This report examines the prevalence of selected accomplishments and difficulties in a national sample of 4,423 children from 3 to 5 years of age who had not yet started kindergarten. The data were collected as part of the 1993 National Household Education Survey (NHES). The report focused on 2,000 children who had turned 4 by the end of 1992 and…

This document reports the proceedings of a conference on early childhood and family research sponsored by the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF). Presentations at the conference consisted of reports of research, literature reviews, descriptions of projects funded by ACYF, and commentaries on research and practice in Head Start.…

Millions of children are hungry in America, and it is clearly time to make childhood hunger a national priority. To document the need, a comprehensive study of hunger among low-income families was developed by the Connecticut Association for Human Services. National replication of the study, the Community Childhood Hunger Identification Project…

This study examined the early childhood care of 4- to 5-year-old children in Nigeria. Data were obtained from 842 Parent Guardian Questionnaires from urban areas and 409 from rural areas. The first part of the report describes the characteristics of the sample population. These items include language used at home; household size and composition;…

The Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) provides 4-year-old children from low-income families with a comprehensive preschool experience that emphasizes their developmental, health, and nutritional needs, involves their parents, and responds to their family's social service needs. This annual report on the ECEAP discusses the…

The importance of integrating developmental research and social policy is becoming increasingly evident as researchers focus on ways to address the needs of children and families. This article discusses these developments, focusing not only on the possibilities but also on the challenges inherent in bridging the disparate worlds of research and…

Although an extensive body of literature exists on the impact of Head Start, very few studies have used an experimental design with random assignment, a key methodological component needed to increase the weight of evaluation findings. This study used a randomized design with a wide range of outcomes related to school readiness to assess the…

A survey of 171 American Indian women in California who were pregnant or parenting and were considered at risk for problem substance abuse covered demographic information; personal and family history; alcohol, tobacco, and drug use; HIV risk; and a needs assessment regarding health care, economic needs, and parenting and children's needs. (LP)

Reports a survey that documented the health and safety behaviors of parents of children in Head Start programs. Nearly all parents reported using car seats, teaching handwashing and pedestrian safety, and locking away medicine and alcohol. Sixty percent reported storing guns and bullets safely, possessing working fire extinguishers, and having…

Reviews the objectives from Healthy People 2000 that target children and youth in order to prevent cardiovascular disease in adults, identifying the status of those health objectives midway through the time frame allotted for their attainment and making recommendations for programming in light of whether the objectives will be attained. (SM)

Reports on a study of stressful life events (SLE's) among 1,114 urban Australian children ranging in age from 5-13. Finds that the children reported an average of six such events during their lifetimes. Also finds that children who experienced from 3-8 serious SLE's were rated as less well adjusted on a variety of behavioral measures. (CFR)

Black-white differences in infant mortality rate are examined for 38 large metropolitan statistical areas for 1982 through 1986. The most important difference predictor was a "segregation index" (residential dissimilarity) apparently independent of variation in median family income and poverty prevalence but possibly reflecting…

Presents the scientific basis for the impacts of the environment on children and describes the differences between adults and children in physical, biological, and social environments. The article highlights why children should not be treated as "little adults" in developing environmental policy. (GR)

The present study addresses the question of equality of access, as it relates to waiting time for specialised mental health treatment for children and adolescents. The aim was to investigate whether demographic, clinical factors and service-related factors were associated with waiting time. Data was based on a documentation system in which all…

Childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the U.S. University health and physical education programs have a unique opportunity to assist in childhood obesity prevention through service-learning programs. However, prior to the implementation of service-learning curricula, it is imperative to gain insight in the unique needs of the…