Kimberly T. Nesbitt, Assistant Professor, Human Development and Family Studies

Kimberly Nesbitt

Primary Investigator, Early Childhood Initiative
Associate Professor
Phone: (603) 862-2159
Office: Human Development & Family Studies, Pettee Hall, Durham, NH 03824
Websites:
Curriculum Vitae

My research focuses on the internal processes and external influences that enhance or disrupt the development of executive function and academic skills in early childhood. I also pursue a line of applied research that examines the educational and instructional practices that contribute to the emergence of more sophisticated cognitive abilities and enable young children from diverse backgrounds to learn and achieve in early education environments. I publish in the educational and psychological literature. In addition to teaching practicum courses in early childhood education, I am the program coordinator for UNH’s undergraduate early childhood education teacher certification program and serves on numerous early learning and childhood committees in New Hampshire.

Courses Taught

  • HDFS 635: Tch&Lrn Early Childhd Settings
  • HDFS 695: Independent Study
  • HDFS 785: Seminar for Student Teachers
  • HDFS 786: Seminar for Student Teachers
  • HDFS 788: Student Teachng Young Children
  • HDFS 911: Graduate Internship

Education

  • Ph.D., Lifespan Developmental Psychology, North Carolina State University
  • M.S., Lifespan Developmental Psychology, North Carolina State University
  • B.A., Psychology & Human Development and Family Life, University of Kansas

Research Interests

  • Academic Achievement
  • Applied Research
  • At-Risk Children/Youth
  • Child Psychology/Development
  • Cognition
  • Early Childhood Development
  • Early Childhood Education
  • Effectiveness Research
  • Statistics
  • Teacher Education
  • Teacher Effectiveness

Selected Publications

  • Nesbitt, K. T., Blinkoff, E., Golinkoff, R. M., & Hirsh-Pasek, K. (2023). Making schools work: An equation for active playful learning. Theory Into Practice, 62(2), 141-154. doi:10.1080/00405841.2023.2202136

  • Hirsh-Pasek, K., Golinkoff, R. M., Nesbitt, K., Lautenbach, C., Blinkoff, E., & Fifer, G. (2022). Making Schools Work Bringing the Science of Learning to Joyful Classroom Practice.

  • Nesbitt, K. T., & Farran, D. C. (2022). Executive Function Skills and Classroom Behaviors of US Prekindergartners With Special Needs. FRONTIERS IN EDUCATION, 7. doi:10.3389/feduc.2022.944224

  • Nesbitt, K. T., & Farran, D. C. (2021). Effects of Prekindergarten Curricula: Tools of the Mind as a Case Study. MONOGRAPHS OF THE SOCIETY FOR RESEARCH IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 86(1), 7-133. doi:10.1111/mono.12425

  • Coelho, V., Åström, F., Nesbitt, K., Sjöman, M., Farran, D., Björck-Åkesson, E., . . . Pinto, A. I. (2021). Preschool practices in Sweden, Portugal, and the United States. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 55, 79-96. doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2020.11.004

  • Dickinson, D. K., Collins, M. F., Nesbitt, K., Toub, T. S., Hassinger-Das, B., Hadley, E. B., . . . Golinkoff, R. M. (2019). Effects of Teacher-Delivered Book Reading and Play on Vocabulary Learning and Self-Regulation among Low-Income Preschool Children. Journal of Cognition and Development, 20(2), 136-164. doi:10.1080/15248372.2018.1483373

  • Dickinson, D. K., Nesbitt, K. T., & Hofer, K. G. (2019). Effects of language on initial reading: Direct and indirect associations between code and language from preschool to first grade. EARLY CHILDHOOD RESEARCH QUARTERLY, 49, 122-137. doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2019.04.005

  • Dickinson, D. K., Nesbitt, K. T., Collins, M. F., Hadley, E. B., Newman, K., Rivera, B. L., . . . Hirsh-Pasek, K. (2019). Teaching for breadth and depth of vocabulary knowledge: Learning from explicit and implicit instruction and the storybook texts. EARLY CHILDHOOD RESEARCH QUARTERLY, 47, 341-356. doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2018.07.012

  • Toub, T. S., Hassinger-Das, B., Nesbitt, K. T., Ilgaz, H., Weisberg, D. S., Hirsh-Pasek, K., . . . Dickinson, D. K. (2018). The language of play: Developing preschool vocabulary through play following shared book-reading. EARLY CHILDHOOD RESEARCH QUARTERLY, 45, 1-17. doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2018.01.010

  • Nesbitt, K. T., Fuhs, M. W., & Farran, D. C. (2018). Stability and instability in the co-development of mathematics, executive function skills, and visual-motor integration from prekindergarten to first grade. EARLY CHILDHOOD RESEARCH QUARTERLY, 46, 262-274. doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2018.02.003

  • Lipsey, M. W., Nesbitt, K. T., Farran, D. C., Dong, N., Fuhs, M. W., & Wilson, S. J. (2017). Learning-Related Cognitive Self-Regulation Measures for Prekindergarten Children: A Comparative Evaluation of the Educational Relevance of Selected Measures. JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY, 109(8), 1084-1102. doi:10.1037/edu0000203

  • Farran, D. C., Meador, D., Christopher, C., Nesbitt, K. T., & Bilbrey, L. E. (2017). Data-Driven Improvement in Prekindergarten Classrooms: Report From a Partnership in an Urban District. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 88(5), 1466-1479. doi:10.1111/cdev.12906

  • Nesbitt, K. T., Farran, D. C., & Fuhs, M. W. (2015). Executive Function Skills and Academic Achievement Gains in Prekindergarten: Contributions of Learning-Related Behaviors. DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY, 51(7), 865-878. doi:10.1037/dev0000021

  • Fuhs, M. W., Nesbitt, K. T., Farran, D. C., & Dong, N. (2014). Longitudinal associations between executive functioning and academic skills across content areas.. Dev Psychol, 50(6), 1698-1709. doi:10.1037/a0036633

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