see themselves
and their daily experiences, as well as the daily lives of
others within and beyond their community, positively
reflected in the design and implementation of pedagogy,
curriculum, learning environment, interactions,
and materials. Celebrate diversity by acknowledging
similarities and differences and provide perspectives
that recognize beauty and value across differences.
2. Recognize each child’s unique strengths and
support the full inclusion of all children—
given differences in culture, family structure,
language, racial identity, gender, abilities and
disabilities, religious beliefs, or economic class.
Help children get to know, recognize, and support one
another as valued members of the community. Take
care that no one feels bullied, invisible, or unnoticed.
3. Develop trusting relationships with children
and nurture relationships among them while
building on their knowledge and skills. Embrace
children’s cultural experiences and the languages and
customs that shape their learning. Treat each child
with respect. Eliminate language or behavior that is
stereotypical, demeaning, exclusionary, or judgmental.
4. Consider the developmental, cultural, and
linguistic appropriateness of the learning

environment and your teaching practices for each
child. Offer meaningful, relevant, and appropriately
challenging activities across all interests and abilities.
Children of all genders, with and without disabilities,
should see themselves and their families, languages,
and cultures regularly and meaningfully reflected in the
environment and learning materials. Counter common
stereotypes and misinformation. Remember that the
learning environment and its materials reflect what you do
and do not value by what is present and what is omitted.
5. Involve children, families, and the community
in the design and implementation of learning
activities. Doing this builds on the funds of knowledge
that children and families bring as members of their
cultures and communities while also sparking children’s
interest and engagement. Recognizing the community as
a context for learning can model citizen engagement.
6. Actively promote children’s agency. Provide each
child with opportunities for rich, engaging play and
opportunities to make choices in planning and carrying
out activities. Use open-ended activities that encourage
children to work together and solve problems to support
learning across all areas of development and curriculum.
7. Scaffold children’s learning to achieve
meaningful goals. Set challenging but achievable
goals for each child. Build on children’s strengths and
interests to affirm their identities and help them gain
new skills, understanding, and vocabulary. Provide
supports as needed while you communicate—both
verbally and nonverbally—your authentic confidence
in each child’s ability to achieve these goals.
8. Design and implement learning activities using

language(s) that the children understand.
Support the development of children’s first languages
while simultaneously promoting proficiency in English.
Similarly, recognize and support dialectal differences
as children gain proficiency in the Standard Academic
English they are expected to use in school.6
9. Recognize and be prepared to provide different
levels of support to different children depending
on what they need. For example, some children may
need more attention at certain times or more support
for learning particular concepts or skills. Differentiating
support in a strengths-based way is the most equitable
approach because it helps to meet each child’s needs.
10. Consider how your own biases (implicit and
explicit) may be contributing to your interactions
and the messages you are sending children.
Also reflect on whether biases may contribute to
your understanding of a situation. How might they
be affecting your judgment of a child’s behavior,
especially a behavior you find negative or challenging?
What messages do children take from your verbal and
nonverbal cues about themselves and other children?
Recognize that all relationships are reciprocal, and
thus that your behavior impacts that of children.
11. Use multi-tiered systems of support. Collaborate
with early childhood special educators and other allied
education and health professionals as needed. Facilitate
each professional establishing a relationship with each
child to foster success and maximize potential.

EDUCATION
Establish Reciprocal Relationships with Families
1. Embrace the primary role of families in
children’s development and learning. Recognize
and acknowledge family members based on how
families define their members and their roles. Seek
to learn about and honor each family’s child-rearing
values, languages (including dialects), and culture.
Gather information about the hopes and expectations
families have for their children’s behavior, learning,
and development so that you can support their goals.
2. Uphold every family’s right to make decisions
for and with their children. If a family’s desire
appears to conflict with your professional knowledge
or presents an ethical dilemma, work with the family
to learn more, identify common goals, and strive
to establish mutually acceptable strategies.
3. Be curious, making time to learn about the families
with whom you work. This includes learning about their
languages, customs, activities, values, and beliefs so you
can provide a culturally and linguistically responsive and
sustaining learning environment. It requires intentionally
reaching out to families who, for a range of reasons, may
not initiate or respond to traditional approaches (e.g., paper
and pencil/electronic surveys, invitations to open houses,
parent–teacher conferences) to interact with educators.
4. Maintain consistently high expectations for
family involvement, being open to multiple
and varied forms of engagement and providing
intentional and responsive supports. Ask families
how they would like to be involved and what supports

may be helpful. Families may face challenges (e.g.,
fear due to immigration status, less flexibility during
the workday, child care or transportation issues)
that may require a variety of approaches to building
engagement. Recognize that it is your responsibility as
an educator to connect with families successfully so that
you can provide the most culturally and linguistically
sustaining learning environment for each child.
5. Communicate the value of multilingualism to
all families. All children benefit from the social and
cognitive advantages of multilingualism and multiliteracy.
Make sure families of emergent bilinguals understand
the academic benefits and the significance of supporting
their child’s home language as English is introduced
through the early childhood program, to ensure their
children develop into fully bilingual and biliterate adults.
Observe, Document, and Assess Children’s
Learning and Development
1. Recognize the potential of your own culture
and background affecting your judgment when
observing, documenting, and assessing children’s
behavior, learning, or development. Approach a
child’s confusing or challenging behavior as an opportunity
for inquiry. Consider whether these may be behaviors
that work well for the child’s own home or community
context but differ or conflict with your family culture
and/or the culture of your setting. How can you adapt
your own expectations and learning environment to
incorporate each child’s cultural way of being? Also,
consider the societal and structural perspectives: How
might poverty, trauma, inequities, and other adverse
conditions affect how children negotiate and respond to
their world? How can you help each child build resilience?

2. Use authentic assessments that seek to identify
children’s strengths and provide a well-rounded
picture of development. For children whose first
language is not English, conduct assessments in as
many of the children’s home languages as possible.
If you are required to use an assessment tool that
has not been established as reliable or valid for the
characteristics of a given child, recognize the limitations
of the findings and strive to make sure they are not
used as a key factor in high-stakes decisions.
3. Focus on strengths. Develop the skill to observe a
child’s environment from the child’s perspective. Seek to
change what you can about your own behaviors to support
that child instead of expecting the child to change first.
Recognize that it is often easier to focus on what a child
isn’t doing compared with peers than it is to see what that
child can do in a given context (or could do with support).
Advocate on Behalf of Young Children, Families,
and the Early Childhood Profession
1. Speak out against unfair policies or practices
and challenge biased perspectives. Work to
embed fair and equitable approaches in all aspects of
early childhood program delivery, including standards,
assessments, curriculum, and personnel practices.
2. Look for ways to work collectively with
others who are committed to equity. Consider
it a professional responsibility to help challenge and
change policies, laws, systems, and institutional
practices that keep social inequities in place.

CHILDREN | 9
Recommendations for Administrators of Schools, Centers,
Family
Child Care Homes, and Other Early Childhood Education
Settings
1. Provide high-quality early learning services that
demonstrate a commitment to equitable outcomes
for all children. Arrange budgets to equitably meet
the needs of children and staff. Recognize that high-
quality programs will look different in different settings
because they reflect the values, beliefs, and practices
of specific children, families, and communities.
2. Take proactive steps with measurable goals to
recruit and retain educators and leaders who
reflect the diversity of children and families
served and who meet professional expectations.
All children benefit from a diverse teaching and leadership
staff, but it is especially important for children whose
social identities have historically been marginalized
to see people like them as teachers and leaders.
3. Employ staff who speak the languages of
the children and families served. When many
languages are spoken by the families served, establish
relationships with agencies or organizations that can
assist with translation and interpretation services. Avoid
using the children themselves as translators as much as
possible. Families may also be able to identify someone
they are comfortable including in conversations.

4. Ensure that any formal assessment tools
are designed and validated for use with the
children being assessed. Key characteristics to
consider include age, culture, language, social and
economic status, and ability and disability. Assessors
should also be proficient in the language and culture
in which the assessment is conducted. If appropriate
assessment tools are not available for all children,
interpret the results considering these limitations.
5. Recognize the value of serving a diverse group
of children and strive to increase the range of
diversity among those served. Race, ethnicity,
language, and social and economic status are some
dimensions by which early childhood education
settings have historically been segregated.
6. Provide regular time and space to foster a learning
community among administrators and staff
regarding equity issues. Include opportunities for all
individuals to reflect about their own cultural attitudes
and behaviors as well as to uncover and change actions
that reflect implicit bias and microaggressions toward
children, families, school staff, and administrators.
7. Establish collaborative relationships with
other social service agencies and providers
within the community. Support and give voice
to diverse perspectives to strengthen the network of
resources available to all children and families.
8. Establish clear protocols for dealing with
children’s challenging behaviors and provide
teaching staff with consultation and support
to address them effectively and equitably. To

consider potential effects of implicit bias, regularly collect
and assess data regarding whether certain policies and
procedures, including curriculum and instructional
practices, have differential impacts on different groups of
children. Set a goal of immediately limiting and ultimately
eliminating suspensions and expulsions by ensuring
appropriate supports for teachers, children, and families.
9. Create meaningful, ongoing opportunities
for multiple voices with diverse perspectives
to engage in leadership and decision making.
Recognize that implicit biases have often resulted in
limited opportunities for members of marginalized groups.
Consider and address factors that create barriers to
diversified participation (e.g., time of meetings, location of
meetings, languages in which meetings are conducted).
EDUCATION
Recommendations for those Facilitating Educator
Preparation and Professional Development
1. Prepare current and prospective early childhood
educators to provide equitable learning
opportunities for all children. Ensure that
prospective educators understand the historical and
systemic issues that have created structural inequities in
society, including in early childhood education. Ensure
that their preparation and field experiences provide
opportunities to work effectively with diverse populations.
2. Prepare prospective early childhood educators to
meet the Professional Standards and Competencies

for Early Childhood Educators (formerly NAEYC’s
Professional Preparation Standards). Ensure that
curriculum and field experiences reflect a focus on diversity,
full inclusion, and equity within each of the competencies to
cultivate culturally and linguistically responsive practices.
3. Work with students, community leaders, and
public officials to address barriers to educational
attainment in the specific community you serve.
Pay special attention to assumptions about academic
skill attainment in communities with inadequate public
schools, transportation barriers (e.g., limited public
transit), financial constraints (e.g., student loans, tuition
balances, outstanding bookstore bills), course scheduling
during the working day, lack of child care, and the like.
Design educational programs that put students’ needs
first and take identified barriers into account while also
working to remove those barriers (e.g., loan forgiveness
programs, evening and weekend courses, extended
bus or train service, child care services aligned with
course and professional development offerings).
4. Implement transfer and articulation policies
that recognize and award credits for students’
previous early childhood courses and degrees as
well as demonstrated competency through prior
work experience. This will support a wide range of
students in advancing their postsecondary credentials.
5. Work actively to foster a sense of belonging,
community, and support among first-generation
college students. Cohorts and facilitated support from
first-generation graduates can be especially useful.
6. Set and achieve measurable goals to recruit and
retain a representative faculty across multiple

dimensions. Consider establishing goals related to
race, ethnicity, age, language, ability and disability,
gender, and sexual orientation, among others.
7. Provide regular time and space to foster a
learning community among administrators,
faculty, and staff. Create opportunities for reflection
and learning about cultural respect and responsiveness,
including potential instances of implicit bias and
microaggressions toward both children and adults.
8. Ensure that all professional standards, career
pathways, articulation, advisory structures,
data collection, and financing systems in state
professional development systems are subjected
to review. Assess whether each of the system’s policies
supports workforce diversity by reflecting the children and
families served and offering equitable access to professional
development. Determine whether these systems serve
to increase compensation parity across early childhood
education settings and sectors, birth through age 8.
CHILDREN | 11
Recommendations for Public Policymakers
1. Use an equity lens to consider policy impacts on
all children and on the bonds between them and
their families. Work to change any policy that either
directly or through unintended negative consequences
undermines children’s physical and emotional well-being

or weakens the bonds between children and their families.
2. Increase financing for high-quality early learning
services. Ensure that there are sufficient resources to
make high-quality early childhood education universally
accessible. Every setting should have the resources it
requires to meet the needs of its children and families.
This includes ensuring equitable access to high-quality
higher education and compensation for a qualified
workforce. See the NASEM report Transforming the
Financing of Early Care and Education for more details.7
3. Revise early learning standards to ensure that
they reflect the culturally diverse settings in
which educators practice. Provide ongoing, in-depth
staff development on how to use standards in diverse
classrooms. Quality rating and improvement systems
should further the principles of equity across all aspects of
education, including curriculum, instruction, full inclusion,
family engagement, program design, and delivery.
4. Make sure policies promote the use of authentic
assessments that are developmentally, culturally,
and linguistically appropriate for the children
being assessed and use valid and reliable tools
designed for a purpose consistent with the intent of
the assessment. Assessments should be tied to children’s
daily activities, supported by professional development,
and inclusive of families; they should be purposefully used
to make sound decisions about teaching and learning,
to identify significant concerns that may require focused
intervention for individual children, and to help programs
improve their educational and developmental interventions.
5. Increase opportunities for families to choose
early childhood programs that serve diverse

populations of children. Incentivize these choices
and seek to provide supports such as transportation.
These supports will help to reduce the segregation of
programs (primarily by race, language, ability, and
class), which reflects segregated housing patterns
and fuels persistent discrimination and inequities.
6. Include community-based programs and family
child care homes in state funding systems for
early childhood education. Ensure that these systems
equitably support community-based programs and engage
community members and families in activist and leadership
roles. Support the educators who work in community-based
programs so they can meet high-quality standards while
allowing families to choose the best setting for their needs.
7. Ensure sufficient funding for, access to,
and supports for children, teachers, and
administrators to respond to children’s behaviors
that others find challenging. Mental health supports
and prevention-oriented interventions can help meet each
child’s needs, including mental health challenges, without
stigmatization, and eliminate the use of suspensions
and expulsions across all early childhood settings.
8. Establish comparable compensation (including
benefits) across settings for early childhood
educators with comparable qualifications,
experience, and responsibilities. Focusing only
on comparable compensation for those working
in pre-K settings will deepen disparities felt by
educators working with infants and toddlers, who are
disproportionately women of color. Including educators
working with infants and toddlers in compensation
policies is a fundamental matter of equity.

9. Incorporate the science of toxic stress and adverse
childhood experiences (ACEs) into federal and
state policies and programs. Trauma-informed
care and healing-centered approaches can support
resilience and help mitigate the effects of toxic stress
and ACEs, which affect children of all social groups but
disproportionately affect children of marginalized groups.
10. Promote national, state, and local policies that
promote and support multilingualism for all
children. This can include funding for early learning dual -
language immersion programs, early childhood educator
professional development for teaching and supporting
emergent bilinguals, and the inclusion of multi/dual language
promotion in quality rating and improvement systems.
11. Set a goal of reducing the US child poverty rate
by half within a decade. A 2019 National Academies
of Sciences report provides a consensus approach to
achieving this goal through specific policies such as
supporting families’ financial well-being and stability,
ensuring universal child health insurance, and providing
universal access to early care and education.8
EDUCATION
The Evidence for this Position Statement
The recommendations are based on a set of principles that
synthesize current early childhood education research through
the lenses of equity and NAEYC’s core values.9
Supported by hundreds
of individuals and

organizations; see the full
list of endorsements at
NAEYC.org/equity/
endorsing-organizations
CHILDREN | 13
1. Early childhood (birth through age 8) is
a uniquely valuable and vulnerable time
in the human life cycle. The early childhood
years lay the foundation and create trajectories
for all later learning and development.10, 11, 12
2. Each individual—child, family member, and
early educator—is unique. Each has dignity and
value and is equally worthy of respect. Embracing and
including multiple perspectives as a result of diverse
lived experiences is valuable and enriching for all.
3. Each individual belongs to multiple social and
cultural groups.13 This creates richly varied and
complex social identities (related to race, gender, culture,
language, ability and disability, and indigenous heritage
identities, among others). Children learn the socially
constructed meanings of these identities early in life,
in part by recognizing how they and others who share
or do not share them are treated.14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 Early

childhood educators and early childhood programs in
centers, homes, and schools play a critical role in fostering
children’s development of positive social identities.20, 21, 22
4. Learning is a social process profoundly
shaped by culture, social interactions, and
language.23, 24 From early infancy, children are
hardwired to seek human interaction.25 They construct
knowledge through their interactions with people
and their environment, and they make meaning of
their experiences through a cultural lens.26, 27
5. Language and communication are essential to the
learning process. Young children who are exposed to
multiple linguistic contexts can learn multiple languages,
which carries many cognitive, cultural, economic, and social
advantages.28 This process is facilitated when children’s
first language is recognized as an asset and supported by
competent speakers through rich, frequent, child-directed
language as the second language is introduced.29, 30, 31
6. Families are the primary context for children’s
development and learning.32 Family relationships
precede and endure long after children’s relationships with
early childhood educators have ended. Early childhood
educators are responsible for partnering with families
to ensure consistent relationships between school and
home. This includes recognizing families as experts
about their children and respecting their languages.33
It means learning as much as possible about families’
cultures in order to incorporate their funds of knowledge
into the curriculum, teaching practices, and learning
environment.34 It also means actively working to support
and sustain family languages and cultures.35 Finally, it
means recognizing and addressing the ways in which
early childhood educators’ own biases can affect their

work with families, to ensure that all families receive
the same acknowledgment, support, and respect.36
7. Learning, emotions, and memory are inextricably
interconnected in brain processing networks.37
Positive emotions and a sense of security promote memory
and learning. Learning is also facilitated when the learner
perceives the content and skills as useful because of
their connection to personal motivations and interests.
Connections to life experiences and sense of mastery and
belonging are especially important for young children.
8. Toxic stress and anxiety can undermine learning.38
They activate the “fight or flight” regions of the brain
instead of the prefrontal cortex associated with higher order
thinking. Poverty and other adverse childhood experiences
are major sources of toxic stress and can have a negative
impact on all aspects of learning and development.39, 40
Protective factors that promote resilience in the face of
adversity include supportive adult–child relationships, a
sense of self-efficacy and perceived control, opportunities
to strengthen adaptive skills and self-regulatory capacity,
cultural traditions, and sources of faith and hope.41
9. Children’s learning is facilitated when
teaching practices, curricula, and learning
environments build on children’s strengths
and are developmentally, culturally, and
linguistically appropriate for each child.42, 43, 44, 45,
46, 47 That is, teaching practices, curricula, and learning
environments are meaningful and engaging for every
child and lead to challenging and achievable goals.
10. Reflective practice is required to achieve
equitable learning opportunities. Self-
awareness, humility, respect, and a willingness to

learn are key to becoming a teacher who equitably
and effectively supports all children and families.48
EDUCATION
The Social-Cultural Context of Child Development and
Learning
It is essential to understand that child development and learning
occur within a
social-cultural, political, and historical context.49 Within that
context, each person’s
experiences may vary based on their social identities and the
intersection of
these identities. Social identities bring with them socially
constructed meanings
that reflect biases targeted to marginalized groups, resulting in
differential
experiences of privilege and injustice.50 These systems can
change over time,
although many have remained stubbornly rooted in our national
ethos.
Traditionally, the dominant narrative in the United States—in
our history, scientific research, education, and other social
policy and media—has reflected the ways in which society
has granted or denied privilege to people based on certain
aspects of their identity. Whiteness, for example, confers
privilege, as does being male. Other aspects of identity that
society tends to favor with easier access to power structures
include being able-bodied, US born, Christian, heterosexual,
cisgender, thin, educated, and economically advantaged.51
Conversely, other aspects of identity tend to be associated with
societal oppression, experienced, for example, by those who

are members of indigenous societies and those who do not
speak fluent, standard English. By naming such privilege and
acknowledging the intersection of privilege and oppression,
the intent is not to blame those who have benefited, but to
acknowledge that privilege exists and that the benefits are
unfairly distributed in ways that must be addressed.
Dominant social biases are rooted in the social, political, and
economic structures of the United States. Powerful messages—
conveyed through the media, symbols, attitudes, and actions—
continue to reflect and promote both explicit and implicit
bias. These biases, with effects across generations, stem from
a national history too often ignored or denied—including
trauma inflicted through slavery, genocide, sexual exploitation,
segregation, incarceration, exclusion, and forced relocation.
Deeply embedded biases maintain systems of privilege and
result in structural inequities that grant greater access,
opportunity, and power to some at the expense of others.52
Few men enter the field of early childhood
education, reflecting the historic marginalization
of women’s social and economic roles—which has
had a particularly strong impact on women of color.
Comprising primarily women, the early childhood workforce is
typically characterized by low wages.53 It is also stratified,
with
fewer women of color and immigrant women having access
to higher education opportunities that lead to the educational
qualifications required for higher-paying roles.54 Systemic
barriers limit upward mobility, even when degrees and
qualifications are obtained.55 As a result, children are typically
taught by White, middle-class women, with women of color
assisting rather than leading. Some evidence, especially with
elementary-grade children, suggests that a racial and gender
match between teachers and children can be particularly
beneficial for children of color without being detrimental to

other children.56, 57, 58, 59
The professional research and knowledge base is
largely grounded in a dominant Western scientific-
cultural model that is but “one perspective on reality and
carries with it its own biases and assumptions.”60 These
shortcomings of the knowledge base reflect the historical
issues of access to higher levels of scholarship for individuals
of color and the need to expand the pipeline of researchers
who bring different lived experiences across multiple social
identities. It is important to consider these biases and
their impact61 on all aspects of system delivery, including
professional development, curriculum, assessment, early
learning standards,62 and accountability systems.
CHILDREN | 15
The research base regarding the impact of implicit
bias in early childhood settings is growing.63 Teachers
of young children—like all people—are not immune to such
bias. Even among teachers who do not believe they hold any
explicit biases, implicit biases are associated with differential
judgments about and treatment of children by race, gender,
ability and disability, body type, physical appearance, and
social, economic, and language status—all of which limit
children’s opportunities to reach their potential. Implicit
biases also result in differential judgments of children’s play,
aggressiveness, compliance, initiative, and abilities. These
biases are associated with lower rates of achievement and
assignment to “gifted” services and disproportionately higher
rates of suspension and expulsion, beginning in preschool, for

African American children, especially boys. Studies of multiple
racial and ethnic subgroups in different contexts point to the
complexity of the implicit bias phenomenon, with different
levels and types of bias received by different subgroups.64
Children’s expression of implicit bias has also been found to
vary across countries, although some preference for Whites
was found even in nations with few White or Black residents.65
By recognizing and addressing these patterns
of inequity, society will benefit from tapping
the potential of children whose families and
communities have been systematically marginalized
and oppressed. Early childhood educators, early learning
settings, higher education and professional development
systems, and public policy all have important roles in forging a
new path for the future. By eliminating systemic biases and the
structures that sustain them, advancing equity, and embracing
diversity and inclusivity, we can strengthen our democracy
as we realize the full potential of all young children—and,
therefore, of the next generation of leaders and activists.
Find additional
resources to help bring
the statement to life at
NAEYC.org/equity
EDUCATION
Conclusion
A large and well-established body of knowledge demonstrates
that high-quality early childhood programs promote children’s
opportunities for lifelong success and that public investments

in such programs generate savings that benefit the economy.66
As a result, in the United States and around the world, leaders
across all political persuasions are making greater investments
in early childhood services with broad public support. But
more remains to be done.
We must build on these investments and work to advance
equity in early childhood education by ensuring equitable
learning opportunities for all young children. This position
statement outlines steps needed to (1) provide high-quality
early learning programs that build on each child’s unique
set of individual and family strengths, cultural background,
language(s), abilities, and experiences and (2) eliminate
differences in educational outcomes as a result of who children
are, where they live, and what resources their families have. All
children deserve the opportunity to reach their full potential.
Acknowledgements
NAEYC appreciates the work of the Developmentally
Appropriate Practice/Diversity and Equity Workgroup and
the Early Learning Systems Committee, who participated
in the development of this statement (asterisk denotes
service in both groups): Elisa Huss-Hage (Chair),*
Iliana Alanís,* Chris Amirault,* Amy Blessing,
Garnett S. Booker III, Dina C. Castro,* Lillian Durán,
Isauro M. Escamilla Calan,* Linda M. Espinosa,
Kelly Hantak,* Iheoma U. Iruka, Tamara Johnson,*
Sarah LeMoine, Megan Pamela Ruth Madison,* Ben Mardell,
Lauren E. Mueller, Krista Murphy,* Bridget Murray,*
Alissa Mwenelupembe,* Hakim Rashid, Aisha Ray,
Jeanne L. Reid, Shannon Riley-Ayers,* Christine M. Snyder,*
Jan Stevenson,* Crystal Swank,* Ruby Takanishi,
Tarajean Yazzie-Mintz,* and Marlene Zepeda.
The workgroup and committee were primarily supported
by staff members Barbara Willer, Lauren Hogan, and

Marica Cox Mitchell. NAEYC also acknowledges the support
of the Bainum Family Foundation toward this project. Finally,
NAEYC thanks the many NAEYC members and others who
provided input and feedback as this statement was developed.
Join NAEYC to work
with others committed
to advancing equity
in early childhood
education; learn more at
NAEYC.org/equity
CHILDREN | 17
Definitions of Key Terms
ability—The means or skills to do something. In this position
statement, we use the term “ability” more broadly than the
traditional focus on cognition or psychometric properties
to apply across all domains of development. We focus and
build on each child’s abilities, strengths, and interests,
acknowledging disabilities and developmental delays while
avoiding ableism (see also ableism and disability below).
ableism—A systemic form of oppression deeply embedded
in society that devalues disabilities through structures
based on implicit assumptions about standards of
physical, intellectual, and emotional normalcy.67, 68

agency—A person’s ability to make choices and influence
events. In this position statement, we emphasize each child’s
agency, especially a child’s ability to make choices and
influence events in the context of learning activities, also
referred to as autonomy or child-directed learning.69, 70
bias—Attitudes or stereotypes that favor one group over
another. Explicit biases are conscious beliefs and stereotypes
that affect one’s understanding, actions, and decisions;
implicit biases also affect one’s understanding, actions, and
decisions but in an unconscious manner. Implicit biases reflect
an individual’s socialization and experiences within broader
systemic structures that work to perpetuate existing systems of
privilege and oppression. An anti-bias approach to education
explicitly works to end all forms of bias and discrimination.71
classism—A systemic form of oppression deeply embedded in
society that tends to assign greater value to middle and upper
socioeconomic status and devalue the “working” class.
culture—The patterns of beliefs, practices, and traditions
associated with a group of people. Culture is increasingly
understood as inseparable from development.72, 73 Individuals
both learn from and contribute to the culture of the groups to
which they belong. Cultures evolve over time, reflecting the
lived
experiences of their members in particular times and places.
disability and developmental delay—Legally defined for young
children under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA), disabilities include intellectual disability; hearing,
speech
or language, visual, and/or orthopedic impairment; autism; and
traumatic brain injury. Under IDEA, states define
developmental
delays to include delays in physical, cognitive, communication,

social or emotional, or adaptive development. These legal
definitions
are important for determining access to early intervention and
early childhood special education services. The consequences
of the definition can vary based on the degree to which they are
seen as variations in children’s assets or the degree to which
they
are seen as deficits.74 (See also ableism and ability, above.)
diversity—Variation among individuals, as well as within and
across groups of individuals, in terms of their backgrounds
and lived experiences. These experiences are related to social
identities, including race, ethnicity, language, sexual
orientation,
gender identity and expression, social and economic status,
religion, ability status, and country of origin. The terms diverse
and diversity are sometimes used as euphemisms for non-
White. NAEYC specifically rejects this usage, which implies
that
Whiteness is the norm against which diversity is defined.
equity—The state that would be achieved if individuals fared
the same way in society regardless of race, gender, class,
language, disability, or any other social or cultural
characteristic.
In practice, equity means all children and families receive
necessary supports in a timely fashion so they can develop
their full intellectual, social, and physical potential.
Equity is not the same as equality. Equal treatment given to
individuals at unequal starting points is inequitable. Instead
of equal treatment, NAEYC aims for equal opportunity. This
requires considering individuals’ and groups’ starting points,
then distributing resources equitably (not equally) to meet
needs.
Attempting to achieve equality of opportunity without

considering
historic and present inequities is ineffective, unjust, and
unfair.75
equitable learning opportunities —Learning opportunities
that not only help each child thrive by building on each one’s
unique set of individual and family strengths—including
cultural background, language(s), abilities and disabilities, and
experiences—but also are designed to eliminate differences in
outcomes that are a result of past and present inequities in
society.
funds of knowledge—Essential cultural practices and bodies of
knowledge embedded in the daily practices and routines of
families.76
gender identity—A social concept that reflects how individuals
identify themselves. Traditionally viewed as a binary category
of male/female linked to an individual’s sex, gender identity is
viewed by current science as fluid and expansive. Cisgender
individuals develop a gender identity that matches their legal
designation. Transgender individuals are those whose
gender identity and/or expression differs from cultural
expectations based on their legal designation at birth.77
historical trauma—“The cumulative emotional and
psychological
wounding over the lifespan and across generations, emanating
from massive group trauma experiences.”78 Examples of
historical
trauma include the multigenerational effects of white supremacy
reflected in colonization, genocide, slavery, sexual exploitation,
forced relocation, and incarceration based on race or ethnicity.

EDUCATION
inclusion—Embodied by the values, policies, and practices that
support the right of every infant and young child and their
family,
regardless of ability, to participate in a broad range of activities
and contexts as full members of families, communities, and
society. The desired results of inclusive experiences for
children
with and without disabilities and their families include a sense
of belonging and membership, positive social relationships and
friendships, and development and learning to help them reach
their full potential.79 Although the traditional focus of
inclusion
has been on addressing the exclusion of children with
disabilities,
full inclusion seeks to promote justice by ensuring equitable
participation of all historically marginalized children.80
intersectionality—The overlapping and interdependent systems
of oppression across, for example, race, gender, ability, and
social
status. Intersectionality encourages us to embrace and celebrate
individuals’ multiple social identities. It also highlights the
complex
and cumulative effects of different forms of structural inequity
that can arise for members of multiple marginalized groups.
LGBTQIA+—An acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, asexual, and
more, reflecting the expansive and fluid concepts of sexual
orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.
marginalization—The process by which specific social groups
are

pushed to the edges or margins of society. Marginalized groups
are
treated as less important or inferior through policies or
practices
that reduce their members’ economic, social, and political
power.
microaggressions—Everyday verbal, nonverbal, or
environmental
messages that implicitly contain a negative stereotype or are in
some way dehumanizing or othering. These hidden messages
serve to invalidate the recipients’ group identity, to question
their
experience, to threaten them, or to demean them on a personal
or group level. Microaggressions may result from implicit or
explicit biases. People who commit microaggressions may view
their remarks as casual observations or even compliments
and may not recognize the harm they can cause.81
norm, normative—The definition of certain actions, identities,
and
outcomes as the standard (“the norm” or “normal”), with
everything
else as outside the norm. For example, the terms White
normativity
or heteronormative refer to instances in which Whiteness and
heterosexuality are considered normal or preferred. Such norms
wrongly suggest that all other races and sexual orientations are
outside the norm or are less preferable. Art activities focused on
filling
out a family tree, with designated spaces for “mommy,”
“daddy,”
“grandma,” and “grandpa,” for example, may assume a two-
parent,
heterosexual household as the normative family structure.
(While

some research-based norms provide guidance regarding healthy
child
development and appropriate educational activities and
expectations,
these norms have too often been derived through research that
has only or primarily included nonrepresentative samples of
children or has been conducted primarily by nonrepresentative
researchers. Additional research, by a more representative
selection of researchers and theorists, is needed to develop new
norms that will support equitably educating all children.)
oppression—The systematic and prolonged
mistreatment of a group of people.
privilege—Unearned advantages that result from being a
member of a socially preferred or dominant social identi ty
group. Because it is deeply embedded, privilege is often
invisible to those who experience it without ongoing self-
reflection. Privilege is the opposite of marginalization or
oppression that results from racism and other forms of bias.
race—A social-political construct that categorizes and
ranks groups of human beings on the basis of skin color
and other physical features. The scientific consensus is that
using the social construct of race to divide humans into
distinct and different groups has no biological basis.82
racism—A belief that some races are superior or inferior to
others.
Racism operates at a systemic level through deeply embedded
structural and institutional policies that have favored Whiteness
at the expense of other groups. On an individual level, racism
can
be seen in both explicit and implicit prejudice and
discrimination.
Both individual and institutional acts of bias work to maintain

power and privilege in the hands of some over others.83
resilience—The ability to overcome serious hardship or
adverse experiences. For children, resilience is promoted
through such protective factors as supportive relationships,
adaptive skill building, and positive experiences.84
sexism—A belief that some gender identities are superior
or inferior to others. Sexism operates at a systemic level
through deeply embedded structural and institutional
policies that have assigned power and prestige to cisgender
men and caring and nurturing roles with little economic
reward to cisgender women, to the detriment of all.
stereotype—Any depiction of a person or group of people that
makes them appear less than fully human, unique, or individual
or that reinforces misinformation about that person or group.
structural inequities—The systemic disadvantage of one or
more social groups compared to systemic advantage for other
groups with whom they coexist. The term encompasses policy,
law,
governance, and culture and refers to race, ethnicity, gender or
gender identity, class, sexual orientation, and other domains.85
White fragility—A concept based on the observation that White
people in North America and other parts of the world live in a
social
environment that protects and insulates them from race-based
stress, heightening their expectations for racial comfort and
lowering
their ability to tolerate racial stress. Even small amounts of
racial
stress can be intolerable to White people and can trigger
defensive
actions designed to restore the previous equilibrium and

comfort.86
xenophobia—Attitudes, prejudices, or actions that reject,
exclude, or vilify individuals as foreigners or outsiders.
Although
often targeted at migrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and
displaced persons, xenophobia is not limited to these
individuals
but may be applied to others on the basis of assumptions.
CHILDREN | 19
Endnotes
1 L. Derman-Sparks & J.O. Edwards, Anti-Bias Education for
Young Children and Ourselves, 2nd ed. (Washington, DC:
NAEYC, forthcoming).
2 See K.V. Hardy, “Antiracist Approaches for Shaping
Theoretical
and Practice Paradigms,” in Strategies for Deconstructing
Racism in the Health and Human Services, eds. A. Carten, A.
Siskind, & M. Pender Greene (New York: Oxford University
Press, 2016), 125–42.
3 NASEM (The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering,
and Medicine), How People Learn II: Learners, Contexts, and
Cultures (Washington, DC: The National Academies Press,
2018;
hereafter How People Learn II).

4 M.R. Beneke, J.R. Newton, M. Vinh, S.B. Blanchard, & P.
Kemp,
“Practicing Inclusion, Doing Justice: Disability, Identity, and
Belonging in Early Childhood,” Zero to Three Journal 39, no. 3
(2019): 26−34.
5 These recommendations reflect the essential responsibilities
of
early childhood educators identified in Power to the Profession
and the Professional Standards and Competencies of Early
Childhood Educators. This statement does not duplicate these
documents but lifts specific elements using an equity lens.
Standards 1, 4, and 5 of the Standards and Competencies
are reflected under the heading “Create a caring, equitable
community of learners.” Standards 2 and 3 are reflected in the
similarly named headings. Standard 6 is reflected in the general
recommendations as well as the advocacy recommendations.
Readers are encouraged to refer to the above documents for
further information regarding expectations for the knowledge,
skills, and competencies of all early childhood educators.
Similarly, these recommendations are consistent with the
principles and ideals of the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct
and
Statement of Commitment.
6 L.W. Fillmore & C.E. Snow, “What Teachers Need to Know
About
Language,” in What Teachers Need to Know About Language,
2nd ed., eds. C.T. Adger, C.E. Snow, & D. Christian (Blue
Ridge
Summit, PA: Multilingual Matters, 2018).
7 NASEM (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and
Mathematics), Transforming the Financing of Early Care and
Education (Washington, DC: The National Academies Press,
2018; hereafter Transforming the Financing), https://doi.

org/10.17226/24984.
8 NASEM, A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty (Washington,
DC: The National Academies Press, 2019), https://doi.
org/10.17226/25246.
9 Five recent consensus studies led by NASEM and published
by
the National Academies Press provide comprehensive literature
reviews that were used heavily in preparing this document:
Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council,
Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age
8: A Unifying Foundation (2015; hereafter, Transforming
the Workforce), https://doi.org/10.17226/19401; Parenting
Matters: Supporting Parents of Children Ages 0–8 (2016;
hereafter Parenting Matters), https://doi.org/10.17226/21868;
Promoting the Educational Success of Children and Youth
Learning English: Promising Futures (2017; hereafter
Promising Futures), https://doi.org/10.17226/24677;
Transforming the Financing; and How People Learn II.
10 Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University, From
Best Practices to Breakthrough Impacts: A Science-Based
Approach to Building a More Promising Future for Young
Children and Families (2016; hereafter From Best Practices to
Breakthrough Impacts), www.developingchild.harvard.edu.
11 Transforming the Workforce.
12 How People Learn II.
14 Y. Dunham, E.E. Chen, & M.R. Banaji, “Two Signatures of
Implicit Intergroup Attitudes: Developmental Invariance and
Early Enculturation,” Psychological Science 24, no. 6 (2013):

860–68.
15 E.N. Winkler, “Children Are Not Colorblind: How Young
Children Learn About Race,” PACE 3, no. 3 (2009).
16 C.S. Brown & E.A. Stone, “Gender Stereotypes and
Discrimination: How Sexism Impacts Development,” in
Advances in Child Development and Behavior, vol. 50, eds. S.S.
Horn, M.D. Ruck, & L.S. Liben, 105–33 (Philadelphia: Elsevier,
2016).
17 K.R. Olson, K.R. & S. Gülgöz, “Early Findings from the
TransYouth Project: Gender Development in Transgender
Children,” Child Development Perspectives 12, no. 2 (2017),
https://doi.org/10.1111/cdep.12268.
18 Derman-Sparks & Edwards, Anti-Bias Education.
19 A.L. Skinner & A.N. Meltzoff, “Childhood Experiences and
Intergroup Biases among Children,” Social Issues and Policy
Review 13, no. 1 (2019): 211–240, doi.org/10.1111/sipr.12054.
http://www.developingchild.harvard.edu
https://doi.org/10.1111/cdep.12268
http://doi.org/10.1111/sipr.12054

EDUCATION
22 M.H. Immordino-Yang, L. Darling-Hammond, & C. Krone,
The
Brain Basis for Integrated Social, Emotional, and Academic
Development: How Emotions and Social Relationships
Drive Learning (Washington, DC: The Aspen Institute
National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic
Development, 2018), https://assets.aspeninstitute.org/
content/uploads/2018/09/Aspen_research_FINAL_web.
pdf?_ga=2.268930930.2040629626.1548181676-
858356743.1548181676.
23 B. Rogoff, The Cultural Nature of Human Development
(New
York: Oxford University Press, 2003).
24 B. Rogoff, A. Dahl, & M.A. Callanan, “The Importance of
Understanding Children’s Lived Experience,” Developmental
Review 50, Part A (2018): 5–15, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
dr.2018.05.006.
25 From Best Practices to Breakthrough Impacts.
28 Promising Futures.
29 D.C. Castro, “The Development and Early Care and
Education
of Dual Language Learners: Examining the State of

Knowledge,”
Early Childhood Research Quarterly 29, no. 4 (2014): 693–98.
30 M. Zepeda, California’s Gold: An Advocacy Framework for
Young Dual Language Learners (Los Altos, CA: Heising-
Simons
Foundation, 2017).
31 L.M. Espinosa, “Encouraging the Development and
Achievement
of English Language Learners in Early Childhood,” American
Educator 42, no. 3 (2018): 10–11, 39, www.aft.org/ae/fall2018/
espinosa.
32 Parenting Matters.
33 J.K. Adair & A. Barraza, “Voices of Immigrant Parents in
Preschool Settings,” Young Children 69, no. 4 (2014): 32–39.
34 N. González, L.C. Moll, & C. Amanti, eds., Funds of
Knowledge:
Theorizing Practices in Households, Communities, and
Classrooms (Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 2005).
35 D. Paris & H. Samy Alim, eds., Culturally Sustaining
Pedagogies: Teaching and Learning for Justice in a Changing
World (New York: Teachers College Press, 2017).
39 From Best Practices to Breakthrough Impacts.

40 J.P. Shonkoff, A.S. Garner, & the Committee on
Psychosocial
Aspects of Child and Family Health, Committee on Early
Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care, and Section on
Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, “The Lifelong Effects
of Early Childhood Adversity and Toxic Stress,” Pediatrics
129, no. 1 (2012, reaffirmed 2016): e232–e246, https://doi.
org/10.1542/peds.2011-2663.
41 Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University, “Gene
Environment Interaction,” 2019, https://developingchild.
harvard.edu/science/deep-dives/gene-environment-
interaction/.
42 C. Copple & S. Bredekamp, Developmentally Appropriate
Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children Birth
through Age 8 (Washington, DC: NAEYC, 2009).
43 G. Ladson-Billings, The Dream-Keepers: Successful
Teachers of
African American Children (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2009).
44 S. Nieto, Finding Joy in Teaching Students of Diverse
Backgrounds: Culturally Responsive and Socially Just Practices
in US Classrooms (Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2013).
45 S.M. Jones & J. Kahn, The Evidence Base for How We
Learn:
Supporting Students’ Social, Emotional, and Academic
Development (Washington, DC: The Aspen Institute National
Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development,
2017), www.aspeninstitute.org/publications/evidence-base-
learn/.
46 A.M. Blankstein, P. Noguera, & L. Kelly, eds., Excellence
through

Equity (Alexandria, VA: ASCD, 2016).
47 G. Gay, Culturally Responsive Teaching: Theory, Research
and
Practice, 3rd ed. (New York: Teachers College Press, 2010).
48 Irving Harris Foundation Professional Development
Network,
Diversity-Informed Tenets for Work with Infants, Children, and
Families (Chicago: Irving Harris Foundation, 2012; updated
2018), https://infantcrier.mi-aimh.org/diversity-informed-
tenets-for-work-with-infants-children-and-families/.
50 Immordino-Yang, Darling-Hammond, & Krone, Brain Basis.
https://assets.aspeninstitute.org/content/uploads/2018/ 09/Aspen
_research_FINAL_web.pdf?_ga=2.268930930.2040629626.1548
181676-858356743.1548181676
181676-858356743.1548181676
181676-858356743.1548181676
181676-858356743.1548181676
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dr.2018.05.006
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dr.2018.05.006
http://www.aft.org/ae/fall2018/espinosa
http://www.aft.org/ae/fall2018/espinosa

https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/deep-dives/gene-
environment-interaction/
http://www.aspeninstitute.org/publications/evidence-base-learn/
http://www.aspeninstitute.org/publications/evidence-base-learn/
https://infantcrier.mi-aimh.org/diversity-informed-tenets-for-
work-with-infants-children-and-families/
https://infantcrier.mi-aimh.org/diversity-informed-tenets-for-
work-with-infants-children-and-families/
CHILDREN | 21
51 See the following publications for alternative perspectives to
those traditionally reflected in history lessons in American
public education: I.X. Kendi, Stamped from the Beginning:
The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America (New York:
Nation Books, 2016); J.W. Loewen, Lies My Teacher Told Me:
Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong,
rev. ed. (New York: The New Press, 2018); R. Dunbar-Ortiz,
An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States (Boston:
Beacon Press, 2014); M. Bronski, A Queer History of the
United
States (Boston: Beacon Press, 2011); K. Manne, Down Girl: The
Logic of Misogyny (New York: Oxford University Press, 2018).
52 See for example NASEM, Communities in Action: Pathways
to
Health Equity (Washington, DC: The National Academies Press,
2017; hereafter Communities in Action), https://www.nap.edu/
read/24624/chapter/1; A. Hanks, D. Solomon, & C.E. Weller,

Systematic Inequality: How Structural Racism Helped Create
the Black–White Wealth Gap (Washington, DC: Center for
American Progress, 2018), www.americanprogress.org/issues/
race/reports/2018/02/21/447051/systematic-inequality/;
I. Morgan & A. Amerikaner, Funding Gaps: An Analysis of
School Funding Equity Across the US and Within Each State
(Washington, DC: Education Trust, 2018), https://edtrust.org/
wp-content/uploads/2014/09/FundingGapReport_2018_
FINAL.pdf; N. Slopen, J.P. Shonkoff, M.A. Albert, H.
Yoshikawa,
A. Jacobs, R. Stoltz, & D.R. Williams, “Racial Disparities in
Child Adversity in the US: Interactions with Family
Immigration
History and Income,” American Journal of Preventive
Medicine 50, no. 1 (2016): 47–56, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
amepre.2015.06.013; Z.D. Bailey, N. Krieger, M. Agénor, J.
Graves, N. Linos, M.T. Bassett, “Structural Racism and Health
Inequities in the USA: Evidence and Interventions,” The Lancet
389, no. 10077 (2017): 1453–63, https://doi.org/10.1016/
S0140-6736(17)30569-X.
53 M. Whitebook, C. McLean, L.J.E. Austin, & B. Edwards,
Early
Childhood Workforce Index 2018 (Berkeley, CA: Center for
the Study of Child Care Employment, University of California,
Berkeley, 2018), https://cscce.berkeley.edu/files/2018/06/
Early-Childhood-Workforce-Index-2018.pdf.
54 M. Park, M. McHugh, J. Batalova, & J. Zong, Immigrant and
Refugee Workers in the Early Childhood Field: Taking a Closer
Look (Washington, DC: Migration Policy Institute, 2015),
www.
migrationpolicy.org/research/immigrant-and-refugee-workers-
early-childhood-field-taking-closer-look.
55 Whitebook et al., Early Childhood Workforce Index 2018.

56 J.T. Downer, P. Goble, S.S. Myers, & R.C. Pianta, “Teacher–
Child
Racial/Ethnic Match Within Pre-Kindergarten Classrooms and
Children’s Early School Adjustment,” Early Childhood
Research
Quarterly 37 (2016): 26–38, https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/
ED580920.pdf.
57 D. Figlio, “The Importance of a Diverse Teaching Force”
(Washington, DC: Brookings Institute, 2017), www.brookings.
edu/research/the-importance-of-a-diverse-teaching-force.
58 C.A. Lindsay & C.M.D. Hart, “Exposure to Same-Race
Teachers
and Student Disciplinary Outcomes for Black Students in North
Carolina,” Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis 39, no.
3 (2017): 485–510, https://poverty.ucdavis.edu/sites/main/
files/file-attachments/exposure_to_same-race_teachers_and_
student.pdf.
59 L.A. Bates & J.E. Glick, “Does It Matter If Teachers and
Schools
Match the Student? Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Problem
Behaviors,” Social Science Research 42, no. 5 (2013): 1180–90,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2013.04.005.
60 How People Learn II, 367.
61 See How People Learn II for a discussion of J. Henrich, S.J.
Heine, & A. Norenzayan, “Most People Are Not WEIRD,”
Nature
466, no. 7302 (2010): 29, https://doi.org/10.1038/466029a.
62 Reid, J.L., S.L. Kagan, & C. Scott-Little. 2017. “New
Understandings of Cultural Diversity and the Implications for

Early Childhood Policy, Pedagogy, and Practice.” Early Child
Development and Care, http://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2017
.1359582.
https://www.nap.edu/read/24624/chapter/1
https://www.nap.edu/read/24624/chapter/1
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)30569-X
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)30569-X
https://cscce.berkeley.edu/files/2018/06/Early-Childhood-
Workforce-Index-2018.pdf
https://cscce.berkeley.edu/files/2018/06/Early-Childhood-
Workforce-Index-2018.pdf
http://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/immigrant-and-
refugee-workers-early-childhood-field-taking-closer-look
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED580920.pdf
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED580920.pdf
http://www.brookings.edu/research/the-importance-of-a-diverse-
teaching-force
http://www.brookings.edu/research/the-importance-of-a-diverse-
teaching-force

https://poverty.ucdavis.edu/sites/main/files/file-
attachments/exposure_to_same-race_teachers_and_student.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2013.04.005
https://doi.org/10.1038/466029a
http://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2017.1359582
EDUCATION
63 For a review of implicit bias in general, see C. Staats, K.
Capatosto, L. Tenney, & S. Mamo, State of the Science:
Implicit
Bias Review (Columbus, OH: The Ohio State University Kirwan
Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, 2017).
Regarding bias specific to early childhood education,
see W.S. Gilliam, A.N. Maupin, C.R. Reyes, M. Accavitti,
& F. Shic, Do Early Educators’ Implicit Biases Relate to
Behavior Expectations and Recommendations of Preschool
Expulsions and Suspensions? (New Haven, CT: Yale Child
Study Center, 2016), medicine.yale.edu/childstudy/zigler/
publications/Preschool%20Implicit%20Bias%20Policy%20
Brief_final_9_26_276766_5379_v1.pdf; C.S. Brown & E.A.
Stone, “Gender Stereotypes and Discrimination: How Sexism
Impacts Development,” in Advances in Child Development
and Behavior, vol. 50, eds. S.S. Horn, M.D. Ruck, & L.S.
Libenz
(Philadelphia: Elsevier), 105–33; T.M. Yates & A.K. Marcelo,
“Through Race-Colored Glasses: Preschoolers’ Pretend Play and
Teachers’ Ratings of Preschool Adjustment,” Early Childhood

Research Quarterly 29, no. 1 (2014): 1–11; N. Priest, N. Slopen,
S. Woolford, J.T. Philip, D. Singer, A.D. Kauffman, K. Mosely,
M. Davis, Y. Ransome, & D. Williams, “Stereotyping Across
Intersections of Race and Age: Racial Stereotyping among
White Adults Working with Children,” PLOS One 13, no. 10
(2018), https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0201696; B.T.
Bowman, J.P. Comer, & D.J. Johns. “Addressing the African
American Achievement Gap: Three Leading Educators Issue a
Call to Action,” Young Children 73, no. 2 (2018): 12–21, www.
naeyc.org/resources/pubs/yc/may2018/achievement-gap;
K.S.S. Colegrove & J.K. Adair, “Countering Deficit Thinking:
Agency, Capabilities and the Early Learning Experiences of
Children of Latina/o Immigrants,” Contemporary Issues
in Early Childhood 15, no. 2 (2014): 122−35, https://
doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2014.15.2.122; J.A. Grissom & C.
Redding, “Discretion and Disproportionality: Explaining the
Underrepresentation of High-Achieving Students of Color in
Gifted Programs,” AERA Open 2, no. 1 (2016): 1–25, https://
doi.org/10.1177/2332858415622175; U.S. Government
Accountability Office (GAO), K–12 Education: Discipline
Disparities for Black Students, Boys, and Students with
Disabilities (Washington, DC: GAO, 2018), www.gao.gov/
assets/700/692095.pdf; M. Souto-Manning & A. Rabadi-Raol,
“(Re)Centering Quality in Early Childhood Education: Toward
Intersectional Justice for Minoritized Children,” Review of
Research in Education 42, no. 1 (2018): 203–25, https://doi.
org/10.3102/0091732X18759550); and J.K. Adair, “Examining
Whiteness as an Obstacle to Positively Approaching Immigrant
Families in US Early Childhood Educational Settings,” Race,
Ethnicity and Education 17, no. 5 (2014): 643–66, https://doi.
org/10.1080/13613324.2012.759925.
Regarding implicit bias in children, see C.S. Brown, H.
Ali, E.A. Stone, & J.A. Jewell, “US Children’s Stereotypes and
Prejudices Toward Arab Muslims,” Analyses of Social Issues
and

Public Policy 17, no. 1 (2017): 60–83; and L. Bian, S.J. Leslie,
& A. Cimpian, “Gender Stereotypes About Intellectual Ability
Emerge Early and Influence Children’s Interests,” Science 355,
no. 6323 (2017): 389–91.
64 Regarding intersectionality in implicit bias, see
R. Wright, Race Matters . . . And So Does Gender: An
Intersectional Examination of Implicit Bias in Ohio School
Discipline Disparities (Columbus, OH: The Ohio State
University
Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, 2016,
https://kirwaninstitute.osu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/
Race-matters-and-so-does-Gender.pdf); and Y. Irizarry,
“Utilizing Multidimensional Measures of Race in Education
Research: The Case of Teacher Perceptions,” Sociology of
Race and Ethnicity 1, no. 4 (2015): 564–83, https://doi.
org/10.1177/2332649215580350.
65 J.R. Steele, M. George, A. Williams., & E. Tay, “A Cross-
Cultural
Investigation of Children’s Implicit Attitudes toward White
and Black Racial Outgroups,” Developmental Science (May 14,
2018), https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.12673.
66 Most studies have focused on the birth-to-5 age range, but
a growing number of programs are also considering the
characteristics of program quality on kindergarten through third
grade. See the Heckman Equation (www.heckmanequation.org)
for a number of resources discussing the return on investment
of high-quality early childhood programs serving children
birth through age 5. See also D.A. Phillips, M.W. Lipsey, K.A,
Dodge, R. Haskins, D. Bassok, M.R. Burchinal, G.J. Duncan,
M.
Dynarski, K.A. Magnuson, & C. Weiland, Puzzling It Out: The
Current State of Scientific Knowledge on Pre-Kindergarten
Effects: A Consensus Statement (Washington, DC: Brookings

Institute, 2017, www.brookings.edu/research/puzzling-it-out-
the-current-state-of-scientific-knowledge-on-pre-kindergarten-
effects); H. Yoshikawa, C. Weiland, J. Brooks-Gunn, M.R.
Burchinal, L.M. Espinosa, W.T. Gormley, J. Ludwig, K.A.
Magnuson, D. Phillips, & M.J. Zaslow, Investing in Our Future:
The Evidence Base on Preschool Education (Washington, DC:
Society for Research in Child Development, 2013, https://
fcd-us.org/resources/evidence-base-preschool); J.S. Cannon,
M.R. Kilburn, L.A. Karoly, T. Mattox, A.N. Muchow, & M.
Buenaventura, Investing Early: Taking Stock of Outcomes and
Economic Returns from Early Childhood Programs (Santa
Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2017); and D.C. McCoy, H.
Yoshikawa, H., K.M. Ziol-Guest, G.J. Duncan, H.S. Schindler,
K.
Magnuson, R. Yang, A. Koepp, J.P. Shonkoff, “Impacts of Early
Childhood Education on Medium- and Long-Term Educational
Outcomes,” Educational Researcher 46, no. 8 (2017): 474–87.
For studies looking at K−3, see S. Ritchie & L. Gutmann, eds.,
FirstSchool: Transforming PreK–3rd Grade for African
American, Latino, and Low-Income Children (New York:
Teachers College Press, 2014); B. Atchison & L. Diffey,
Initiatives
from Preschool to Third Grade: A Policymaker’s Guide
(Denver:
Education Commission of the States, 2018); Transforming
the Financing; and K. Kauerz & J. Coffman, Framework for
Planning, Implementing, and Evaluating PreK–3rd Grade
Approaches (Seattle: College of Education, University of
Washington, 2013).
67 Ö. Sensoy & R.J. DiAngelo, Is Everyone Really Equal?: An
Introduction to Key Concepts in Social Justice Education (New
York: Teachers College Press, 2017).

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http://www.heckmanequation.org
http://www.brookings.edu/research/puzzling-it-out-the-current-
state-of-scientific-knowledge-on-pre-kindergarten-effects
https://fcd-us.org/resources/evidence-base-preschool

https://fcd-us.org/resources/evidence-base-preschool
CHILDREN | 23
68 Beneke et al., “Practicing Inclusion.”
69 J.K. Adair, “Agency and Expanding Capabilities in Early
Grade
Classrooms: What It Could Mean for Young Children,” Harvard
Educational Review 84, no. 2 (2014): 217–41.
70 Australian Government Department of Education and
Training
for the Council of Australian Governments, Belonging, Being,
and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for
Australia (Canberra, Australia: Australian Government
Department of Education and Training for the Council of
Australian Governments, 2009), https://docs.education.gov. au/
documents/belonging-being-becoming-early-years-learning-
framework-australia.
72 Reid, Kagan, & Scott-Little, “New Understandings.”
73 Rogoff, Cultural Nature.
75 National Equity Project, “Leading and Working toward
Equity,”
(PowerPoint presentation, Leading and Working toward Equity
Leadership Summit, NAEYC, Washington, DC, July 2018). To

access webinars about equity, especially as it relates to early
childhood education, visit www.naeyc.org/events/trainings-
webinars/recorded-webinars and https://nationalequityproject.
org/resources/webinars.
76 González, Moll, & Amanti, Funds of Knowledge.
77 Gender Justice in Early Childhood, “Gender in Early
Childhood
V1 (Fact Sheet)” (2017), https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B89
vXFxTHcbuQU5BMkp0ZHJQWktwWkhVMkZzMHlyYVBHUH
BN/view.
78 M.Y.H. Brave Heart, “The Historical Trauma Response
Among
Natives and Its Relationship with Substance Abuse: A Lakota
Illustration,” Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 35, no. 1 (2003): 7.
doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2003.10399988.
79 DEC (Division for Early Childhood)/NAEYC, Early
Childhood
Inclusion position statement (Missoula, MT/Washington, DC:
DEC/NAEYC, 2009).
81 D.W. Sue, C.M. Capodilupo, G.C. Torino, J.M. Bucceri,
A.M.B. Holder, K.L. Nadal, & M. Esquilin, “Racial Micro-
Aggressions in Everyday Life: Implications for Clinical
Practice,”
American Psychologist 62, no. 4 (2007): 271–86. https://doi.
org/10.1037/0003-066X.62.4.271.

84 Center on the Developing Child, InBrief: The Science of
Resilience (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, 2015),
https://46y5eh11fhgw3ve3ytpwxt9r-wpengine.netdna-ssl.
com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/InBrief-The-Science-of-
Resilience.pdf.
85 NASEM, Communities in Action.
86 R. DiAngelo, White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White
People
to Talk About Racism (Boston: Beacon Press, 2018).
http://www.naeyc.org/events/trainings-webinars/recorded-
webinars
http://www.naeyc.org/events/trainings-webinars/recorded-
webinars
https://nationalequityproject.org/resources/webinars
https://nationalequityproject.org/resources/webinars
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B89vXFxTHcbuQU5BMkp0ZH
JQWktwWkhVMkZzMHlyYVBHUHBN/view
https://46y5eh11fhgw3ve3ytpwxt9r-wpengine.netdna-
ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/InBrief-The-Science-of-

Resilience.pdf
Resilience.pdf
Resilience.pdf
Join NAEYC to work with others
committed to advancing equity
in early childhood education,
see the full list of individual and
organization endorsements,
and find additional resources to
help bring the statement to life at
NAEYC.org/equity
#EquityinECE
Instructions:
First, write your Philosophy of Teaching Statement by including
one substantive paragraph (eight to ten sentences) for each of
the following topics:
Describe your position on the importance of developing family
and community partnerships to advocate for diverse families
and their needs.
Include connections from the Code of Ethical Conduct Position
Statement to support your answer.
How can observation and assessment procedures be used to
evaluate and positively influence child development?

Explain your position.
Describe, in detail, at least three positive behavior guidance
techniques for young children ages birth - 8 years and explain
why you think these would be effective and developmentally
appropriate.
Include a connection to the Developmentally Appropriate
Practice Position statement to support your answer.
Discuss, in detail, at least two reasons why you think it’s
important to implement developmentally appropriate and
culturally responsive practices.
Include a connection to the Advancing Equity in Early
Childhood Education Position Statement to support your
answer.
Describe the important aspects of designing a curriculum and
using content knowledge to create an inclusive environment for
young children ages birth to 8 years.
Explain your position.
Describe why you think it is important to advocate for high-
quality early childhood education programs in your current
program, community, and/or state.
Explain your position and how you will communicate your
advocacy position.
Next, post your Philosophy of Teaching Statement to a
personal/professional social media account, such as LinkedIn,
Facebook, personal blog, etc.
Format your Philosophy of Teaching Statement for a
professional post.
Insert any visuals or images to improve audience understanding
of the post, if applicable.
Provide a link to the post or the account handle on your
reference page so the instructor can access it.
Reminders:
If you do not have a personal/professional social media account,
you will need to create a LinkedIn account, Facebook, or
personal blog account. You can choose to use other social media
accounts, but access must be open to the instructor.

Submission Requirements:
Uses professional language with correct spelling, grammar, and
punctuation in the Philosophy of Teaching Statement document
with one substantive paragraph (eight to ten sentences) for each
of the above topics.
Provides title page and reference page with link/handle from
post and APA formatted credible sources to support ideas
(Reminder: in-text citations should match references).
***RUBRIC***
Family and Community Partnerships TS - Diversity, Equity, and
Inclusion and Information Literacy
15% of total grade
Mastery: Advanced/exceeds achievement
Outstanding description of your position on the importance of
developing family and community partnerships to advocate for
diverse families and their needs with thorough connections to
the Code of Ethical Conduct Position Statement.
Observation and Assessment
15% of total grade
Outstanding description of how observation and assessment
procedures can be used to evaluate and positively influence
child development with comprehensive details that thoroughly
explain your position.
Positive Behavior Guidance TS - Information Literacy
15% of total grade
Outstanding description of at least three positive behavior
techniques for young children with thorough details on
effectiveness, developmentally appropriateness, and connection
to the Developmentally Appropriate Practice Position
Statement.

Developmentally and Culturally Responsive Practices TS -
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Information Literacy
15% of total grade
Outstanding discussion of at least two reasons for implementing
developmentally appropriate and culturally responsive practices
with thorough connections to Advancing Equity in Early
Childhood Education Position Statement.
Inclusive Curriculum and Environments TS - Diversity, Equity,
and Inclusion and Critical Thinking
15% of total grade
Outstanding description of the important aspects of designing a
curriculum and using content knowledge to create inclusive
environments with comprehensive details that thoroughly
explain your position.
Advocacy in Early Childhood Programs TS - Ethics &
Professional Responsibility and Communication
15% of total grade
Outstanding description of why you think it is important to
advocate for high-quality early childhood education program(s)
in the current program, community, or state with comprehensive
details that thoroughly explain your position and how you will
communicate your advocacy position.
Advocacy in Early Childhood Programs TS - Ethics &
Professional Responsibility and Communication
15% of total grade
Outstanding description of why you think it is important to
advocate for high-quality early childhood education program(s)
in the current program, community, or state with comprehensive
details that thoroughly explain your position and how you will

communicate your advocacy position.
Submission Requirements
5% of total grade
Correct professional language, spelling, grammar, punctuation,
and APA in the Philosophy of Teaching Statement document,
including one substantive paragraph for each topic, a title page
and reference page with link/handle to post, and credible
sources to support ideas.

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