Today's educators stand at the crossroads of globalization and technology. The world is rapidly shrinking. The workplace is being transformed before our very eyes. Technology is forever changing the way we perceive reality and the way we do business. Educators are required to equip students for a workplace that has yet to emerge. The skill sets of…

Most basic concepts are acquired during preschool period. There are studies indicating that the basic concept knowledge of children is related to language development, cognitive development, academic achievement and intelligence. The relationship between learning behaviors (sometime called learning or cognitive styles) and a child academic success…

Over a two-year teacher-researcher project in New Zealand we used a mosaic of research methods (Clark, 2010) to capture the perspectives of staff, parents and children. As a team of teachers and academic researchers, we recorded and documented reconceptualised pedagogical practices that included active adult participation in a cluster of early…

This study investigated the role of strategy instruction and working memory capacity (WMC) on word problem solving accuracy in children with (n = 100) and without (n = 92) math difficulties (MD). Within classrooms, children in Grades 2 and 3 were randomly assigned to one of four treatment conditions: verbal-only strategies (e.g., underlining…

We investigate the effects of age-related factors and formal instruction on the development of reading-related skills in children aged 4 and 7 years. Age effects were determined by comparing two groups of children at the onset of formal schooling; one aged 7 (later-schooled) and one aged 4 (earlier-schooled). Schooling effects were measured by…

The genetic factor structure of a range of learning measures was explored in twin children, recruited in preschool and followed to Grade 2 ("N"?=?2,084). Measures of orthographic learning and word reading were included in the analyses to determine how these patterned with the learning processes. An exploratory factor analysis of the…

Imaginative and attractive, cutting edge in its conception, this text explicates a model for the integration of language arts and literacy education based on the notion of framing. The act of framing--not frames in themselves--provides a creative and critical approach to English as a subject. "Re-framing Literacy" breaks new ground in the language…

Early encounters with environmental print, words, and other graphic symbols found in children's surroundings are among their first concrete exposures to written language. These experiences: (1) provide an introduction to making meaning of abstract symbols; and (2) offer children their first opportunity to make sense of the world through print. As…

More children are receiving care outside of their home under the age of six (Childstats.gov, 2007). The quality of these programs has a direct impact on student's readiness for school (Burchinal, Roberts, Nabors, & Bryant, 1996). Social readiness is the foundation for school readiness and academic achievement (Blair, 2002; Brigman, Lane, Lane,…

Teachers can integrate discussion and writing about photographs into the early childhood curriculum to build speaking, reading, and writing skills in any language. Although little available research focuses on photography and early childhood education as related specifically to English Language Learners, several current teacher resources do focus…

This longitudinal case study examined the language and literacy acquisition of a Deaf child as mediated by her signing Deaf parents during her first three years of life. Results indicate that the parents' interactions with their child were guided by linguistic and cultural knowledge that produced an intuitive use of child-directed signing (CDSi)…

Teachers can spark interest in a science topic by using "science tickets"--special objects offered to children as a way to transition to the science room or into a small group to do a science activity. Objects ranging from ordinary (shells, leaves, or sticks) to unusual (photos, crystals, or plastic worms) appeal to young children's curiosity and…

In 3 experiments, the author investigated 16- to 20-month-old infants' attention to dynamic and static parts in learning about self-propelled objects. In Experiment 1, infants were habituated to simple noncausal events in which a geometric figure with a single moving part started to move without physical contact from an identical geometric figure…

Social precursors to symbolic understanding of pictures were examined with 100 infants ages 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 months. Adults demonstrated 1 of 2 stances toward pictures and objects (contemplative or manipulative), and then gave items to infants for exploration. For pictures, older infants (12, 15, and 18 months) emulated the adult's actions…

Young infants have repeatedly been shown to be slower than older infants to shift fixation from a midline stimulus to a peripheral stimulus. This is generally thought to reflect maturation of the neural substrates that mediate the disengagement of attention, but this developmental difference may also be attributable to young infants' slower…