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It is 8:00 a.m. and Sean lies in the cozy corner of the toddler room. He is wearing his winter coat and a knit cap covers his face. His arms are tightly folded around his body. He is a large, burly mass of four-year-old boy. A substitute teacher enters the room. She approaches Sean and lifts up the knit cap. A wary eye stares back at her as if to say, “Don’t mess with me lady.” The classroom assistant calls from across the room, “Just leave him alone. He is like this every morning.” Sean pulls the cap back over his face. His message seems to be, “I know this room does not belong to me. This is not my place.” He lies in the cozy corner of the toddler room completely disengaged for one hour. At 9:00 a.m. Sean’s teacher arrives to take her children to their preschool classroom. Sean jumps to life. He quickly removes his coat and hat. Entering his classroom, he eagerly begins to play in the block area. … Download this resource to read the rest of this story.
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The Whole Leadership Framework, developed by the McCormick Center, is now featured in Exchange magazine—offering guidance on integrating administrative, pedagogical, and leadership capacities in early childhood programs.
