By: Diane Kashin, EdD, RECE. When my grandchildren visit I am constantly curiously observing. When I observe with curiosity I wonder why they are interested in the experiences that they find engaging. Reese who is three, likes playing with small, even tiny loose parts. What does this mean? If you are thinking developmentally, and fine … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. When I was an early childhood education student, writing objective observations for course assignments was not a task I remember fondly. When I was an ECE professor, most of my students detested the observation assignments that required an adherence towards objectivity. They needed to be purposefully detached from their feelings, … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. Connecting to early childhood educators is at the core of my practice. Making connections is central to my being an early childhood educator. Pre-COVID, I would be making time to visit child care programs to learn from those who are working directly with children. I really miss being where the … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. I am proponent of emergent curriculum. Emergent curriculum emerges from the interests of children. I have a continuing desire to help others move forward to embrace this empowering pedagogy. The question of what I teach (emergent curriculum) has been framed by how I teach it. When I began this journey, … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. The 21st century began on January 1st, 2001. Today’s children deserve learning experiences grounded in practices that are in keeping with a new era of play and learning. Now is the time to critically reflect on the practices that linger on from the previous century. I am a child of … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. When I first started work on my doctorate, about twenty years ago, I was determined to remain true to my early childhood education roots and to focus my research on issues that connected to my context of early learning. I wanted my research to reach early childhood educators to build … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. The York Region Nature Collaborative has been offering a series of Land as Teacher webinars. On February 13th, I had the honour of co-presenting Land as Teacher: Foundations for Early Learning, the fifth offering in the series. Rather than a presentation, it was a dialogue about contexts and perspectives between … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. Stories spiral in and out of my mind when I visit the pond near my house. These stories are woven together by threads of relationships. There are stories within stories that relate to my professional and personal growth in my final season. The pond is the backdrop to a documented … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. As the sun sets on the year 2020, none of us has escaped the challenges that it has brought. As the sun rises on the year 2021, it is time again for me to think about what lies ahead. I was hopeful in January as I felt that the year … Continue reading
By: Diane Kashin, Ed.D, RECE. and Nicole Pierce RECE. In the time of COVID as children return to early learning environments after being in isolation in their homes, how will they feel? Will children feel a sense of belonging in this new normal of physical distancing, mask wearing, toy sanitizing and hand washing? They will … Continue reading
Technology Rich Inquiry Based Research 