Reviews aspects of child development from various theoretical perspectives. Discusses developmental trends in pre-school years, early elementary years, and upper elementary years. (AV)

Asks how intellectual development is tied to social setting. Considers this question from three perspectives: republican, cognitive developmental, and historical-materialists. Concludes that each recognizes that thinking is a product of social conditions. Discusses the importance for social studies education in terms of content and…

Asserts that using children's literature to present life stories can reinforce young children's understanding of life span and help them better understand how goals formed in childhood may help determine an individual's future. Briefly reviews and recommends 15 children's books focused on life stories and decision making. (MJP)

Responses to Fraenkel's 15 criticisms of the author's article about Kohlberg's cognitive-developmental approach to moral education in the April 1976 issue of "Social Education." Three circumstances are stated as reasons for the differences between the two men: (1) staying up-to-date with research and publications, (2) time consumed in refuting…

Restatement of the author's criticisms of Fenton's article about Kohlberg's cognitive-developmental approach to moral education in the April 1976 issue of "Social Education." Emphasis is made that (1) Fenton's definitive summations of Kohlberg's works should be more tentative and cautious, because (2) some parts of moral developmental research are…

Points out that children have difficulty learning time concepts. Presents instructional activities for concepts associated with clocks, calendars, and chronology. Outlines Jerome Bruner's three different stages of representation for each concept: enactive, iconic, and symbolic. (DB)

Examines appropriate map learning experiences for elementary school children based on inferences derived from Piaget's research on cognitive development. Addresses the eight skills developed in most map learning programs: 1) interpreting symbols, 2) envisioning perspective, 3) locating places, 4) determining direction, 5) computing distance, 6)…

Explains the relationship between important citizenship goals and recognized map skills. Demonstrates, grade by grade, how to conduct map learning activities that foster active involvement and problem solving skills needed for democratic citizenship. (JDH)

Presents fifteen activities designed to lead children from the enactive, iconic, and symbolic levels of understanding map symbols, perspective, direction, distance, location, scale, relief and elevation. (JDH)

Discusses recent research in cognitive psychology that identifies how students are likely to respond when controversial issues are included in course content. Points out that controversial material may lead to misunderstandings and forgetting. Provides teaching ideas to enhance student learning and remembering, to deal with emotions, and to foster…

Describes the Chata Project, a British research project that challenged the prevalent assumption that children will construct sound causal explanations from factual information imparted during history instruction. Their research suggests that explicit instruction is required for children to understand the causal relationships among events,…

Summarizes a Canadian study that attempted to determine how a diverse group of high school students identified and understood events of historical significance. The students' responses ranged from generally objective and analytical to wildly subjective. Includes a recommended exercise for establishing students approaches to and definitions of…

Reviews the conceptual and developmental issues associated with learning time concepts. Demonstrates how important time concepts are to all subject areas and provides an analysis of the use of time concepts in two widely-used standardized tests. Offers six guidelines for teaching time concepts to children and illustrates these guidelines with…

Presents a dialog between an educational psychologist and a middle school social studies teacher concerning the integration of the arts into social studies curriculum. Both agree that the use of the arts can simultaneously enhance the presentation of content while providing multiple paths to learning. (MJP)