Children's understanding of the inversion concept in multiplication and division problems (i.e., that on problems of the form "d multiplied by e/e" no calculations are required) was investigated. Children in Grades 6, 7, and 8 completed an inversion problem-solving task, an assessment of procedures task, and a factual knowledge task of simple…

This study examined gender and status differences among sixth through eighth grade early adolescents' (N = 387) descriptions of what it means to be popular. More boys than girls specified being "cool", "athletic", "funny", and "defiant/risky", whereas more girls than boys identified wearing nice "clothing", being "attractive", "mean", "snobby",…

The past two decades have seen a transformation in youth programming toward a comprehensive positive youth development (YD) framework. Cool Girls, Inc., a YD program, focuses on improving girls' life chances by promoting positive behaviors and attitudes in multiple domains. These include self-concept, academic orientation, future orientation, and…

The objective of this study was to examine the pattern of relations between missing weight and height (BMI) data and a range of demographic, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and academic measures in a young sample of elementary school children. A secondary analysis of a large cross-sectional study, PLAY-On, was conducted using self-reported…

Relatively little is known about the ways in which children understand and perceive how they learn tasks or skills in physical education classes. The purpose of this study was to use a constructivist framework to explore how children express their experiences, thoughts, and feelings about how they learn in physical education classes. A variety of…

The current study investigated the gender differences of gifted adolescents' math/verbal self-concept and math/verbal ability by examining the Internal/External Frame of Reference Model (I/E model; Marsh, 1986). The sample consisted of 181 gifted adolescents, ranging in age from 12 to 16 years old. Gifted adolescents' math/verbal ability was…

Youth strengths are as important to consider as deficits in understanding developmental outcomes and thus are an important component of psychoeducational assessment. Latino/as are understudied with regard to strength-based constructs, although cultural and socioeconomic factors may be related to differences in Latino/a parents' views of their…

This study explores the extent to which parental and peer behaviors and norms may affect substance use, personal antidrug norms, and intentions to use drugs in a group of Mexican heritage preadolescents in the Southwest United States, and whether these parental and peer influences differ according to gender. Secondary data from a randomized trial…

Success for All (SFA)[R] is a whole-school reform model that includes a reading, writing, and oral language development program for students in prekindergarten through eighth grade. Classroom reading instruction is delivered in daily 90-minute blocks to students grouped by reading ability. Immediate intervention with tutors who are certified…

Recent research has documented the persistence of unequal gender relations and homophobia in young people's lives. Feminist post-structural theories of gender and socio-cultural theories of learning suggest educators need to understand students' constructions of gender relations, masculine/feminine desires, and sexuality if they hope to challenge…

Numerous policies have been proposed at the local, state, and national level to restrict youth access to violent video and computer games. Although studies are cited to support policies, there is no published research on how children perceive the uses and influence of violent interactive games. The authors conduct focus groups with 42 boys ages 12…

In the inner-city of Washington, D.C., lives a generation of young people for whom violence, discrimination, and poverty are a daily reality. This article describes one youth organization that encourages these young people to voice their hopes and concerns for their community and work to create solutions. The out-of-school-time programming of…

To date, nearly all one-to-one literacy instruction is delivered in person, often in university-based reading clinic settings. This traditional tutoring format, however, has not met the needs or fit the schedules of many adolescents. Distance technology, accompanied with research that confirms literacy instructional components do remain intact,…

This guide is a starting point for parents, teachers, health professionals, law enforcement personnel, alcohol retailers, policymakers, and others who are concerned with the well-being of children. It describes three basic prevention strategies and ways they can be applied in the home, the school, and the community, and offers effective,…

Using written language of early adolescents at a California middle school, this study investigated seventh grade students' perspectives on the frequency of hearing and using homophobic name-calling, reasons such language gets used, and reactions to hearing others use it. Students reported widespread use of homophobic name-calling but disagreed…