"This practical handbook shows teachers how to nurture a kindergarten learning environment in which children feel safe, comfortable, and able to take risks. It offers innovative ways to encourage children to explore, experiment, discover, solve problems, and freely interact with one another. Based on extensive classroom practice, it demonstrates when teachers need to provide support, ask questions, and provoke thinking and when they should back away and leave children to their own devices. "Reading, Writing, Playing, Learning" offers concrete suggestions for creating play-based learning in a culture of inquiry. The book discusses all aspects of oral language development, reading to and by children, shared and guided reading, reading to write and writing to learn, putting "play" into word play, and celebrating diversity and meeting the needs of all learners."-- Provided by publisher.