Adults' behaviour in interactions with children is assumed to influence children's playfulness. However, little is known about how the quality of teacher-child interaction in early childhood education and care affects the development of children's playfulness, although the interaction quality has been identified as a strong predictor of children's…

This initial study explored the social behaviors of kindergarten children in two classrooms (one developmentally appropriate, one developmentally inappropriate) where the teacher used either positive or negative guidance strategies. Six pairs of kindergartners--three dyads (boy-boy, girl-girl, boy-girl) from a classroom in which the teacher used…

The central goal of the present study was to examine how a child's emotion regulation ability may moderate the relations between teaching styles and anxiety in childhood. Participants were 33 children (21 males, 12 females; mean age 7.5 years, standard deviation = 0.42), their mothers and teachers. Children completed the Early Adolescent…

This study investigated the effect of teacher interactive style on the participation of preschool children with learning disabilities in dyadic play and instructional interactions. Observations showed that teacher interactions accounted for a significant portion of the variability in children's engagement, discouraging children's initiations.…

Parents generally want the best for their children. They want their young children to feel supported while being challenged and encouraged and led toward independence. Parenting that is most supportive of a child's development and adjustment to the outside world is characterized by consistent enforcement of standards for behavior, concern for…

Discusses the relevance of research findings on the effect of child-directed learning strategies for learning-disabled preschool children. Considers the generalizability and educational implications of the findings, and notes the need for greater practitioner involvement in the research. (JPB)

Discusses how we become gendered through our culture and provides a classroom analysis of a teacher working with boys to get them to see themselves as literate in ways that are usually eschewed by boys who achieve hegemonic masculinity. Concludes with a definition of critical literacy that is considered relevant to the teaching of literacies to…

Discusses the following six strategies for using positive discipline in the classroom: (1) develop appropriate limits; (2) teach expected behavior; (3) give cues for expected behaviors; (4) redirect behavior; (5) change situations by increasing options; and (6) change situations by decreasing options. Contrasts different caregiving styles and…

A study investigated the styles teachers exhibit while interacting with children in literacy-enriched play settings, whether teachers switch between several different styles, and how different play interaction styles affect children's play behaviors. Subjects, seven 4-year-olds enrolled in a university laboratory preschool class, a lead teacher,…

It is widely accepted that within certain biological limits, a child's development emerges out of a continuous and increasingly complex interaction with significant people in his or her environment. Mothers and other significant adults, as experienced members of the culture, may be viewed as mediators and tutors who transmit cultural knowledge and…

An observational study of peer dynamics found three very different systems of peer interaction among Hawaiian children at three preschools. The children were demographically similar: part-Hawaiians from lower to lower-middle class backgrounds. Sixty children were studied in videotaped sessions. In Preschool 1, children usually play as dyads; in…

Discusses the implications of research findings that responsive teaching techniques improve the classroom interactions of preschool children with learning disabilities for classroom-based early intervention. Considers the use of responsive strategies in writing Individualized Education Plan and Individualized Family Service Plan goals and…

This book describes the results of film study of every day events in day care. It focuses on teacher and child behavior as they interact at meals, naps, and play, and proposes that minute examination of what actually happens to children in specific situations is necessary to identify the kinds of positive behaviors caregivers want to build on, as…