Examined the relations among strategy knowledge about making friends, prosocial and antisocial behavior, and peer acceptance at school in a sample of 423 sixth and seventh graders. Findings indicated that knowledge of both appropriate and inappropriate strategies for making friends was related to both types of social behavior and to peer…

Some special education students misuse their sexuality to achieve popularity, flaunt sex-related language to gain attention, or demonstrate social naivete. To help these students categorize their real-life relationships, two consultants devised the circles concept. Six color-coded concentric circles reproduced on a life-sized floor mat clearly…

High, and low, social-connectedness scores were related to measures of anxiety, self-esteem, and social identity. Study 1 (N=185) used college women who presented with anxiety symptoms; Study 2 (N=44) was a follow-up study of connectedness in social situations. Results are presented and discussed in relation to therapy options. (Author/EMK)

In late modernity lifelong learning is necessary for survival, according to the dominant discourse of globalization and competitiveness. Another perspective views learning as acquisition of knowledge and skills in social interaction, with a focus on the interplay of societal, organizational, and individual processes that enhance or inhibit the…

This article examines how developmental bibliotherapy featuring young adult literature can be an effective strategy to address emotional issues of gifted teenagers. It describes how one high school English class responded to the novel, "The Mosquito Test," in a bibliotherapeutic fashion. Also provided is an annotated bibliography of current young…

Despite the tremendous changes wrought by technology, folktales contain certain truths about life, human nature, and what's needed to maintain a viable, socially sane society. Folktales are invaluable for stressing heroic actions, personal and social growth, and progress toward meaningful goals. (MLH)

Describes children's participating in dramatic play activities that are teacher or peer governed. Illustrates children's use of cultural symbols as material for story construction and social affiliation. Argues for a literacy curriculum in which cultural symbols are open to critical examination. (Author/SK)

Twenty children with autism received either an imitative or contingently responsive interaction with an adult. The contingency condition appeared to be the more effective way to facilitate a distal social behavior (attention), whereas the imitative condition was a more effective way to facilitate a proximal social behavior (touching). (Contains…

Analyzes data on boy-girl interactions in a high school drama class, problematizing the discourse of masculinity in the class. The ethnographic data collected during class showed how varied the contexts of gender production could be, even within the same roughly parallel configurations of task and location. Concludes that masculinity is above all…

At the same time their biological systems program them for later sleep and waking times, adolescents' schedules and lifestyles keep them from getting a healthy amount of sleep. Although a few schools have altered their schedules, most are confounded by costs and contractual complications. Minnesota schools are leaders. (MLH)

Article reviews strategies used by the most highly effective classroom teachers to achieve long-term goals of self-discipline while simultaneously achieving short-term goals of classroom management and control of discipline problems. Profiles three national projects that employ comprehensive, broad-based, preventive approaches to improving…

Presents an essay review of "Conflict and Connection: The Psychology of Young Adult Literature" by Sharon A. Stringer. Considers how teens are victims of a culture that superficially embraces what their youth represents in image, but abandons them in what their age requires in substance. Discusses how Stringer's book suggests a way to…

Presents three justifications of the arts and arts education: the arguments of (1) individual consciousness; (2) societal self-awareness; and (3) cultural presence. Claims young people need wide experience as both makers and consumers of cultural works. (NH)

Reports on medical evaluation processes and art-based assessments used in identifying psychosocial health of children in orphanages in Kiev, Ukraine. Because American health professionals, including an art therapist/psychologist, had actually come to treat orphans, they were invited to state shelters never before open to foreigners. Includes…

This article argues that, as a pedagogical practice, homework plays a critical, long-term role in the development of children's achievement motivation. Homework provides children with time and experience to develop positive beliefs about achievement, as well as strategies for coping with mistakes, difficulties, and setbacks. This article reviews…