OSAT Early Childhood Education cheat sheet

Piaget's stages: sensorimotor (birth–2) - object permanence; preoperational (2–7) - symbolic play, egocentrism, lack of conservation; concrete operational (7–11) - conservation and classification.

Erikson's early psychosocial stages: trust vs mistrust (0–1), autonomy vs shame/doubt (1–3), initiative vs guilt (3–6), industry vs inferiority (6–12).

Vygotsky: the zone of proximal development is the gap between independent and assisted performance; scaffolding and private speech support learning.

Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems: microsystem (family, classroom), mesosystem (home–school links), exosystem (parent workplace), macrosystem (culture), chronosystem (time).

Maslow's hierarchy order: physiological → safety → belonging → esteem → self-actualization; unmet lower needs interfere with higher-level learning.

Ainsworth's Strange Situation attachment patterns: secure, insecure-avoidant, insecure-resistant/ambivalent, and disorganized.

Language milestones: about 50 words and two-word combinations by 24 months; about 1,000 words and three-word sentences by 36 months.

Kohlberg's preconventional morality (punishment avoidance, self-interest) is typical in early childhood; conventional reasoning emerges in later childhood.

Cephalocaudal and proximodistal principles: motor development proceeds head-to-toe and center-outward.

National Reading Panel's five components: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.

Phonological awareness continuum: word awareness → syllable awareness → onset-rime → phoneme blending and segmenting.

Print concepts include front/back of book, left-to-right and top-to-bottom directionality, spoken-to-written word matching, and spaces between words.

Writing development sequence: scribble → letter-like forms → letter strings → invented spelling → conventional spelling.

Fluency has three components: accuracy, rate, and prosody (expression); it bridges word recognition and comprehension.

Dialogic reading uses PEER (prompt, evaluate, expand, repeat) and CROWD prompts (completion, recall, open-ended, wh-, distancing).

Vocabulary instruction: Tier 2 words (high-frequency, cross-domain) are the best targets for direct teaching in early childhood.

Comprehension strategies for young children: predicting, questioning, retelling, making connections, and using text structure.

Gelman and Gallistel's counting principles: one-to-one correspondence, stable order, cardinality, abstraction, and order irrelevance.

Subitizing is instant recognition of quantities up to about 4–5 without counting; it supports early addition and number sense.

Number benchmarks of 5 and 10 anchor composing and decomposing: 7 = 5 + 2, and 10 = 6 + 4.

Geometry progression: recognize and name 2D shapes → describe attributes → combine shapes → identify 3D solids.

Measurement sequence: compare and order by attribute → measure with nonstandard units → introduce standard units.

Scientific inquiry cycle: observe → question → predict → investigate → record → conclude.

Social studies strands: self and family, community and culture, geography and maps, economics (goods/services), and civics (rules and laws).

Data representation for young children: sorting, classifying, tally marks, pictographs, and simple bar graphs.

National Core Arts Standards: Creating, Performing/Presenting/Producing, Responding, and Connecting.

Elements of art: line, shape, color, texture, space, form, and value.

Lowenfeld's drawing stages: scribble (2–4), preschematic (4–7), and schematic (7–9).

Process art emphasizes exploration and child choice; product art with teacher models does not support creativity.

Music concepts for early childhood: steady beat, rhythm, pitch (high/low), tempo (fast/slow), and dynamics (loud/soft).

Creative drama uses improvisation, role play, and puppetry without scripts; it supports language, empathy, and perspective taking.

Arts integration links an art form with another content area (e.g., patterning in dance, sequencing in drama) while preserving art learning goals.

Gross motor sequence: head control → rolling → sitting → crawling → standing → walking; it follows cephalocaudal and proximodistal principles.

Fine motor grasp sequence: palmar grasp → pincer grasp → tripod grasp for writing.

Physical activity guidelines: preschoolers need at least 180 minutes daily, including 60 minutes of structured activity.

Sleep recommendations: 10–13 hours per 24 hours for ages 3–5; 9–12 hours for ages 6–12.

Choking hazards for children under 4: whole grapes, nuts, popcorn, hot dogs, and hard candy; foods should be cut into small pieces.

MyPlate: half the plate fruits and vegetables, one quarter grains, one quarter protein, plus dairy.

Health screening in schools: vision, hearing, BMI, dental, and immunization records.

Handwashing is the single most effective measure to prevent infectious disease spread in early childhood settings.

Formative assessment informs instruction during learning; summative assessment evaluates learning at the end.

Reliability is consistency of scores; validity is the degree to which a test measures what it claims to measure.

Norm-referenced tests compare a child to peers; criterion-referenced tests compare performance to a standard.

Authentic assessment methods: observation, running records, portfolios, work samples, photos, and anecdotal records.

Screening identifies children who may need further evaluation; diagnosis requires comprehensive assessment by qualified professionals.

Bias in assessment can arise from language, culture, and experience; multiple measures reduce bias.

IDEA requires nondiscriminatory evaluation and provides early intervention and special education services.

Progress monitoring uses brief, frequent measures to track response to intervention.

NAEYC recommends at least 35 square feet of indoor space per child and 75 square feet of outdoor space per child.

Environmental arrangement: separate quiet and active zones, clear pathways, low open shelves, labeled bins, and child-accessible materials.

Classroom rules should be few (3–5), stated positively, and modeled and practiced.

Visual schedules and transition cues reduce challenging behavior and support predictability.

ECERS and ITERS are environment rating scales used to assess quality in early childhood programs.

Safety checks: outlet covers, unblocked exits, secured heavy furniture, no choking hazards, and current CPR/first-aid certification.

Open-ended materials and rotating props sustain engagement and support play across domains.

NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct core values: respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and honesty; responsibilities extend to children, families, colleagues, and community.

Mandated reporting: teachers must report suspected abuse or neglect to child protective services; failure to report can be a crime.

FERPA protects education records and allows parents to inspect records and request amendments.

IDEA provides a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment for eligible children with disabilities.

Family engagement practices: two-way communication, home visits, family conferences, and culturally responsive materials.

Professional development should be ongoing, job-embedded, and reflective.

Reflective practice uses observation, documentation, and feedback to improve teaching.

Confidentiality: discuss children only with those who have a legitimate educational interest.