“The stories Nick tells touch on so many critical issues facing toddler teachers: the importance of establishing strong relationships with parents as early as possible; the importance of adults who understand and appreciate the gifts that toddlers present to us; how a topic that is magical and all-consuming for a toddler does not become difficult until it passes through the filters we have created as adults; the importance of transmitting a love for cultures and communities without transplanting a toddler’s values with our own; stories of risk and risk mitigation; of what critical thinking looks like in action in a classroom for the toddlers and adults; of what it feels like to be a male teacher in a toddler classroom… But that is not what the story is… Nick shows the reader how to transcend who you were taught to be, to become who you were meant to be! That is his story and with courage will be yours.”

– Jerry Parr, President/CEO, Willow Tree Early Education Team

“Conversations with children about gender, race, and identity often feel intimidating for educators. We are all Nick with big questions about our abilities and wisdom to engage children in complex thinking. He offers tools to use, questions to ask, a model to embrace ambiguity. I am inspired to dig deeply into my own understandings, over and over, with this affirmation that it matters-to my students, their families, and to my own human spirit.”

– Chelsea Myers, Early Childhood Educator, Hilltop Children’s Center and Educator Institute, Seattle, Washington

Foreword
Author’s Note
Chapter 1: Stopped in My Tracks
Chapter 2: Thinking about Teaching and Learning
Chapter 3: Building the Foundations for Democracy
Chapter 4: A Tool for Teacher Research
Chapter 5: Writing a New Story about Education
What Does “A Can of Worms” Look Like?
About the Author
Study Guide