This article reports on Australian research investigating the meaning and function of prayer for children. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 60 primary school participants selected from six different schools in Melbourne, reflecting some of the diverse philosophical and religious traditions found in the Australian society. The three…

The key to improving the early education of all young children, including those with special needs, is the effective preparation and development of the professionals who work with them. "Practical Approaches to Early Childhood Professional Development" is a comprehensive planning resource for college faculty and consultants engaged in preservice …

This paper discusses the relationship between Lev Vygotsky's zone of proximal development and cooperative learning. Vygotsky (1896-1934), a Russian psychologist, formulated a theory that children first develop lower mental functions such as simple perceptions, associative learning, and involuntary attention; then, through social interactions with…

This paper describes the effects of poverty on the children of the Lower Mississippi Delta area and summarizes the literature on the relationships between childhood poverty and children's education. Topics covered in the literature review include: (1) the effects of child poverty on educational achievement; (2) the effect of early education…

Designed to provide practical and comprehensive assistance to family child care providers in a range of settings, this curriculum consists of two parts. Part 1, Setting the Stage, helps caregivers formulate a philosophy of child care, understand child development, prepare their homes, and plan their programs. It includes many ideas for making the…

Intended as support material for teachers in Tasmania, Australia, to develop their ideas and practices in teaching visual arts to elementary school students, this volume provides a framework for a working, personal curriculum document that can be expanded. The first section of the book deals with learning through the visual arts. It describes the…

Attempting to place in an American context many of the ideas about the teaching of writing that were first developed in England, this book contains contributions from internationally prominent teachers/scholars who attended the New York University-CBS Sunrise Semester course on learning to write and writing to learn. The text also reflects the…

The comprehension of written stories starts with learning to comprehend everyday situations, but it is the child's direct experiences with written stories that bring the process to fruition. These direct experiences with stories are generally of two types. Initially there is a storybook time, the occasions upon which a literate person, usually the…

This curriculum guide is designed to provide background information and a suggested format for instructors engaged in the training of child development associate (CDA) family day care providers in the competency goal of families. Part 1 provides the trainer with an overview of current research on families in family day care and their hopes and…

This book provides the motor development knowledge base and program planning procedures for developing the elementary physical education program. Part one is an overview of the motor development knowledge base and includes chapters on growth, how exercise affects children, motor skill development, how children learn motor skills, and psychosocial…

Based on Piaget's theory, this book discusses the educational value of group games for the young child's social and intellectual development, suggesting ways to select or modify both new and familiar games to make them more appropriate for children's learning. Part 1 of the book provides a theoretical introduction to what is meant by good group…

This handbook is intended for anyone interested in developing and teaching parenting and childrearing classes to parents of children up to and including 3 years of age. Part One, chapters 1 through 9, offers an overview of how to become an effective group leader. Part One, chapter 10 explains the format in which specific childrearing information…

Intended for teachers of preschool and kindergarten children, this manual is designed to share effective practices and products that have been either developed or refined by pre-elementary Right to Read programs. The first section of the manual discusses a variety of activities that focus on cognitive, language, personal/social, and motor…

This book represents an attempt to summarize those ideas, opinions, and facts that are influential in education and to compare and evaluate them on the basis of present-day knowledge and the author's personal experiences in the classroom. Part 1 examines the causes of learning difficulties, applications of neurophysiologic research, and the…

Results of the first 6 months of the Ypsilanti-Carnegie Infant Education Project are provided, including quantitative data and a case study, a discussion of the curriculum employed in the home and illustration of curriculum practices, and research design changes. The purpose of the project is to assess the effectiveness of systematic intervention…