Background: Given that an alarming 1 in 5 children in the USA are at risk of hunger (1 in 3 among black and Latino children), and that 3.9 million households with children are food insecure, it is crucial to understand how household food insecurity (HFI) affects the present and future well-being of our children. Purpose: The objectives of this…

Parents, policymakers, business leaders, and the general public increasingly recognize the importance of the first few years in the life of a child for promoting healthy physical, emotional, social, and intellectual development. Yet many children face deficiencies in the years leading up to school entry in terms of emotional support, intellectual…

Examines consequences of family poverty for child development, noting evidence that deep or persistent poverty early in childhood adversely affects children's ability and achievement. Argues that although the 1996 welfare reforms spurred many welfare-to-work transitions, their time limits and sanctions are likely to deepen poverty among some…

Several factors are eroding children's right to play. The first is continuing poverty throughout the world. This factor is evident in underdeveloped countries and the inner cities of industrialized countries. Changing cultural values are a second factor in developed societies where indifference toward the importance of play is prevalent. The many…

This book is a collection of papers on curriculum development in early childhood education. In Chapter 1, Bruner examines what is known about the effects of poverty on child development in Western culture, considers whether modern developmental theories aid in understanding the impact of culture (and specifically) poverty on children's growth, and…

A consideration of nutrition and intellectual growth opens with a glossary of 12 terms and two reports on hunger in America, one by J.L. Frost and B.L. Payne, the other by the Citizens' Board of Inquiry into Hunger and Malnutrition. Included are articles on nutrition and intellectual development in children, by M. Winick; maternal diet, growth,…