The experiences and learning opportunities children are exposed to in pre-K give them a boost as they enter school. However, the positive effects of pre-K attendance on children's academic and cognitive skills become smaller and sometimes disappear by third grade due to non-attenders "catching-up" to their peers. To make pre-K programs…

Caring relationships among families and providers are at the heart of high-quality early care and education (ECE). This study examines relationships between parents and providers in a nationally representative sample of infants and toddlers and their families (N = 527) enrolled in the two-generation Early Head Start (EHS) program in the U.S. EHS'…

Going down a slide, dancing to music, and pushing someone on a tire swing are more than simply "play activities" or a means to staying physically fit. Engagement in motor play provides important opportunities for preschoolers to develop a variety of skills, including gross motor, social, communication, and cognitive skills. However,…

The Coping Power Program is an evidence-based intervention for children identified to be at risk for developing externalizing behavioral problems. The Coping Power Program has been adapted to universally prevent behavioral problems in school-aged children. This study sought to test the efficacy of this adaptation, the Coping Power Universal…

Pre-kindergarten (Pre-K) programs typically improve early academic skills, but those gains too often disappear after children transition to elementary school. At least three hypotheses explain this "fade-out" of Pre-K effects: Pre-K does not focus on the "trifecta skills" that uniquely support subsequent learning and…

The Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) is a statutory, summative teacher assessment against nationally prescribed criteria. It is completed for all children in state education in England in summer of the reception year, when September-born children are nearly 6 and summer-born children are turning 5. This research uses quantitative…

Precise assessment of school readiness is critical because it has practical and theoretical implications for children's school and life success. However, school readiness assessment mainly relies on teacher reports and a few direct evaluations requiring a trained examiner. Studies indicate that 80% of games and apps target preschool children and…

Early childhood mental health consultation (ECMHC) is a capacity-building intervention that aims to enhance the quality of young children's affective environments in order to promote children's social, emotional, and behavioral health. In this study, the effects of ECMHC on children's social-emotional and early academic outcomes over the course of…

School readiness of children from refugee backgrounds is not well documented throughout the sub-Saharan region. While evidence has documented the role of home learning environments on learning, little is known about the role of family socioeconomic status. The study recruited 400 pre-primary children, 100 parents, 16 teachers and 8 school…

Research on early intervention (EI) teachers' perceptions toward the educational placement of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has been limited. This study examined the influence of daily living skills (DLS) profiles on EI teachers' perception of educational placement in preschool students with ASD using vignettes featuring students…

Successful transition to kindergarten for children with disabilities is a complex process that can have long term effects on school success. Although attempts are made for a seamless transition, far too often the process lacks the communication, training, and high intensity transition supports needed for all the involved stakeholders. This study…

The purpose of this research is to analyse the nature of mothers' perspectives and engagements in supporting children's readiness and transition to primary school. This research considers how mothers in Indonesia prioritise certain aspects of school readiness and implement these in practice. This study was conducted using a qualitative approach.…

The current study investigated the prevalence and outcomes related to Head Start (HS) children's dual enrollment in state-funded prekindergarten (state Pre-K) using a secondary analysis of a statewide integrated administrative dataset (N = 2,986). It also explored whether a program partnership between HS and the local school district (within the…

This study utilized data from the Family Life Project (FLP) to examine Head Start children's school readiness skills at the end of preschool in comparison to two other care groups: home-based care and other center-based care. The FLP study enrolled a birth-cohort of 1,292 children born in two historically low-wealth, rural regions of the U.S.,…

Despite progress in enrolment in most countries, preschoolers still face challenges before joining grade one prompting a critical understanding of child experiences during the preschool-to-school transition. This paper compares preschool-to-school transition characteristics in Kenya and Hungary based on six recurrent concepts in the theories of…