Self-Esteem and Early Learning (Zero to Eight)

`An enjoyable book, which covers research as well as practical strategies for anyone working or living with young children′ - Debate

`This is a very positively framed and optimistic book′ - Early Years

`This very accessible, enjoyable, well-informed, clearly conceived and emotionally intelligent book will be of interest to all early years practitioners, whether experienced or embarking on initial teacher training, for it is always useful to be reminded that the personal, social and emotional area of learning must be of prime importance in early years curriculum′ - Journal of Early Childhood Research

`In this revised edition of her book, Rosemary Roberts skillfully brings alive how young children develop a sense of themselves. The chapters have reader-friendly layout and the family story woven throughout the book illustrates the main points in a very real way. The content is gleaned from the author′s extensive experience with families in the PEEP project in Oxfordshire. The book is especially effective because the author shows such empathy towards the feelings and dilemmas of caring adults. However, the flow of chapters balances the feelings and behaviour of children as well as that of the adult. There are some practical sections about dealing with children′s behaviour in a way that is respectful of their feelings. The whole approach of the book should be an excellent support for adults. The author shows how children′s development of a healthy level of self-esteem is built up one step at a time, through experiences with important people in their lives, as well as developmentally-appropriate approaches to their learning′ - Nursery World

′This involvement in a family′s life makes the book fascinating to read, and helps us to understand generalized approaches to raising children′s self-esteem′ - Child Education

`The recommended further reading at the end of each chapter is usefully organised… I feel practitioners will be tempted to take up these recommendations as they are presented in a format which, true to the style of the whole series, is practical, informative and accessible′ - Emma Hertzberg, Goldsmiths Association for Early Childhood

`As an early childhood educator, parent and grandparent, I found the developmental descriptions of the children and the family vignettes provided really authentic pictures of what children are like. The themes of balance, acceptance, understanding, reflection and the importance of play are essential for all those who work with young children to know and understand′ - Carol R Keyes, International Journal of Early Years Education

This book is about the very early development and importance of self-concept and learning dispositions. It shows a rigorous theoretical underpinning (Piaget, Vygotsky, Bruner, Katz, Isaacs, Winnicott; and more recently Bruer, Carr, Gopnik, Karoly et al and Shore) but has been written and presented in a way which is practical and accessible for a wide readership; including parents. The emphasis is on adults′ observation of babies and young children; reflection about what babies and young children see, hear and experience in the course of their development; and strategies to support the development of self esteem and positive learning dispositions. In order to draw in the whole range of relevant issues, it focuses alternatively on the child′s perspective and the adult′s perspective.

This revision builds on the author′s work of the last five years spent developing a programme to support parents and carers with children from birth to four years in disadvantaged areas, to give their children a good start at school and raise educational attainment, especially literacy, in the long term.

Rosemary Roberts is a freelance author and early years consultant.