Purpose: Reading involves the ability to decode and draw meaning from printed text. Reading skill profiles vary widely among learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). One fairly common pattern is relative strength in decoding combined with weak comprehension skills--indicators of this profile emerge as early as the preschool years. In order…

Purpose: Reading involves the ability to decode and draw meaning from printed text. Reading skill profiles vary widely among learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). One fairly common pattern is relative strength in decoding combined with weak comprehension skills--indicators of this profile emerge as early as the preschool years. In order…

"The Advanced Montessori Method, Volume 1" was published in 1918 in English and is considered a seminal work along with "The Montessori Method." In the foreword to this book, Mario Montessori writes: "...the refulgent figure of the child, Dr. Montessori pointed out, who had found his own path to mental health, who…

This paper presents a vignette of our development of a robot-based app sponsored by the corporation producing the robot. The discussion in this paper begins with the affordances of humanoid robots that enable transformative pedagogical approaches to address children's needs. Next, we present our design case, where we develop a humanoid robot-based…

Once the reasons for habitual observation in the classroom have been established, and the intent to observe has been settled, the practical details of observation must be organized. In this article, O'Shaughnessy gives us a model for the implementation of observation. She thoroughly reviews Montessori's work curves and how they can be used to show…

Executive functions enable children to pay attention, follow instructions, apply what they have learned, have those "aha!" moments in which they grasp how multiple facts interrelate, think of creative solutions, obey social norms such as waiting their turn and not butting in line or jumping out of their seat, mentally construct a plan,…

Self-regulation lays the foundation for positive social relationships and academic success. In this article, we provide an overview of self-regulation and the key terms related to selfregulation, such as executive function. We discuss research on how self-regulation develops and connections between self-regulation and social and academic outcomes.…

Purpose: The ability to focus and sustain one's attention is critical for learning. Children with autism demonstrate unusual characteristics of attention from infancy. It is reasonable to assume that early anomalies in attention influence a child's developmental trajectories. Therapeutic interventions for autism often focus on core features of…

Young children who experience severe deprivation or neglect can experience a range of negative consequences. Neglect can delay brain development, impair executive function skills, and disrupt the body's stress response. This working paper from the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child explains why neglect is so harmful in the…

In his monumental research, although Piaget primarily relayed information about children's developmental stages of cognitive growth, Marian Marion goes on to discuss not only the developmental stages, yet focuses on how children think. In her textbook, "Guidance of Young Children", Marion conveys how teachers need to understand children and help…

Self-control is a skill that children need to succeed academically, socially, and emotionally. Brain regions essential to self-control are immature at birth and develop slowly throughout childhood. From ages 3 to 6 years, as these brain regions become more mature, children show improved ability to control impulses, shift their attention flexibly,…

Young children's skilled generalization of newly learned nouns to new instances has become the battleground for two very different approaches to cognition. This debate is a proxy for a larger dispute in cognitive science and cognitive development: cognition as rule-like amodal propositions, on the one hand, or as embodied, modal, and dynamic…

Recently an earnest, brilliant, and learned Italian woman, Dr. Maria Montessori, has become famous, probably beyond her desire, for her contribution to the knowledge of little children and for the embodiment of her own and the discoveries of others in what she likes to call "a method of a new science of education." Her scientific investigations as…

"Educating the Human Brain" is the product of a quarter century of research. This book provides an empirical account of the early development of attention and self regulation in infants and young children. It examines the brain areas involved in regulatory networks, their connectivity, and how their development is influenced by genes and…

Print referencing is an evidence-based strategy that may be used by speech-language pathologists and other early childhood specialists to enhance the emergent literacy skills of young children. Print referencing is a strategy implemented within the context of adult-child shared storybook reading interactions, and specifically refers to the use of…