Nowadays, classrooms include children coming from a wide range of cultures and speaking different languages. Teachers are therefore challenged to create appropriate learning opportunities for very diverse children. The current study examined the unique contribution of general classroom interaction, individual teacher-child interactions and…

In this observational study, male and female professional caregivers' (n = 42) levels of sensitivity and stimulation toward three-year-old children (n = 42) were observed in a semi-structured play situation. Further, sex roles of male and female caregivers were examined with the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). Male and female caregivers showed the…

This article describes a study on mutuality in mother-child interaction during reading and playing sessions. Within mother-child interaction, mutuality is seen as important in language acquisition. The study was executed within a group of Netherlands Antillean mother-child dyads who participated in an intervention programme. Mutuality was…

In Dutch Design and Technology Education the beginning of a process of learning is usually determined by the teacher. In this paper it is argued that a beginning, determined in interaction with the students, is more profitable as the interaction will lead to joined-up exploring, creating and thinking and an increased motivation to learn.…

In this paper, we analyse one aspect of home-school book sharing, namely the activity of borrowing a book. We describe how the borrowing activity is accomplished in daily practice in two Dutch preschools and which emergent literacy practices can be embedded in this routine. We followed fifteen children, aged from two years to four years, and…

This article demonstrates the effectiveness of applying the Diagnostic Intervention Model for fostering harmonious interactions by describing a single-case study. Changes in the caregiver's turn-giving had substantial effects on the child's turn-taking, regulation of intensity, and approving and disapproving answers. The interaction effects were…

This study investigated interactions between observed temperamental effortful control and observed parenting in the prediction of externalizing problems. Child gender effects on these relations were examined. The relations were examined concurrently when the child was 3 years old and longitudinally at 4.5 years. The sample included 89 two-parent…