Not Just Cute, the Podcast: Intentional Whole Child Development for Parents and Teachers of Young Children

In her January 2026 Congressional testimony, Emily Cherkin put it simply: "Parents are not naive — we know our children will use technology for work and life in adulthood. We just want to ensure they have a childhood first." That testimony — covering the impact of screens, AI, and EdTech on kids — echoed so much of what I hear from parents and teachers alike: real questions about technology's plac...

A scoping review published in the  Early Childhood Education Journal  analyzed over 50 studies on play-based learning for ages 4-6, and the findings are too significant to ignore. This research synthesis shows play-based learning enhances cognitive skills, executive function, literacy, mathematics, and social-emotional development—yet we're not acting on it. Parents remain skeptical of play as a t...

Joy is one of those concepts that everyone understands until you try to define it.  And yet, the research is remarkably clear about what it does. In this episode, we explore what joy actually is, why it matters so profoundly for young children, and what it looks like in the early childhood classroom. From the neuroscience of how joy changes the brain's chemistry and learning capacity, to the relat...

Agency — the ability to make choices, act on them, and feel that those actions matter — is key to play and learning. In this episode, we dig into what agency really means for young children, tracing it through the work of foundational developmental theorists and grounding it in current research on how play, agency, and learning work together as a powerful, reinforcing system. Along the way, we nam...

Professor and early childhood advocate Heather Bernt-Santy is widely known from her podcast as That Early Childhood Nerd.  In this episode, Heather talks about her new book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood. Heather shares her journey through the early childhood profession and how writing her first book was a full-circle moment. She breaks down what schema play...

In this episode, we revisit one of the most-read pieces published on Not Just Cute: "There's Good in the World. And It's Worth Fighting For." Written nearly a decade ago (and based on quotes from movies released TWO decades ago, which were based on books written NINE decades ago.....) yet increasingly relevant today, this reflection explores the role of educators, parents, and everyday helpers in...

Is play the missing piece in today's educational puzzle? That's the question we wrestled with during a three-part book study I hosted this summer with early educators from across North America. Together, we unpacked key themes from my new book, Not Just Cute: How Powerful Play Drives Development in Early Childhood —and now I've pulled the highlights into this one-hour recap just for you. In this e...

Unlock the secrets to transforming early childhood education by focusing on the actions — not just the topics — that captivate young minds. Join me as I sit down with Heather Jackson, author of "Actions of Play," to explore how play schemas can revolutionize the way we approach learning. Discover how understanding the verbs that inspire children can lead to rich, inquiry-based projects that resona...

This episode explores the transformative blended pre-K program at Prosper Independent School District in Texas, championed by Michelle Scogin, Director of Early Childhood and Learning Services. Discover how this program successfully merges special and general education along with joy, wonder, and compassion. Machelle and her amazing team are committed to building a developmentally appropriate envi...

I had an experience a few months ago that began with a fantastic workshop with one of my favorite schools, and *seemed* to end with a broken down, broken into truck.   But the real ending came full circle when I found that what I had been teaching that early childhood team the day before, was *exactly* what I needed to remember in that moment.   File this one under – everything we ever needed to k...

Rae Pica has been a fierce advocate for children and childhood for over 40 years.  And during that time she's written a whole bookshelf full of books on the topic.  Today, she's sharing her latest addition to that bookshelf, it came out just last week, Why Play?: How to Make Play an Essential Part of Early Education . In this newest book, Rae dives into the importance of play in early childhood ed...

When Amber Unger (also known as the Cream City Teacher) began her career in education, she thought she'd be working with teenagers.  As her path led her to a 4K public school classroom in the middle of a shift toward play-based learning, she discovered a new passion!  Today, she helps other teachers on their own journeys to better understand and implement intentional play-based practices. Get the...

In episode 74, I introduced you to Michele Dineen-White, the creator of Play Smart Literacy in Chicago.  Play Smart Literacy is a truly mobile outreach program, meaning that rather than hoping parents can overcome the burden of traveling to a specific location to receive services, Play Smart Literacy goes out into the community, particularly in vulnerable areas, to contact families and meet them r...

Michele Dinneen-White was working in an early education outreach program when she realized something.  The program wasn't actually reaching out to the families who needed it most.  Those families were still required to find the time and the means to get their child to the center in order to receive services.  And for many, that barrier was just too much to overcome.  So Michele decided to create s...

Challenging behaviors seem to be on the rise in preschool classrooms.  Prerna Richards, of Together We Grow, specializes in supporting educators with a behavior coaching program.  In this episode, she shares what she believes is behind this increase, and what can be done to better help our youngest learners. Find Show Notes : https://notjustcute.com/podcast/episode73

Once upon a time..... ...Happily ever after. These are common fairy tale phrases. But they're more than just staid story stems. These common phrases -- and the stories in between -- hold not only a recipe for imagination and fantasy but also for resilience. Stephanie Goloway (EdD) is a powerful advocate for the importance of imagination, play, and storytelling.  As a now-emeritus professor, she's...

Most people associate the library with silence.  But what if we associated it with play?   In this episode, I'm talking with Tammie Benham, Youth Services Consultant for the Southeast Kansas Library System. Tammie believes that where libraries, children, and families intersect, magic is possible.  And she's set out to make that magic through a family engagement program focused on using play to tea...

We started this series with the overall argument for why play is essential for human development.  The next three episodes dug deep into three main themes: Why we need play for mental health and wellness, for brain development and real learning, and for soft skill development.  Then, we shifted to several shorter episodes, touching on specific types of play and how they contribute to development....

What does fingerpainting have to do with the Space Race?  In this episode, we're talking about art and creative play and their role in learning, thinking, and innovating. Show Notes: https://notjustcute.com/podcast/episode69

This episode's focus is the dress-up area and dramatic play.  We'll talk about the powerful developmental support that comes from preschoolers dressing up and playing pretend. Show Notes: https://notjustcute.com/podcast/episode68

This episode's focus is sensory play.   We'll take a look at why these bins full of rice, water, goop, and other media aren't just a big mess waiting to happen, they're a really important key to supporting healthy child development. Find Show Notes: https://notjustcute.com/podcast/episode67

This episode's focus is the block area.   We look at what's going on in those busy building centers of the early childhood classroom, and why it's important to keep those big spaces open for construction, even when there's pressure to move the blocks out to make room for "real school". Don't underestimate the simple nature of a collection of rectangles, squares, and triangles made out of hardwood...

While some schools may claim they're moving away from play and toward more direct academic instruction as a way to prepare children for their future careers, business leaders repeatedly share that soft skills are becoming increasingly relevant in the workplaces of today and of the future.   In this episode, we'll talk about how pushing out play also pushes out prime opportunities for building esse...

This is the third episode in a nine-episode series!  (Find them all here.)  In this episode, we're digging into why we play for brain development and real learning.  There are many people who say they support play for young children, but question whether or not we need play in school, or who might argue that play is important, as long as we get the work of learning done first.  So today, we'll tal...

In this episode, we're digging into why we play for mental health. It's not just something we think is true or that sounds nice, it's a claim that's backed up by science and statistics.   There's something about play that is essential to developing and maintaining our mental health.   We'll dig into those findings and what they mean for our youngest learners. Find show notes at https://notjustcute...