In modern societies, children are becoming more and more users of a child culture constructed by adults, rather than producers of their own culture. This paper describes a project, implemented in Nordic child care centers and early childhood classes, that provides children the opportunity to narrate and illustrate their own stories, written down…

The first part of this paper on the developmental consequences of children's exposure to chronic violence provides background information on the problem of violence. Developmental consequences of exposure to domestic and community violence for children at various developmental levels are briefly outlined. Consequences for children include: (1)…

Teachers of very young children have the awesome task of providing rich information and experiences that build skills and understanding in the context of every day routines and within intentionally-designed play opportunities that capture children's interests, wonder and curiosity so they want to know more. Pennsylvania's learning standards join…

Teachers of very young children have the awesome task of providing rich information and experiences that build skills and understanding in the context of every day routines "and" within intentionally-designed play opportunities that capture children's interests, wonder and curiosity so they want to know more. Pennsylvania's learning…

The present study included observational and self-report measures to examine associations among parental stress, parental behaviour, child behaviour, and children's theory of mind and emotion understanding. Eighty-three parents and their 3- to 5-year-old children participated. Parents completed measures of parental stress, parenting (laxness,…

Play is an activity of basic importance for the development of children of preschool age. This research project examined the organization and use of play in preschool institutions in Macedonia, operating with a main hypothesis that there is an absence of optimal conditions for play in these preschools. Subjects were 28 preschools and 70 teachers;…

This study examined young children's hand usage when they produced American Sign Language signs and while they played, in order to determine their hand preference in early signing and to compare their hand use in signing with their hand preference in other, nonlinguistic, motor actions. Subjects were 24 young children (from the age of 12 months or…

This book contains descriptions of 128 games for children and adolescents and is designed as a guide for parents, teachers, and play leaders. Following an introduction summarizing the educational background for each type of game, the book is organized into seven areas: (1) races; (2) duels; (3) small wrestling matches; (4) games of ability and…

This study examined the influence of play styles and gender labeling on children's peer preferences. Thirty-six preschool children viewed pictures of other children playing and were asked to point to whom they wanted to play with. One group of children chose between a boy wrestling with a neutral doll and a girl hugging the neutral doll. Another…

A total of 26 handicapped and nonhandicapped preschool children between 3 and 5 years of age were grouped into play groups of three or four children and observed playing in the groups over a 7-week period. Children were provided with toys that were identified as social, such as dolls or wooden building blocks, or isolate, such as puzzles and…

This paper describes an open symposium designed to help participants: (1) better understand the nature of play and the nature of the child in the education process; (2) be more effective in their efforts to facilitate children's growth, development, and learning; and (3) continue to make a difference in children's lives. The notion of play as a…

Provides a framework for understanding the value of water play for preschoolers and offers suggestions (materials and activities) for incorporating it into a program. (Author/ED)

Reports results of studies dealing with the use of storage shelves versus toy boxes and limited versus free access to toys. (ED)

Investigated were sex-related differences in the deprivation-enhancement pattern of verbal fantasies and fantasy involving dramatic play production. Subjects were 45 children of school-entrance age and 47 preadolescents. The findings are discussed in terms of boys' and girls' sexual identity. (SDH)