'This exciting book will greatly enhance understanding of learning throughout the early years, and reinforces the importance of responsive professionals who understand children's schemas. Atherton and Nutbrown have brought together socio-cultural and cognitive learning theories with ease, and their metaphors are brilliantly evocative' -Dr Anne Meade, Consultant 'This book is drawn from a study carried out with rigour and contains several gems, such as the 'bike and slide exploration'; the idea of adults engaging in 'a dialogue of conceptual correspondence' with children; and tables outlining 'what the children might have been thinking'. A great read!' -Dr Cath Arnold, Pen Green Early Years Centre 'This is an exciting and illuminating account of babies and toddlers, following their schema fascinations with determination and competence, as they continually explore and experiment and come to know their world. This book captivated me. It should be in every early childhood education setting' -Pam Cubey Understanding Schemas with Young Children is the first book to focus specifically on Schemas and children under three. It shows early years professionals how they can use schema theory to understand young children's learning and behaviour. The authors cover the theoretical aspects of schemas and schema development, tracing the development of schemas from motor level through to symbolic representation. This accessible and student-friendly book includes: - activities and discussion points - links to policy and practice - descriptive observational material - a look at the ethics of conducting this kind of research - numerous photographs and illustrations - suggestions for follow-up reading The book is aimed at a range of courses for early childhood professionals as well as practitioners working in ECEC settings. It will be valuable to those on entry level initial training courses, teacher education, students on Early Years courses, and also to those studying for higher degrees.