Marie Masterson, PhD, is the director of quality assessment for the State of Illinois ExceleRate at the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership. She holds a doctorate in early childhood education, is a licensed teacher, and is a national speaker and the author of many books and articles that address research-based, practical skills for high-quality teaching, behavior guidance, quality improvement, and leadership. She is a contributing editor of Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children Birth through Age Eight, Fourth Edition and co-author of Building on Whole Leadership: Energizing and Strengthening Your Early Childhood Program. Dr. Masterson is a former higher education faculty teacher trainer and early childhood specialist for the Virginia Department of Education. She provides educational consulting and professional development training to childcare programs, schools, and organizations engaged in quality improvement and equitable teaching initiatives.
Masterson, M.L. (2025). Culturally Responsive and Inclusive Care for Infants and Toddlers: Strategies for High-Quality Teaching. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Masterson, M.L.& Grady, R. (2024). Focus on DAP: Joyful, Equitable Teaching with Infants and Toddlers. Washington D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Ann Epstein (2024). The Intentional Teacher: Choosing the Best Strategies for Young Children’s Learning, Second Edition. Chapter 3: Approaches to Learning. (Revision Editor, Chapter 3, Approaches to Learning). Washington D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Masterson, M.L., Bella, J., & Talan, T. (2024, May) Updates to the Whole Leadership Framework: Responding to Voices in the Field. Lincoln, NE: Exchange.
NAEYC (2022). Casebook in Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs. (Contributing author, Part 4: Engaging with Families to Individualize Teaching). Washington D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children. (Contributing Author).
Masterson, M.L. (2021). Transforming Teaching: Creating Lesson Plans for Child-Centered Learning. Washington D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
NAEYC (2021). Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth Through Age 8, Fourth Edition. Eds. Friedman, S., Wright, B., Masterson, M. (Author – Chapter 6: Context Matters: Reframing Teaching in Early Childhood Education, with Susan Friedman and Brian L. Wright; Chapter 9. Teaching to Enhance Each Child’s Development and Learning; Chapter 10: Planning and Implementing an Engaging Curriculum to Achieve Meaningful Goals). Washington D.C. National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Masterson, M.L., Abel, M., Talan, T., & Bella, J. (2019). Building on Whole Leadership: Energizing and Strengthening Your Early Childhood Program. Lewisville, NC: Gryphon House.
Masterson, M. L. (2021). Building competence for success: Fostering responsibility in children. Young Children, 76(1), 69-72.
Myran, S. & Masterson M. (2020). Training early childhood leaders: Developing a new paradigm for professional development using a practice to theory approach. Journal of School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 32(2),173-196. DOI: 10.1080/09243453.2020.1803924
Masterson, M.L. & Bohart, H. (2019). Serious Fun: Guiding Play to Extend Children’s Learning. Washington D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Neitzel, J. Early, D. Sideris, J., …& Masterson, M. (2019). A comparative analysis of the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale-Revised and Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale, Third Edition. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 17:4, 408-422.
Masterson, M. L. (2019). Fostering responsibility: Setting children up for success. TYC, 12(4), 27-24.
Masterson, M. L. (2018). Let’s Talk Toddlers: A Practical Guide to High-Quality Teaching. St. Paul. MN: Redleaf Press.
Masterson, M. L. & Ginet, L. (2018). The Essentials: For Family Child Care Professionals. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
Abel, M., Talan, T., & Masterson, M. (2017). Whole leadership: A framework for early childhood programs. Exchange, January/February, 22-25.
Masterson, M. L. & Kersey, K. C. (2016). Enjoying the Parenting Roller Coaster: Nurturing and Empowering your Children through the Ups and Downs. Lewisville, NC: Gryphon House.
Kersey, K. C. & Masterson, M. L. (2016). Teachers Connecting with Families – In the Best Interest of Children. In Spotlight on Young Children: Teaching and Learning in the Primary Grades, National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
Masterson, M. L. (2016). X10 Connecting with co-teachers. Teaching Young Children, 9(3), 8-9.
Masterson, M. L. (2015). Small steps with big rewards: Connecting with co-teachers. Young Children, 70(5), 28-33.
Masterson, M. L. (August, 2015). Exploring productive approaches to positive parenting advocacy. National Partnership to End Interpersonal Violence across the Lifespan (NPEIV) Newsletter.
Masterson, M. L. & Kersey, K. (2013). Connecting children to kindness: Encouraging a culture of empathy. Childhood Education, 89, 211-216.
Kersey, K. C. & Masterson, M. L. (2013). Learn to say “Yes,” when you want to say “No!” – Gaining cooperation instead of resistance using positive behavior strategies. In C. Copple, S. Bredekamp, D. Koralek, & K. Charner (Eds.) Developmentally Appropriate Practice: Focus on Kindergartners, (pp. 19-23). Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
Kersey, K. C. & Masterson, M. L. (2013). 101 Principles for Positive Guidance with Young Children: Creating Responsive Teachers. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Masterson, M. & Kersey, K. (2013). Making toddler mornings meaningful: Six principles to maximize your influence. Young Children, 7(1), 10-15.
Kersey, K. C. & Masterson, M. L. (2012). Teachers connecting with families: In the best interest of children. In K. M. Paciorek (Ed.) Annual Editions Early Childhood Education, (p.36-38). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Kersey, K. C. & Masterson, M. L. (2012). Is tattling a bad word? How to help children navigate the playground. Childhood Education. In K. M. Paciorek (Ed.) Annual Editions Early Childhood Education, (pp. 110-114). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Kersey, K. C. & Masterson, M. L. (2012). Teachers connecting with families – In the best interest of children, (p.91-94), In R. Evers (Ed.) Annual Editions Education. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Kersey, K. & Masterson, M. (2010). Is tattling a bad word? How to help children navigate the playground. Childhood Education, 86(4), 260-263.
Kersey, K. & Masterson. M. (2009). Teachers connecting with families: In the best interest of children. Young Children, 64(5), 34-38.