Presents a collection of Valentine's Day-related kindergarten activities designed to help friendships grow. They include making personalized place mats as a group, creating decorated mail pouches, building heart shaped bird feeders, reading a book about friendly secrets and surprises, and decorating hearts with compliments about each student. (SM)

Investigated stability of sociometric classification system. Found that, among 137 students in kindergarten through grade 4, scores upon which sociometric classifications were based were moderately stable, but sociometric status was unstable over 1-year interval. Reclassification rates for extreme groups (rejected, neglected, controversial,…

Used interview data from national sample of married persons to examine extent to which people in remarriages have attributes that adversely influence marital quality/stability. Found that persons in remarriages were more likely to be poorly integrated with parents and in-laws, willing to leave marriage, be poor marriage material, and to have lower…

This research review concerning intervention to improve young children's social behavior and strategies for promoting generalization and maintenance of young children's social responding focuses on taking advantage of natural communities of reinforcement, training diversely, and incorporating functional mediators. Implications for interventionists…

Administration of the School Social Behavior Scales to 81 elementary-age gifted students indicated that subjects had higher levels of social competence and lower levels of antisocial behavior than did a comparison group. Findings also indicated the presence of a small subset of gifted students with extremely poor social competence and high levels…

Teachers' ratings of children's constructive coping and attentional control were positively related to boys' social skills and peer status. Children's emotional intensity and their coping behavior that involved acting out were negatively related to girls' and boys' social skills and boys' peer status. Mothers' reports of boys' low emotional…

Reports on a three-step research project examining students' familiarity with, and ability to make, polite requests. It is suggested that input from textbooks can be used to fill the gap related to polite requests if more information is devoted to the presentation and practice of formulaic expressions and appropriate linguistic forms such as the…

Our society does not need to make its children first in mathematics and science. It needs to care for its children--to reduce violence, respect work of every kind, reward excellence, and ensure a place for every child and emerging adult in the economic and social world. Our main educational aim should be to encourage the growth of competent,…

Two adults with developmental disabilities were trained to increase their prompt and polite acknowledgments of coworker initiations by means of daily review of interactions of the previous day which had been recorded. The review included self-evaluation, praise, corrective feedback, and role-play. Behavior changes were maintained during follow-up…

Notes that troubled children and youth often lack specific skills that are prerequisites for development of conscience and prosocial orientation. Describes how Boys' Town Model of teaching concrete interpersonal skills serves to empower youth with new options for prosocial behavior. Contends that once in possession of expanded repertoire of…

Twenty-one apparently normal children (ages 18 to 34 months) with slow expressive language acquisition were evaluated initially and again at age 3. The late talkers also scored significantly lower in receptive communication and socialization. Followup showed nearly half the group remained delayed in expressive communication and socialization,…

Explains free-flow play, in which children make the rules of play, as opposed to adult-led play; stresses the value of firsthand experience; and discusses the relationship of free-flow play to games and representations. Cites 12 ways adults can help children achieve quality learning through free-flow play, including helping children explore and…

Somewhere between easygoing and hardboiled management extremes lies the realm of true leadership. An effective administrator gets results by leading people (not ordering them), learning how to handle them, and discovering what makes each one tick. A true leader captures and holds staff members' confidence, helps them develop needed skills, and…

Effective principals pay close attention to body language and other subtle actions that are constantly read and interpreted by staff and students. Principals must not only talk the talk of an instructional leader but also walk the walk of a committed instructional leader. Specific suggestions are provided. (MLH)

A script fading procedure was effectively used to teach 4 children (ages 9 and 12) with autism to initiate interactions with peers. Increased initiations (to within normal levels) generalized to a different setting, and for three of the children were maintained at two-month follow-up. (Author/DB)