This study investigated the gross motor development of children at two day care centers, one with a movement-oriented physical education program and the other with an unstructured free play period. Also studied were the biological factors of age and sex. A total of 146 children were tested during a 3-year period. During the last two years,…

The study was designed to measure language, cognitive, perceptual, and oral-motor abilities in 17 preschoolers referred for speech-language evaluation because of unintelligible speech. Ss were administered a test battery which included tests of hearing, coarticulation, vocabulary, speech sound discrimination, and oral examination of the speech…

This investigation seeks to provide information on the motor creativity of preschool deaf children. A play apparatus known as the London Trestle Tree Apparatus was used. Data were collected on motor creativity using the Torrance Test of Thinking Creatively in Action and Movement. The Lubin Motor Creativity Testing Protocol was used to test motor…

The early cognitive development and motor development of male preschool children with an alcoholic father were compared with matched control subjects from non-alcoholic families who resided in the same neighborhoods. Families were participants in the Michigan State University Longitudinal Study, into which were recruited all drunk drivers…

This study compared the skills performance of 60 children, ages 3 to 5, with speech and language delays on the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales (PDMS) with that of national norms on the PDMS. It found that the children with speech and language delays performed the PDMS gross motor skills significantly lower than the norm at each age level. The…

A description is given of an ongoing collaborative research effort consisting of a series of studies with 3- to 5-year-old children, designed for the purpose of: (1) identifying factors contributing to motor learning/performance during the development years, i.e., psychological, sociological, and experiential variables; (2) determining the…

In the United States, growth retardation is higher among low-income children, with adverse cognitive effects of undernutrition more prevalent when combined with poverty. This study examined anthropometric indicators of physical development and their relationship to motor and cognitive development in Head Start children. Motor integration and…

Case studies of eight children with speech and language impairments are presented in a review of the intervention efforts at the Demonstration Center for Preschool Special Education (DCPSE) in Puerto Rico. Five components of the intervention model are examined: social medical history, intelligence, motor development, socio-emotional development,…

This pilot study used a task-analyzed performance base curriculum as an intervention on the gross motor development of 24 children aged three to six, 15 in a treatment group, 9 in a control group. Pre- and post-training data on gross motor development (relating to 10 motor skills) were collected using the Ohio State University Scale of Intra Gross…

In conjunction with Public Law 101-476, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Head Start programs are committed to including children with disabilities as 10 percent of their student population. This study sought to determine the effects of training on Head Start providers' attitudes toward children with disabilities and their knowledge…

This study explored the way parents use information sources for information about their child's motor, social, and cognitive development. This study sought to identify: (1) variations in parental use of information based on the domain of the child's development for which the parent sought information; (2) the role of parent and child gender in…

This study assessed the effects of social interaction with nondisabled peers on the motor and social responses of two preschool children with severe disabilities in separate inclusive child care settings. A multiple baseline design across motor response was used to assess the effects of the peer training intervention. Peer training included…

A program at the Model Preschool Center for Handicapped Children at the University of Washington's College of Education enrolled 11 children with Down syndrome, 18-36 months of age. The program sought to accelerate and maintain the motor and cognitive skills of the children; to encourage parent involvement; to provide training to students,…

Physical education programs at the nursery and elementary school levels should stress the development and refinement of fundamental movement patterns and a wide variety of sport skills instead of dealing with specialized skill development through refined performance experiences. The developmental model of physical education is based on the…

This paper discusses linkages between play, healthy social and emotional development, and behavior management in young children. Play is defined as pleasurable, self-motivated, non-goal-directed, and spontaneous behavior, free from adult-imposed rules. Many children have limited time available for play because they are directed by adults in day…