Children ought to have satisfying friendships because they otherwise may miss out on opportunities to learn important social skills, develop little faith in their abilities to achieve interpersonal goals, suffer painful feelings of isolation, and become vulnerable to influence by delinquent peers. Factors contributing to children's peer…

Traditionally, stress has been defined in terms of its sourceinternal, such as hunger, pain, sensitivity to noise; and externalseparation from family, change in family composition, exposure to conflict or violence. Although the research literature tends to focus on the impact of single-variable stressors on children's development, in real-life…

Traditionally, stress has been defined in terms of its source (internal, such as hunger, pain, sensitivity to noise and external, such as separation from family, change in family composition, exposure to conflict or violence). Although the research literature tends to focus on the impact of single-variable stressors on children's development, in…

This digest examines the role of school psychologists in improving educational opportunities for children and adolescents. A variety of issues that affect children and their ability to learn are discussed: widening social class differences and increases in the number of children living in poverty; changing value systems; family disintegration;…

Broad changes in social values, as well as the raising of achievement standards by parents and administrators, are pressuring teachers to change curriculum for young children, with the result that children are hurried and hothoused. Early childhood educators are particularly vulnerable to criticism of their work, and this reduces their ability to…

Compared to the rest of the school day, recess is a time when children have more freedom to choose what they want to do and with whom. In light of the current climate of school accountability, this digest discusses research on recess and its relationship to learning, social development, and child health, as well as research on related topics that…

This document consists of the two 1999 issues of the newsletter of the ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education (ERIC/EECE). Each issue contains a feature article and one or more short articles on topics related to early childhood education, calls for papers, announcements about Internet resources, news items about and lists…

Compared to the rest of the school day, recess is a time when children have more freedom to choose what they want to do and with whom. In light of the current climate of school accountability, this Spanish-language Digest discusses research on recess and its relationship to learning, social development, and child health, as well as research on…

This digest familiarizes counselors with the four major types of child maltreatment: neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse and exploitation, and emotional abuse or neglect. A definition is provided for each, along with relevant symptoms and statistics. The subsequent discussion focuses on identifying maltreatment and on counseling abused children.…

The incidence of multiple births has increased dramatically in the past two decades. Given this trend, it seems reasonable to assume that many teachers will have twins and other multiple siblings in their classes at some point in their classroom careers. This Digest offers some pointers for educators facing the challenges of educating multiples.…

The physical fitness status of children ages 6-12 is the topic of discussion in this monograph. The publication is organized into 4 major sections and 17 chapters. The first section, "An Introduction to Childhood Fitness," includes 3 chapters: (1) Status of Physical Fitness in U.S. Children; (2) The Public Health Perspective:…

This digest summarizes demands that confront elementary counselors: (1) a culturally diverse world; (2) changing families; (3) drug abuse; (4) child abuse and neglect; (5) exceptional children; (6) a technological world; (7) a changing world of work; (8) promoting learning in a changing world; (9) shaping children's behavior in a changing world;…

Suggestions for effective parenting of preschool children are provided in 33 brief articles on children's feelings concerning self-esteem; fear; adopted children; the birth of a sibling; death; depression; and coping with stress, trauma, and divorce. Children's behavior is discussed in articles on toddlers' eating habits, punishment and…

Those who advocate for developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) do so based on the conviction that these classroom practices enhance children's development and facilitate learning. This ERIC Digest examines recent research on DAP and social-emotional and cognitive development, and describes what we have learned about DAP in early childhood…