In the book The Neverending Story (Ende, 1983) a formless entity referred to as the Rolling Nothing is a destructive phenomenon which disrupts and consumes the wellbeing of the land of Fantasia. Like the land of Fantasia, early childhood education is being increasingly disrupted and consumed as it aligns with the standards and accountability measures typical of K-12 education; the holistic, developmentally appropriate practices that center play are often marginalized. This emphasis on auditing and standardization undermines the professional autonomy of early childhood educators and reduces education to a series of measurable tasks rather than respecting it as a variable and dynamic process of intellectual and personal growth.