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Learning to Work Cooperatively and Respectfully with Others
Democratic life skills are skills that enable all of us—children and adults alike—to be caring, thoughtful members of families, schools, communities, and societies. But these emotional and social skills don’t just happen. Teachers and families support and nudge young children toward them, using guidance techniques that calm and teach.
Completely updated and revised, the second edition of this classic resource provides relatable anecdotes and practical strategies for teachers to understand
- Why building secure relationships with children and families is so important—and eight communication practices to build them
- How viewing misbehavior as mistaken behavior allows you to focus on helping a child learn better ways to meet their needs
- When and how to use specific guidance practices to promote children’s healthy personal development and social cooperation
- How an encouraging learning community helps everyone move toward achieving their potential
Whether you’re a veteran teacher or just embarking on your teaching journey, you’ll find what you need in this book to provide young children with a solid foundation for their—and society’s—future.
Early childhood teachers and families have the most important job—helping mold the next generation of citizens. Through humor, research, and step-by-step guidance, this book provides the framework for supporting life skills to help us all live in a more perfect society.
—Karen Burger Cairone, Project Director, Education Development Center
Dan Gartrell introduces his book to readers as “. . . a child-friendly book for adults.” I like to call it child-sensitive, because he helps us develop meaningful relationships with children and not just manage their behaviors. He teaches us about democratic life skills thoroughly, informatively, and theoretically. This could not be more important today. As adults, we would well do with learning them too!
—Tamar Jacobson, Early Childhood Education Consultant and Retired Professor, Rider University
This book equips educators with the tools to cultivate democratic life skills in young children, families, and themselves. Grounded in research and real work with children, then wrapped up and delivered with humility and humor, this book empowers teachers to foster critical thinking, empathy, and active citizenship.
—Becky DelVecchio, Program Coordinator, Instructional Leadership, University of Massachusetts Boston
Dan Gartrell’s revised Education for a Civil Society provides authentic examples that help teachers connect to their practice. It is a guidebook that teacher candidates will reference well past graduation.
—Jayme Hines, Assistant Professor, Wilkes University
Dan Gartrell, EdD, Dan Gartrell is a former Head Start teacher for the Red Lake Band of Ojibwe in northern Minnesota. During the 1970s, Dan completed his master’s degree at Bemidji State University in northern Minnesota, where he was a CDA (Child Development Associate) credential adviser for the Child Development Training Program. Dan received his EdD from the University of North Dakota in 1977. For 40 years, Dan was director of the Child Development Training Program and professor of early childhood education at Bemidji State University. He is now a professor emeritus.
Dan has written 30 articles that have appeared in Young Children, Teaching Young Children, The SAGE Encyclopedia of Contemporary Early Childhood Education, and Exchange. His column, Guidance Matters, appeared in Young Children from 2004 to 2015.
Dan is the author of seven books, including six editions of his textbook, A Guidance Approach for the Encouraging Classroom, and two NAEYC comprehensive membership selection books: The Power of Guidance: Teaching Social-Emotional Skills in Early Childhood Classrooms (2004) and Education for a Civil Society: How Guidance Teaches Young Children Democratic Life Skills (2012).
His books on guidance in early childhood education and guidance for early childhood leaders were published in 2017 and 2020 by Redleaf Press.
Dan has led over 300 presentations, keynotes, and master classes in 23 states; Washington, DC; Germany; and Mexico. About 20 times Dan has presented at NAEYC annual conferences and professional learning institutes. Dan is a member of two families that include wife, Dr. Julie Jochum, five adult children, and fifteen grandchildren.
Dedication
Acknowledgments
About the Author
A Semi-Lively Introduction
Chapter 1: Roots and Shoots: The Democratic Life Skills and Progressive Education
Chapter 2: Teaching for Healthy Brain Development: Motivation, Guidance, and
Developmentally Appropriate Practice for All
Chapter 3: The Community of Relationships: Unmanageable Stress and the Centrality of Secure Relationships
Chapter 4: The Substance Chapter: A Guide to Studying the Democratic Life Skills in Practice
Chapter 5: The Foundational Skill: DLS 1: Finding a Place as a Member of the Group and as a Worthy Individual
Chapter 6: The Pivotal Skill: Expressing Strong Emotions in Nonhurting Ways
Chapter 7: The Learning Skill: Solving Problems Creatively—Independently and in Cooperation with Others
Chapter 8: The Inclusion Skill: Accepting Unique Human Qualities in Others
Chapter 9: The Democracy Skill: Thinking Intelligently and Ethically
Chapter 10: Teachers and the Democratic Life Skills
Appendix
Glossary
References
Index