The only book available that specifically addresses the kindergarten year, it enables readers to become highly skilled and effective teachers with four and five year old children, their families, and the community. The goal of this comprehensive guide is to provide readers with the knowledge of how four and five year olds behave and to offer information about materials and activities that can be used in their professional careers, thus providing a solid foundation on which to develop teaching skills. Today's Kindergarten: The Past Is Present; Understanding Readiness; Four- and Five-Year-Olds Grow and Develop; Are Schools Ready for Four- and Five-Year-Olds?; Classrooms are Ready; Teachers are Ready to Guide Children's Social Behaviors; Planning an Integrated Curriculum; Assessing Kindergarten Children; Art in the Kindergarten; Music and Movement; Literacy Learning for Four- and Five-Year-Olds; Language Arts for Four- and Five-Year-Olds; Four- and Five-Year-Olds Learn Math; Children Study Their World: The Physical, Biological, and Social Sciences. For current and future Preschool and Kindergarten teachers.