The ability to understand causal connections in narrative has been shown to be related to a variety of school-related skills such as reading, comprehension, and memory in adults, school-age children, and children with disabilities. Research also shows that there is a developmental trend in the ability to use and understand causal connections. This…

Play is a significant medium for children's literacy development. As children engage in play activities, they are given opportunities and the motivation to show what they already know about reading and writing systems. Previous literature has shown that a literacy-rich environment increases the number of literacy activities available through play.…

The collision of the childhood obesity epidemic with pressure to achieve high academic standards is of serious concern in the United States. Growing numbers of low-income, minority children face double jeopardy as alarming obesity rates further widen existing achievement gaps. Health and education disparities persist when children enter…

This study examined the relationship between attention problems and expressive language and academic readiness skills in preschool-aged children from middle-class families. Forty-three children (44% female) were assessed individually for expressive language skills and knowledge of basic academic concepts (e.g. colours, letters and numbers). The…

Home environment quality is a well-known predictor of school readiness (SR), although the underlying processes are little known. This study tested two hypotheses: (a) child language mediates the association between home characteristics (socioeconomic status and exposure to reading) and SR, and (b) genetic factors partly explain the association…

Arts enrichment provides varied channels for acquiring school readiness skills and may offer important educational opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds and with diverse needs. Study 1 examined achievement within an arts enrichment preschool that served low-income children. Results indicated that students practiced school readiness…

Many studies and reports in recent years have argued that there's an important "expectations gap" between the skills students are typically bringing to college and what college teachers think students should be bringing with them to college. This article, presented in the form of an open letter to first-year high school students, is an attempt…

This study evaluated the extent to which a range of risk factors (e.g., gender, race/ethnicity, low socioeconomic status) predicted kindergarten children's likelihood of later displaying recurring psychopathology. It used multilevel logistic regression to analyze teacher ratings of frequent and recurring externalizing and internalizing problem…

The random and sometimes erratic nature of state proficiency standards makes for an assessment system that is "slipshod," obscure, and potentially unreliable, contends an outspoken think tank's analysis of the testing benchmarks set by 26 states. The range of expectations--3rd grade reading proficiency can mean performing at the 6th…

Both as an 8th grader, and a 10th grader, Johnny may be on track for mastering the advanced reading skills he will need to succeed in college and the workplace. But by high school graduation, he and many other aspiring college students will likely be unprepared to tackle the complex reading and writing tasks they will encounter, a study set for…

The purpose of the study was to examine student teachers' perceptions of teaching writing in kindergartens and to identify to what extent the cooperating teachers influence the student teachers' perceptions. To achieve the research aims, a 31-item questionnaire was developed by the researchers and administered to 50 student teachers and their…

This study was designed to determine the contributions of metalinguistic skill and psycholinguistic processing ability to children's ability to detect the ambiguity of sentences and the relationship among all three factors to early reading ability. A total of 20 first graders and 20 second graders were given tasks testing the following abilities:…

Families in India face many challenges in caring for and educating their children with disabilities. India has enacted a landmark special education law, Persons with Disabilities Act of 1995, which provides schooling and services to all children. For some students with disabilities, however, integrated and special schools are providing schooling.…

Storytimes, lap-sit programs, and other services for young children are a major part of most public libraries' missions. According to children's librarians, these services play a significant role in preparing children for success as readers. This article discusses the positive relationship between children's services and early reading success by…

The aim of this study is to explore the possible relationships between the readiness and reading and writing performances of a group of children who are first graders in an elementary school in Turkey. The states of children in terms of school readiness, sound-letter relationships, and phonemic awareness were determined individually during the…