Experiencing broad play and interaction opportunities is known to support children's learning and development and engagement with museum collections has the potential to stimulate enriching learning opportunities for even the youngest enquiring minds. Here, we describe the development of Toddler Time; a museum-based early years program developed…

This review was designed to characterize current intervention research for increasing imitation for young children with disabilities. We identified 34 unique sources including assessments of different types of massed trial and embedded trial interventions. Across intervention types, when evaluated via the Single Case Analysis and Review Framework…

Purpose: This study tested whether the Sitting Together and Reaching to Play (START-Play) physical therapy intervention indirectly impacts cognition through changes in perceptual-motor skills in infants with motor delays. Methods: Participants were 50 infants with motor delays randomly assigned to START-Play plus Usual Care Early Intervention…

Research suggests peer imitation can be taught using systematic procedures and can be embedded into ongoing play contexts with preschool-age children. However, additional research is needed to test procedures that may increase levels of peer imitation with toddlers with disabilities and in generalized contexts. We used a multiple probe across…

Center-based classroom community interventions create opportunities for young children with autism to connect with peers. Yet, there has been little examination of the peer interactions of toddlers with autism who experience core challenges in social communication and play skills that may create barriers to successful peer interactions. Classrooms…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of coaching caregivers to embed both communication and motor outcomes concurrently within daily routines of their infants or toddlers with significant disabilities using Enhanced Milieu Teaching (EMT) strategies. The coaching and embedding practices were part of a multicomponent intervention…

Purpose: Research indicates that delayed motor development observed in the first years of life can be prevented through compensatory intervention programmes that provide proper care during this critical period of child development. Method: This study analysed the impact of a 12-week compensatory motor intervention programme on 32 babies with…

Children living in poverty or born to teenage parents are at increased risk for developmental delays as well as child neglect. Research has shown that one effective avenue for preventive intervention is teaching parents to recognize and respond to their young children's communicative signals using responsive caregiving behaviors (e.g., warmth and…

The low rates of child literacy in South Africa are cause for considerable concern. Research from the developed world shows that parental sharing of picture books with infants and young children is beneficial for child language and cognitive development, as well as literacy skills. We conducted a pilot study to examine whether such benefits might…

Purpose: The authors sought to determine whether a program of 5 weekly doses of milieu communication teaching (MCT) would yield improvements in children's communication and word use compared with a once-weekly delivery of the same treatment. Method: Sixty-four children with intellectual and communication delay were randomly assigned to receive…

This study examined mother-child shared book reading behaviors before and after participation in a random-assignment responsive parenting intervention called Play and Learning Strategies (PALS) that occurred during infancy (PALS I), the toddler-preschool (PALS II) period, or both as compared with a developmental assessment (DAS) intervention (DAS…

Playing with toys as a means of environmental engagement has long been considered important in early child development (D. J. Messer, D. Rachford, M. E. McCarthy, & L. J. Yarrow, 1987; M. Wolery, M. G. Werts, & M. Holcombe, 1994). However, children with highly significant disabilities often engage in toy play less frequently than their peers…

Measurement in early childhood is an increasingly large-scale endeavor addressing purposes of accountability, program improvement, child outcomes, and intervention decision making for individual children. The Early Communication Indicator (ECI) is a measure relevant to intervention decision making for infants and toddlers, including response to…

This article describes a case study in the use of the Family Check-Up (FCU), a family-based and ecological preventive intervention for children at risk for problem behavior. The FCU is an assessment-driven intervention that utilizes a health maintenance model; emphasizes motivation for change; and offers an adaptive, tailored approach to…

This final report discusses the outcomes of a federally funded study of nine toddlers and preschoolers (ages 29-63 months) with a variety of disabilities. The project investigated the effectiveness of embedding systematic instruction within inclusive, developmentally appropriate practice (DAP), play-based environments to teach young children with…