Prenatal maternal depression affects both mother and fetus with long-term implications for offspring vulnerability to psychopathology through alterations to brain development, stress physiology, negative emotionality, and cognitive control. This article reviews evidence for the negative impact of prenatal maternal depression on offspring…

This study examined the rates of special education placement during middle school grades (sixth through eighth) among children who participated in the Linda Ray Intervention Program (LRIP) center-based and home-based learning modalities. The study sample included 113 children in Miami Dade County Public Schools who had gestational cocaine exposure…

This report provides a summary of the Home Instruction of Parents with Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) program activities and its effectiveness for Houston Independent School District (HISD) student participants. A total of 637 three to five-year children, along with their parents, participated in the HISD HIPPY program during the 2015-2016 academic…

In 2010, Congress authorized the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program by enacting section 511 of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 711, which also appropriated funding for fiscal years 2010 through 2014. Subsequently enacted laws extended funding for the program through fiscal year 2022. The program is…

The profound injuries caused by child maltreatment are well documented in the neurological, attachment, cognitive, and developmental literature. In this review paper, we explore the potential of early childhood education (ECE) as a community-based resilience intervention for mitigating the impacts of child abuse and neglect and supporting families…

Inequality of access to educational resources by different social classes has been widely documented, and schools have instituted parent programs to ameliorate this situation. However, lacking are theoretically based studies that explain how and why a program may be effective in bringing about change. The authors studied a 12-week parent…

A number of authors have investigated the impact of early childhood education and care programs on the development of children. Often they have focused on the effects on children from socio-economically disadvantaged families. To assess the effects of various preschool programs on cognitive development, recent key studies were reviewed. In…

This paper analyzes the effect of participation in the School Breakfast Program (SBP) on breakfast consumption using time-diary data from the Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. Participation effects are identified by comparing differences in breakfast patterns between weekdays (when children are in school) and…

Sixteen percent of children 6-11 years of age were classified as overweight in 1999-2002, four times the percentage in 1965. Although poverty has traditionally been associated with underweight as a result of poor diet, researchers have recently pointed to a paradox in the U.S., which is that low income and obesity can coexist in the same…

The Cognitively Oriented Prekindergarten Experience (Project COPE) is a preschool effort to accelerate the development of children from predominantly low-income families. This program was nationally validated as an ESEA Title III project and has received support from the U.S. Office of Education as a National Developer/Demonstrator site. Having…

Brain research has strengthened our understanding of the first five years of a child's life as a critical period. Quality early care is important to the healthy development of young children, and their later success in school. Concurrently, many families depend on childcare outside the home. Programs that have knowledgeable and skilled staff,…

This paper provides an overview of the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation, an organization that sponsors studies of the efficacy of intervention in the early years of development, especially with economically disadvantaged children. Using several High/Scope Foundation studies to illustrate its points, the paper examines issues common to…

Assesses effectiveness of three preschool curriculum models by examining the lives of 68 23-year-olds randomly assigned to one such group as economically disadvantaged preschoolers. Young people experienced fewer emotional problems and felony arrests if they had attended a preschool program based on child-initiated learning activities geared to…

Describes two-generation programs and how they differ from earlier single-focus approaches to serve children and families. Results from six programs are reviewed and indicate mixed and modest success in promoting the development of children and improving the parenting skills and economic self-sufficiency of parents. Recommendations are presented…

Reviews the literature on delinquency that shows key early childhood factors which are associated with later antisocial or delinquent behavior. The review focuses on programs which have demonstrated long-term effects on antisocial behavior or delinquency, as well as their cost effectiveness. The article reveals that programs combining family…