This document consists of seven policy issue papers developed by the Connecticut Early Childhood Education Council, an action-oriented coalition of statewide organizations concerned with early childhood education. Members include teachers, school administrators, children's librarians, child care providers, Head Start directors, State Department of…

The pedagogical development of teachers has been described in five stages: novice, advanced beginner, competent, proficient, and expert. This study sought to determine if a survey instrument called the Method Acceptance Scale for Teachers (MAST) would be useful in revealing differences among teachers in different stages of development with regard…

This book combines a holistic approach to language learning with a developmental point of view, including teaching strategies appropriate for each age and stage of development. The book looks at children's literature and how it is used as the thrust for the development of oral language, reading, and early writing. The book includes: discussion of…

This paper considers etiological factors associated with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), presents a critical review of current findings on language deficits and FAS, and proposes a direction for future research which takes into account the semiotic aspects of language development. Criteria for establishing FAS as well as other typical…

As girls approach early adolescence they begin to experience losses in self-competence and in authenticity in relationships. These girls hide their strengths for the sake of relationships. This study attempts to change this phenomenon through a 13-week small group intervention program, The Transition to Adolescence Program (TAP). TAP encourages…

This paper presents an overview of the life and ideas of John Comenius (1592-1670) and compares practices advanced by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) with principles advocated by Comenius. Comenius' educational plans called for education to begin at birth and continue to adulthood. Education was divided into…

In recent research, two qualitatively different classes of mental operations have been identified. The performance of one type of cognitive task requires attention, in the sense of mental effort, for its execution, while the second type can be performed automatically, independent of attentional control. Further research has shown that automatic…

Studies suggesting appropriate literature for children at various stages of social and intellectual development can offer only a general picture of children's changing response to literature. While smaller children appear to prefer shorter stories in simple language, for example, they readily accept the unfamiliar place names or nonsense words of…

The result of five years of collaboration, discussion and applied research, this book reviews theory and research on handwriting instruction for ordinary children as well as giving detailed consideration to the problems encountered by slow learners and children with physical disabilities. The titles of the chapters (and their authors, if different…

An elementary school teacher discusses conflict management techniques appropriate for use with children in kindergarten through the fourth grade. Discussion first recapitulates developmental theory from several perspectives, including those of Freud, Erikson, Piaget, and profiles conflict theory. Illustrative contemporary social problems that…

A newborn child can identify impressions by means of the sense organs with the help of "non-visible" sensory impressions such as tactile and kinesthetic. A communication arises early between different modalities and muscle activities, which make possible an early synchronization, and identity between the infant and its surroundings.…

This series of 12 short newsletters provides parents with information on their child's growth and development in each month of the child's first year. Specific information on the child's physical, social, emotional, and language development is provided, along with information on feeding and health issues. Each newsletter also focuses on a…

Extracted from a doctoral thesis on young children's emergent literacy, this paper describes the literacy development of one five-year-old subject. The paper first describes the subject's home environment, her relationships with family members, and her early reading experience and literacy development. Transcripts illustrating her home reading…

Little attention has been given to how adults develop through their lifetimes and what roles their workplace environments play in that development. Research and theory regarding adult psychosocial development have confirmed the developmental life-cycle phases of adulthood. These are: leaving the family (ages 16-22), getting into the adult world…

The validity of recent research concerning invented spelling, the developmental stages in children's writing, and whether children will attempt writing before reading and continue writing while learning to read were examined. Five developmental stages in spelling have been identified: (1) the precommunicative stage, involving the use of random…