That Early Childhood Nerd

Early Childhood Nerdwork

If you love thinking deeply about childhood, early childhood education, caring for children, and supporting children’s right to play, this is the podcast for you! Each week, host and self-proclaimed early childhood nerd Heather Bernt-Santy invites practitioners, writers, and thinkers who share her commitment to doing the very best we can for children, their caregivers and teachers, and their families to discuss big ideas, real life practices, and cool research. Let’s get nerdy!

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#432
Wednesday · 45 min
NERD 0433 Customer Service in Early Childhood Education
Who is really the “customer” in early childhood programs? How do we genuinely respect families and their experiences while still maintaining strong systems, standards, and accountability? And what does customer service look like in a sector grounded in care, ethics, and community responsibility—not retail models? Professor and wonderer Robin Landals-Hill joins host Heather Bernt-Santy for a conversation centered on these questions, and whether the customer is really “always right.” Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#431
October 14 · 42 min
NERD 0432 It's So Much More Than "Potty Training"
What if the words we use during toilet learning could help children feel capable, respected, and empowered? In this episode, host Heather Bernt-Santy talks with Jen Marcus, author of Potty Pedagogy: Guiding Children through Toileting with Language that Empowers about the role word choice and other considerations plays in one of the most personal parts of caring for children. Find Jen's article here: https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/vop/winter2025/guiding-children-through-toileting Jen would love to hear from you! You can email her at marcus.l.jennifer3333@gmail.com. Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#430
October 7 · 41 min
NERD_0431_Lisa Murphy's Grab Bag pt 1
I don’t know about you, but this Nerd loves Lisa Murphy! So it was so fun to have her say, “I keep a list of topics and questions that I want to pod about!” Here’s the first episode of what we’re calling “Lisa Murphy’s Grab Bag,” an ongoing series of episodes where Lisa brings that list to That Early Childhood Nerd. Included in this conversation: An off hand remark at a nail salon that left Lisa wondering, “do children have freedom to ‘not like someone’s tone’?” If you were a child in your own class today, would you want to come back tomorrow? How do Heather and Lisa feel about having to make dinner decisions? Who do you have in your life that stretches your adult zone of proximal development? Is it kinder to be direct? Why do toddlers pick their noses and why don’t we all already know the answer? Which 80’s soaps did you watch and why? Lots of heart, lots of laughs, and lots of Lisa and Heather—enjoy! Order the latest edition of Lisa’s PLAY book here: https://www.redleafpress.org/Lisa-Murphy-on-Play-3rd-Edition-The-Foundation-of-Childrens-Learning-P3195.aspx Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#429
September 23 · 39 min
NERD 0430 Children's Behaviors and Children's Learning: Tools Over Tactics
One of host Heather Bernt-Santy’s favorite things is to find someone who takes something she is instinctively feeling and brilliantly putting that feeling into words. In this episode, her guest Amy Chiu has done just that. Amy joins the show to talk about how easy it can be for early childhood practitioners to take the tools we have in our toolbox and use them as tactics for control or compliance. Listen to find out what she means when she says: Tools become tactics when the goal shifts from understanding children to controlling outcomes Taking deep breaths becomes a tactic when a child is expected to “calm down” on command Scaffolding becomes a tactic when participation matters more than agency Visual schedules become tactics when they leave no room for humanity, flexibility, or individual rhythms Find more of Amy’s work at www.theworkofplay.com Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#428
September 16 · 46 min
NERD 0429 Developmental Theorists and Ageism with Dr. Jennifer Fane
Could child developmental theories be ageist, encouraging us to see only children’s deficits? This week host Heather Bernt-Santy discusses this question with Dr. Jennifer Fane, co-author of the book The Sociology of Early Childhood: Young Children’s Lives and Worlds. The conversation begins with this quote from the book: “We believe that child development theories are often ageist, because they carry an implicit assumption that we begin life as deficient, and get better, wiser, and more capable as we get older. Such theories reassure adults that they are capable, but are often very damaging to young children, who are left feeling incapable, and so encourage passivity and helplessness. Many of these developmental theories have led to a deficit approach to education, in which educators spend most of their time focusing on what young children cannot do (by using developmental checklists) rather than what they enjoy or do well. A less ageist perspective suggests babies enter the world capable of absorbing knowledge and drawing conclusions at a rapid pace. As we age, we acquire more knowledge and experience, but we also slow in the rate we can learn, and become more limited in our creativity and curiosity.” Find the book here: https://a.co/d/0dEf1MdP Find more of Dr. Fane’s work here: https://www.signal49.ca/team-members/jennifer-fane/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#427
September 9 · 43 min
NERD 0428 What is Moral Injury in Early Care and Education?
In a 2026 article co-written with Brianne Kramer and Clint Broadbent, Denisha Jones explores the idea of moral injury in our work in the early childhood profession, writing, ‘Many teachers view their profession as a calling, so they take their work as a personal mission to educate students. Because of this, it is a moral affront to teachers to face daily ‘circumstances that challenge their moral conscience, vocational identity, and the values that got them into teaching in the first place’ (Keefe-Perry, 2018). Santoro (2011) theorized about moral injury by asking ‘What happens when experienced teachers who are fueled by the moral dimension of teaching find they can no longer access the moral rewards embedded in their work?’ Santoro goes on to (2011) argue the moral and ethical dimensions of teaching involve both required and prohibited practices (moral dimensions) and teachers' recognition that their work is in service to a better world (ethical dimensions). Often these are inseparable so that if a teacher is repeatedly forced to do something that they believe is harmful to their students, they may feel they are bad at their job or their job is bad for the world (Santoro, 2011). This creates a moral injury that plagues teachers daily.” In our conversation in this episode, Denisha defines moral injury and explains how it may be more useful to reframe our current “burnout” conversation as moral injury. Read The Intensification of Moral Injury in Teachers During the Pandemic here: https://ices.library.ubc.ca/index.php/workplace/article/view/187167 Check out Denisha’s new project the Play Science Institute here: https://playscience.org/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#426
September 2 · 53 min
NERD 0427 Anti Fascism in Early Childhood: Imagining and Building Worlds
In this episode, host Heather Bernt-Santy is joined by Kylie Cooper, Jamie Bonczyk, and Lucy Recio to discuss their recent Exchange article titled Reclaiming Our Legacy of Imagining and Building Worlds: Countering Fascism. Jamie shares: The article discussed in this episode grew out of a conversation that began in January 2025. Listeners can follow the evolution of these ideas through the following articles from Exchange Magazine: Embodied Advocacy Taking Stock: Is Personal Grief the Invisible Companion Informing How You Show Up? What’s at Stake? Professional Loss and Grief in Early Care and Education Workplaces Taking Action: Channeling Collective Grief Towards Social Justice and Change To explore these articles and additional resources, begin a two-week free trial of Exchange Press or receive 50% off an Exchange Community Membership with the promotional code FRIEND50. Connect with Jamie Bonczyk at LinkedIn and Instagram Find Lucy here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucyrecio/ Find more about Kylie and her work here: https://www.riseearlylearningcenter.org/ And find the article here: https://hub.exchangepress.com/articles-on-demand/86844/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#425
August 26 · 42 min
NERD 0426 Behavior or Biology? with Amy Reyes
This week, our guest is Amy Reyes-Hauff, ECE consultant and outdoor play advocate, who recently published the book Why Did They Do That? It's Not a Behavior Problem, It's a Biological Reaction. Why Did They Do That reframes the tumultuous preschool years (3-5) as a period of neurological renovation rather than a series of behavior problems. By explaining the biological gap between the fully developed, emotional "downstairs brain" (the amygdala) and the under-construction, logical "upstairs brain" (the prefrontal cortex). Order Amy's book here: https://a.co/d/0iXTs4sy Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#424
August 19 · 1 hr 2 min
NERD 0425 Play and Adult Roles with Suzanne Axelsson
What is the adult's role if children are allowed to "just play?" It's a question host Heather Bernt-Santy hears often as she talks with early childhood practitioners. Thank goodness Suzanne Axelsson has done a lot of thinking and writing about it! In a post in her Substack, Suzanne writes about play and adult roles. When is it play and what can we do to support it? How can we learn to be clear and authentic about what is true play and adult attempts at teaching? Read the post here: https://suzanneaxelsson.substack.com/p/view-on-play-and-adult-roles Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#423
August 12 · 53 min
NERD 0424 Empathy and Kindness in Early Childhood Classrooms with Jacky Howell
Early childhood consultant and author Jacky Howell is this week's Guest Nerd and she's here to talk to host Heather Bernt-Santy about the empathy and kindness she knows young children are capable of. The conversation begins with a quote from one of Jacky's heroes, Jane Goodall: "You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make." Jacky and her colleagues Makai Kellogg, Magy Youssef, and Sabina Zeffler shared their stories of children's kindness and empathy in their book Reflection, Perspecive Taking, and Social Justice: Stories of Empathy and Kindness in the Early Childhood Classroom. Order their book here: https://www.redleafpress.org/Reflection-Perspective-Taking-and-Social-Justice-e-book-Stories-of-Empathy-and-Kindness-in-the-Early-Childhood-Classroom-P3055.aspx Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#422
August 5 · 48 min
NERD 0423 The Already Whole Child with Em Clark
"What would early childhood education look like if young children were recognized as already whole human beings?" asks child liberation scholar Em Clark in her recently published article The Already Whole Child: Reconceptualizing Care and Sanctuary through Childism." Join host Heather Bernt-Santy as she talks with Em Clark about the ways that the dominant discourse in early childhood education "position children as beings-in-progress, whose humanity is contingent on their movement toward normative adulthood." What if we let children be present-tense human beings instead of future kindergartners, future test-takers, future workers, future economic contributors? You can access the article here: https://iccpsonlinejournal.org/index.php/childhoods/article/view/347 Find more of her liberation work here: https://liberatingchildhood.org/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#421
July 31 · 1 hr 3 min
NERD_0422 Lisa Asks Heather: Reflecting on 10 Years of TECN
Ten years of That Early Childhood Nerd? We could hardly believe it either! To wrap up our week of bonus anniversary content, we handed the microphone to one of Heather's favorite people, Lisa Murphy...and, as you might expect, things got a little (delightfully) off track. Lisa asks the questions, Heather tries to answer them, and together they look back on a decade of conversations about play, teaching, advocacy, and whatever rabbit trails seem too interesting to ignore. They talk about the beginnings of the show, the episodes that stick with Heather, the ideas she's changed her mind about, and what keeps her showing up behind the microphone after all these years. There are stories, laughs, a little reminiscing, and plenty of nerding out along the way. Whether you've been here since day 1 or you're just joining "That Early Childhood Nerd Nation" (thanks, Lisa!), thanks for listening, and thanks for making ten years of this podcast possible. Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#420
July 30 · 51 min
TECN Bonus Episode 4: Community Care and Mutual Aid
In this episode, we explore how Little Women's themes of community care and mutual aid connect to our work with young children, their families, and each other. The novel tells stories of a family giving to others, whether informally through sharing their Christmas breakfast or more formally through Marmee's organized work on behalf of Union soldiers, and then receiving care themselves from friends and neighbors when Mr. March becomes ill. Mike Huber and Lizz Nolasco join host Heather Bernt-Santy to discuss how interdependence, shared responsibility, and showing up for each other might be the answer to so many of the problems we live with today and create a world where children, families, and educators are supported by communities that care. Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#419
July 29 · 41 min
TECN Bonus Episode 3: Finding Your Voice
One of the themse of Little Women is the journey of finding your voice. Jo insisted on telling her own stories, and found a way to support her family with her writing. Amy claims her artistic talents, even when her ambitions are thwarted. In the process, they find out what it means to be heard and live authentically. In this episode, Lizz Nolasco and Stacy Benge join host Heather Bernt-Santy discuss what it means to find your voice in a profession that is often overlooked. How do we speak up for children, families, and ourselves? Whether it's writing books, hosting podcasts, speaking to groups, or talking to coworkers and families about our practice, we connect the stories in Little Women to our ongoing work of advocacy and courage in early care and education. Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#418
July 28 · 54 min
TECN Bonus Episode 2: Caregiving and Invisible Labor
In this episode, we revisit Little Women and its themes of caregiving and invisible labor. From Marmee's care work at home and in the community, emotional and domestic responsibilities of the March sisters, Beth's almost martyr-like caring, and Hannah's role in the family and care load, we explore the often unseen work that holds families and communities together. Sam Balch and Carol Garboden Murray join host Heather Bernt-Santy to connect these themes to early care and education, where care work remains essential, undervalued, and too often invisible. Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#417
July 27 · 27 min
TECN Bonus Episode 1: Little Women and Teaching
It’s the show’s 10th anniversary! In honor of the anniversary, we are releasing FIVE episodes this week, starting with a re-release of the very first episode. This episode originally aired on August 1, 2016...back then the podcast was called Cause an Effect. A lot has changed since then, including the host's name (from Heather Wenig to Heather Bernt-Santy) but we hope you will tune in! In this episode, Heather is joined by Tiffany Pearsall to talk about the connection between this quote from Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" and our work with young children: "Mr Davis knew any quantity of Greek, Latin, algebra, and ologies of all sorts so he was called a fine teacher, and manners, morals, feelings, and examples were not considered of any importance." Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#416
July 22 · 45 min
NERD 0421 Autistic Play and Autistic Joy with Kara Ketter
Let's talk autistic play and autistic joy! Host Heather Bernt-Santy is joined in this episode by autistic educator, preschool teacher, and disability justice advocate Kara Ketter and the conversation starts with this quote: “If I could change three things about how the world sees autism, they would be these. That the world would see that we feel joy—sometimes a joy so intense and private and all-encompassing that it eclipses anything the world might feel. That the world would stop punishing us for our joy, stop grabbing flapping hands and eliminating interests that are not “age-appropriate”, stop shaming and gas-lighting us into believing that we are never, and can never be, happy. And that our joy would be valued in and of itself, seen as a necessary and beautiful part of our disability, pursued, and shared.” Read the full blog post here: https://tinyurl.com/yfhpd6c3 Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#415
July 15 · 39 min
NERD 0420 We Have Surrendered to the Children with Kimberlee Hendricks
In her article for Exchange's winter 2025 issue on Protecting Play, Kimberlee Hendricks shares how her program's commitment to providing a space that belonged to children, that protected play required that they surrender some things, and that they remember what play feels like for adults. She talks with host Heather Bernt-Santy about surrendering to children in this episode. You can read Kimberlee’s article here: https://hub.exchangepress.com/articles-on-demand/70263/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#414
July 8 · 58 min
NERD 0419 Caroline Pratt: More Than Just Blocks (But We Love the Blocks!)
Did you know that the familiar wooden unit blocks that so many early childhood spaces have were created in the early 20th century be a progressive educator named Caroline Pratt? I did know that--but I didn't know what an amazing, interesting, spirited woman she really was. Join me, host Heather Bernt-Santy, as Charleen Kepner takes us on a journey to get to know the truly amazing ways that Caroline Pratt challenged the status quo and championed children's right to a meaningful education...including amazing quotes from Pratt that delighted me. You can read Charleen’s thesis on Caroline Pratt here: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/honorstheses/1649/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
#413
July 1 · 50 min
NERD 0418 Potty Training and School: Whose Job Is It Anyway?
A May 2026 article posted by Education Week wonders, "Who's Responsible for Toilet Training? Schools or Families?" While the article is a measured report of data and policies, the headline hit a nerve for host Heather Bernt-Santy. How can we say it's one or the other? What developmental considerations need to be included in the question? What systemic barriers are in place? And for goodness sake, why did they select a photo of a defiant looking preschooler for the post? Lizz Nolasco joins Heather to unpack, to wonder, and to stand up for the child caught between school and family. Find the article here: https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/whos-responsible-for-toilet-training-schools-or-families/2026/05 Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!

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