Teachers chosen to appear on the cover of Teaching Young Children must:

1. Provide photos of themselves working with preschoolers. One photo will appear on the cover; others will accompany the teacher profile, "My Favorite Things."  Note that we do not use photos that are posed with subjects smiling at the camera. Instead, photos should capture the teacher interacting with children. Past cover photos have shown teachers reading to, talking to, or playing with one or two preschoolers or a small group. We also do not use photos of people wearing name tags or dressed in clothing with commercial messages (for example, a T-shirt advertising a soft drink.) Please refer to NAEYC’s Photograph Submission Guidelines for more information. 

Photographers should use a digital camera with as high a resolution as possible (10 megapixel minimum). Please send at least 15 photos for us to select from (although we are happy to receive more). We require that the photographer and/or program keep on file a model release form for each child and adult who appears in any photographs submitted to an NAEYC publication.

2. Share photos of some of their favorite teaching tools/methods/centers. We ask the cover teacher to let us know what her or his favorite teaching materials are. Examples could include the teacher's favorite

• Children's book
• Professional Development book
• Ways to unwind/take care of one's self
• Recipe/snack for the classroom
• Inspirational quote
• Physical activity
• Activity, general
• Classroom center
• Support system (e.g., other teachers, friends, family, mentors, etc.)
• Way to connect with parents
• Season and corresponding activity
• Time of the school day
• Way to get prepared for the school day
• Early childhood education course
• Play material
• Method by which to document/observe children
• Way to create a professional portfolio/document professional success
• Web resource for teaching
• Art item (paint, clay, pastels, etc.)

The teacher lists up to 10 favorite things related to teaching and write a sentence explaining why she or he especially likes each of them. Send as many photos of favorite teaching items as possible. We also need a brief description of your teaching style. You can provide photos of items from the classroom. In some cases (like with favorite books), we can find high-resolution images online.

How to send photos:

E-mail photos as attachments (JPG or TIFF files) to lthompson@naeyc.org or mail a CD or DVD to Lacy Thompson, 1313 L Street NW, Suite 500, Washington, DC 20005-4101. If sending photos via e-mail, please attach only 2 or 3 photos per e-mail. We cannot use photos that are sent in a different format (for example, pasted into a Microsoft Word document).

Back to TYC Cover Teacher Nomination Form