Many parents find that the daily stress of coping with the demanding realities of their work lives leaves them with little personal and family time; playing with their children may therefore fall to the bottom of the "to-do list." One of the tasks of early childhood professionals thus becomes helping parents understand the nature and…

Events following children's imitation were observed. In the first study, immediate imitation of peers was observed during free play in four groups of preschoolers 23 months to 5 years of age. In the second study, immediate imitation of both peers and adults was observed in six groups of preschoolers 27 months to 5 years of age. (Author/RH)

Addresses four concerns raised by Bredekamp in her commentary on an earlier article by Fowell and Lawton. The earlier article proposed an alternative view of developmentally appropriate practices to that expressed in a position paper of the National Association for the Education of Young Children. (BB)

The interactions between adult and child in an open-ended preschool activity were studied with adult-child dyads. Two teachers and six children participated. Findings show that an important aspect of open-ended activity is the unfolding and developing of the activity, and that children are active partners in constructing the activity. (SLD)

Explores preschool teachers' ratings of both the perceived importance of and their comfort levels implementing interventions for children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Participants included 138 teachers from licensed child care facilities. Teachers concluded the majority of interventions were mostly important and believed they…

Recommends three videotapes for Head Start parents and staff, six videotapes for children, and four CD-ROMs for children. Describes the programs and provides information on recommended ages, suggested retail price, and publisher. (KB)

Lists goals of the Second Early Childhood Education and Care Symposium: develop concise list of outcomes from the first symposium; add urgent issues affecting young children to Global Guidelines; discuss issues in implementing Global Guidelines and the global state of early childhood education; and consider future actions for global early…

This study examined the impact of an intervention program targeted at teachers and designed to encourage father/male involvement in state-funded prekindergarten programs for at-risk children. Findings suggested that a significantly higher proportion of the parent involvement contacts and activities at the treatment site program involved…

Examined agreement between peer, self-, and teacher nominations for aggressor, victim, and defender. Found highest agreement for aggressor, between peers and self for victim and defender, and between teacher and peers for aggressor. Children were more likely to nominate children they liked most for any role and gave friends more victim…

In their teacher preparation and professional development training, early childhood teachers learn about the importance of play for children's development; yet they are rarely taught how to play with children. Once in the classroom, many teachers do not interact responsively to children's play; instead they ignore, interpret, or dominate the…

The purpose of this study was to investigate changes in externalizing and internalizing problem behaviours in 6-year-olds with a focus on sex differences. Teachers rated problem behaviours at the beginning and at the end of the school year, 8 months apart, in 370 children (197 boys and 173 girls) attending 22 school preparatory classrooms.…

High-quality preschool programs are essential to improving children's outcomes in reading achievement and leveling language and literacy disparities among students from diverse backgrounds. Grounded in state-of-the-art research evidence, this practice-oriented book demonstrates how preschool professionals can create, evaluate, and sustain…

Too many of our infants are deprived of mental stimulation in their first 5 years and haven't been talked to sufficiently to enable them to use language as a tool for thinking, a means of communication or an avenue of enquiry. Discusses a program designed to meet the language needs of preschool students. (Author/RK)

Investigates how teachers of young children typically evaluate their students' work, focusing on the standards applied. Includes issues and recommendations made after observing different standards. (AS)

Distinguishes between attachment (the relationship between infant and caregiver) and dependency (the reliance of the child on adults for nurturance, attention, or assistance). Assesses preschool children with varying attachment histories and suggests that the roots of overdependency lie in the quality of the early infant-caregiver relationship.…