Intended for those who want to encourage children to read, this book deals with children learning to read at different stages and explores four assumptions: reading is an important thing to do; reading is learned by reading; what beginning readers read makes all the difference to their view of reading; and to be successful, teaching and learning…

The focus of this paper is on how children use print, or literate language, in school and how teachers can respond and work with children. Beginning with a literature review, the paper discusses language use and literate language development in young children, pointing out that children construct their experiences through using language, and that…

Using 20 comparative research studies, this paper compares advantages and disadvantages of family day care and center care. The results are discussed in terms of (1) the effects of family day care and center care on the intellectual, emotional, social, and physical development of young children and their parents; (2) the environmental differences…

This report presents the results of research that gathered baseline data for a proposed evaluation of the Family Matters Project, an early intervention program that studied the utility of family and local resources as support systems in the care of preschoolers. Conducted in Syracuse, New York, the research collected demographic data, descriptions…

Ideas and experiences to assist in working with 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children are provided in this staff development module for the caregiver or teacher in a military child care center. The module consists of several short discussions describing characteristics of preschoolers, ways they can be helped to feel secure, and the manner in which…

A selective review of literature on the effects of nutrition and malnutrition on educational achievement is presented. Interpretive critiques of studies focus on three areas: (1) the effects of early undernutrition and subsequent intellectual function and school progress; (2) the relationship between the nutritional status of the student and…

The writing of five consecutive classes of first grade students was analyzed to investigate the selection of topic, theme, and mode in six-year-old children learning to read and write through the use of an invented spelling approach in an open classroom. The writing studied was in the form of 993 "books" (several sheets of paper stapled…

A collection of articles showing the role played by the Australian Primary English Teaching Association in contributing to the quality of educational thought, this publication is intended to stimulate and challenge discussion on a wide range of educational ideas and issues. The first part deals with half-truths about learning, learning in school,…

This report describes a study on the need for and feasibility of establishing an international system for facilitating access to materials on early childhood development. The Education Commission of the States (ECS) investigated international need for and interest in the establishment of a common pool of information from international sources, and…

This paper, presented at a 1976 conference on the theory and practice of beginning reading instruction, introduces the theory that reading development occurs in stages patterned after Piaget's cognitive development stages. The stages include the prereading stage (until the age of six years); the decoding stage (first/second grade); the stage of…

This report describes the ESEA, Title I Elementary School Guidance Program instituted in 22 Norfolk elementary schools. The primary purpose of the program is to provide an organized developmental service that promotes positive child growth and development. This is to be accomplished through zealous efforts to achieve the following objectives: (1)…

The first five-year research plans developed by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), covering fiscal years 1983-1987 and 10 program areas, are published in this volume. Present knowledge is reviewed and research opportunities are indicated in the areas of reproduction, fetal development, the birth process, the…

Current knowledge and practice relating to young children's aesthetic development and education are reviewed in this state-of-the-art report. Beginning with a brief section highlighting theoretical problems and approaches to the psychological study of aesthetic response, the review subsequently describes three common strategies used in aesthetic…

This paper addresses the task of the family therapist who is called upon when remediation attempts between school and family fail to produce favorable results with a child identified as a problem pupil. The job of the therapist in dismantling the system that is detrimental to the child and reorganizing one that enhances development is discussed…

The document--two thirds of which consists of appendixes--presents the final report of Project PREP (Preschool Recreation Enrichment Program), which evaluated a handicapped preschool children's recreation program emphasizing motor, socialization, self concept, and language development. The need for preschool recreation programs for handicapped…