This single-subject study compared the effectiveness of two intervention approaches, direct instruction and activity-based intervention, on acquisition and generalization of object names by six young children who were at risk or had developmental delays. Acquisition of object names was enhanced by use of highly structured didactic approaches to…

A naturalistic probe of early language content was administered to 31 normally developing preschool children. The productivity of 3 different strategies for eliciting 27 content categories was tested and the efficiency of the probe technique compared with analysis of language samples. Results suggest this nonstandardized, criterion-referenced…

This case study examined the effects of a Maori language and culture immersion preschool program on a preschooler's English and Maori language usage at home. School and home observations revealed the importance of the child's role in acquiring bilingual expertise, the presence of complementary activities at home, and shared cultural commitments.…

Examines the adaptive nature of prolonged human cognitive immaturity through developmental research in metacognition, egocentricity, plasticity, the speed of information processing, and language acquisition. Discusses the consequences of viewing children's immature cognition as adaptive for cognitive development and education. (Author/JB)

This article reviews data on problems in communicative development of maltreated children and discusses their implications for practitioners concerned with communicative development. The influence of social class and cultural factors is examined, and the impact of child maltreatment on communicative development from infancy up to school age is…

The study compared results of the Preschool Language Scale, administered to 214 rural and 214 suburban children in Nebraska. Both groups scored above age level, but a higher percentage of rural children failed a wide range of verbal ability and auditory comprehension items. The scale did not meet criteria for nonbiased, ecologically valid…

Twenty-seven American Indian children (ages 4-12), 10 with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) and 17 normally developing control subjects, were administered the Test of Language Development. FAS children exhibited depressed performance on most subtests. The older FAS children presented syntactic deficits whereas the younger FAS subjects presented more…

This paper presents data on contextual assessment issues, particularly in the area of communicative intent, that affect clinicians working with young children. Variables often overlooked in assessment are discussed, including task characteristics, opportunities available to the child, event context, maintaining joint attention, and responsivity.…

A study investigated the effects of using videotaped self-modeling on the acquisition of new linguistic structures used for requesting in three preschoolers with developmental disabilities. Participants were able to learn through self-modeling; however, initial difficulties with generalization to the classroom setting were found. (CR)

A questionnaire on their child's musical involvement and appreciation was completed by parents of 65 children who use cochlear implants. Findings indicated many of these children were involved in some type of formal or informal musical activity and few accommodations were provided in formal music classes. Correlations between speech measures and…

The National Early Literacy Panel (NELP) was appointed in 2002 and carried out its work under the auspices of the National Center for Family Literacy (NCFL). NELP's primary goal was to identify interventions, parenting activities, and instructional practices that promote the development of children's early literacy skills. The National Institute…

A study explored the vocabulary development available in a variety of current preschoolers' television shows. A quantitative analysis of seven programs on two networks (PBS and Nickelodeon) was undertaken over a total viewing time of 40 hours; a qualitative analysis of techniques used to present vocabulary was also documented for these shows.…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of seven chemistry learning centers for use in an ongoing preschool education program. The seven centers piloted were: (1) Observing Color Changes; (2) Making Bubbles; (3) Using a Thermometer; (4) Balancing; (5) Classifying Colors; (6) Cooking; and (7) Sink or Float. All of the centers…

Prior research on early lexical acquisition in bilingual infants has been used by Clark (1987) to support the Principle of Contrast, which states that every two forms contrast in meaning. In this study of an English-Spanish bilingual child, it is argued that the Principle of Contrast is not applicable to bilingual acquisition in general. Daily…

This monograph reports achievements of the SKI*HI project, a 3-year outreach project to improve access and development of services to presently unserved or underserved infants and young children with hearing impairments as well as to provide leadership and technical assistance to agencies implementing the SKI*HI model. The project provided direct…