In the 1960s at Stanford University's Bing Preschool, children were given the option of taking an immediate, smaller reward or receiving a delayed, larger reward by waiting until the experimenter returned. Since then, the "Marshmallow Test" has been used in numerous studies to assess delay of gratification. Yet, no prior study has…

Background: Students who do not acquire social and emotional skills are at risk for a range of negative outcomes that include emotional and behavioral disabilities, lower school achievement and school failure, peer rejection, substance abuse, and school dropout (Downer & Pianta, 2006; Riggs et al., 2006 Quinn & Poirier, 2004). Tools for…

Children's self-regulation, including components of executive function such as inhibitory control, is related concurrently and longitudinally with elementary school children's reading and math abilities. Although several recent studies have examined links between preschool children's self-regulation or executive function and their academic skill…

Transitional kindergarten--the first year of a two-year kindergarten program for California children born between September 2 and December 2--is intended to better prepare young five-year-olds for kindergarten and ensure a strong start to their educational career. The goal of this study was to measure the success of the program by determining the…

Transitional kindergarten--the first year of a two-year kindergarten program for California children born between September 2 and December 2--is intended to better prepare young five-year-olds for Kindergarten and ensure a strong start to their educational career. The goal of this study was to measure the success of the program by determining the…