Move, Play, and Learn with Smart Steps: Sequenced Activities to Build the Body and the Brain (Birth to Age 7)

Build the body-brain connection with step-by-step activities that help children develop physical, cognitive, social, and emotional foundations for early learning and school readiness. Early childhood educators will find clear information on creating the move-to learn environment, managing safety, and optimizing the connections between language development, movement, and readiness for formal learning. An observational tool lets teachers pinpoint children’s specific developmental stages and assess progress. The easy-to-follow, full-color format includes diagrams and photos along with teaching tips to advance and automate children’s foundational physical capabilities while providing incremental challenge. Grounded in best practices and current research, Move, Play, and Learn with Smart Steps is both a hands-on resource for any classroom teacher, care provider, or parent and an ideal tool for coaches, mentors, and professional development trainers. Digital content includes customizable forms from the book.

Gill Connell is a globally recognized presenter and child development authority, specializing in the foundations of learning through movement and play. She provides developmental expertise to parents, preschools, schools, and companies such as Hasbro, Inc., based on her more than thirty years in preschool and primary education.

She is the former national director of Gymbaroo Preschool Activity Centers and the founder of Moving Smart, Ltd., which offers resources, tools, trainings, and workshops. She coauthored the book Moving to Learn: An Essential Guide for All Parents, Carers and Educators, A Moving Child is a Learning Child: How the Body Teaches the Brain to Think, and Move, Play, Learn with Smart Steps: Sequenced Activities to Build the Body and the Brain.

Gill lives in Christchurch, New Zealand, and travels regularly to the United States.

Cheryl McCarthy is a former vice president of intellectual property development for Hasbro, Inc.

She is a thirty-year veteran of the world of children’s play, specializing in young children’s storytelling and entertainment. As executive producer, she managed the creative development of properties such as My Little Pony, Candy Land, Mr. Potato Head, and many other beloved children’s icons.

She is currently the creative director at Moving Smart, Ltd. Cheryl lives in Attleboro, Massachusetts.

Wendy Pirie, M.H.Sc., is a consultant in the preschool movement and the director of TimberNook New Zealand, which offers camps where children grow and learn through active, creative outdoor experiences.

She has a special interest in the growth and development of the child through the relationship between the body and the brain. She is also passionate about empowering parents and educators to play with and engage children.

Wendy lives in New Zealand with her husband and three sons.