The Council is excited to announce that later this year we will release the newly-revised third edition of the landmark textbook Essentials for Child Development Associates Working with Young Children. The new Essentials will provide all of the most current research, information, ideas and strategies needed by entry-level early childhood professionals. The textbook will be organized around each of the thirteen Functional Areas, along with new information about reflection, intentionality, observation, documentation and other key topics of interest to contemporary teachers and caregivers.

In our last article  we reflected on "Functional Area 7 – Creativity." Please see below, the many responses we received about this topic from members of the national CDA community. This month we focus on... Self

Here is an advanced sneak peek of "Chapter 8: Self" for you to reflect on...

As a caregiver, one of your most important roles is to get to know and appreciate each child as an individual. We know that young children are motivated to learn when their interests, preferences and backgrounds are reflected in the curriculum. Caregivers can only do this well if they genuinely take the time to know children at a deep level.

At the same time that you are getting to know children, you want to do all that you can to support their development. You can help children feel good about themselves by reinforcing who they are as individuals. One of the main ways you do this is by helping children to appreciate the characteristics that define them – such as their temperament, their strengths and their approaches to learning. Beyond this, you also want to support children in valuing who they are as members of a family, as members of a culture and as citizens of a society.