The Relation Between Teacher Vocabulary Use in Play and Child Vocabulary Outcomes

Although extensive research exists on vocabulary instruction during book reading in preschool classroom, comparatively little research has been conducted on vocabulary exposure in classroom play contexts and child vocabulary outcomes. The purpose of this study was to examine Head Start teacher and child vocabulary use in dyadic play sessions and the relation between teachers’ vocabulary use and children’s vocabulary outcomes. One Enhanced Milieu Teaching (EMT) session for each of 53 teacher–child dyads was transcribed and coded for teacher use of target and sophisticated vocabulary, use of teacher strategies to support vocabulary development, and child use of vocabulary. Descriptive data indicate variability for both teacher and child vocabulary use in the play sessions. Both teacher total number of vocabulary words and vocabulary supports were significantly related to child vocabulary use within sessions. Implications for practice are discussed.

“They Come from Chaos:” Considering the Power of Stories in Home-School Relationships

Complex depictions of home-school relationships examine the often-present gap between teacher perceptions and the lived experiences of families. One way to address this gap in understanding is by constructing narratives that detail the nuances of families’ involvement, countering potential misperceptions and narrow views. In addition to using tools such as counter-narrative to speak-back to deficit-laden stories told about marginalized families, researchers must also attempt to deeply understand all stories in order to think through what teachers’ stories mean for how they understand their work. Thus, this paper presents a case study of a Head Start prekindergarten teacher, showing how her stories about families are related to her identity as a Head Start teacher. The stories show how power, stereotypes, and perceptions of families relate to her ideas about home-school relationships. Further, her particular stories ask educators to consider who is responsible for creating chaotic images of families’ lives and what impact do stories characterized by chaos have when they are the ones told about families who live in poverty.