The central question in this study is whether individual variability in children's cortisol levels and wellbeing at childcare can be explained by indices of quality of care and child characteristics. Participants were 71 children from childcare homes and 45 children from childcare centers in the age range of 20-40 months. In both types of settings…

This study investigated the development and correlates of language use in bilingual Turkish-Dutch immigrant mothers and their toddlers. In this short-term longitudinal study 87 mothers completed questionnaires on their Dutch and Turkish language use, ethnic identity and use of childcare. Observational data were obtained for maternal supportive…

Background: Previous studies indicate that children may experience disrupted cortisol secretion in child care. The extent to which this is a transient or long-term disruption is not known, as most studies have relied on cross-sectional designs, and age-heterogeneous small sample sizes. This study aims to (a) compare cortisol secretion measured at…

The purpose of this study was to describe the quality of toddler child care classrooms in the district of Porto, in the north of Portugal. One hundred and sixty classrooms for children between 1 and 3 years of age participated in this study. Results suggested the existence of poor average quality and absence of good-quality classrooms. Child-adult…

Kansas Early Head Start (KEHS) provides comprehensive services following federal Head Start Program Performance Standards for pregnant women and eligible families with children from birth to age 4. KEHS was implemented in 1998 using Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) quality set-aside dollars augmented by a transfer of federal…

Since 2000, Maryland has provided state supplemental funds to Head Start and Early Head Start (EHS) programs to improve access. Local EHS programs may use funds, through child care partnerships, to extend the EHS day or year. Maryland's approach to building on EHS includes: (1) Increase the capacity of existing Head Start and EHS programs to…

Research Findings: Recent work has demonstrated that the changes young children experience in their child care settings before age 5 may be related to subsequent development, especially social development. Several of these studies have included samples of middle-class children, with almost no emphasis on understanding these processes for…

With economic pressures on families increasing, more women are working outside the home leaving their children in day care centres. In a community-based, descriptive cross-sectional study, the feeding pattern in two groups of children under two years old, cared for in two different rearing environments: home environment and day care centres, was…

In the summer of 2009, ZERO TO THREE commissioned Hart Research Associates to conduct a survey among parents of children from birth to 36 months old. This survey of 1,615 parents provides insight on the experiences of parents today and the factors that influence their approach to parenting. The survey also explores those on whom they rely for…

Despite the abundance of research on attachment and on the effects of separation, very little research examines the actual processes of separation occurring daily when mothers leave their children (age 6-18 months) in out-of-home group care. In the current study, this everyday process of separation was observed for three months…

The federal Early Head Start (EHS) program was created in 1994 to address the comprehensive needs of children under age 3 in low-income families and vulnerable low-income pregnant women. In addition to early learning opportunities, EHS's comprehensive early childhood development programs provide children and families with access to a range of…

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of variations in presentation of play materials on social behaviour of 18- to 30-month-old children. The study group included 102 children attending infant and toddler classes in 14 public childcare centres in Israel. Play materials were presented to the children either in a suggestive manner…

This paper focuses on one aspect of continuity--the caregiver-child relationship--within a larger global study of continuity in child care based at a university-affiliated child care center. Case studies are presented of two toddler boys, followed as they transitioned from their infant classroom to the preschool classroom at the age of…

Despite the increasing demand for early child care and education (ECCE) services in Greece, the availability of such services continues to be rather limited compared to other European countries. In accordance, the relevant research, especially for children under 3 years of age, is almost nonexistent. This article discusses in brief some findings…

This article examines how very young children in a day care center make use of their peers' gaze shifts to differentially locate and prepare for the possibility of a caregiver intervention during situations of their biting, hitting, pushing, and the like. At issue is how the visible character of a gaze shift--that is, the manner in which it is…