Teaching Young Children: An Introduction to the Early Childhood Profession, 2E prepares early childhood educators to make a difference in the lives of children and families through early, high quality care and education programs that maintain a developmentally appropriate persepctive. By focusing on the dimensions of quality in early childhood programs and the principles that define developmentally appropriate practices, the text motivates early childhood professionals to rely on current knowledge of child growth, development, and learning when making decisions about their practices, to view families and communities as integral parts of early childhood programs, and to prepare environments especially suited to infants and young children.