Teachable Subject Areas

Early Childhood Education

Child Development (Cummings-Clay)

Understanding child development is fundamental to nurturing the growth of children and creating environments where they can thrive. Early childhood development is a complex and fascinating journey that encompasses various aspects of growth, from prenatal stages to early adulthood. In this book, we explore the intricate processes that shape children’s physical, cognitive, and psychosocial development. By examining the core principles, theories, and current research, this text provides a comprehensive framework to understand how children evolve over time and the factors that influence their development. With this comprehensive approach, we aim to inspire not only a theoretical understanding but also a practical perspective on how best to foster positive developmental outcomes in children across various stages of life [Description from resource].

Licence: CC BY 4.0

Host: LibreTexts

Child Development and Early Childhood Education

From the ASCCC OER Initiative (Academic Senate for California Community Colleges).

Licence: CC BY-NC

Child, Family, and Community – Spring 2021 version

This textbook is a presentation of how and why children grow, develop, and learn including how we change physically over time from conception through adolescence. It has been shared via Google Drive. Other versions and formats of this resource are available.

Licence: CC BY

ECE Textbook Collection (English and Spanish)

CDTC has made available in Spanish five of the CAP 8 ECE course textbooks. College of the Canyons (through the Open Educational Resources) provided the English textbooks used for translation (Description from website).

Licence: CC BY

EDU 109 – Music for the Young Child

From Hostos Community College, this book takes a holistic approach to the study of music, drawing from diverse fields such as music education, ethnomusicology, sociology, and cognitive sciences. The book takes into account many different perspectives on a child’s development rather than approaching it by focusing on only one subject.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

The ELC – An Early Childhood Learning Community at Work

The ELC professional development model was designed to improve the quality of teacher candidates’ Practicum field placements and align teaching in field placements with Learning Standards used in the teacher education program.

Licence: CC BY-NC

Infant and Toddler Education and Care (LibreTexts)

This text on Infant and Toddler Education and Care is available through LibreTexts.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

Introduction to Careers in Child Development

This book contains academic and career information in the field of early childhood education and child development. It can be used as a textbook for child development and related courses.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

Introduction to Childhood Studies (LibreTexts)

Introduction to key concepts in the study of childhood from multidisciplinary perspectives. It examines the historical and socio-cultural constructions of “the child” and childhood, exploring topics such as child development, cultural notions of adolescence, children as social agents, children’s rights and challenges facing children in both local and global contexts.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

Introduction to Curriculum for Early Childhood Education

Learn how to effectively plan curriculum for young children.

Licence: CC BY

Host: LibreTexts

Observation and Assessment in Early Childhood Education

This text focuses on the appropriate use of a variety of assessment and observation strategies to document child development and behaviour. Child observations will be conducted and analyzed.

Licence: CC BY 4.0

Host: LibreTexts

Parenting and Family Diversity Issues

This book has been created for students and all individuals who work with children and families (e.g., educators, parents, caregivers, direct support workers, etc.) in diverse contexts.  It is imperative to understand how and what factors may influence child outcomes across the lifespan. Therefore, key concepts related to parenting, child-rearing, care-giving, and parenting education are outlined in this textbook to provide historical, theoretical, and practical perspectives across vast settings and developmental domains.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

The Role of Equity and Diversity on Early Childhood Education

A textbook that discusses equity and diversity in the context of early childhood education. More information and other versions of this open textbook are available.

Licence: CC BY

Host: LibreTexts

Summary of Open Educational Resources in Early Childhood Education

This is a Google Doc Handout of curated early childhood education OER by Jennifer Paris at College of the Canyons.

Licence: CC BY 4.0

Understanding Human Development: Prenatal Through Adolescence

Contributors: Terese Jones, Christina Belli, and Esmeralda Janeth Julyan

Understanding Human Development is an introductory textbook for individuals entering early childhood education and related fields. The textbook provides an overview of the developmental lifespan from conception to adolescence using social justice and ecological perspectives. The textbook aims to represent equitable approaches to understanding human development and discusses the diverse factors and interactions that support or hinder development [Description from resource].

Includes: Instructor resources

Licence: CC BY 4.0

Host: Open Oregon Educational Resources

The Whole Child: Development in Early Years

Contributors: Deirdre Budzyna and Doris Buckley

The Whole Child is a textbook for Child Psychology or Child Growth and Development that is both comprehensive and concise. Students do not need a lengthy volume to digest, but they do need a strong understanding of how a young child develops. Only with this understanding can developmentally appropriate practice emerge in the classroom and in other places that are loving and caring spaces for young children. With the rising cost of textbooks, this textbook is a resource for instructors looking to find quality, accessible materials for our students [Description from resource].

Includes: Lecture slides, transcripts

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Published: 2023 (updated 2025)

Host: ROTEL (Remixing Open Textbooks with an Equity Lens) Project

English Language Arts

Arts Integration in Elementary Curriculum: 2nd Edition

This textbook covers arts integration, music, visual arts, literary arts, performing arts, and physical education and movement.

Includes: Suggested activities and technology, sample lesson plans, lecture slides

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

English Language Learners

Sharing Our Knowledge: Best Practices for Supporting English Language Learners in Schools

This textbook was developed from final essays written by mostly graduate and some undergraduate students enrolled in an EAL course at the University of Saskatchewan.

Includes: Glossary

Licence: CC BY

Reviews: Available through the Open Textbook Library

Fine Arts

Arts Integration in Elementary Curriculum: 2nd Edition

This textbook covers arts integration, music, visual arts, literary arts, performing arts, and physical education and movement.

Includes: Suggested activities and technology, sample lesson plans, lecture slides

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

Web of Performance: An Ensemble Workbook

The field of performance studies involves much more than actors on a stage. It is based on the idea that nearly everything we do is related to performing. We’ve called this book The Web of Performance because, like a spider’s web, performance connects at multiple points to everything around it. This workbook has been designed and written for students in high school and university who may be interested in how performance works. The chapters cover broad topics drawn from the field of performance studies, an academic field developed out of theatre studies, anthropology, sociology and cultural studies in the 1980s and 1990s. Web of Performance covers key topics in performance studies: Performance as a form of Play, Ritual, Healing, Education, Power, Identity and Everyday Life. Each of these topics works like a web, inviting students to explore in multiple directions, across many threads.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

French

Center for Open Educational Resources and Language Learning – Materials

The Center for Open Educational Resources & Language Learning (COERLL) is a National Foreign Language Resource Center funded by the U.S. Department of Education. The overall mission of these federally-funded centers is to improve the teaching and learning of foreign languages by producing resources (materials and best practices) that can be profitably employed in a variety of settings. COERLL’s work is organized around seven basic areas: Applied linguistic research, Teaching materials Language assessment, Teacher development, Less commonly taught languages, K-12 initiatives, and Outreach and dissemination. Languages covered include Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.

Licence: Various CC Licences

Global Digital Library

The goal of the Global Book Alliance is therefore to provide access to free, high-quality, early grade reading resources in languages that children use and understand. As a flagship activity within the Global Book Alliance, the Global Digital Library (GDL) has been developed to increase the availability of high-quality reading resources in underserved languages worldwide.

Licence: Various CC licences

StoryWeaver

A digital repository of multilingual stories for children from Pratham Books so every child can have access to an endless stream of stories in her mother tongue to read and enjoy.

Licence: Various CC licences

Mathematics

Cree Dictionary of Mathematical Terms with Visual Examples

The Cree Dictionary of Mathematical Terms with Visual Examples provides Cree equivalents of 176 mathematics terms and their definitions in English. The visual examples mainly contain Indigenous elements. The Dictionary was reviewed by Elders, Indigenous Knowledge Keepers and Cree-speaking educators.

Licence: CC BY 4.0

Cree Dictionary of Mathematical Terms with Visual Examples and Sound, 3rd Edition

The Cree Dictionary of Mathematical Terms with Visual Examples and Sound provides Cree equivalents of 176 mathematics terms and their definitions in English. The visual examples mainly contain Indigenous elements. Audio pronunciations of the Cree terms are provided. The audio was voiced by an Indigenous Knowledge Keeper. The Dictionary was reviewed by Elders, Indigenous Knowledge Keepers and Cree-speaking educators [Description from resource].

Includes: audio recordings

Licence: CC BY 4.0

EDU 111 – Teaching Math & Science to Young Children

This is an online Library Guide compiled by Sherese Mitchell at Hostos Community College.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

The InterACTIVE Kids’ Math Dictionary

The InterACTIVE Kids’ Math Dictionary brings math words to life by blending kids-speak, formal defintions, and interactive links to videos, games, and activities. Look up a specific term or browse for a fun review. With this handy resource, kids are in control of demystifying math vocabulary.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Mathematics for Elementary Teachers

This book from the University of Hawaii is used to teach math for education students. This book aims to help readers understand elementary mathematics more deeply, gain facility with creating and using mathematical notation, develop a habit of looking for reasons and creating mathematical explanations, and become more comfortable exploring unfamiliar mathematical situations.

Includes: Activities, examples, and problems bank

Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0

Reviews: Available through the Open Textbook Library

Teaching Math for Emergent Bilinguals: Building on Culture, Language, and Identity

This interactive book from Iowa State University emphasizes using students’ language and culture as a resource in the math classroom.

Includes: Pre- and post-reading questions, interactive activities

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Reviews: Available through the Open Textbook Library

Physical Education

Arts Integration in Elementary Curriculum: 2nd Edition

This textbook covers arts integration, music, visual arts, literary arts, performing arts, and physical education and movement.

Includes: Suggested activities and technology, sample lesson plans, lecture slides

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Supporting Adults in Exercise and Physical Activity Contexts: Resources for Fitness Professionals

Contributors: Meghan McDonough*, Khadija Ahmad*, Erica Bennett, Ella Blanke*, William Bridel*, Jolie Che*, Bobbie-Ann Craig*, Nicole Culos-Reed*, Cari Din*, Isabelle Doré, Chloé Drapeau, Alexandra Giancarlo*, Jennifer Hewson*, Sian Jones, Alicia Kalmanovitch, Sarah J. Kenny*, Andy Kitchen, Janet Lin, Kristen Lucibello, Lindsay Morrison*, Raynell McDonough, Pam Manzara, AJ Matsune, Corentin Montiel, Vanessa Paglione*, Alexia Piché, Florence Peters, Kaitlyn Riddell*, Catherine Sabiston, Sarah Stephen*, Samira Sunderji, Kari Stone, Regan Thompson, Ann Toohey*, Krista White, Stephanie Won, Amanda Wurz, Chantelle Zimmer*

^{Note: the use of * highlights individuals based at UCalgary.}

Physical activity offers opportunities for positive social interactions, including social support. As a fitness professional, you play an important role in both providing social support and fostering an environment where physical activity participants support one another. This course offers strategies for providing social support to adults within the physical activity setting [Description from resource]. A French language version is also available.

Includes: videos, reflections, learning activities

License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Published: 2026

Host: Open Education Alberta

Science

Astronomy for Educators

This book provides new and accomplished K-12 instructors with concepts and projects for low-cost, high-impact STEM classroom instruction that is built around the National Academies National Research Council’s K-12 Framework for Science Education.

Licence: CC BY-SA

Climate Science for the Classroom

These materials were developed by a group of graduate students at the University of Washington. Each chapter focuses on a different current climate change topic, strong emphasis on using data to explore global, regional, and societal issues. An archive of climate-science focused labs and games for middle and high school teachers and their students.  Includes links to blog posts written by graduate student lesson developers that point to expertise from education scientists and K-12 educators that contributed to development of the lessons.

Includes: Modules, games, labs

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

EDU 111 – Teaching Math & Science to Young Children

This is an online Library Guide compiled by Sherese Mitchell at Hostos Community College.

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Elementary Earth and Space Science Methods

This book is designed to help science teachers better understand science and feel confident in teaching this topic. This book is divided into five parts: Physics, Space Science, Earth Science, Climate Science, Course Materials and Pedagogy. Each part is broken down into smaller chapters which include: written explanations, video links, glossary terms, key takeaways, and practice quizzes.

Includes: Vocabulary, reflections, lesson plans

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

Reviews: Available through the Open Textbook Library

Knowing Home: Braiding Indigenous Science with Western Science, Book 1

From the description, this book 1 of 2 is “far more than a set of research papers or curriculum studies. The project outputs include both, but they are incorporated into a theoretical structure that can provide the methodological basis for future efforts that attempt to develop culturally responsive Indigenous Science curricula in home places.” There is a focus on Northwestern North America.

Includes: Appendices, examples, selected resources

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

Reviews: Available through Campus Manitoba

Knowing Home: Braiding Indigenous Science with Western Science, Book 2

From the description, this book 2 of 2 is “far more than a set of research papers or curriculum studies. The project outputs include both, but they are incorporated into a theoretical structure that can provide the methodological basis for future efforts that attempt to develop culturally responsive Indigenous Science curricula in home places.” There is a focus on Northwestern North America.

Includes: Appendices, examples, selected resources

Licence: CC BY-NC-SA

Second Languages

Global Digital Library

The goal of the Global Book Alliance is therefore to provide access to free, high-quality, early grade reading resources in languages that children use and understand. As a flagship activity within the Global Book Alliance, the Global Digital Library (GDL) has been developed to increase the availability of high-quality reading resources in underserved languages worldwide.

Licence: Various CC licences

StoryWeaver

A digital repository of multilingual stories for children from Pratham Books so every child can have access to an endless stream of stories in her mother tongue to read and enjoy.

Licence: Various CC licences

Please refer to the Libraries and Cultural Resources (LCR) Staff Directory to connect with a librarian supporting this subject area.