Reviews Greenough, Black, and Wallace's (1987) conceptual framework for understanding the effects of early experience and sensitive periods on development, and illustrates the applicability of their model with recent data on the consequences for animals and human infants of the acquistion of self-produced locomotion. (BN)

The developmental pattern of concurrent synaptogenesis in rhesus monkeys is consistent with a straightforward model of relations between brain and cognitive development. Concurrent synaptogenesis is hypothesized to lay the primary cortical foundation for a series of developmental levels in middle infancy that have been empirically documented in…

Reviews early theoretical and research literature on handedness and places it within the larger context of the nature-nurture controversy. Discussion focuses on Baldwin's study of the development of hand preference in infants in relation to the recapitulation theory, mental development ("dynamogenesis"), and speech development.…

Reviews significant recent research and information related to the beginning period of human life, and specifically discusses the developing fetus and infant, and the surrounding environment in which the infant is born and reared. Suggestions for prevention of mental-health problems are offered. (Author/DB)

Discusses the problem of overweight and obese preschoolers, particularly those in an academic preschool situation, which traditionally allows children to function without specific objectives related to physical fitness. Offers recommendations for integrating a balanced fitness program. (Author/RWB)

Considers the nature and developmental functions of physical activity play. Distinguishes three kinds of physical activity play with consecutive age peaks: rhythmic stereotypies, exercise play, and rough-and-tumble play. Considers gender differences and function in terms of immediate and deferred consequences in physical, cognitive, and social…

Research examining the effects of sports participation on children and youth is reviewed from the perspective of psychological and physical development. Statistical information regarding the participation rate in different kinds of youth sports is given. The effects of prolonged athletic activity on bone, muscle, and adipose tissue growth is…

Organized in three parts, the nine brief chapters of this report aim to raise the information levels of policy makers and the public concerning several educational issues. After the first chapter's brief introductory indication of the purpose of the publication, chapter 2 provides an overview of changes that have marked the American scene since…

A key task for schools is to ensure that the conditions in which learning is to take place address the biological needs of the learners. This book examines sleep needs of adolescents and discusses the implications of these needs for school starting times. This book is a collection of five articles that appeared in a special section of the Phi…

The three papers included in this symposium discuss the relevance of Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development to the early childhood practitioner. First, an overview of Piaget's theory is presented. This focusses on the particular aspects of the theory most relevant to practitioners in early childhood education. Second, curriculum…

This paper examines the educational philosophy underlying Waldorf Education, focusing on Rudolf Steiner's concept of "vital" or etheric energy and comparing Piaget's and Steiner's stages of cognition. The paper begins with a discussion of school readiness and the trend toward lowering the school entry age, and maintains that this trend…

To assist the North Carolina League of Middle/Junior High Schools, this paper briefly surveys the literature on developmental characteristics of early adolescents and the characteristics of effective teachers and also discusses the implications of the findings for instruction and the curriculum. The authors first define early adolescence as the…

This book represents a synthesis of current knowledge about the physical, cognitive and social development of young children who live in the developing countries of Africa, Asia, Latin-America, and Oceania. The book develops five major themes: (1) It views child development in a comparative fashion, examining universal sequences in development as…