{"id":57,"date":"2023-11-13T16:09:05","date_gmt":"2023-11-13T16:09:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/chapter\/developmentally-appropriate-practices\/"},"modified":"2026-01-03T03:46:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-03T03:46:17","slug":"developmentally-appropriate-practices","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/chapter\/developmentally-appropriate-practices\/","title":{"raw":"3.6: Developmentally Appropriate Practices","rendered":"3.6: Developmentally Appropriate Practices"},"content":{"raw":"<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children\u2019s Position Statement, \u201cThe core of developmentally appropriate practice lies in\u2026intentionality, in the knowledge that practitioners consider when they are making decisions, and in their always aiming for goals that are both challenging and achievable for children.\u201d<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">To do this, they must use Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP). DAP includes three areas of knowledge:<\/p>\r\n\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Age-appropriateness \u2013 using what is known about child development and learning in general<\/li>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Individual-appropriateness \u2013 using what is known about each child as an individual to be responsive to each child<\/li>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Social- and cultural-appropriateness \u2013 using what is known about the social and cultural context in which children live[1]<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Head Start has guiding principles that reflect developmentally appropriate practice by an intentional teacher.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Each child is unique and can succeed<\/li>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Learning occurs in the context of relationships.<\/li>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Caregivers are children\u2019s first and most important caregivers, teachers, and advocates.<\/li>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Children learn best when they are emotionally and physically safe and secure.<\/li>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Areas of development are integrated, and children learn many concepts and skills at the same time.<\/li>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Teaching must be intentional and focus on how children learn and grow.<\/li>\r\n \t<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Every child has diverse strengths rooted in their family\u2019s culture, background, language, and beliefs.[2]<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<div id=\"section_1\" class=\"mt-section\">\r\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--examples\"><header class=\"textbox__header\">\r\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">Watch this!<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\r\n\r\n<strong>Understanding Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP)<\/strong> (4:54 minutes) is an educational framework designed to promote young children's optimal learning and development. Learn more about DAP in this video. This book is a summary of the work of Carol Copple, Janet Gonzalez-Mena, and Sue Bredekamp.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n[embed]https:\/\/youtu.be\/XGDOI3s1xoM?si=MxK_ofMjFRqOG5UY[\/embed]\r\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--key-takeaways\"><header class=\"textbox__header\">\r\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">Check Your Knowledge<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\r\n\r\nThis is a\u00a0<strong>low-stakes assessment<\/strong>, meaning:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>It's designed to help you learn, not just test you<\/li>\r\n \t<li>You can retry as many times as needed<\/li>\r\n \t<li>It provides immediate feedback to reinforce learning<\/li>\r\n \t<li>There's no penalty for mistakes\u2014they're part of the learning process<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Click directly in the blank space to activate it<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Fill in every blank space before checking your work<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Click the \"Check\" button to see if your answers are correct<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Green checkmark (\u2713)<\/strong>\u00a0= Correct answer<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Red X (\u2717)<\/strong>\u00a0= Incorrect answer<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Review which answers were marked incorrect<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Click the \"Retry\" button to try again with incorrect answers<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n[h5p id=\"10\"]\r\n<h2 class=\"lt-socialsci-39360 editable\">References<\/h2>\r\n<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">[1]\u00a0National Association for the Education of Young Children. (2009) Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth through Age 8. Retrieved from\u00a0https:\/\/www.naeyc.org\/sites\/default\/files\/globally-shared\/downloads\/PDFs\/resources\/position-statements\/PSDAP.pdf<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">[2]\u00a0Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework\u00a0by the\u00a0U.S. Department of Health and Human Services\u00a0is in the public domain<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<footer class=\"mt-content-footer\">\r\n\r\n<hr class=\"autoattribution-divider\" \/>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"autoattribution\">\r\n\r\nThis page titled\u00a03.6: Developmentally Appropriate Practices\u00a0is shared under a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/socialsci.libretexts.org\/Courses\/Arapahoe_Community_College\/Introduction_to_Curriculum_for_Early_Childhood_Education\/03%3A_The_Importance_of_Play_and_Intentional_Teaching\/3.06%3A_Developmentally_Appropriate_Practices\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">not declared\u00a0<\/a>license and was authored, remixed, and\/or curated by Erin Jones, EdS, ECSE, MBA.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/footer>","rendered":"<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children\u2019s Position Statement, \u201cThe core of developmentally appropriate practice lies in\u2026intentionality, in the knowledge that practitioners consider when they are making decisions, and in their always aiming for goals that are both challenging and achievable for children.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">To do this, they must use Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP). DAP includes three areas of knowledge:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Age-appropriateness \u2013 using what is known about child development and learning in general<\/li>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Individual-appropriateness \u2013 using what is known about each child as an individual to be responsive to each child<\/li>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Social- and cultural-appropriateness \u2013 using what is known about the social and cultural context in which children live[1]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Head Start has guiding principles that reflect developmentally appropriate practice by an intentional teacher.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Each child is unique and can succeed<\/li>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Learning occurs in the context of relationships.<\/li>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Caregivers are children\u2019s first and most important caregivers, teachers, and advocates.<\/li>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Children learn best when they are emotionally and physically safe and secure.<\/li>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Areas of development are integrated, and children learn many concepts and skills at the same time.<\/li>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Teaching must be intentional and focus on how children learn and grow.<\/li>\n<li class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">Every child has diverse strengths rooted in their family\u2019s culture, background, language, and beliefs.[2]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"section_1\" class=\"mt-section\">\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--examples\">\n<header class=\"textbox__header\">\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">Watch this!<\/p>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\n<p><strong>Understanding Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP)<\/strong> (4:54 minutes) is an educational framework designed to promote young children&#8217;s optimal learning and development. Learn more about DAP in this video. This book is a summary of the work of Carol Copple, Janet Gonzalez-Mena, and Sue Bredekamp.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"oembed-1\" title=\"Understanding Developmentally Appropriate Practice\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XGDOI3s1xoM?feature=oembed&#38;rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--key-takeaways\">\n<header class=\"textbox__header\">\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">Check Your Knowledge<\/p>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\n<p>This is a\u00a0<strong>low-stakes assessment<\/strong>, meaning:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>It&#8217;s designed to help you learn, not just test you<\/li>\n<li>You can retry as many times as needed<\/li>\n<li>It provides immediate feedback to reinforce learning<\/li>\n<li>There&#8217;s no penalty for mistakes\u2014they&#8217;re part of the learning process<\/li>\n<li>Click directly in the blank space to activate it<\/li>\n<li>Fill in every blank space before checking your work<\/li>\n<li>Click the &#8220;Check&#8221; button to see if your answers are correct<\/li>\n<li><strong>Green checkmark (\u2713)<\/strong>\u00a0= Correct answer<\/li>\n<li><strong>Red X (\u2717)<\/strong>\u00a0= Incorrect answer<\/li>\n<li>Review which answers were marked incorrect<\/li>\n<li>Click the &#8220;Retry&#8221; button to try again with incorrect answers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"h5p-10\">\n<div class=\"h5p-iframe-wrapper\"><iframe id=\"h5p-iframe-10\" class=\"h5p-iframe\" data-content-id=\"10\" style=\"height:1px\" src=\"about:blank\" frameBorder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" title=\"Developmentally Appropriate Practice Fill in the Blank\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"lt-socialsci-39360 editable\">References<\/h2>\n<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">[1]\u00a0National Association for the Education of Young Children. (2009) Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth through Age 8. Retrieved from\u00a0https:\/\/www.naeyc.org\/sites\/default\/files\/globally-shared\/downloads\/PDFs\/resources\/position-statements\/PSDAP.pdf<\/p>\n<p class=\"lt-socialsci-39360\">[2]\u00a0Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework\u00a0by the\u00a0U.S. Department of Health and Human Services\u00a0is in the public domain<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<footer class=\"mt-content-footer\">\n<hr class=\"autoattribution-divider\" \/>\n<div class=\"autoattribution\">\n<p>This page titled\u00a03.6: Developmentally Appropriate Practices\u00a0is shared under a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/socialsci.libretexts.org\/Courses\/Arapahoe_Community_College\/Introduction_to_Curriculum_for_Early_Childhood_Education\/03%3A_The_Importance_of_Play_and_Intentional_Teaching\/3.06%3A_Developmentally_Appropriate_Practices\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">not declared\u00a0<\/a>license and was authored, remixed, and\/or curated by Erin Jones, EdS, ECSE, MBA.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/footer>\n","protected":false},"author":154,"menu_order":6,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[48],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-57","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","chapter-type-numberless"],"part":332,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/57","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/154"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/57\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1611,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/57\/revisions\/1611"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/332"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/57\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=57"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=57"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ccconline.org\/accintroductiontoece\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=57"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}