This volume compiles articles based on the presentations delivered at two conferences. The conferences presented a multidisciplinary overview of research on children's play in different cultural contexts. The articles are grouped under six subheadings: play in the family context, play in the zone of proximal development, play in the kindergarten,…

This paper presents a guide to the selection and use of finger plays with children. Finger plays are defined as brief stories that rhyme and can be dramatized by fingers. After touching briefly on the origins of finger plays, the paper lists several uses for this activity, including motivating students, introducing new themes or units, and…

The play activity of 20 children was videotaped and annotated. The children were questioned about their play and artifacts of the play were collected. Data revealed a qualitative organization similar to a hierarchy. This structure reflected themes, domains of literate behavior, functions, and skills. A vignette of an episode of spontaneous play is…

The manual describes games and activities requiring minimal equipment and space for severely handicapped children. General guidelines touch upon such aspects as the importance of avoiding frustration or boredom, varying the activity to maintain interest, providing short rest periods when necessary, and ensuring the fullest possible participation…

A study was conducted to test the hypothesis that spontaneous mastery would predict infant functioning on the Bayley Mental Development Index better than would infants' executive capacity scores. At 12 and 18 months of age, 38 infants (20 from Pennsylvania and 18 from Bermuda) were observed for 30 minutes in their homes while engaging in…

Five preschool-age boys participated in a study of the effects of detailed and nondetailed toys on solitary creative play. In contrast to detailed, high-structure toys, nondetailed, low-structure toys were hypothesized to enhance creative play. In a multi-element design taking place over 13 daily sessions, detailed and nondetailed toys were…

Investigated 19 primary school children's behavior on a school bus through naturalistic observation prior to and during the use of experimental "bus teachers" who provided safe play materials and conducted activities designed to enhance the bus experience. (ED)

A large body of research documents the positive impact of sociodramatic play on children's language development. Through the social interaction that takes place during sociodramatic play, children develop the ability to express thoughts in a logical sequence, share ideas about events in which there is not shared context, and develop vocabulary.…

Explores the possibility that "make-believe" violence on television affects children less than "real" violence, concluding that children's perceptions of violence differ from those of adults. (RB)

Appropriate play with toys was studied in two autistic children (8 and 6-years-old) with high occurrences of self-stimulatory behavior. (Author/CL)

In order to influence motivation and children's creativity, some attractive methods were introduced into the classical contents of the usual program of material (Serbocroatian) language and literature and other subjects in the curriculum planned for the third grade. Work on a tale was carried out in an atmosphere of slightly transformed space in…

This report reviews a practicum designed to study and address problems of the physical play environment of a preschool which served children of 2 to 5 years. The goals of the practicum were to: (1) increase the amount of time children spent in physical play activities; (2) enhance the play environment by the addition of at least 10 pieces of…