This volume consists of a series of technical reports on each of the individual test measures administered in both Years 1 and 2 of the Longitudinal Study of Disadvantaged Children and Their First School Experiences. Each report includes: (1) relevant background information concerning the task's purpose and related research findings; (2) general…

A current exploratory research project is directed toward developing means for gathering systematic data on nonverbal representation in young children. Tasks involving nonverbal representational functioning have been developed, evaluated in preliminary work with fifteen 4-year-old subjects, and revised. The revised series of tasks consists of four…

This report presents the results of a data analysis designed to determine (1) the relationship of measures of self-esteem and achievement motivation obtained in the Head Start year, kindergarten, and first grade to reading and mathematics achievement in the third grade, and (2) whether such measures can improve predictions made solely from a…

The Children's Auditory Discrimination Inventory (CADI) was used in the longitudinal study to evaluate the child's ability to identify, between two pictures that have been given oral word equivalents, the picture that represents the orally presented stimulus word. The task, which takes 10 minutes, uses 38 cards with two pictures on each and 38…

The Open Field Test was used to assess variables that might not be manifested in a more standard testing situation. In this test, the child was shown 10 standard play objects in the room, and was told to do anything he wished with the toys. The tester initiated no interaction with the child and responded minimally to any overture made by the…

The Johns Hopkins Perceptual Test, a brief measure of intelligence in children, requires the child to choose a form identical to a standard. It consists of 3 practice and 30 test items, all involving black geometric figures printed on white cards. There is one booklet for stimulus cards and one for response cards. The child is presented with a…

An adaptation of a technique devised by Mischel (1958) was used in the longitudinal study to measure delay of gratification. Adaptations involved (1) asking the child to identify the larger of two pieces of candy to facilitate comprehension of the rewards, (2) specifying a standard time limit for receipt of the delayed reward which would be…

The Motor Inhibition Test, which measures "impulse control," requires the child to perform three motor acts. These acts are: walking a distance of six feet on a five-ince wide runway; drawing a line, using ruler and pencil, between two points 8-1/2 inches apart; and winding a toy jeep up to the rear of a toy two truck, a distance of 30…

Data obtained from the administration of the Brown IDS Self-Concept Referents Test as part of the longitudinal study are provided and discussed. The Brown IDS Self-Concept Referents Test is a technique for assessing self-concept which uses a photograph of the young child to induce him to take the role of another toward himself. While looking at…

The Form Reproduction task was included in the longitudinal study test battery to: (1) examine visual-motor performance over time; (2) study processes associated with visual analysis and synthesis and visual-motor integration; and (3) examine its predictive validity for later academic/skill behaviors, e.g., writing. Form Reproduction in Year 1…

The Massad Mimicry Test is an individually administered task for 3-1/2--4-1/2 year-old children. Part I evaluates the child's ability to reproduce phonemes in 30 nonsense words upon hearing each no more than three times from a tape recorded model. Similarly, Part II assesses the child's ability to reproduce meaningful words and phonemes as they…

Developed specifically for the ETS-Head Start Longitudinal Study, the ETS Enumeration I and II Test is designed to measure early numerical ability. Enumeration I tests the ability to itemize each member of a set by using a task that requires neither counting nor reciting the names of numerals. The purpose of the task is to assess the child's…

The ETS Story Sequence task was designed to assess the young child's understanding and use of language in story sequence using receptive and productive skills. The stimulus materials are black and white cartoon-type drawings on cards. Story Sequence I used in Years 1 and 2 of the study consists of two practice items (3 cards each) and two test…

The Matching Familiar Figures Test is a measure of the response style "reflection-impulsivity." The version of the test used in the longitudinal study test battery consists of two practice and 18 test items. On each item, the child is shown one standard and four comparison figures. Figures are simple line drawings done in black on a…

The Sigel Object Categorization Test (SOCT) is used for studying classification abilities in young children, the criteria for which is considered indicative of both cognitive ability and style. The test consists of two types of stijuli--one set of 12 relatively familiar three-dimensional objects and a second set of colored photographs of these…