Used structural equation techniques to evaluate model predicting children's (n=1,742) developmental status, taking into consideration demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of mother and her household, characteristics of child at birth, and quality of home environment. Children's developmental status was related strongly and positively to…

The paper discusses research and research applications regarding the exceptional child and the physical environment, and presents ways in which space can have an impact on learning and development. An argument is made for the creation of research based design principles based on knowledge of the relations between the physical environment and the…

Understanding how children think about the needs of animals may aid bridging from how they care about individual animals to caring about the environment more generally. This study explored changes with age in children's conceptions of animals' needs, including how such conceptions may extend beyond the individual animal to larger systems and…

Children and adolescents have different understandings of death. For the baby, death is equated with separation. For toddlers, grief occurs when they realize the person is not returning. The preschool child who tends to live in the present with no clear concept of past or future will not understand the finality. Around ages 4 and 5, death is often…

Explores ways in which mothers in two Chicago neighborhoods share the possibility of danger with their children. Ten mothers in public housing and 10 in a nearby community were interviewed. Findings raise critical issues for those concerned with children's mental health and development. (SKC)

Provides one possible meaning for Native American chemical use by exploring the factors that create its context. Explores the implications that follow for the area of substance abuse prevention. Outlines the appropriate components of a prevention program. (RC)

This paper reviews how cascading levels of contextual influences, starting with family factors and extending to neighborhood and school factors, can affect children's behavioral and emotional development. The ability of contextual factors to trigger or to attenuate children's underlying temperament and biological risk factors is emphasized.…

Provides brief case study of a child care worker in a children's residence and describes the following: (1) the personal ingredients of care giving and care receiving; (2) how spatial arrangements influence daily experience; (3) group living as an everyday life experience; and (4) residential life as a prelude to and extension of a child's home…

Using a four-level sequential model of work task mastery, proposes a process task approach to task learning involving watching and listening, assisting, participating, and performing. Identifies the social, cognitive, and self-concept components contributing to the development of traits, attitudes, and values that undergird work behavior. (RC)

In this year's Distinguished Educator department, we feature six educators whose research has focused on the role of early literacy in early childhood education. Each of the six addresses a vitally important aspect of early childhood literacy teaching and learning. Sections include: "Working with Families as Partners in Early Literacy," by Dorothy…

This paper describes an ongoing project on the nature and effects of family structure and family interaction. The research presented involves the study of normal families, emphasizing the effects of system-level variables on the development of children within the family. A theoretical model is provided which focuses on the individuation process,…

This paper focuses on the distinctive characteristics of urban environments, the ways these environmental features affect city children, and the roles that schools can play in modifying these effects. Bronfenbrenner's multilevel framework for studying the ecology of human development is described. Recognizing the central role that families play in…

Traces the process of gender identity through the period of development and links it to social competence. Describes three stages--gender awareness, gender orientation, and gender identity--and outlines their characteristics. Discusses implications of this view, especially in relation to Bem's concept of androgyny. (Author/KH)

This document was prepared to help parents, educators, and concerned citizens better understand how children and adolescents actually learn. True learning involves: (1) developing a passion for learning; (2) acquiring communication skills; (3) constructing new knowledge; (4) taking part in concrete activities; and (5) developing problem solving…

This paper addresses the task of the family therapist who is called upon when remediation attempts between school and family fail to produce favorable results with a child identified as a problem pupil. The job of the therapist in dismantling the system that is detrimental to the child and reorganizing one that enhances development is discussed…