More Information on Zero to Three

What specific section(s) or information seemed particularly relevant to your current professional development?

My favorite section on the Zero to Three website is, the Behavior & Development portion. There are two topics that are continuously challenging me professionally under this section. One is Challenging Behaviors and the other is Play. These are two areas that I feel are continuously changing in the Early Childhood field. Play was very prevalent at one point then academics became more important. Now it is clear that play needs to be implemented more in children's lives. Challenging Behaviors change often too. The behaviors may not change but the way we handle them changes. From sending children to time out in the past to trying to find other options to reach our students now, teachers have to stay on top of rules and regulations in order to know what the right and wrong thing is to do. 

Which ideas/statements/resources, either on the website or in an e-newsletter, did you find controversial or made you think about an issue in new ways?

The section on Maltreatment has a link that discusses the impact of trauma in the lives of our children. While I am well aware young children face traumatic experiences, I never really knew that these experiences could have such a huge effect on them since they are so young. This section really made me think how important my time is with each child because you never know what they may be dealing with at home. 

What information does the website or the e-newsletter contain that adds to your understanding of how economists, neuroscientists, or politicians support the early childhood field?

 There is an entire section on the Zero to Three website dedicated to public policy. This section is based on research on different issues that effect our Infants, Toddlers, and early Preschoolers.

What other new insights about issues and trends in the early childhood field did you gain from exploring the website or e-newsletter?

I really enjoy the policy guide on the website. This is a guide that every educator and director should look at. It offers some great tips and policies that should be implemented. I saw so many things that I could immediately see we were doing wrong at my center and my intent is to change them with the guidance of this book.