Sex education in the schools is often too late and can only be remedial. What is needed is prevention by education and parent involvement. Parents have an obligation to talk about sex and sexuality to their children, during their first 10 years of life, and to help them develop sexually. (CJ)

Sixteen mothers, fathers, and their four- to seven-year- old children (eight with Down's syndrome [DS], eight without disabilities) were observed interacting in their homes during three family groupings: (1) mother and child, (2) father and child, and (3) mother, father, and child. (Author/MCD)

Museums are excellent supplements to classroom learning because they enable children to see and experience concepts that are taught in school. This article tells parents how to work with museums, and other cultural institutions in their communities, to shape and carry out programs for children. (PP)

Focuses on the early years of marriage, including the sexual relationship. Interviews, with 80 persons married five years or less, showed considerable variation in first-year frequencies with few normative guidelines. Despite the relatively low frequencies reported, respondents consider sex important or very important in marriage. (Author/JAC)

Explored attitudes about children and the perceived importance of children in the lives of retired couples (N=12). Interviews suggested that attitudes concerning children's importance changed over time. Wives seemed particularly conscious of the parenting role; husbands identified more strongly with the mere fact of being a parent. (Author/JAC)

Most theories divide the child's career development into the following broad stages: Awareness and Orientation (preschool to grade 6), Exploration (grades 7 to 9), and Preparation (grades 10 to 12). Throughout these stages, parents can help by giving encouragement and support to their child's ability to choose a career. (Author/NQA)

Effects of father absence on boys and girls who live in families headed by mothers were studied. Subjects were 40 Israeli children (ages 2.6 to 2.10 years of age) whose fathers had died before their birth. Strong differential effects were found in the responses of girls as compared with those of boys. (Author/MP)

The "Parent Speakers Program" combats misunderstanding about the nature of disabilities, misconceptions regarding the disabled, and stereotypes about disabled persons held by the community. Parents present factual information regarding disability; following the presentation, a discussion time and question/answer period is set aside to…

Discusses the variation and stability of mother speech patterns across individuals. Analyzes the functionally coded speech of 11 mothers and provides a typology of mother styles, based on the intentions of mothers to direct or converse with their children. (EKN)

Using a nationally representative sample of six- to eleven-year-old children, examines the relationship between socioeconomic status and ability in the light of the potential mediating effects of family structure and childhood experience. Found socioeconomic indicators to exercise greater effects upon verbal abilities than upon nonverbal…