Playfulness, a personality trait consisting of sense of humor, manifest joy, and spontaneity, was demonstrated to relate to divergent thinking at the kindergarten and high-school levels. The differential valence given to it by kindergarten-teachers and JHS- and HS-teachers was discussed in relation to creative potential. There was a consensus of…

A report on adventure or "junk" playgrounds--areas that provide opportunities for children to build, dig, and play with materials under their own direction--begins with brief sections on the establishment of the original playground in Copenhagen, and the first American experiment, in Minneapolis, in 1950. The main body of the report is…

This book is a collection of the papers presented at the fifth International Interdisciplinary Conference on Piagetian Theory and the Helping Professions, held at the University of Southern California on January 24, 1975. The conference was sponsored by University Affiliated Program at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles; 44 papers are included.…

This paper presents a framework useful for preschool and elementary teachers in developing a basic understanding of competency and play and their interrelationship. Specific guidelines are given for observing and planning toward increasing opportunities for competency and play. Competency is viewed as consisting of growth, risk-taking, and a…

An analysis of the ideas of John Locke and Benjamin Spock examines two questions: (1) authors' popularity in their own lifetimes, and (2) congruence and change in American conceptions of child rearing over two centuries. Comparisons of Locke's "Some Thoughts Concerning Education" and Spock's "Common Sense Book of Baby and Child…

This collection of articles presents ideas about the value of children's play and suggests practical ways to implement good play experiences and select appropriate play materials. Articles examine play as an agent of social values, play and thinking, play and child development, the environmental opportunities for play factors that can destroy the…

Presented in this pamphlet are some guidelines to help parents develop a responsive, flexible parent-child relationship. Based on recent child development theory, this easy-to-read pamphlet offers practical suggestions for developing good self-concept, responsibility, self-confidence, self-discipline, resourcefulness, decision-making and…

During an experiment on infant behavior, it was observed that young children shared toys with their mothers; therefore, a series of research studies was designed to investigate this phenomenon. The general purposes of the research were: (1) to define sharing more precisely and develop objective measures of frequency and duration for it, (2) to…

These curriculum guides are designed to introduce drama to students at the third and fourth grade level. The teacher's guide for each of the two grade levels presents 40 lessons. Each lesson includes a description of objectives and various exercises, including movement warm-ups, movement exercises, imagination exercises, composition assignments,…

Creative methods of communicating with young children are discussed. In order to communicate through talk, adults must realize that children have a "secret world" with their own language and reasoning and must respect it. Self awareness, patience, understanding, and consistency are necessary for adults to truly communicate with children through…

Learning in infancy is based on activity, beginnings, and curiosity, the so-called ABC's. Earliest behavior consists of mass activity, the period from birth to 24 months of sensory-motor development which provides the foundation for all future learning. Adults must provide space, toys, and affectionate care to help infants proceed through…

This paper attempts to illustrate with concrete data that riddles serve as a didactic device to sharpen the wits of young children. The riddle is described as a verbal routine which adapts the interrogative system of a speech community to purposes of play. Riddles concerning motion or locomotion of animals, machines and toys were collected in a…

This study investigated the relationships between symbolic play, reading readiness, drawing, Piaget's principle of conservation, and age, in 41 preschool children. Subjects were participants in a pre-first-grade summer program; they had had kindergarten experience but no formal reading instruction, and they ranged in age from five years, six…

Mothers from inner-city, poor families with high-risk infants were interviewed when their infants were three months of age concerning sources of support (e.g., fathers, relatives, friends) and types of support received (e.g., goods, services, advice, financial support). Observations of the mother-infant interaction in a free-play setting were also…

Three mothers of handicapped children were taught to imitate their child's behavior; subsequently the number of mands displayed by the mothers during play sessions were measured. Results showed increases in the percentage of sample intervals during which mothers imitated their children and showed that, as imitations increased, mands decreased.…