Extending the Dance in Infant and Toddler Caregiving

Lella Gandini, Ed.D., is Adjunct Professor of Education at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and Visiting Scholar (2007-2009) at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She taught as lecturer at Smith College and Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts and was a visiting researcher at the National Center of Research in Rome, Italy. She received her master's degree in child study from Smith College, her doctoral degree in education from the University of Massachusetts, and, in 2004, an honorary doctorate in humane letters from the Erikson Institute. She is the U.S. Liaison for the Dissemination of the Reggio Emilia Approach on behalf of Reggio Children, Italy, and a correspondent for the Italian educational magazine Bambini. She is Associate Editor of Innovations in Early Education: The International Reggio Exchange. Her research and writing have focused on parenting and on the philosophy and practices related to care and education of young children in Reggio Emilia and Pistoia, Italy. Her study and exchange supporting the professional development of North American teachers requires frequent periods of direct observation in those Italian cities.

Secure attachment between child and parent is one of the most important factors in early learning and development -- and for children in infant-toddler programs, teachers are a critical third partner in this relationship dance. That's why child care administrators and educators need this warm and practical program guide to establish relationship-based programs that keep teachers and children together throughout the entire program and encourage strong connections between them; develop respectful, mutually beneficial partnerships with parents of diverse cultural backgrounds; refine teaching practices by carefully observing, documenting, sharing, and reflecting on what happens during the child care day; plan comfortable, engaging physical environments indoors and outdoors that create community and excite children's minds; ensure that children's individual needs are met by the program's structure and routines; promote children's social skills and peer relationships; ease transition times and promote continuity by providing sensitive support to children and parents; and improve professional communication and support among teachers and administrators in a community of learning. To help them establish and maintain a relationship-based early childhood program, administrators and teachers will get concrete guidance on every step of the process, plus inspiration and ideas from successful programs in the United States and around the world. Early childhood educators will be full participants in the dance of early attachment -- and promote the healthy emotional, physical, cognitive, and language development of the young children they care for.

The Importance of the Dance; Dancing with Babies; Extending the Dance to Secondary Caregivers; Learning the Steps: Applications of Relationship-Based Approaches to Infant-Toddler Caregiving; Encircling Child Care in the Dance; Partnerships that Last; Smooth Rhythms; A Good Partner; Getting Off on the Right Foot; Now, Really Dance; Dancing with Your Peers; The One Who Brought You; A Beautiful Ballroom; Everybody Dance; Concluding Remarks.