A study examined theory of mind acquisition in 34 children (ages 5- 10) with deafness using four traditional false-belief tasks. Results indicate the age of the child was strongly related to theory of mind development and that the children were delayed by approximately 3 years in this cognitive developmental milestone. (Contains references.)…

Maintains that advances in the literature on perception-action development suggests that tool use may be a more continuous developmental achievement than previously believed. Suggests new research directions, including efforts to investigate the processes by which children detect and relate affordances between objects, coordinate spatial frames of…

Discusses the importance of Montessori's Practical Life exercises for building character and self-esteem, more concern for others, better understanding for academic learning, and a self-nurturing, respectful classroom community. Considers aspects of movement and silence exercises for developing the child's contemplative and reflective nature that…

Surveys constructivism and developmental psychology, including work by Piaget, Vygotsky, Bruner, Gardner, Kamii, and DeVries. Considers the influence of Montessori pedagogy on early childhood education in contrast to its neglect in professional literature. (JPB)

Examines Marilyn Zimmerman's pioneering work on the applications of Piagetian theory to the study of children's musical development. Discusses "music conservation" and addresses the Piagetian model regarding (1) the implications of the sociocultural perspective and (2) the study of musical creativity. Develops the concept of…

Discusses children's musical intuitions and two methods of meaning construction, pathmaking and mapmaking. Traces the work of one child who builds the tune Hot Cross Buns with Montessori bells and explains in detail the development. Considers educational implications. (CMK)

This article examines elementary music curricula. It presents an overview of research on childhood mental development; the importance of the early experiences of children on childhood development; the impact of environmental factors on language development; children's acquisition of music ability; enhancing elementary music curriculum; and…

Background: Fragile X syndrome is one of the world's leading hereditary causes of developmental delay in males. The past decade has witnessed an explosion of research that has begun to unravel the condition at its various levels: from the genetic and brain levels to the cognitive level, and then to the environmental and behavioural levels. Our aim…

The dramatic increase in our understanding of the brain's development throughout childhood has increased our knowledge of the significance of micronutrients, such as iron and vitamin B-12, for this development. Deficiencies of these micronutrients have been shown to have an impact on students' cognitive development. Regardless of this knowledge,…

Observing young children at play is a very common and useful method for identifying the presence or absence of certain developmentally appropriate skills. Such observations can vary from general overviews of typical classroom activities to extensive and highly detailed data-collection systems. Although educators should use a series of…

This study focuses on the ability of deaf children to predict the behaviours of other people, based on an understanding of their beliefs. An unexpected transfer task and a deceptive box task were used with a group of 55 severely/profoundly deaf children. Results reiterate the findings of other studies that many deaf children are grossly delayed in…

The ability to form secure attachments during early childhood promotes a lifetime of emotional health. This article describes emotional milestones for babies (i.e., activities that promote self-comfort and self-control), as well as for toddlers. In the case of toddlers, a profound emotional milestone that is accomplished during the first year is…

There is controversy over the basis for young children's experience of themselves and other people as separate yet related individuals, each with a mental perspective on the world--and over the nature of corresponding deficits in autism. Here we tested a form of self-other connectedness (identification) in children with and without autism, who…

Absent reference comprehension is a critical achievement of early development, yet little is known about its emergence. In the current study, 12- and 16-month-old infants' recognition of properties of mentioned absent things was used as an index of absent reference comprehension. Infants were presented with displays matching the color and prior…

The paper attempts some clarifications and differentiations concerning (1) Bick's classic distinction between states of helpless unintegration and states of defensive disintegration; (2) the difference between a state and a phase, and Bick's apparent challenge to some aspects of object relations thinking. The paper then lists some types of early…