Intended for the preschool teacher wishing to implement a cognitively oriented curriculum, this instructional guide focuses on the problem-solving approach (as opposed to the teacher-directed approach) to student learning. Each chapter provides space for teachers to plan, implement, and evaluate lessons. Activities in the guide are participatory,…

This bibliography cites references dealing with background material on the functions of the human brain and current research on sex differences in brain development. A list of 10 books published since 1974 is followed by a more extensive annotated bibliography of 29 articles, and a bibliography of 19 reports, complete with ERIC reference numbers…

First and fifth graders participated in this assessment of ways in which differential experience with objects in a spatial array might establish relative landmarks within the array. Results suggest that different levels of experience can establish elements as relative landmarks in spatial memory. (Author/RWB)

The investigation's purpose was to revise E. Hill's test for assessing the development of spatial concepts among visually impaired children, "Concepts Involved in Body Position and Space;" establish the test's validity and reliability; and collect normative data. (Author)

Examined 5- to 12-year-olds' judgment regarding the behavior of balance scales and other levers whose arms varied in a causal or a noncausal variable. Results indicated age-related increases in correct judgments about the influence of physical features of objects at an earlier age than about spatial relations between objects. (MOK)

This article describes the modifications that 12 early childhood educators in Japan made to the Sorry! board game to encourage kindergartners' logico-mathematical thinking. Logico-mathematical knowledge is described as including classification, seriation, numerical relationships, spatial relationships, and temporal relationships. Examples of seven…

Tested children with apparatus that dropped balls through clear or opaque interwoven tubes. Found that older children could solve configurations with greater number of tubes than younger children. Success with clear tubes did not transfer to opaque tubes. Significantly, errors were consistently directed to location directly below ball's last seen…

Examines the effects of 3 years of piano instruction on children's cognitive abilities. Finds that children's general cognitive and spatial abilities improved significantly, but those improvements were only temporary. Believes that the positive effects on the children's cognitive abilities were dependent upon their dedication to learning the…

In this paper, the authors evaluate map overlay, a concept central to geospatial thinking, to determine how it is naively and technically understood, as well as to identify when it is leaner innately. The evaluation is supported by results from studies at three grade levels to show the progression of incidentally learned geospatial knowledge as…

Learning style is a composite of those elements that serve as a relatively stable indicator of how a learner perceives, interacts with, and responds to the learning environment. This paper presents quantitative data related to learning styles and qualitative data related to learning environments which could suggest changes in biology courses and…

This study was designed to examine effects that access to manipulatives in science instruction have with respect to the development of spatial conceptual abilities and whether the effects were different for males and females. A secondary purpose of this investigation was to examine what relationship sex and access to manipulatives in conjunction…

This investigation used a clinical interview technique to identify the difficulties of kindergarten children who are unable to develop models or representations of simple arithmetic story problems. It is hypothesized that effective human problem solvers first generate some type of "physical model" and use this model to create a…

The development of young children's internal representations of large space was assessed by asking 15 boys and 15 girls to construct a three-dimensional model of their kindergarten classroom. Three groups of 10 children (ranging in age from 4 years, 8 months to 6 years, 3 months) were tested, two in the spring and one in the fall. One of the…

Compares 27 children with early onset diabetes (EOD) with 24 children with late onset diabetes (LOD) and 30 sibling controls in performance on tests of intellectual functioning and school achievement. Results revealed that duration of illness, age of onset, and hypoglycemic convulsions significantly predicted spatial ability. (Author/RWB)

Discusses how educating children to use maps for navigation may enhance wayfinding skills as well as general representation and spatial skills. Documents need for innovative educational curricula to meet challenges of teaching map navigation. Describes development and evaluation of "Where Are We?" curriculum to simulate real-world…